To obtain and understanding of the current state of American Architecture and its development, we must first briefly establish the origin of architecture in America. Much of the 17th-century English colonial architecture resembled late medieval forms that had survived throughout much of rural England. The first American architecture houses were built in a wide range of sizes, gables, and overhangs. They also had a lack of symmetry that was reflected in the late medieval style throughout Europe. However, unlike rural England’s architecture, in Virginia and Maryland; brick construction and a symmetrical facade were preferred for one story homes. Upon the idea of domestic homes, cities began to be founded in the 17th century. Cities such as Boston, were chaotic in plan and with the turn of the 18th century, colonies began to take on a more permanent role, often establishing individual character. Newly founded cities, such as: Williamsburg, Virginia; Annapolis, Maryland, and especially Philadelphia began to be laid out in a logical organization of regular grids. This eluded planners in London during the same period and thus the diverse seed of American architecture was planned. Continuing the development of unique American architecture, American in the early 1890s began to value their own heritage and architectural language featuring larger neighborhood tracts. In the 19th century, the Colonial Revival style took a more eclectic style, and columns were often seen. Thomas Jefferson was one of the front runners that established the need for a unified American style. He advocated that laying out cities and buildings could reflect America’s ideals. Jefferson, as well as others, believed that by adhering to a classicized architectural st... ... middle of paper ... ... me that the eventual outcome of American architecture will be the emanation of what is going on inside of us at present, the character and quality of our thoughts and our observations and above all, our reflections.” Many architects practicing modernism in the development of American architecture however, fell victim to what Sullivan was calling for, in that architects should look within themselves as a source of truth. Many failed to understand that Sullivan insisted that this should not be a means of subjective and emotional human being state but rather a reserved and intuitive approach to design. In his discussion Sullivan comes close to acknowledging that style, as he has defined the term, has a highly subjective origin in which he describes as “the universal language of the soul.” None knew this language more than his colleague and pupil, Frank Lloyd Wright.
In his opinionated book, From Bauhaus to Our House, Tom Wolfe describes his views on the way architecture has framed our modern world. He frames his book long essay with an excerpt from America the Beautiful, "O Beautiful, for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain, has there ever been another place on earth where so many people of wealth and power have paid for and put up with so much architecture they detested as within thy blessed borders today? . . . Every child goes to school in a building that looks like a duplicating-machine replacement-parts wholesale distribution warehouse . . . Every new $900,000 summer house in the north woods of Michigan or on the shore of Long Island has so many pipe railings, ramps, hob-tread metal spiral stairways, sheets of industrial plate glass, banks of tungsten-halogen lamps, and white cylindrical shapes, it looks like an insecticide refinery." (Wolfe 1) This quote, in short, is the premise of his critique. He does not like the way modern architecture
When studying an ancient culture, it is important for one to comprehend the many unique elements that make up that culture. The study of architecture enables historians to deepen their understanding of a culture and identify the modern influences of that society. Architecture is an essential aspect of ancient Greek culture and its long lasting influence is evident in most cities today. The Greek Revival style dominated American architecture during the nineteenth century. Many prosperous citizens believed that the ancient Greece architecture embodied the spirit of democracy. When analyzing the architecture of New York City, one will find many examples of Greek Revival architecture, the most notable examples being the Old Custom House on 28 Wall Street, the first National City Bank building on 55 Wall Street, and Saint Peter’s Church at 22 Barclay Street.
Daniel Burnham and John Root were two of the East Coasts, but more importantly Chicago’s well-known high-rise architects. They designed many buildings that still are around today, not only in Chicago, but also all over the United States. The most memorable being, the Rookery Building, Monadnock Building, Reliance Building, and Masonic Temple, all in Chicago. Between Burnham and Root’s different personalities and architectural styles they were able to become successful American architects, even after their failures in their early careers. Having two very different strengths as a team, worked out in their favor, strong client bases, good structures, and aesthetically pleasing buildings was ultimately their final product for each project.
Philadelphia’s City Hall began construction in 1871 and was completed in 1901. John McArthur Jr. became the main architect on the project after winning a design competition held by the city. At that time, it was thought that City Hall would be constructed on Independence Square, but after some debate and a public vote it was decided to build on Penn Square instead. McArthur designed the exterior of City Hall in the French Renaissance style. McArthur lived in Philadelphia from the age of ten and he designed many other buildings throughout the city in his lifetime with City Hall being one of his last projects before his death in 1890. In this paper, I will discuss John McArthur Jr.’s background and his contribution to City Hall as well as the
Smith, C. Ray. Interior Design in 20th-century America: A History. New York: Harper & Row, 1987. Web. 26 Mar. 2014. .
James F. O'Gorman, Dennis E. McGrath. ABC of Architecture. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1998. Document. October 2013.
The Hunger Games was a critically acclaimed movie when it came out; however, some critics would argue that the movie can be sometimes too violent for its intended audience. In this essay I would dissert Brian Bethune’s essay “Dystopia Now” in order to find its weaknesses and compare the movie Battle Royale with his essay.
Interprofessional Practice (IPP) is the ability to provide a comprehensive health care service to all patients. Healthcare providers achieve this joining together and working collaboratively to deliver quality care across a range of healthcare settings. An interprofessional setting may offer several benefits to patients, including improved access to healthcare, less conflict and tension amongst caregivers, improved use of clinical resources, better retention of staff, better results for patients in particular those with chronic diseases. (http://www.ontarioshores.ca/about_us/our_approach/interprofessional/). This paper will discuss the benefits of an interprofessional practice to the patient.
Hesiod’s Theogony and the Babylonian Enuma Elish are both myths that begin as creation myths, explaining how the universe and, later on, humans came to be. These types of myths exist in every culture and, while the account of creation in Hesiod’s Theogony and the Enuma Elish share many similarities, the two myths differ in many ways as well. Both myths begin creation from where the universe is a formless state, from which the primordial gods emerge. The idea of the earth and sky beginning as one and then being separated is also expressed in both myths.
Architecture, the practice of building design and its resulting products, customary usage refers only to those designs and structures that are culturally significant. Today the architecture must satisfy its intended uses, must be technically sound, and must convey beautiful meaning. But the best buildings are often so well constructed that they outlast their original use. They then survive not only as beautiful objects, but as documents of history of cultures, achievements in architecture that testify to the nature of the society that produced them. These achievements are never wholly the work of individuals. Architecture is a social art, yet Frank Lloyd Wright single handily changed the history of architecture. How did Frank Lloyd Wright change architecture?
The essence of modern architecture lays in a remarkable strives to reconcile the core principles of architectural design with rapid technological advancement and the modernization of society. However, it took “the form of numerous movements, schools of design, and architectural styles, some in tension with one another, and often equally defying such classification, to establish modernism as a distinctive architectural movement” (Robinson and Foell). Although, the narrower concept of modernism in architecture is broadly characterized by simplification of form and subtraction of ornament from the structure and theme of the building, meaning that the result of design should derive directly from its purpose; the visual expression of the structure, particularly the visual importance of the horizontal and vertical lines typical for the International Style modernism, the use of industrially-produced materials and adaptation of the machine aesthetic, as well as the truth to materials concept, meaning that the true nat...
Frank Lloyd Wright has been called “one of the greatest American architect as well as an Art dealer that produced a numerous buildings, including houses, resorts, gardens, office buildings, churches, banks and museums. Wright was the first architect that pursues a philosophy of truly organic architecture that responds to the symphonies and harmonies in human habitats to their natural world. He was the apprentice of “father of Modernism” Louis Sullivan, and he was also one of the most influential architects on 20th century in America, Wright is idealist with the use of elemental theme and nature materials (stone, wood, and water), the use of sky and prairie, as well as the use of geometrical lines in his buildings planning. He also defined a building as ‘being appropriate to place’ if it is in harmony with its natural environment, with the landscape (Larkin and Brooks, 1993).
Wright established the first truly American architecture. In a Prairie house, the essential nature of the box could be eliminated. Wright explained. Interior walls were minimized to emphasize openness and community. The relationship of the inhabitants to the outside became more intimate; landscape and building became one, more harmonious; and instead of a separate thing set up independently of landscape and site, the building with landscape and site became inevitably won. Frank Lloyd Wright published the book, A Testament, which was a philosophical summation of his architectural career. In an essay entitled “The New Architecture: Principles”, he put onword nine principles of architecture that reflected the development of his organic ideology. The principles addressed ideas about the relationship of the human scale to the landscape, the use of new materials like glass and steel to achieve more spatial architecture, and the development of a building’s architectural “character,” which was his answer to the notion of style. From his beginnings in a little town in Wisconsin, the rise of a great architect commenced his journey. No one has attained his level of expertise in the architectural field. Frank Lloyd Wright’s accomplishments are unmatched, was inspired by natural and simplistic designs, and his career flourished by his ingenuity. Early on in his career, in the United States, gave Frank Lloyd Wright a varied amount of experiences. One of his most famous quotes is “The mission of an architect is to help people understand how to make life more beautiful, the world a better one for living in, and to give reasons, rhyme, and meaning to life.” Written by Frank Lloyd Wright in
Frank Lloyd Wright and Le Corbusier are two very prominent names in the field of architecture. Both architects had different ideas concerning the relationship between humans and the environment. Their architectural styles were a reflection of how each could facilitate the person and the physical environment. Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House, is considered one of the most important buildings in the history of American architecture and Le Corbusier s Villa Savoye helped define the progression that modern architecture was to take in the 20th Century. Both men are very fascinating and have strongly influenced my personal taste for modern architecture. Although Wright and Corbusier each had different views on how to design a house, they also had similar beliefs. This paper is a comparison of Frank Lloyd Wright‘s and Le Corbusier ‘s viewpoints exhibited through their two prominent houses, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House and Le Corbusier’s Villa Savoye.