L5: Traditionalism, New Urbanism and Structuralism

Prince Charles III

• adheres to traditionalist architecture which includes the classical elements of style

RIBA

Royal Institute of British Architects

New Urbanism

• proposed by Charles is seen in his “A vision of Britain.”

Seaside Development, U.S.A.

• example of new urbanism as envisioned by Robert Davis (developer) and designers Andres Duany and Elizabeth Plater -Zyberk

Structuralism

• a building’s form and meaning are determined by its underlying structure, which emphasizes the interconnectedness of its many parts.

Functionalism

• lifeless expression of urban planning that ignored the identity of the inhabitants and urban forms.

Structural

• is a theoretical paradigm emphasizing that elements of culture must be understood in terms of their relationship to a larger, overarching system or structure.

Aldo Van Eyck

“A house must be like a small city if it’s to be a real house; a city [must be] like a large house if it’s to be a real city.”

Aldo Van Eyck

• Dutch Architect

• Team X

• Criticized early post-war architecture as lacking a human element.

• “The Aesthetics of Numbers” (A Study of Spatial Configurations in Architecture)

• Works: Amsterdam Orphanage

Herman Hertzberger

“In Structuralism, one differentiates between a structure with a long life cycle and infills with shorter life cycles.”

Herman Hertzberger

• Dutch Architect and Team X

• Taught at TUDelft

• Part of the infamous FORUM editorial (with van Eyck)

• Works: Dragoon Housing - “Such a home should not be an appliance, like a shaver, but an instrument, like a violin that only starts to sound in the user's hand.”

Piet Blom

“Architecture is more than creating a place to live, you create a society.”

Piet Blom

• Dutch Architect

• Started as a carpenter and architectural designer

• Was a student of van Eyck

• Did not have a very prolific career because he was rarely willing to compromise his unconventional ideals

• Remained steadfast to structuralist principles

• Architecture for life

• Works: Kubuswoningen/Cube House - “a building has to be recognizable as a house for it to qualify as housing.”