History and Principles of Modern Architecture

Zeitgeist: The ’spirit of the age’ referring to the cultural, social, and technological mindset of a specific era.
Neue Sachlichkeit: A German movement from the $1920s$ that prioritized practical, functional, and unornamented design over Expressionism.
Chicago window: A three-part window design used in early skyscrapers, featuring a fixed center pane and two smaller operable side windows.
Truss: A structural, typically triangular, framework used for spanning large distances and supporting loads efficiently.
Prefabrication: The process of manufacturing components off-site and assembling them on-site for improved speed.
Curtain wall: A non-load-bearing exterior glass wall suspended from a building's structural frame.
Ornament and Crime: An essay by Adolf Loos that argues decorative ornament is unnecessary and regressive.
Prairie School: An early $20th$ century American style by Frank Lloyd Wright characterized by horizontal lines and landscape integration.

Constructivism: A Soviet movement using modern materials and geometric forms for social and industrial purposes.
Expressionism: An architectural movement emphasizing emotion, dramatic forms, and innovative materials.
Art Deco: A $1920s$ – $30s$ decorative style featuring luxury, geometric patterns, and modern materials.
De Stijl: A Dutch movement associated with Piet Mondrian focusing on abstraction, primary colors, and orthogonal geometry.
Cubism: An art movement influencing architecture through abstract, faceted compositions and geometric fragmentation.
Purism: A movement by Le Corbusier advocating for clarity, order, and precise geometric forms.
Vers une Architecture: A $1923$ book by Le Corbusier promoting standardization and industrial aesthetics.
Bauhaus: A German school ( $1919$ – $1933$ ) that unified art, craft, and technology into minimalist architecture.
‘less is more’: Associated with the Bauhaus era ( $1919$ – $1933$ ), promoting functional and minimalist design.
‘Form follows function’: A principle by Louis Sullivan stating a building’s shape should be determined by its purpose.

Crystal Palace ( $1851$ ): Designed by Joseph Paxton; the first major prefabricated building using an iron and glass modular grid.
Villa Savoye: An Early Modernist house by Le Corbusier featuring pilotis, ribbon windows, and a flat roof.
Robie House: A Frank Lloyd Wright design representing the Prairie Style with long horizontal lines and deep overhangs.
Barcelona Pavilion: A Mies van der Rohe design featuring a flat floating roof, thin columns, and open flowing space using marble and glass.
Reliance Building: A milestone in skyscraper evolution featuring a grid-like structure and an early curtain wall look.
Fallingwater: A Frank Lloyd Wright organic design built over a waterfall with strong horizontal cantilevers.
Notre-Dame du Haut: An Expressionist work by Le Corbusier characterized by thick curved walls and a sculptural roof.
Vanna Venturi House: A Postmodern design by Robert Venturi with playful, contradictory, and ‘off’ symmetry.
Guggenheim Bilbao: A Deconstructivist building featuring metallic curves and a chaotic, sculptural form without clear symmetry.