Cultures 3: Test 1
Key advances in architectural materials
+1800-1860 Cast and Wrought iron production increases +1870's Mass production of steel begins +1824 Portland Cement invented +1850's Mass production of modern concrete begins +1880's Mainstream use of reinforced concrete begins +1900's Machine production of glass begins
tableau (singular) or tableaux (pl)
the building perceived as a sequence of architectural images
marche
the imaginary experience of walking through a plan in the mind's eye and ultimately the experience of the building itself
distribution
to apportion between several
disposition
to arrange, to put things in a certain order
parti
to take a stand
What position does Ruskin take on Materiality?
He admires the beauty of materials. He focuses on "what degree it fulfilled its expressional purposes." Ruskin has a deep care for the preciousness of the material as he wants to display the precious materials beauty to be admired by any viewer.
Although Richardson's work was based on a historical style, how did it show a changing relationship to history?
He attended Beaux arts for a short time so he took what he learned about historicism from there and applied it to his architecture. He asks what it means to work in the US? What does american architecture encompass? Richardson takes a position of materials. He uses what materials are abundant in that area. This is what connects his projects together.
What position does Ruskin take on Preservation and Restoration?
He thinks that when you try to preserve or restore a project you take away the artisans work. He ultimately says that its up to the owner to restore it or not. In Ruskin's eyes, restoration is the same as destruction of the building. To him it is not the same building afterwords.
William Morris and the Arts and Crafts Movement, England
He was a follower of Ruskin. Not an architect. Strongly anti industrial. Looks at what it means to push back against industrialization. Valuing human labor and their expertise.
Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris. Restored by Viollet-le-Duc in 1844
He was hired to renovate Notre Dame Cathedral in 1844, he added the spire and metal work. He also layers details on the stone.
Semper's Four Elements
Hearth, roof, enclosure, and mound.
How did the concept of zeitgeist influence the work of Henri Labrouste?
Henri Labrouste created his own style by using the ideals learned from the Beaux arts school but modernized it. Using past references as limited solutions of concrete programs. He used historicism as a response to the current time.
Bibliotheque Ste. Genevieve, Paris. Henri Labrouste. 1842.
Influence of beaux arts school. Renaissance definition and details. Understand what is happening on the inside by the outside. Text on exterior walls show where books by that author are kept.
PALM HOUSE, KEW GARDENS, LONDON. DECIMUS BURTON AND RICHARD TURNER. 1845.
Iron and glass Paxton has designed many green houses with iron and glass. He has a lot of experience in this type of design.
Construction. Crystal Palace, London. Joseph Paxton. 1851.
Iron and glass structure. First large scale in mass production. 1851 feet Iron structure, repeated sections, truss work, structure of the roof. Built to house the world fair Open to the sky. Experience of a modern space with modern material that has not been experienced by the public before. Huge impact on public perception.
Towards a new type: developments in materials, fabrication, and engineering
-The progress made at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution included developments in new and improved building materials. -The disciplines of structural and civil engineering developed and began to be applied to building design. -Utilitarian structures such as bridges, factories, and warehouses were increasingly designed by engineers rather than architects. -These early engineers experimented with the new materials being developed: Iron, (later) steel, glass and concrete. -Changes in political systems and the economies of various countries, along with the possibilities to be explored in new materials, brought on an onslaught of new building programs. ^Informing of new concept
Airship Hangars, Orly, France. Eugene Freyssinet. 1916
Air ship hangers. Modular concrete pieces built up to create arch.
Marshall Field Wholesale Store, Chicago, Illinois. Richardson. 1885.
Arches, tall and slender. References to historical styles. Using details to pull together the building. Ties the building together. Reads as a whole object. Massive building. Expressed the scale of the whole site.
"What will be the style of our epoch?"
Architects of this time take on different positions of what is the style of their time. Some push back against industrialism while others embrace the new materials and ways of building. 1) Violette le duc reference of modern sensiblility(theoretical library) 2) H H Richardson, What is American architecture? Abundance in stone. 3)Arts and crafts William Morris, pushing back against industrialization. By saying the way to resist is by means of production. Modern means of creating against industrialization. 4) Henri Labrouste uses historicism in a modern way. Historicism as a response to the current time. Questions the use of historical reference.
A Building for Assembling the Academies, project. Charles Percier. 1786.
Around revolution time. Hierarchical space. Plan: design process: emphasis of the entry, symmetry, grid is organizing the building, main axis is repeated at a smaller scale tiled around the main area in a grid. Structure is organized based on grid, circulation clear
Magasins du Bon Marche, Paris. Gustave Eiffel and Louis-Charles Boileau. 1867.
Becomes influential because it becomes a popular destination. Thin columns. Iron and glass roof. Lots of light comes into atrium space.
Eiffel Tower, Paris. Gustave Eiffel. 1889.
Best known for this tower. Part of one of the world fairs. When it was built it was the tallest tower in the world at that time. All iron structure. International exhibition in Paris. Represented their advanced society. Some loved it and some hated it.
Gamble House, Pasadena, California. Charles and Henry Greene. 1907.
Can see the joints. How the wood is polished. Express the fact that they were hand made. Rounded off edges, soft edge. Marks that express hand production. Honesty in materials. He emphasizes hand craft that is appropriate for the time while Ruskin retreats back into historical style.
Beaux Arts Architecture: Its Instruction, Method and Theory
Clear references to French architecture. References back to historical architecture within the French system. Mostly back to beaux arts. Beau arts becomes basis for US architecture curriculum.
Philadelphia City Hall. John McArthur, Jr. 1874.
Clear references to french architecture. References back to historical architecture within the french system. Mostly back to beaux arts. Beaux arts becomes basis for US architecture curriculum.
Halladie Building, San Francisco, California. W.J. Polk. 1918.
Commercial building. Becomes precursor of curtain wall construction. Glass wall suspended off column grid.
Glessner House, Chicago, Illinois. Richardson. 1885.
Creates a buffer on the Chicago street.
Garage Marboeuf, Paris. Auguste Perret. 1905.
Diagram of classical proportions and details. With the Greek tradition. Division of floors. Small windows under cornice underline it. Diagram of classical details in concrete. Transfer of structural loads. Structural rationalism
Garabit Viaduct, France. Gustave Eiffel. 1880.
Eiffel is known for being able to create large spans. Wrought iron bridge spaning over a river supported by a large arch.
Salginatobel Bridge, Schiers, Switzerland. Robert Maillart. 1930.
Elegance of form and shape. Expressing how the structural system works.
Semper's conceptualization of space
Enclosure of space is made to separate man from the outside world giving the enclosed space a sense of program. Humans found the need to separate programs or areas of space made for different functions as a separate desire from the demand of shelter.
Tavanasa Bridge, Switzerland. Robert Maillart. 1905.
Engineers working with concrete. Exposes the forces of the structure. Removes what isn't needed.
Building to House the Academies, project. Marie-Joseph Peyre. 1756
Example of first phase of work. Axis, symmetry, form and spaces designed around axis points, circles and squares. Each one is detailed. Carved stone. Load bearing. Structure is solid material from carved stone. Relationship from outside to inside.
Eugene-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc, France
Expert in gothic architecture that he feels is rooted in France. French architect. Philosophical differences with Beaux arts school. Opposite of Ruskin's views. Ruskin: restoration=destruction.
H. H. Richardson, United States
First architect in the US that had impact enough to where he had followers over seas. He attended Beaux arts for a short time. "What it means to work in the US." Type of Romanesque architecture that was personalized by HH Richardson. Using understanding of historicist he learned from Beaux arts. Focus on vernacular architecture (abundance in materials in that location).
From Frampton's Studies in Tectonic Culture: The Poetics of Construction in Nineteenth and Twentieth Century Architecture. P. 123.
For Perret, reinforced concrete was the perfect homogeneous system with which to reconcile that two hundred year old schism lying at the very heart of the Greco-Gothic ideal, that is to say, to combine the asperities of Platonic form with the tectonic expressivity of structural rationalism. Three seminal buildings testify to Perret's synthetic approach, as he passes from a brilliant adaptation of the precepts of Viollet-le-Duc to the more idealized forms of classicized rationalism in which he would, nontheless, remain committed to the primacy of the frame. The three buildings in succession are the Casino at St. Malo (1899), an apartment block at 25 bis rue Franklin, Paris (1903), and a four-story parking garage completed in the rue Ponthieu, Paris, in 1905.
Statue of Liberty Structure, New York City. Gustave Eiffel. 1883.
Found a way to keep the statue of liberty standing upright. Stone base supports the statue. Foundation system for anchoring. Interior skeleton. Diagonal bracing works with the wind forces keeping the structure stable, copper cladding on a frame.
Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris. Henri Labrouste. 1854.
Iron columns supporting iron arches. Modern technology rests on history. Iron rests on masonry. Reading room. Iron but used in a different expression. Detailing of iron columns. Strength and lightness. Oculus allows light into the space. Did not have direct access to the stacks (archived books) were separate. Library reading room transition to the stacks. Iron construction in stacks. Light to filter down into the levels that wont harm the books but allows librarians to find books that they need. Clear exposure of the structure is modern.
What assumptions are present in the notion of a zeitgeist?
It is assumed that a zeitgeist would share the beliefs and ideals of the era of that time (present time).
How is the term zeitgeist modern?
It is not stuck in a specific time. It is always relating to the present and how society and culture changes.
Gustave Eiffel
Known for the elegance of his structures. Engineer but known as a designer because of his structures.
Thomas Crane Public Library, Quincy, Massachusetts. Richardson. 1882.
Library. Arch. Polychroming. Asymmetry. Entryway. Narrow windows. Wood interior. contrast from the outside.
Court of Honor, World's Columbian Exposition, Chicago. Richard Morris Hunt. 1893
Many of these structures were temporary. Architect was in charge of setting the standards. Hierarchy, symmetry, distinctive entrances. Consistent white stone. Uniform use of historical styles. Expression of beaux arts.
For William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement, what changed in the relationship between the present and the past?
Morris looks for what it means to push back against industrialization by valuing human labor and their expertise. Designed modern architecture but without industrialized materials.
Street Plan of Paris, 1853. Baron Georges-Eugene Haussmann.
Multiple centers linked by a network of straight streets and larger boulevards. Wider streets and easier connections. Uniformity. Woven through the existing medieval fabric. Extremely expensive and political views differed.
Les Halles Centrales, Paris. 1853.
New site out of construction of the new idea of the city of Paris by Hausseman
Coal Exchange, London. J.B. Bunning. 1846.
New technology Architects vs engineers, how they relate Coal Exchange Large open atrium area, interior layer of iron construction, domed over with iron and glass to allow for day lighting within this space, traditional masonry walls
Gare de l'Est. Paris. F.A. Duquesney. 1847.
Presence of train shed revealed on outside. Arch pointing back to the day lit space of the shed. Passenger shed has historical details.
Gate Lodge, Ames Estate, Massachusetts. 1880.
Private. Removed from public view. Local source of the stone. Comes from the land type of construction. American architecture. Shingle roof. Openings in roof.
Bauakademie, Berlin. Karl Friedrich Schinkel. 1836.
Referencing factory construction. Reinforcing masonry wall. Renaissance details. Cornice is almost flat. Very different set of references working together.
What position does Ruskin take on Construction?
Ruskin had a clear sense of what was right or wrong in the construction of great architecture for had laws set in his own understanding of lawful. These laws are placed in so that to show true expression of materials and structure to display the true beauty of the constructed building, if allowed doing so, "whatever expression of finer structural science we may require, will be thrown either in to subordinate portions of it, or entirely directed to the support of the external mail, where in arches or vaults it might otherwise appear dangerously independent of the material within."
Work of KARL FRIEDRICH SCHINKEL
Schinkel doesn't follow historicism as much as other architect at that time. He still draws from the past though.
How do you see the concept of zeitgeist relating to or influencing architectural design?
Spatially it is influenced by the time in which it exists. It is influenced by the architectural and cultural environment.
St. Pancras Station Train Shed, London. William Henry Barlow, engineer. 1863. 9. St. Pancras Station Chambers. Passenger Building. George Gilbert Scott, architect
St. Pancras Station One giant clear span of structure over the trains. The new technology is shown in the train shed is not displayed outside to the public in the passenger building which was designed in high Victorian Gothic.
Oaks Ames Memorial Library (Ames Free Library), North Easton, Massachusetts. Richardson
Stone. Different kinds of stones. One is used for detailing other is used for the body of the building. Polychroming is the use of multiple types of stones. Size and shape of construction based on masonry construction. Entrance is prominent. Heavy Romanesque arch. Asymmetry composition, highlighted by the tower. Library.
Henri Labrouste, France.
Student of Beaux arts. One of their top students. Constructed highly color reconstructions of historical architecture. Using past references as limited solutions of concrete programs. Ancients create for specific needs. Questions the use of historical reference. Historicism as a response to the current time.
Firth of Fourth Bridge, Scotland. Sir Benjamin Baker. 1882.
Test the possibilities of new materials and push them as far as they can. Supporting towers (3) become the truss work of the bridge,
Developments in Engineering. THAMES RIVER PROJECT. THOMAS TELFORD of 1801 compared with COALBROOKDALE BRIDGE, ENGLAND. ABRAHAM DARBY III AND THOMAS PRITCHARD of 1779.
Thames River Project: theoretical bridge, comparing his design with the way of the past, arguing for advancements. Sleek single span Coalbrookdale Bridge: first all metal bridge designed, Cast iron: works good in compression but not in tension, look as if it was referencing a stone bridge
How did Beaux Arts architectural theory operate and what was prioritized?
The Beaux Arts was based on Revolutionary architects, in which the school prioritized modern style architecture that lay outside of history.
How is the term zeitgeist historicist?
The designs of a previous time in architectural history were once influenced by that society and culture. Architecture is then exposed to the lifestyles of that era.
The Dream of the Architect, by Thomas Cole. 1840.
The dream of the architect. Picturesque. Warm lighting. Framed view. Pyramid in the back. Dreamed landscape. Harmonious styles of architecture being brought together. Very welcoming. Gothic area is still dark and appropriate for this set of work. Reinforcement of historical harmony. Idealizing the past.
The Ideal Cathedral rendering by Viollet-le-Duc
This is his knowledge of gothic architecture. He designs the ideal gothic cathedral.
Passenger Train Stations. King's Cross Station, London. Lewis Cubitt. 1851.
Train stations are an advancement in technology. Each station has two main areas, boarding and departing (train shed), Passenger building (tickets were bought, offices, coming and going) Two programs are connected together in the same building. Passenger building was designed by an architect and train shed by an engineer. King's Cross Station, arches show where train shed is further in the building. Huge windows give you an idea of what is happening further on.
Church of Notre-Dame, Le Raincy, France. Auguste Perret. 1922.
Very clear skeleton of gothic architecture. Concrete columns and roof. Structure is exposed. Very open space by the strength of the concrete. Lack of ornamentation but with the same layout. Some slight detailing in concrete (columns). To work with the height of the structure. Wider at the bottom than at the top (tapered). Glazing, foundation wall skirts past the column grid, glazing makes the whole envelop of the building. Allows the light to pour in. goal of gothic architecture of having light pour in.
How did Viollet-le-Duc's attitude toward history and historicism change during the course of his career?
Viollet-le-Duc wanted to change the style of architecture of that time; he kept with the ideals of Gothic architecture but strayed away from the form and materials used and relied on the new materials of that time (steel).
Red House, Bexleyheath, Kent. Philip Webb for William Morris. 1859.
Webb designed a building true to to its materials and means of construction. It expresses the site and local culture.
THE PANTHEON, PARIS. JACQUES-GABRIEL (GERMAIN) SOUFFLOT. 1756.
Written work influenced this work. First time engineering was used. Grid and greek cross. Load bearing columns. Sense of structural rationalism.
Paris Opera House, 1861. Charles Garnier.
You can start to read what is going on in the inside by looking at the outside. Importance of main space is legible on the outside. Experience of going to the theatre. Dramatic setting. Cultural event. In the main auditorium, the stair is the tableau of the project. Balcony is there for watching the progression of people walking in. social space. Theatre goers are on display or the audience watching as others come in.
Zeitgeist
Zeitgeist in German means the spirit of the time, or age
Auguste Perret. 25 bis Rue Franklin, Paris. 1902.
apartment building in Paris made out of concrete.
composition
concerned the detailing of the parti, involving distribution and disposition of the elements; to form, to make a whole out of several parts
axis
in a gridded system, it is a line in the design that is reinforced by adjacent objects or design elements
What kind of design process did it engender?
• The pupils show an avoidance of the spectacular in favor of more modest and practical goals. One pupil of Ledoux, Dubut, employed classical orders and historical styles while trying to provide a satisfaction of needs to give happiness in residential architecture. • Program has to work with a lot of conditions of the composition.
