What is Modern Architecture? | ARCHITECTURE 101

Modern architecture was the movement that defined 20th century architecture. It was a radical departure from centuries of architectural thought. It soon traveled around the world, promising that through rational design and new materials, architecture could build a better world. But where did modernism come from? And what makes a modern building modern? So join me as we explore what is modern architecture on ARCHITECTURE 101.

Written, Narrated & Edited by Steve Park

All pictures and video belong to their rightful owners.

© 2022 All Things Architecture.

[jacobking]

all the audio is panned to the left. if you were curious.

[chriskappert]

Here in the Netherlands we had Berlage, Dudok and Brandes .
These were architects that created houses and buildings for humans .
It is perfectly human to make things look good, to decorate and to use bricks and wood and natural stone, or even wicker on a roof .
Ask yourself, would I enjoy a good wine on a terras, surrounded by these modernist buildings, would that give the right feel ?

[Hannironaldo]

The Lever house inspired the former danish modernist architect Arne Jacobsen to build his SAS-hotel in central Copenhagen in 1960, at that time being the only skyscraper in all of Copenhagen. It became so iconic that it was since deemed worthy of preservation, and is now protected against any changes to it here in Denmark. Although, i find most architecture today utterly boring, where you're wondering if there is any thought behind any of it, i have always respected the modernist movement with their ideas and buildings. Great video as well!

[terabyte]

That was a huge help for my assingment! Thanks.

[kinikiealonzo]

Fantastic lecture, great presentation, and spot on analysis. While some younger folks may wish International Style is gone, as the presenter said, it lives on. Unfortunately, fewer folks study architecture today and a lot of people who analyze it, never studied architecture.

[Davey.G.]

Good summary in the first half. I felt the concluding remarks were rushed and didn’t address the collapse of architectural theory over the last few decades. Also, btw, architects ‘get it’ that people prefer ornate textured buildings - it’s just that nobody wants to pay for them. Alas.

[Hasty_Bahadin]

This was an interesting video. I liked it 👍

[petrusderorkan]

Interesting view and interpretation at 8:30. That is not how is feels to me at all 🤔
For me these buildings grow old pretty fast without maturing. They just age. I understand, why someone can feel weary of a lot of ornaments, especially when they stand for opulence and power. But this total cutback on ornaments radiates for me nothing but lifelessness. The total economization of architecture where the space for human playfulness shrinks.
I am trying to understand what the point of this sobriety is so I don't get angry about it. But so far nothing could really change that.
Maybe someone could help here. 🤷‍♂

[mr]

From this video it’s been cemented that European have always been minimalist and Americans have been maximalist. Being an individual and different is good.

[virtahepo]

What defines modern architecture is abandonment of beauty and building what architects want even if the people hate it. That's why you need to justify with eloquent poetry. Without that, you're just left with ugly glass boxes.

[smb]

Why do we likie what we like? When I was 5, each Sunday coming from church, I begged to go to the "funny looking" house. I found out the architect was influenced by Wright. My wife and I grew up in traditional homes but ours is very contemporary. We like it for different / overlapping reasons. She thinks it's clean, not messy, clear, etc. I love the mathematics, the lines, sharpness and lack of extraneous decor. Our home is a glass A-frame with the bottom of the three floors cantilevered from a hill where the house is partially inserted. It pleases us and that's what's important. Not a big fan of the International Style.

[Faris-Alzalam]

What is modern architecture?

Me: Dung.

[hellow-fntf]

They are not masters, Zaha Hadid is the Master 🎉

[eliharman]

An aesthetic atrocity and a crime against humanity.

[EARTHARCHITECT]

The single RULE of architecture was the baby thrown out with the batthwater of modern; the result is generations of incompetence — architecture is the design of space for people; as such, everything we can see is architecture — the RULE is the natural phenomenon that binocular humans assign an axis to spaces and to each piece of stuff that defines space; keeping those axis in balance, as they did pre-modern, is the essence of creating feeling = architecture — if i as someone to look out the window, they will stand in the exact center of the window because that is where you get the most information — all the original masters had this ingrained in their pedagogy — it was ceased in ‘52; the semester before i arrived at Cornell School of Architecture and it took me twenty years of trial and error after to find it; and to master it.

[hellow-fntf]

Where's Zaha Hadid in all of that 😒

[cowboybeboop]

Modern architecture is dystopian and crap. Get rid of everything post ~1945-1960

[bingdong]

Temporary roofs over our head. The rest is complete bs!

[Mr.E-girq]

Modern architecture sucks . The more odd it is, the more it's hailed as brilliant. It's all cheaply done crap that resembles a scifi movie set. It's like how modern art is hailed as brilliant even though it may be sht.