Contemporary architecture is the architecture of the 21st century. No single
style is dominant.[1][citation needed] Contemporary architects work in several different
styles, from postmodernism, high-tech architecture and new interpretations
of traditional architecture[2][3] to highly conceptual forms and designs,
resembling sculpture on an enormous scale. Some of these styles and
approaches make use of very advanced technology and modern building
materials, such as tube structures which allow construction of buildings that
are taller, lighter and stronger than those in the 20th century, while others
prioritize the use of natural and ecological materials like stone, wood
and lime.[4] One technology that is common to all forms of contemporary
architecture is the use of new techniques of computer-aided design, which
allow buildings to be designed and modeled on computers in three
dimensions, and constructed with more precision and speed.
Contemporary buildings and styles vary greatly. Some
feature concrete structures wrapped in glass or aluminium screens, very
asymmetric facades, and cantilevered sections which hang over the street.
Skyscrapers twist, or break into crystal-like facets. Facades are designed to
shimmer or change color at different times of day.
Whereas the major monuments of modern architecture in the 20th century
were mostly concentrated in the United States and western Europe,
contemporary architecture is global; important new buildings have been built
in China, Russia, Latin America, and particularly in Arab states of the Persian
Gulf; the Burj Khalifa in Dubai was the tallest building in the world in 2019,
and the Shanghai Tower in China was the second-tallest.
Parallel to this, a counterculture to the modernist and post-modernist
architecture that dominated the second half of the 20th century developed
during this period.[5] The 21st century saw the emergence of multiple
organizations dedicated to the promotion of local and/or traditional
architecture. Examples include the International Network for Traditional
Building, Architecture & Urbanism (INTBAU),[6] the Institute of Classical
Architecture & Art (ICAA),[7] the Driehaus Architecture Prize,[8] and
the Complementary architecture movement. Prominent architects of the new
traditional wave include Michael Graves, Léon Krier, Yasmeen Lari, Robert
Stern and Abdel-Wahed El-Wakil, among others.
Most of the landmarks of contemporary architecture are the works of a small
group of architects who work on an international scale. Many were designed
by architects already famous in the late 20th century, including Mario
Botta, Frank Gehry, Jean Nouvel, Norman Foster, Ieoh Ming Pei and Renzo
Piano, while others are the work of a new generation born during or after
World War II, including Zaha Hadid, Santiago Calatrava, Daniel
Libeskind, Jacques Herzog, Pierre de Meuron, Rem Koolhaas, and Shigeru
Ban. Other projects are the work of collectives of several architects, such
as UNStudio and SANAA, or giant multinational agencies such as Skidmore,
Owings & Merrill, with thirty associate architects and large teams of engineers
and designers, and Gensler, with 5,000 employees in 16 countries.