REGIONAL characteristics that for centuries have been expressed in the building arts are no longer a predominant factor in design. Instead, regionalism is considered a limiting, even negative, term. Among elements that in the past have characterized a regional zone, one can include physical and economic factors such as procurability of basic materials, climatic factors (temperature, wind, snow, rain, etc.), topography (plain, hilly, mountainous terrains, riverfront, seafront, etc.), and social elements such as historical and cultural traditions. Although a simplified generalization, the similarity of major buildings all over the world testifies to the independence of architecture from regional barriers. In the area of dwelling construction, particularly in the United States, regional differences are minute; houses thousands of miles apart are identical.
The decline of regional characteristics in building can be traced to many sources. The expansion of industrial systems in the production of basic construction materials has freed regional building expressions from limitations imposed" by local products. Rapid progress in transportation has made it economically feasible to ship bulk products long distances. With the technical evolution of heating, cooling, and related mechanical systems, climatic elements have lost in importance. The development of earthmoving machines has greatly reduced the influence of topography on the design of buildings. Finally, from a social point of view, one notices a general tendency toward a universal culture that goes beyond regional limitations of the past.
Disregard for natural conditions which force buildings into artificial surroundings created by technological power is a tragic mistake that mankind now recognizes. Indifference toward nature not only creates many ecological problems but also, in the author's opinion, violates basic principles of design; in other words, the solution to a problem must always be obtained by using the data and not by changing or ignoring them arbitrarily to adopt convenient results.