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The Pros And Cons Of Ornament And Crime

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Examine modernist architects’ rejection of ornament informed by a review of the following two texts and in relation to examples designed by the two writers. Le Corbusier, ‘A Coat of Whitewash: The Law of Ripolin.’ The Decorative Art of Today (1925) London: The Architectural Press, 1987. and Loos, Adolf. ‘Ornament and Crime’ (1908). Reprinted in G. Lees-Maffei and R. Houze, eds. The Design History Reader. Oxford: Berg, 2010.

Ornament began as a luxury, when you see how ornamented jewellery, clothing or even a building is, you can tell that more labour has gone into producing it as well as how expensive it is. When the Industrial revolution and machine production rolled around in the 18th Century it changed how production worked. Everything …show more content…

In Ornament and Crime, he compared the negative effects of ornament on the national economy and the consequences of crime. He believed that ornamentation was a waste of materials, capital and manpower. He believed that workers wages could increase if ornamentation was eliminated. Such statements are repeated by architect Le Corbusier. This economic criticism of ornament did not just start in the 20th century but in fact in the 19th century. J.N.L stated “the expense… ornamentation entails is folly.” while justifying his more simple forms “the more symmetrical, regular, and simple a building is, the less costly it becomes.” Though this is not entirely true as it ignores the fact that just because a building is ornamented doesn't make it more expensive than simple ones. This is also challenged due to technical construction advancements this would mean that original ornaments can be commensurately less expensive “Moreover, ornaments endow his carrier with an added value which is a stimulus for economic activity; hence it cannot be taken thoroughly as an obstacle to economic growth.” Critics deny ornamentation as a form of art as well as the building realm due to its lack of utilitarian function. They deny its a form of art due to its structure, function and form of the object. Loos is one critic who did not view it as a form of art, “even went so far to give the pure art a superiority over ornament.” Some critics- including Le Corbusier- denounced ornament due to its role in concealing the unpleasant realities of objects such as deformation, lack of power, construction faults , and poor quality of materials. Le Corbusier released the Law of Ripolin where he called for all buildings to be whitewashed while also calling for white ripolin to replace interior decoration. As the colour white in itself represents the cleansing of space, Corbusier thought of this as an act of

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