Mo de
rnis
Will Blackadder 18107713 ARC4010 History of Modern Architecture
m
What is modernism?
“Modernism is a term widely used, but rarely defined.” Wilk, C. 2006, Modernism: designing a new world
When people hear the word modern they think new and current. Has this always been the case?
1737 Jonathan Swift uses modernism as a term for something of litte worth.
By the 19th century the word often meant “characteristically modern for is time”.
Today “a style or movement in the arts that aims to depart significantly from classical and traditional forms”
1918-1939 Modernism was used without a hard definition but rather to mean something new or different in form
Whilst the definition of modern being about departing from tradition is correct the common definition of being new and current is just as important. The only difference between the word being used in the 19th century and now is the idea of what’s “new”. Examples of modernism through time Designed by Joseph Paxton the Crystal Palace finished construction in 1851. Made from cast iron and plate glass. The greatest area of glass seen on a building.
Selfridges in Birmingham. Designed by Future Systems. Won awards in multiple areas such as; architecture, engineering and many more. Is considered blobitecture due to its unique shape.
Fallingwater a weekend home designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Constructed in 1937. Built over hanging a waterfall and considered Wrights “most beautiful job” - TIME magazine Jan. 17, 1938.
The Last Judgement and the Pre-Raphaelites The Last Judgement, show in the image on the left, depicts Christ seated in Heaven looking down upon the masses in judgement. The stained-glass window, which sits in St. Philips cathedral in Birmingham, was created by Edward Burne-Jones and is his magnum opus in the medium of stained-glass.
Burne-Jones was also part of a movement called the PreRaphaelites; a group of artists who took inspiration from Medieval Italian art pre-dating the famous Raphael. They were particularly drawn to the simplicity and clarity of the works from that era. The group came to be in 1848 and were known officially as the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.
Upon my visit to St, Philips cathedral i decided to draw the window specifically the lower half. Upon looking at the window i was drawn to the detail in the people created by the varying tones of; reds, greens blues and other colours used.
Bauhaus product research
• Product type: Chess set • Name of piece: The Chess Set (model 1) Piece was designed in 1923 • Designer: Josef Hartwig Born 19/03/1880 Died 13/11/1955 Completed stonemason apprenticeship 1893 – 1897 1904 – 1908 received further education from Balthasar Schmid at Munich Academy From 1914 worked as a sculptor in Berlin 1921 – 1925 worked as foreman in stone and wood sculpture at State Bauhaus in Wiemar After Bauhaus closure Hartwig went to Frankfurt Art School teaching sculpture until 1945 • Why I like it: Geometric Pieces form represent the way they move eg bishop moves in diagonals hence the cross shape Sharp edges creating a clean and simple form Minimalist very little embellishment Drastic contrast between the white and black sets • How does it meet Bauhaus manifesto? Functionality Dictates Form: The form of each individual piece is determined by the role they play upon the chessboard helping to differentiate them as represent the movement of the piece in its form. Smart use of Space, Materials, and Money: The usage of the material is efficient since each piece is formed from a cuboid and since the form they retain is relatively simple not much material would be wasted. Again because of the simple form they can be processed quickly if done with machine work making them quick to produce cutting the cost. Since this piece is a chessboard, the use of space would be about the way the pieces sit upon the board and amongst each other, as a game develops you would start to see some very interesting and appeasing landscapes appear across the board. All New, All the Time: In terms of what’s new to the product, other than the new forms given to the pieces which can lead to new manufacturing methods being used to make them, not a lot the chosen materials are woods which are in most cases the standard choice for chess sets. Simplicity and Effectiveness: I believe that the product is effective in reinventing the form of a chess set with the intention to modernise the design and with a very simple solution, which was to change the pieces forms. It also has very little ornament to it which helps to not take away from the lovely geometric forms of the pieces.
Contemporary product research • Product type: Side table • Name of piece: Xylem Side table Small Driftwood • Designer: Timothy Oulton Grew up in Manchester Father had and antiques business, Halo Antiques Left school at 18 and joined family firm Influenced by hand-craftsman quality of antique pieces Whilst he admired antiques he saw their limitations He changed the direction of his company to the design of furniture with practicality in mind yet still inspired by the days of old and their themes. • Why I like it: Material usage; use of acrylic resin to seal driftwood creating a vitrified look. Very simple in concept Driftwood is left unchanged almost like a time capsule Light refraction making each face change in appearance depending on the viewing angle The wood grain left unpolished/ vanished making for soft contrast between each layer of wood yet the dark bark creating layers to the piece Simple in construction yet bespoke in appearance • How does it meet Bauhaus manifesto? Functionality Dictates Form: The form of this piece has been heavily influenced by its function. Similar to older and more classical designs found in its cuboid form but differing due to the lack of ornament. Smart use of Space, Materials, and Money: The way the drift wood is used here is more for ornament rather than construction. It’s left untouched, other than being levelled at each end of the log, to get that natural aesthetic of the wood grains. Then having it encased in the acrylic resign preserves it and displays it creating. This processing is rather expensive due to the volume of resign required to encase the driftwood in a 300 x 300 x 450 mm form. All New, All the Time: There isn’t any real innovation to the piece, there’s no new process or new material, it’s just a piece that is well made with unique look due to the unusual choice of materials and processing. Simplicity and Effectiveness: It is very simple work there isn’t any ornament and it is a very effective piece this would work as a table.
Le Corbusier, Chapelle Notre-Dame du Haut, Ronchamp research
Materials used in Construction: Concrete, aluminium tiles, steel mesh, steel tiles and stones reclaimed from the old chapel Interior and structure Pillars: Larger tower 23 meters tall (hold main chapel) 2 smaller periscope style towers for letting day light in Roof: Shell like (Le Corbusier reportedly inspired by empty crab shell found in Long Island) 2 x 6 cm concrete membranes separated by gap of 2.26 m Upper membrane cover in aluminium tiles Enclosed within are transverse load baring girders connected by rectangular joists all made with reinforced concrete Joists used to span open space and transfer load to vertical members Walls: 2 rows of concrete pillars which support roof: south side pillars larger and tapered, north side smaller and straight South side load baring structure encased in gunite (fluid concrete) pneumatically projected onto a steel mesh Other walls partially made from reclaimed stone from old chapel Portico: Made from carbon steel (steel with carbon content up to 2.1% by weight) Supports 3 bells 2 reclaimed from old chapel Le Corbusier want to add bell tower separate from chapel located north but died 1965 before designing it Link to full presentation: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1IZScJD44WnFxXSuIlNM7W0dIKbOF9etmwNT1A_BFTYA/edit?usp=sharing
Italian Modernism: Giorgio de Chirico and Aldo Rossi Giorgio de Chirico was an Italian artist and writer who started the Scuola Metafisica art movement. This movement was inspired by surrealism and after 1919 he was drawn to neoclassical styles. The two paintings seen here, Piazza d’Italia 1913 (top) and Mystery and Melancholy of a Street 1914 (bottom), both have a stark lack of people in what are quite large areas. Upon first glance the space feels empty and lonely but the colours used make the paintings feel warm making the large scenes seem peaceful. To me personally it also suggests a sense of freedom for the few people in the painting who are left to their own devices. Around the time of creation of these painting Europe was unknowingly approaching a series of events that would lead to the biggest war ever seen, being triggered by the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in 1914, but also in the process of movements for change. In the United Kingdom on the Suffragettes movement was pressing for women’s rights making its mark on 1913 with the death of Emily Davidson while attempting to place a pro women’s rights sash upon the horse of King George VI. When comparing the state of Europe during this time to the peaceful atmosphere portrayed by these paints you get a complete it makes the paints quite surreal.
In 1966 Italian architect Aldo Rossi published L’architettura della città (The Architecture of the City). This book was about urban design based on the traditional European city. In the text he makes reference to the lack of understanding for city architecture and goes on to talk about how monuments are the memories of a city and emphasising that cities should be built over time and studied. His work was inspired by architectural theory which showed in his early work.
Disscusion on architecture and politics: Buildings and structures of past, present and future with political influences Link to sound file: https://soundcloud.com/user-72641375/disscusion-on-architecture-and-politics/s-fPm1n
Below are images in reference to the topics of discussion with the relevant time stamps.
Foro Italico with its 18 white marble perfect Italian men (left and top). Obelisco di Mussolini (right) 0:00 - 1:28
Map of the Korean DMZ (demilitarized zone) (left top) Image of fortifications used (left bottom) 2:56 - 3:36 Berlin wall past (top left) Berlin wall present (top right) The wall actually started constructed in 1961 1:29 - 2:55
Proposed location of Donald Trump’s border wall (top) 3:37 - 6:57
Prototypes for the border wall (top)
Protect your families and liberty Keep them out to keep you save
Hot Modernism and Critical Regionalism Regional Modernism: A style of architecture that uses influences from the surrounding region as well as materials common to the area to create a mix of modern and traditional design. Critical regionalism: An approach to architecture to add identity which lacks on the international scale but also moves away from the idea of complete individualism of postmodern architecture. The Villa Savoye (right and bottom), designed Le Corbusier and completed in 1929, takes influence from French country houses and the new machine age that was dawning on the design world. The building follows Le Corbusier’s five points of architecture: • Pilotis • Flat Roof Terrace • Open Plan • Ribbon Windows • Free Façade
Mies van der Rohe designed the Barcelona Pavilion (left) as part of the 1929 International Exposition to display the modern movement of architecture on the world stage. Originally named the German Pavilion it was designed to show the progression of its culture towards modernism with roots in classical history. He saw this as nothing more than a building with the purpose of creating tranquillity from the rest of exposition. This iconic buildings share some similarities in influence. Le Corbusier’s five points of architecture can be seen in both buildings. The main ones that jump out are the; flat roof terraces, open plan and pilotis. However they differ in the cultural influences one being from post WW1 Germany (Pavilion) and the other from more French country homes. Also the material choices Mies van der Rohe made use of some exotic materials both natural and man-made; such as the four types of marble and chrome. Whereas Le Corbusier used some more common materials such as; steel, and reinforced concrete. But most importantly there intented functions are different as well one being a home a place where people reside and the other a pavilion at an exposition a showcase in this instance to create juxtapose the rest of the exposition.
Birmingham Central Library: Research into its demolition The Birmingham Central Library, designed by Architect John Madin, was the largest non-national library in Europe. It cost £4.7 million at the time of its construction and was over 220,000 m2. The library was considered by some to be a national treasure and by others it was an eye sore from post war Britain with its brutalist style and vast use of concrete.
Many people wanted to see the building go. They complained about the building looking tired and worn, particularly the cladding. Along with this the concrete in the cladding panels had started to erode and in 1999 a piece fell and nearly hit a pedestrian. The nail in the coffin for the building was when the council sold Paradise Circus to the Argent Group in 1998 for redevelopment of the area.
Even so people campaigned for years to try and save the building by getting it listed. The older generations that grew up with the library wanted it to stay and in particular; artists, writers and architects felt the library was a statement with Jonathan Meades saying it had “guts and attack”. Other reasons were that the library was seen as a relic of post war Britain and was a part of the country’s heritage . Also brutalist architecture was becoming popular and appreciated with the listings of other brutalist buildings and the restoration of Park Hill in Sheffield
From this I personally feel like the demolition of the library is a great loss to Birmingham City but more so to British heritage and post war history as the common opinion of brutalist buildings is that they are unappealing to the eye but Birmingham Central Library was great example of brutalism at its finest and will be sorely missed in my opinion
Frank Lloyd Wright Frank Lloyd Wright was an American architect and was heralded as “the greatest American architect of all time� by the American Institute of Architects. He has many famous builds ranging from homes like Robie house (right top) all the way to art museums such as the Guggenheim Museum (right bottom). His style of was organic architecture because he felt that buildings should flow from their surroundings to create a natural feel. His aim was to integrate his architecture with the landscape. In doing so he would draw inspiration from Japanese architecture. The prime example of organic architecture is the previously mentioned Falling Water house.
Transcultural spaces The idea behind having transcultural spaces is that you can develop an area for the purpose of accommodating and showcase different aspects of human culture whether it be by having specific facilities or features or creating a platform for others to experience various cultures in the form of arts, foods or history as example. Personally I feel that the British Museum in London is a good example. The museum houses many artefacts from around the world from many cultures as well as special exhibits from other museums or even display of newer culture and things of the like. Even the building itself draws inspiration from other cultures the most strike being to Roman and Greek architecture with the iconic columns and shallow roof leading to an apex which can be seen when heading toward the main entrance. The display range from the Ancient Romans and Greeks to the Japanese imperial empire with specials displays currently (as of 06/09/2018 - 20/01/2019) I object: Ian Hislop’s search for dissent and later to be (23/05/2019 26/08/2019) Manga. Link to Map with current displays as of 12/01/2019: https://www.britishmuseum.org/PDF/BritishMuseum_Freeplans_Map_Oct_2018.pdf
References: Pinterestcouk. 2019. Pinterest. [Online]. [29 September 2018]. Available from: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/ pin/141300507028821243/ Anon. 2019. The Pre-Raphaelites. [10 January 2019]. Available from: http://www.birminghammuseums.org. uk/bmag/highlights/the-pre-raphaelites Widewallsch. 2019. Widewalls. [Online]. [10 January 2019]. Available from: https://www.widewalls.ch/ bauhaus-design/josef-hartwig-chess-set/ Wikipediaorg. 2019. Wikipediaorg. [Online]. [10 January 2019]. Available from: https://de.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Josef_Hartwig Heals. 2019. Heals. [Online}. [10 January 2019]. Avaliable from: https://www.heals.com/brand/timothyoulton.html Heals. 2019. Heals. [Online}. [10 January 2019]. Avaliable from: https://www.heals.com/blog/introducingtimothy-oulton/ Inexhibitcom. 2019. Inexhibit. [Online]. [10 January 2019]. Available from: https://www.inexhibit.com/ mymuseum/notre-dame-du-haut-le-corbusier-ronchamp-chapel Chris & sue’s excellent(?) adventures. 2016. Foro Italico, Roma, Italy. [Online]. [11 January 2019]. Available from: https://chrisnsue.wordpress.com/2016/10/02/foro-italico-roma-italy/ Pinimgcom. 2019. Pinimgcom. [Online]. [11 January 2019]. Available from: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/ f1/70/f1/f170f1f6b0d37f96a887350707ed0856.jpg Lauraknightstudiocom. 2019. Lauraknightstudiocom. [Online]. [11 January 2019]. Available from: http:// lauraknightstudio.com/new-blog/2014/6/9/berlin-past-and-present Quoracom. 2019. Quoracom. [Online]. [11 January 2019]. Available from: https://www.quora.com/Whatsort-of-fortifications-are-there-between-North-and-South-Korea Wikipediaorg. 2019. Wikipediaorg. [Online]. [11 January 2019]. Available from: https://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Korean_Demilitarized_Zone Bbcimgcouk. 2019. Bbcimgcouk. [Online]. [11 January 2019]. Available from: https://news.bbcimg.co.uk/ news/special/2017/newsspec_16048/content/full-width/common/assets/img/trump_wall_map_desktop_ws_ v2.png Imgixnet. 2019. Imgixnet. [Online]. [11 January 2019]. Available from: https://theintercept.imgix. net/wp-uploads/sites/1/2017/11/donald-trump-border-wall-profit-wall-street-web-1510853806. jpg?auto=compress,format Wikipediaorg. 2019. Wikipediaorg. [Online]. [11 January 2019]. Available from: https://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Birmingham_Central_Library Birminghamroundaboutcouk. 2019. Birminghamroundaboutcouk. [Online]. [11 January 2019]. Available from: http://www.birminghamroundabout.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/birmingham_central_library. jpg
Wheninturincom. 2019. Wheninturincom. [Online]. [12 January 2019]. Available from: https://wheninturin. com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/De-Chirico-Piazza-dItalia-1913-775x522.jpg Theparisrevieworg. 2019. Theparisrevieworg. [Online]. [12 January 2019]. Available from: https://www. theparisreview.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/mystery-and-melancholy-of-a-street-1914.jpg Wikipediaorg. 2019. Wikipediaorg. [Online]. [12 January 2019]. Available from: https://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Giorgio_de_Chirico Blogspotcom. 2019. Blogspotcom. [Online]. [12 January 2019]. Available from: http:// architectureandurbanism.blogspot.com/2010/04/aldo-rossi-1931-97-architecture-of-city.html Mymodernmetcom. 2017. My Modern Met. [Online]. [12 January 2019]. Available from: https:// mymodernmet.com/frank-lloyd-wright-architecture/ Chicagopatternscom. 2019. Chicagopatternscom. [Online]. [12 January 2019]. Available from: http:// chicagopatterns.com/robie-house-masterpiece-glass-light/ Adsttccom. 2019. Adsttccom. [Online]. [12 January 2019]. Available from: https://images.adsttc.com/media/ images/5037/ddef/28ba/0d59/9b00/0094/large_jpg/stringio.jpg?1414033826 Archdailycom. 2010. ArchDaily. [Online]. [13 January 2019]. Available from: https://www.archdaily. com/84524/ad-classics-villa-savoye-le-corbusier Archdailycom. 2011. ArchDaily. [Online]. [13 January 2019]. Available from: https://www.archdaily. com/109135/ad-classics-barcelona-pavilion-mies-van-der-rohe Thefreedictionarycom. 2019. TheFreeDictionarycom. [Online]. [13 January 2019]. Available from: https:// encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Regional modernism Britishmuseumorg. 2019. British Museum. [Online]. [13 January 2019]. Available from: https://www. britishmuseum.org/whats_on.aspx Wikimediaorg. 2019. Wikimediaorg. [Online]. [13 January 2019]. Available from: https://upload.wikimedia. org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/British_Museum_from_NE_2_(cropped).JPG/1920px-British_ Museum_from_NE_2_(cropped).JPG Museum-mileorguk. 2019. Museum-mileorguk. [Online]. [13 January 2019]. Available from: http://museummile.org.uk/british-museum Kieron monks, cnn. 2019. CNN. [Online]. [13 January 2019]. Available from: https://www.cnn. com/2018/11/26/africa/africa-uk-benin-bronze-return-intl/index.html Middleeasteyenet. 2019. Middle East Eye. [Online]. [13 January 2019]. Available from: https://www. middleeasteye.net/in-depth/features/The-British-museum-s-new-gallery-a-history-of-Islam-in-over-athousand-objects-60763878 Washingtonexaminercom. 2018. Washington Examiner. [Online]. [15 January 2019]. Available from: https:// www.washingtonexaminer.com/washington-secrets/call-to-tax-mexico-2-000-per-illegal-immigrant-to-payfor-trumps-wall Wikimediaorg. 2019. Wikimediaorg. [Online]. [15 January 2019]. Available from: https://commons. wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Uncle_Sam_(pointing_finger).png