The Tao of Internet Architecture

Recently I have been reviewing some of the projects that I put online some years ago – via a very useful server which permits us to look back on the history of web publications. Seeing some of the earlier work which I developed as part of learning experiences and in many cases simply because the subject matter interested me, prompted the idea of taking this blog and using it as a means of archiving some of my own material.

One of the first project which I stumbled across whilst meandering over the electronic landscape of my past was some extracts from a wonderful book written by Bruce Lee; The Tao of Jeet Kune Do which I have enjoyed reading many times over the years. Contained within this modern masterpiece are such jewels as;

‘The point is the doing of them rather than the accomplishments.
There is no actor but the action; there is no experiencer but the experience.’
- Bruce Lee –

There is no doubt that much of what I have learned from Bruce Lee’s teachings have affected the approach toward my life and certainly my work, particularly in terms of thinking about how my electronic project evolves. Bruce was an artist, in every sense of the word, his life was an expression of his art, not by what he did but by what he was; how he lived. Like all of the great masters, Bruce Lee saw the simplicity of everything and translated it into his Art, into the way he moved and communicated. Whilst I would not presume to understand speak on his behalf, he left behind many of his thoughts in the form of notes and inspirations which occurred to him and these have been transformed into what is now known as his Tao of Jeet Kune Do.

During the time that I lived in Tuscany, I had the opportunity to develop some websites which came as a direct inspiration from living in such a marvelous place. A 16th century villa on 29 hectares of land adjoining a national park, 30 minutes from Florence, had the desired effect and in during those 12 months and many long hours by the fireplace, I was able to produce about 22 websites of various sizes and genre.

As I look at the evolution of my work and thinking regarding project architecture for internet there are clear elements of the lessons which came from the words of all the great masters. Bruce Lee, Leonardo da Vinci, Albert Einstein and many, many others... simplify, reduce, take away all that is not necessary, true beauty will emerge as a result of making the meaning evident in the most efficient and intuitive manner possible.

Today, when considering a new project or altering an existing piece of work, these very principles are the foundation of clarifying the objective and in turn the method of execution. This site went online in August of 2002 and when I look at it today it’s still relevant and has not fallen into the wasteland of internet rubble – For that I would like to say ‘thanks’ to Bruce.

http://www.ciaodarling.com/august2002/brucelee.htm