Designs/Styles (Kristin)

Architecture Style

Modernism: Modernist architecture emphasizes function. It attempts to provide for specific needs rather than imitate nature. The roots of Modernism may be found in the work of Berthold Luberkin (1901-1990), a Russian architect who settled in London and founded a group called Tecton. The Tecton architects believed in applying scientific, analytical methods to design. Their stark buildings ran counter to expectations and often seemed to defy gravity.

Modernist architecture has these features:
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- Little or no ornamentation
- Factory-made parts
- Man-made materials such as metal and concrete
- Emphasis on function
- Rebellion against traditional styles


Expressionism: Expressionism evolved from the work of avant garde artists and designers in Germany and other European countries during the first decades of the twentieth century.

Key features of Expressionism are:
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- Distorted shapes
- Fragmented lines
- Organic or biomorphic forms
- Massive sculpted shapes
- Extensive use of concrete and brick
- Lack of symmetry
- Many fanciful works rendered on paper but never built


Structuralism: Structuralism is based on the idea that all things are built from a system of signs and these signs are made up of opposites: male/female, hot/cold, old/young, etc. For Structuralists, design is a process of searching for the relationship between elements. Structuralists are also interested in the social structures and mental processes that contributed to the design.

Structuralist architecture will have a great deal of complexity within a highly structured framework. For example, a Structuralist design may consist of cell-like honeycomb shapes, intersecting planes, cubed grids, or densely clustered spaces with connecting courtyards.
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Formalism: Formalism emphasizes form. The architect is interested in visual relationships between the building parts and the work as a whole. Shape, often on a monumental scale, is the focus of attention. Lines and rigid geometric shapes predominate in Formalist architecture.
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High-Tech: High-tech buildings are often called machine-like. Steel, aluminium, and glass combine with brightly colored braces, girders, and beams. Many of the building parts are prefabricated in a factory and assembled later. The support beams, duct work, and other functional elements are placed on the exterior of the building, where they become the focus of attention. The interior spaces are open and adaptable for many uses.
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Bauhaus: They wanted to use principles of Classical architecture in their most pure form: without ornamentation of any kind. Bauhaus buildings have flat roofs, smooth facades, and cubic shapes. Colors are white, gray, beige, or black. Floor plans are open and furniture is functional.
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International Style: The International Style is the favored architecture for office buildings, and is also found in upscale homes built for the rich.
http://z.about.com/d/architecture/1/0/8/F/united_nations-at.jpg

Brutalism: The term Brutalism was first used in the early 1950s to describe the simple concrete buildings designed by Le Corbusier. Stark and angular, Brutalism grew out of the International Style, but the designs may strike you as less refined. Brutalist buildings can be constructed quickly and economically.

Brutalist architecture has these features:
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- Precast concrete slabs
- Rough, unfinished surfaces
- Exposed steel beams
- Massive, sculptural shapes

Minimalism: one of the important trend in modernist architecture.

Minimalism includes:
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- Buildings are stripped of all but the most essential elements
- Emphasis is placed on the outline, or frame, of the struture
- Interior walls are eliminated
- Floor plans are open
- Lighting is used to dramatize lines and planes
- The negative spaces around the structure are part of the overall design

Deconstructivism: s an approach to building design that attempts to view architecture in bits and pieces. The basic elements of architecture are dismantled. Deconstructivist buildings may seem to have no visual logic. They may appear to be made up of unrelated, disharmonious abstract forms. Deconstructive ideas are borrowed from the French philosopher Jacques Derrida.
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Organic Architecture: Organic buildings are never linear or rigidly geometric. Instead, wavy lines and curved shapes suggest natural forms.
http://z.about.com/d/architecture/1/0/3/I/utzon-sydney-pritzker03.jpg

Postmodern Architecture: evolved from the modernist movement, yet contradicts many of the modernist ideas. Combining new ideas with traditional forms, postmodernist buildings may startle, surprise, and even amuse. Familiar shapes and details are used in unexpected ways. Buildings may incorporate symbols to make a statement or simply to delight the viewer.
http://z.about.com/d/architecture/1/7/s/j/attheadquarters.jpg