Architecture: Words or Shapes

The Renaissance was a time of great achievement, and St. Peter’s Basilica includes many features that make it one of the greatest churches in the world. The church was originally built around the time of ancient Rome, but after a fire left it permanently damaged, the church was rebuilt during the Renaissance in the year 1506. During the reconstruction, the well-known artist, Michelangelo, was the head architect responsible for rebuilding the church. Because the Renaissance marked the birth of new ideas, many forgotten architectural styles were integrated into the church. St. Peter's Basilica perfectly represents the architectural styles of the Renaissance period because of Michelangelo's style, techniques, and perspective.

Architecture often stands on its own edifying right, but how much more affluent we are to seek an understanding of the cultural diversity and design influence one had on architecture when presented in terms of an historical account. This paper seeks to piece together the formal elements of the villa with dignifying examples of diversity from Hadrian’s travels and abhor of the surroundings of Rome itself.

In the World Like Colossus, the author mentions various types of architect’s version of the truth or the gaze. Each architect, while not directly saying, implies that their truth is absolute. This brings to question is there is such a thing as one universal truth to the way we see and experience architecture; whether it’s through Le Corbusier’s sketching or Mendelsohn’s photography, immersing yourself in the experience or taking a quick view of it. I think the diversity of each architect’s viewpoint negates the idea that one should be a “universal truth”-- instead we should embrace the different opinions of each traveler to form a more holistic approach to whatever truth we may

Architecture is best described as the process and product of planning, designing, and constructing buildings and other physical structures. It uses the concepts and ideas of mathematics, art, science, and technology. Architecture has changed over the centuries. It began back with Classical Roman and Greek architecture and it had ancient aspects to it, for example, an important aspect used back

Admired for its Renaissance architecture, with a fusion with Baroque architecture in the later years of building, the Basilica of St. Peter also holds great meaning; thus in order to emphasize its importance, it took several years to design and completely build the dome (and the Basilica itself). Consequently, the greatest architects and artists were involved

Next is the art and beauty that is brought out through architecture. One aspect is texture, texture on buildings make them different and match the lifestyle and feeling of a building. After the texture there is the art that goes into architecture. One example of that is the giant bean

Alberto Perez Gomez Challenges modern architecture in his book titled “Architecture and the Crisis of Modern Science”, and he describes how modern architecture needs to restate its position towards creation of memories. In addition, he explains that modern architecture cannot believe in a meaningless structure because nothing in built form can be meaningless (Rykwert) [11]. Furthermore, he explains how human perception and the sensorial experience of a space is the origin of architectural program. He describes human body as the focus of all the rules in the world, and how human body is occupying space and time. Hence, this existence can push architecture to create and order that resonates with the body itself (Perez Gomez) [11].

A freestanding object placed on top of a hill, visually the Villa is simple, if not austere, – clear shapes, with minimum decorations, give the impression of wholeness and balance. This positioning creates a relationship between the Villa as an object with the landscape as space, making it part, if not the crown, of the surroundings. The building is raised on a high base, and its frontal orientation is a distinctive feature of the Renaissance architectural style. Superimposed porticos with classical pediments supported by six Ionic columns link onto each of the four façades, giving complete symmetry to the building. The entablature is characteristic of the Ionic order with a three-face architrave, plain undecorated frieze and cornice built up with dentils. The pediments adorn the projecting

The incorporated single-family habitation and studio-display space of House D, designed by PAUHOF Architeckten, lays on a precarious incline inside the sloping scene of Austria. The level band of windows that watches out onto the open rough scene offers a streamlined band of daylight demonstrative of Le Corbusier's pioneer beliefs.

In ‘The architecture of happiness’ by Alain de Botton says, “If our interest for buildings and objects truly is being defined by how they appear to us and in which way they perform their material existence, it would be praiseworthy to sedulously examine the quaint process, according to which, the structures made from stone, steel, concrete, wood and glass are able to communicate; yet in infrequent occasions they give the impression of talking to us about important and emotive things.” This statement give by Alain de Bottom determines the meaning of what is considered to be good architecture. Fortunately, this kind of examples can be seen more frequently nowadays.

Le Corbusier designed many building during his lifetime. During the early 20th century many fantastic architecture emerged and followed the discipline relations between function and form. An exceptional example of his work is “La Colline Notre-Dame du Haut” (church) at Ronchamp is a renowned building of the 20th century. The church was described to be embodiment of an architectural art sculpture. Le Corbusier’s church at Ronchamp is evidentially the most imaginative and sensitively of the modern architecture, conveying emotional style of expression in it’s physical form. Le Corbusier’s church at Ronchamp has unique interior and exterior features highlighting the site of the church offering delightful imaginative and sensitively to the building. Le Corbusier’s approach to innovative lighting solution creates deeper experiential intimacy. Le Corbusier’s chapel at Ronchamp is considerably the most poetic building by redefining

“Architecture as space” by Peter Goldberger discusses the significance of the interior space within architecture as it is where the viewer has a true experience. The feeling when entering a building builds a foundation for the viewers’ expectations and is most influential to their judgement of the space. With a comparison of a person’s reaction to a building from the exterior to the interior, Goldberger explains that an exterior is viewed as a whole and seen in a context however the interior will mould the persons experience with choice of lighting, form and space. His discussion of how space can influence the users’ movement proves that the architect can directly ‘control’ the user or even through light determine the mood either with natural lighting or use artificial lighting for something that can be controlled .

During his career, which spanned five decades, Le Corbusier’s passion for urban planning and for providing better living conditions for the residents of crowded cities, saw him construct renowned buildings throughout America, India and Europe. More than any other architect of the modern movement, Le Corbusier insisted on one particular ideal of design; that architecture was the product of individual creative intelligence, and that the order for which we create with architecture should be ideal, not pragmatic. He was famously noted to have said, “The house is a machine for living in.” However, by saying this, Le Corbusier was implying that the machine was a template for an art form, whose character and structure should be explicitly determined by laws “internal to itself.”

In the Barcelona Pavilion, the use of space is based on the simplicity of how a functional space can be created. Geometry and the use of materials is the key point in this reconstructed space. Mies var der Rohe’s initial thoughts about the materials he used was not so much in novelty as in the ideal mindset of modernity and that they expressed it through the rigour of their geometry, the precision of the pieces and the clarity of their assembly. For this project Mies var der Rohe initially rejected the

The same year, at the Salon d’Automne Le Corbusier exhibited two projects that expressed his idea of social environment and contained the germ of all works of this period. The Citrohan House displays his conception of modern architecture. Pillars supporting the structure, thus freeing the ground beneath the building, a roof-terrace, transformable into a garden and an essential part of the house, an open floor plan: a façade free of ornamentation, and windows in strips that affirm the independence of the structural