Modernism Part 1

 When World War II began many architects, specifically from the Bauhaus movement, fled to Britain, the United States, and many other countries. This led to the dispersal of architectural knowledge and trends to spread on a global stage. Many prominent architects, such as Le Corbusier, began to work under other designers once relocated. This was an interesting set up as both architects were able to learn from one another. Modernism was spreading across the world at different paces but, was not well received at the time as it was not fully understood. Modernism began to focus on more simplistic forms, clean lines, and little to no ornamentation. Color schemes began to be more about neutral colors with very little patterns ever seen. 


One Step Further: 

Richard Neutra was originally from Vienne but in 1921 came to the United States to work alongside Luis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright. Something about Neutra that stood out to me was how he valued each client and what they wanted from the project. As designers this is a key part of the industry to be able to adapt to needs and wants of clients. Neutra also felt that when designing building, the landscape around the space is also important to convey the design. His key style was to use geometric shapes while still creating a light and airy space. Living and working in California Neutra felt that having airy designs where the landscape is a key component of the building is the best approach. One of my favorite designs from Neutra is the Kaufmann house. This home is located in Palm Springs and truly embraces the indoor to outdoor lifestyle. This home features clean sharp lines and a muted color scheme. Wood, stucco, and brick are some of the key materials used within the space, these reflect the more simplistic material choices seen in modernism. These materials also help to once again reinforce the airy and indoor to outdoor living. The airiness of the space can truly been seen in the image below on the right, as the space is covered but, the wood slats leave open space for air circulation. 


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Modern Applications:

Application 1:

Indoor to outdoor design is something being seen in a lot more homes where collapsible folding glass doors or even doors similar to garage doors are used to create an outdoor extension of ones home. This home also features the same geometric shapes and a simple color palette. 


Application 2:

Modern interior design also features clean lines throughout the space from the architecture and the furniture selections. Neutral color schemes are seen throughout the spaces as seen below. The interiors and exteriors of modern homes often have a way of mimicking one another. 


Application 3:

Geometric shapes are a characteristic still seen in modern design, lately the the cube shaped exteriors has been growing in popularity. Color blocking is also seen with muted colors in the exteriors. 




Comments

  1. Professor VanderNoordaaApril 2, 2022 at 1:38 PM

    Meaghan,
    Thank you for your summary of Emergence into Modernism. The dispersal of architectural knowledge world wide and the trends resulting from the post WWll era are fascinating. The whole notion of considering the interior of a home as well as the surrounding landscape is a practice that continues today. Your summary of Richard Neutra and his contributions was excellent. I appreciate your modern applications. The folding glass doors was a great example of creating dynamic design that blurs the line between inside and outside. Total Points: 50/50

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  2. EmmalineApril 2, 2022 at 8:46 PM

    Meaghan,
    I love how you addressed the history behind modernism and how it spread out from Europe because many people do think about how designers and architects had to disperse after the war. I also the Kaufman house and the style of it and I think you did a great job at going into depth and pointing how the materials and how it was different than other designers during that period. Overall, great blog!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Dezaray MillerApril 3, 2022 at 12:36 PM

    Meadhan,

    I think you did really well at explaining the history of Modernism especially when you added how prominent architects stated working with other designers and relocated, this allowed for more collaboration. Your summary on Richard Neutra was great when you explained his success with designing and indoor to outdoor home. Your examples were very affective I really liked the last example and how there was combined geometry in the facade.

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