Influence of international style in modern architecture
Introduction
In this report we will see the influence of the international style within modern architecture, a movement that had a place during the twentieth century after the devastation of cities that left the world wars as consequences; The modern architecture promoted by the Bauhaus school and the architects of that time give an approach to the set of architectures that share the most purist formal characteristics and to a lesser extent functionality; This is how at the beginning of the movement, the so-called international style arises which shares many similarities with modern architecture and that is consolidated in 1932 in the first exhibition of modern architecture that took place in MoMA, organized by Henry-Russell Hitchcock and Philip Johnson.
The international style characterized by its emphasis on orthogonality, the use of smooth, polished surfaces, devoid of armament, with a visual aspect of lightness that allows the construction of cantilever; It is referring to a small group of architects such as Walter Gropius, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Le Corbusier, J. J. P. OUD, Richard Neutra, Rudolf Schindler and Philip Johnson which share the basic foundations of international style.
The general objective of this report is to know the influence of international style in modern architecture; In addition to as a specific objective there is to reach each student who develops in the discipline of architecture showing the essence of international style its main representatives and their most recognized works, as well as their similarities in characters within modern architecture and its main basis. It is worth mentioning that by the current situation of a global pandemic all information has been collected from reliable sources of the network having as support bibliographic appointments and links in which it can be consulted for more detail and safety of each information presented.
Developing
Modern movement
The modern movement wishes to break the architecture prior to it which generates the creation of a new architectural language and that is where the Bauhaus stands out whose characteristic was art and design with its principle “The form follows the function”.
The international style as the new influencer of modern movement
International style origin
It originated from some factors among them:
- The discomfort of some architects to eclectisism and divergences in architectural styles at the end of the 19th century, because details of the various styles and periods were taken, which did not have a relationship between the form and utility in the building.
- The accelerated industrialization of European and North American societies, is the creation of office buildings, blocking blocks to host machinery and large amounts of workers.
- The advance in materials and construction, allowing the invention of reinforced concrete and the processes in steel alloys.
Characteristic
- It has an application is versatile adaptable to any place or region.
- Emphasize mass volumes.
- Use of industrial materials produced by mass and lightly such as reinforced concrete and tempered glass.
- Contains polished and smooth surfaces
- The absence of any type of ornament and color.
- Its structure is functional and repetitive forms.
- The use of flat surfaces and this can be seen in the "Villa Savoye".
- Buildings have areas with glass.
- Use of blankets
Main managers
The best known representatives of the moment in modern architecture are:
- Frank Lloyd Wright (USA)
He was born on June 8, 1867 at Richland Center, Wisconsin USA, in a family of British pastors. He spent his entire childhood in a farm in Wisconsin, where he had contact with nature, something he took as a concept for his future works. He entered the University of Wisconsin to study engineering, but I can’t finish it and moved to Chicago. I did the first work of him alone Charnley House in Chicago (1892), then more works of single -family homes followed.
The most famous work of him the Kaufmann house, or the house of the waterfall that is a perfect integration between architecture and nature. Frank Lloyd Wright died on April 9, 1959 in Phoenix Arizona.
- Walter Gropius (Germany)
He was born on May 18, 1883 in Berlin he was a son and grandson of architects which was his reason to be one more, study architecture at the universities of Munich and Berlincarlottenburg, he was director of 2 art schools in Weimar transforming them thus transforming them into the known today Bauhaus having as a principle "the form follows the function". Walter opposed the Nazi party which forced him to leave Germany and go to Great Britain in 1934, after a few years he went to the United States where I dictated classes at Harvard University and in 1915 he married after large projects died on July 5 of 1969.
- Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (Germany)
He was born in 1886 and died in 1969 in Chicago (USA.UU.) was initially influenced by neoclassical architecture; However, this change at the end of World War I, in which he joined the various avant -garde movements; Getting to large revolutionary projects. In addition, he directed the Bauhaus art and design school between 1930 and 1933. Then he had to emigrate to the United States.
Finally, his most outstanding projects were the German Pavilion for the International Exhibition of Barcelona, built in 1929, where you can see the simplicity and continuity of the spaces; Also, the Seagram Building skyscraper in New York, built in 1958, where he makes use of glass and aluminum.
- Le Corbusier (Switzerland)
Le Corbusier was a painter, architect, recorder and designer. Le Corbusier pseudonym composed of the word crow in French –corbeau– and his grandfather’s surname by his mother, Lecorbésier. Charles-édouard Jeanneret-Gris born on October 6, 1887 at the Chaux-de-Fonds in Switzerland. Him The mother an artist who taught music and played the piano, his father a local worker, in the watchmaking.
Also known as the father of modern architecture he did not take studies in the discipline of architecture. While studying in the School of Arts of the Chaux-de-Fonds, he met Charles L. These influences led him to venture into painting, sculpture, design and letters; However, he would be in the architecture where he became a representative of the twentieth century in modern architecture, providing innovations changing the way in which the spaces and buildings of that time were presented and giving pass to the international style.
His style throughout his architectural production was, the principle of maintain. The latter shaped one of his theoretical pillars, functionalism is why he names that "the house is a machine to live". Because every element had.
- Philip Johnson (USA)
He was born in 1906, studied two careers at Harvard University, the first was Philology and the second one decided after working in MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) with the position of director of the Department of Architecture, which would be architecture having as teachers To Walter Gropius and Marcel Breuer, and later conducting a Master of History of Architecture at the same University, ending his studies he returned to work with the same position at MoMA.
Over time, many other activities were dedicated, but not to the practice of architecture until the age of 36 was completed in architecture and made the design of its first building, since then its journey began as an architect. He organizing the first architectural visits to Ludwing Mies van der Rohe and Le Corbusier, after this he had a close relationship with Mies leading him to collaborate with the design and construction of Seagram.
The American Institute of Architecture gave him a gold medal, in 1979 he won the Pritzker Prize, thus being the first architect to obtain it. Among his works that highlights the most is the glass house in New Canaan, this being the house in which he lived and in turn the one I present as a graduation thesis, because of this it is also known as Casa Jonhson. It should be noted that the term "international style" leaves the 1932 exhibition that I made with Henry-Russell Hitchcock made at MoMA and the book he wrote with him The International Style: Architecture Since 1922222222. Johnson died on January 25, 2005 with 98 years.
Main works
Main works
- Villa Savoye
It is a classic specimen of the international style of Le Corbusier that started in 1928 and ended in 1929. A great design variation with a free floor by separating its load columns, has 2 floors (first and low) making it very interesting, the type of building is a house and the material they used for this building is concrete Plaster and steel Le Corbusier Gender
- Fallingwater
Built between 1936 to 1939, it is shown as an organic architecture, it is built on top of a rock and an extremely impressive waterfall with a type of large structure taking a feeling of being one with nature. The materials used are wood and steel concrete. Although Wright’s engineers said the building would be unstable, but as time passes, even when he suffered the attack of a tornado. An impressive building located in Pennsylvania
- Seagram
A glass skyscraper with a height of 515 meters. which was built between 1954 and 1958 by Mies are an expression from the old to the extremely impressive modern with a huge surface of blinds, the sensation it generates is as if it had been made of bronze, although it is not so and its dark crystals help that feeling. The materials used were concrete, bronze and a steel frame.
- Bauhaus
It is a design and art school built between 1925 and 1926 with a principle called "The form follows the function" although the Nazi party decided to close the Bauhaus for reasons of society and the party in 1933 with the exile that they were imposed Representatives like Walter Gropius, Mies van der Rohe, etc. The Bauhaus also known as the “Construction House” located in desou Germany. The implement of its structure made of iron and concrete that forms the skeleton of the building and allows the existence of 3 different facades also adding the use of the crystal that gives it a sensation of transparency.
- The glass house
one of the most important projects of Philip Johnson built 1949 in Connecticut (EE.UU.). It has an interior space that is divided by low cabinets and a brick cylinder that has a bathroom inside. A building composed of materials such as black steel glass and brick. A sensation that generates in the one that is floating with a impressive transparent walls an impressive building.
conclusion
With this report we conclude that the international style; It occurs within modern architecture influencing it due to its main characteristic of the use of industrial materials, such as reinforced concrete, steel and tempered glass which give an aspect of lightness and functionality to the structures becoming a style with a projection universally with a versatility in each design being these applied anywhere or region because it does not have a specific character of somewhere.
It is worth mentioning that the term international style was consolidated by Henry – Russell Hitchcock and Philip Johnson in 1932, which shared the characteristics of modern architecture given in Europe by architects such as Le Corbusier and members of the Bauhaus, although the style was linked by its form, it separated by its social content. Finally, internationalism is a projection within a world that universalizes the form of design, where it is implied that architecture does not belong to a specific place and that is adaptable to any part of the world, being a driver of modern and universal characters.
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