Modern Architecture: Transformations and Key Figures

modern architecture

(adj.) relating to the present or recent times as opposed to the remote past.

modern

(noun) a person who advocates or practices a departure from traditional styles or values.

Modernism

Although some say it is rooted in the Period of Enlightenment, it is mostly a 20th century construct.

Modernist Architecture

Single most important new style or philosophy of architecture and design of the 20th century.

Modernist Architecture

Rejecting ornament and embracing minimalism (functionalism).

Cultural Transformations

New societal needs = new building types.

Territorial Transformations

Changes in the geographical and political landscape affecting architecture.

Structural Transformations

Innovations in building techniques and materials that influence architectural design.

Neoclassicism

Growing nationalistic fervor (due to independence) leading architects to establish unique national identities.

Rococo and Baroque

Styles that symbolized excess, artifice, and corruption.

A Rational Architecture

Architecture needs to go back to its essential elements, freed of deceptive overlay.

Enlightenment Rationalism

Basis of architecture should be science (as opposed to reverence for and emulation of archaic traditions and beliefs).

Marc-Antoine Laugier's "primitive hut"

A concept emphasizing pure, uncorrupted meanings in architecture.

Boullee's proposed Cenotaph a Newton (1784)

An architectural proposal that embodies Enlightenment Rationalism.

Education of the Architect

Teaching responsibilities of design: the duty of the architect or other educated person as a citizen.

Peter Behrens

An influential architect of the early 20th century known for his modernist designs.

Walter Gropius

A key figure in modern architecture and founder of the Bauhaus school.

Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe

A prominent architect known for his minimalist style and the phrase 'less is more'.

Le Corbusier

A pioneering architect who contributed significantly to modern architecture and urban planning.

Mass production

The manufacturing of goods in large quantities, influencing the design of factories and commercial buildings.

Transportation and communication

Infrastructure developments such as trains, newspaper presses, post offices, and telegrams.

Government buildings and facilities

Structures designed to serve the administrative functions of a state.

Commercial buildings

Structures designed for business purposes, including multi-level department stores.

Post-Renaissance Period

A historical period marked by revolutions and a search for new meanings in architecture.

Historical references

Roots for the establishment of national architectural styles during the Revivalism period (1800-1850).

Classical order

Architectural styles strongly associated with government buildings.

Age of Enlightenment

A period that emphasized reason and science in the development of architecture.

Architectural period

A time frame in which certain styles and philosophies dominate architectural design.

History and Theory of architecture

Became part of an architect's education.

Grand Tours

Trips to Greece and Rome where styles were noted, measured, and codified.

Vitruvius

Early ideas of a perfect architecture that were being challenged.

Territorial Transformations

New political states leading to volatile growth.

Industrial population

Drop in mortality due to medical advancements resulting in an increase in population.

Congested environments

Characterized by inadequate standards of light, ventilation, open space, poor sanitary facilities, and primitive drainage systems.

Rise in epidemics

Led to reforms in housing systems.

Streatham Street Flats

Designed by Henry Roberts, stacking apartments in pairs with a common staircase.

Society for Improving the Conditions of the Labouring Classes

Erected the Streatham Street Flats.

Streatham Street Flats capacity

Could fit 48 families.

Working-class architecture

Early example represented by the Streatham Street Flats.

Georges-Eugène Haussmann

Tasked to give Paris air and open space, connect and unify different parts of the city, and make it more beautiful.

Haussmann's impact on Paris

Converted Paris into a regional metropolis, linking opposite cardinal points and districts.

General Plan for Riverside

Designed by Frederick Law Olmstead in 1869, inspired by the winding Des Plaines River.

Curvilinear streets

Created a series of streets that wound across each other, resulting in tiny triangular mini-parks.

Garden City Diagram

Presented by Ebenezer Howard, idealized a city housing 32,000 people on a site of 3,600 ha.

Howard's city design

Featured concentric patterns with open spaces, public parks, and six radial boulevards, 120 ft (37 m) wide.

Structural Steel

Replaced cast iron as a primary structural material, enabling skyscrapers and long-span structures.

Reinforced Concrete

Concrete with steel reinforcement, patented by François Hennebique in the late 19th century.

Precast Concrete Elements

Allowed for faster and more efficient construction.

Glass Innovations

Larger, uniform glass panes influencing modern facades.

Safety Glass

Laminated glass, patented in 1903, increased safety in windows and doors.

Aluminum

Lightweight, corrosion-resistant, ideal for decorative elements and later, curtain walls.

Asphalt and Bitumen

Used for paving roads and roofing material, widely available due to advances in petroleum refining.

Skyscraper Construction

Utilizes steel framing and reinforced concrete.

William Le Baron Jenney

Built the Home Insurance Building in 1884.

Curtain Wall Systems

Non-load-bearing facades used in buildings like the Hallidie Building (1918) by Willis Polk.

Suspension Bridges

Advances in steel cable-making allowed for longer-span suspension bridges.

Brooklyn Bridge

Completed in 1883, an example of a suspension bridge.

Elevators

Hydraulic and electric elevators perfected in the late 19th century made tall buildings more practical and accessible.

Elisha Otis

Inventor known for developing the safety elevator.

Structural Transformations

Changes in building techniques from load-bearing masonry to steel frames.

Load-Bearing Masonry

Traditional construction method using heavy masonry walls.

Steel Frames

Lightweight structural system allowing for greater design flexibility.

Prefabrication

Construction method using pre-made components for efficiency.

Modular Systems

Construction approach using standardized components for consistency.

Bibliotheque Sainte-Genevieve

Library in Paris designed by Labrouste, showcasing innovative architecture.

St. Pancras Station

London station with a clear span of 71.3 meters, built in 1863.

Palais des Machines

Exhibition hall in Paris with a span of 115 meters, built for the 1889 Exposition.

Heinrich Wofflin

Art historian who emphasized the structural logic in architecture.

Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe

Architect known for his minimalist and functional design principles.

Walter Gropius

Founder of the Bauhaus, advocating for the unity of arts and industrial production.

Primacy of Function and Utility

Design principle prioritizing the function of a building over aesthetics.

Peter Behrens

Architect and designer influential in the development of modern industrial architecture.

Jugenstil

Art movement in Munich characterized by youthful and abstract geometrical forms.

Deutsche Werkbund

Organization of architects and designers promoting the integration of art and industry.

AEG Turbine Factory

Factory designed by Behrens, showcasing clarity of form through function.

Fagus Shoe Factory

Building designed by Gropius, inspired by Behrens' AEG Turbine Factory.

Bauhaus

School founded by Gropius focusing on the unity of architecture, painting, and sculpture.

Normative Industrial Standards

Guidelines established for industrial production and design practices.

Bauhaus Schools

Institutions located in Weimar, Dessau, and Bernau focusing on modern design education.

Training at the Bauhaus

Duration of 1/2 to 3 years focusing on theory of forms, colors, and building construction.

Großgarage Süd

Innovative building in Halle (Saale) completed in 1929, featuring advanced elevator technology.

Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe

An architect known for his modernist designs and principles, including 'Less is more.'

Lake Shore Drive Apartments

A residential building designed by Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe in Chicago, completed between 1948-51.

Werkbund Housing Exhibition

An exhibition held in Stuttgart, Germany in 1927 showcasing the best in housing design and avant-garde architecture.

Barcelona Pavilion

The German pavilion designed by Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe for the 1929 Barcelona international trade fair, known for its single space delineated into subsidiary spaces.

Irony of Barcelona Pavilion

The pavilion required hand-assembly to achieve its apparent mechanical simplicity.

Mies Van Der Rohe's design principles

Principles that emphasize creating architecture from the nature of the task, the people, and the time.

Le Corbusier

An influential architect known for his theories on socially responsive architecture and modernist design.

L'Esprit Nouveau

A journal published by Le Corbusier containing theories of socially responsive architecture.

Vers Une Architecture

A book by Le Corbusier published in 1923, advocating for a new approach to architecture based on functionality.

The house is a machine for living in

A famous quote by Le Corbusier emphasizing the functional nature of residential architecture.

Le Corbusier's 5 points of architecture

A set of principles proposed by Le Corbusier that outline modernist architectural design.

Pilotis

A grid of slim reinforced concrete pylons that assume the structural weight of a building, freeing the ground floor circulation.

Open plan

The absence of load-bearing partition walls allowing greater flexibility in design and use of living spaces.

Free design of the façade

The principle that the exterior of a building is free from conventional structural restrictions, allowing for a lighter and more open façade.

Horizontal ribbon windows

Windows that light rooms equally, increasing the sense of space and seclusion.

Roof garden

Flat roofs with garden terraces that serve both harmonic and domestic utility.

Social and technological transformations

Changes in society and technology that influence architectural design and principles.

Rise of industrial production

The increase in industrial manufacturing that influenced the design principles of architects like Mies and Le Corbusier.

Digital production

The use of digital technology in architecture that influences design and production today.