What is a Bubble Diagram?

Bubble diagrams are systems of lines and circles used in architecture to show relationships between functional areas of a program to develop an architectural plan.^[1] Bubble Diagrams are used in architectural practice and pedagogy as a method to convert an (architectural) programme list into a structured format. This step is the connection between the listing down of all the spatial requirements of a building, and converting it into an arrangement of rooms or spaces in an architectural plan.^[2] It is the information of connectivity between the spaces, that is added in.

In a simple example of the spaces in a house, the Kitchen Space and Dining Space maybe connected, since their functions depend on each other. This information is portrayed by drawing the spaces as “Nodes” or “Vertices”, and connecting the relevant nodes with Lines or “Edges”. This information when drawn as a 2D “Graph”, results in a “Bubble Diagram” or “Network Diagram”, connecting all the different spaces as intended. This diagram allows us to understand the functional relationships of the different spaces, and place them adjacent, close or far away as the case maybe.

^[1] Paul Emmons, The Cosmogony of Bubble Diagrams, University of Pennsylvania
https://www.acsa-arch.org/proceedings/Annual%20Meeting%20Proceedings/ACSA.AM.86/ACSA.AM.86.86.pdf
^[2] Keller, Sean. “Fenland Tech: Architectural Science in Postwar Cambridge.” Grey Room, no. 23 (2006): 40-65. Accessed August 11, 2020. www.jstor.org/stable/20442720.