The difference between Architecture and architecture is completely based on the perspective of an individual. Different definitions have been developed through time as architecture evolves.

I see Architecture as the development and design of a space. It can be as little as a house to as big as an entire community. Buildings do not just appear from night to day. There is so much more behind the walls and roof. The architect team on the project has to develop ideas with the clients' budget, needs, and wants. Several design schemes can be developed and also rejected, but this entire process to me is Architecture- not only the end result. It does not matter what size or codes have to be followed. Residential firms still create Architecture because homes have to be developed in the same way. Yes, homes are not as time consuming as commercial projects, but they still require a team to develop a design. Over the summer I interned with a residential firm, and although the design team did not have a licensed architect, Architecture was still being created. There was the process with the audit, construction documents, build of materials etc. - these steps are the work of Architecture.

In addition, architecture with a lowercase a is what an everyday person sees. It is the house they live in, the building they walk through, what they see on the exterior etc. Someone who has not studied architecture is not aware of the process of the building itself. They may think a building looks nice and the architects' purpose behind it was only aesthetics. However, you and me both know that there is a reason for everything. We all know that if it is not needed, unless the budget allows for it, then it will be cut from the project. Also, they may not think of a community as Architecture as a whole. The sidewalks have to all coincide and be thought out, the parks have to be designed to best fit the community, and many other things that an Architect can also develop.

Refabricating Architecture states that everyone involved in the development is the architect in Architecture- with a capital A. However, I do not coincide with the idea that the client is also the architect. Their contribution is merely the budget, their preference, and their need; this is only the beginning of the process. The long hours and perfection are met by the architects themselves when the deadline comes around. I do agree that engineers play a significant role in architecture, but this does not make them the architect. They work with what the architect has already designed. If the engineer says something does not work, then the architect makes the changes required.  Ships  and planes are their own type of design- not architecture. The suggestion of architects following their design process is a good point. After all as imaginative and creative as architects can be, they always steal ideas and incorporate them into their own design.