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Pratt Institute School of Architecture
Undergraduate Architecture Program
Course Syllabus
Arch 207
History of Architecture II
Spring 2005
Credits:
Type of Course:
Prerequisites:
Enrollment Capacity:
3
Required, Lecture with Sections
ARCH 206
25 per section
Instructors:
John Lobell (212-679-1935, JohnLobellPratt@aol.com
Alessandra Ponte (aponte@earthlink.net)
Time & Location:
Lecture, all sections W 9-11 AM, Room 115 HHS
Sect.
Sect.
Sect.
Sect.
.01
.02
.03
.04
Lobell
Ponte
Lobell
Ponte
W
W
W
W
11-12 PM,
11-12 PM,
12-1 PM,
12-1 PM,
310 HHS
203 HHN
310 HHS
203 HHN
Course Overview:
This course is the second of a required three-semester sequence that examines the history of Western
and Non-Western architecture from its earliest beginnings to today. This semester deals with the
history and development of art, architecture and the built environment in the West from the 15th
century to the end of the 19th century, beginning with the Renaissance, moving on the the Baroque,
Neoclassicism and 19th century revivals, and concluding with the movements leading to the rise of
modernism. This discussion is preceded by a three-week investigation of Non-Western developments
in Pre-Columbia (Meso and South) America, India and Southeast Asia, China and Japan. As in Arch
206, emphasis throughout is on key architectural monuments considered in a broad cultural context.
Learning Objectives:
The study of architectural history is an important component of the professional architecture
curriculum at Pratt. Architectural history is a humanistic and critical discipline based on visual
observation, liberal research, and written analysis. As such, it complements the practical and
conceptual projects of the design studio by surveying and analyzing historical precedents for design,
investigating their meaning, and evaluating their usefulness as formal or programmatic models.
Throughout history, architecture has reflected the cultures in which it evolved and the social,
economic, and geophysical conditions which shaped it. This relationship continues today. Indeed,
many issues with which architects are currently concerned can be considered outgrowths of previous
historical developments. Thus, studying the architecture of the past gives students a focused
historical lens through which to consider contemporary architectural problems.
By familiarizing students with the body of world architecture and by illustrating the broad scope and
uses of architectural history, this course (and the others in the sequence), also provides a guide to
elective studies.
Requirements and rules
1. Attend all lectures and sections

You will lose one letter grade for more than two unexcused absences

If you miss a lecture, let us know, and we will try to arrange a review of the lecture
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2. Sign the sign-in sheet, and be on time and be attentive

Sign-ins after 9:05 count as late, and the sheets come down at 9:30, at which time you
must attend class, but it will count as an absence. Three lates count as an absence (so
you can have 5 lates before it affects your grade)

Be attentive during lecture, do not talk, do not wander in and out of class (if you need to
go to the rest room, go quietly)

Attend the section to which you are assigned

Attendance will be taken in sections with the same rules as for the lectures.
3. Take notes in lecture and in section

Submit a xerox copy (you keep the originals) of your notes from the previous week’s
lecture and section at the beginning of each section. Notes submitted late lose 1/2 credit.
4. Do the assigned reading and Reading Summary before class each week

Write a one-page Reading Summary of the reading and submit it at the beginning of
section each week. Reading summaries submitted late lose 1/2 credit. See Reading
Summary Assignments for details.
5. Put this outline, your notes from lecture and section, Reading Summaries, assignments, and
exams in a notebook.

We will check notebooks at the end of the semester.
6. Read this entire course outline. Take the midterm and final. Don’t cheat. In short, you can’t
master the material if you are not in class and you don’t do the work.
Not filling following these requirements and rules will result in a decrease in your grade.
Basis for grade
that:

Final Exam 45%
(there is no A+)

Midterm 25%
A
=
96—100

Reading Summaries 20%
A- =
90—95

Class notes 10%
B+ =
87—89
Grades will be lowered for absences, lateness,
B
=
84—86
failure to turn in papers on text and class
B- =
80—83
notes, and failure to participate in class.
C+ =
77—79
C
=
74—76
C- =
70—73
D+ =
68—69
D
=
65—67
(there is no D-)
F = below 65
As a rough rule of thumb, you can assume
Semester Schedule
Week
Date
Lecture Subject
(Schedule and content are subject to change.)
1
1/19
Pre-Columbian American
2
1/26
India & Southeast Asia
3
2/2
China & Japan
4
2/9
Early Renaissance
[JL]
[AP]
[JL]
[JL]
3
Arch 207
5
2/16
High Renaissance & Mannerism
6
2/23
The Baroque & Rococo
7
3/2
8
9
[AP]
[JL]
Mid-Term Exam in Lecture period / No Sections
3/9
3/16
3/23
Neoclassicism
[AP]
Gothic Revival
[AP]
No Class—Spring Break
10
3/30
Mid-19th Century Architecture Culture, Theory, and Technology
11
4/6
The Beaux-Arts
12
4/13
The Shingle Style and the Chicago School
13
4/20
[JL]
[JL]
Arts & Crafts and Art Nouveau
14
4/27
No Class—Jury Week
15
5/4
Final Exam
[JL]
[AP]
Reading Summary Assignments
You have weekly reading assignments from Stockstad and Curtis that roughly parallel the lectures,
and you are to write a brief Reading Summary each week on the reading.
In each case:

briefly answer the questions listed below

fully identify (name of the building, name of the architect if known, culture, location, and date)
key buildings referred to in the reading




The Reading Summaries should be brief, about one page.
They count for 20% of your grade.
They are due at the beginning of section each week.
Late papers lose half credit.
NOTE: These chapter assignments do not directly correspond to the lecture subjects. The
Stockstad material includes a lot of painting and sculpture, and each Curtis chapter includes
several of our topics. Therefore, you should skim the painting and sculpture material, and
you will have to dig through the chapters to find the material that corresponds to the
lecture topic and to answer the questions.
NOTE: Give us a copy and keep a copy for yourself.
Arch 207
At the upper left of each of your papers should be the following;
Your Name
ARCH 207
Section X
Date (due date)
Title (Example: China and Japan)
1
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2
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3
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4
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5
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6
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8
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9
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Date due 1/26
Pre-Columbian American
Stockstad, Ch 12, 23
Identify the major Meso- and South American cultures with their locations and dates
What kind of cultural and social structures did these cultures have
How were these cultural and social structures manifest in their architecture
How are the Mayan pyramids similar to and different from the Egyptian pyramids and the
Mesopotamian ziggurats
Date due 2/2
India & Southeast Asia
Stockstad, Ch 9
What are the key ideas of Hinduism
How is Hinduism reflected in the Hindu temple
What are the key ideas of Buddhism
In which countries did Buddhism flourish
How is Buddhism reflected in Buddhist architecture
Date due 2/9
China & Japan
Stockstad, Ch 10, 11, 21, 22
Contraast Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism in China
How were these manifest in Chinese architecture
Describe Shinto and Buddhism in Japan
How were these manifest in Japanese architecture
Date due 2/16
Early Renaissance
Stockstad, Ch 17
Describe the role of humanism in the Renaissance
Describe the technique of perspective in painting, and its influence on architecture
What were Brunelleschi’s and Alberti’s contribution to Renaissance architecture
Date due 2/23
High Renaissance & Mannerism
Stockstad, Ch 18
How does High Renaissance architecture differ from Early Renaissance architecture
Which architects worked on new St. Peter’s Basilica
What distinguishes Mannerism
What distinguished Palladio’s architecture
Date due 3/2
The Baroque & Rococo
Stockstad, Ch 19, 26
How does the Baroque architecture differ from High Renaissance architecture
What distinguishes Rococo architecture
Date due 3/16
Neoclassicism
Stockstad, Ch 26 (begin page 909)
How does the understanding of the past change with Neoclassicism
Date due 3/30
Gothic Revival
Stockstad, Ch 26
How does Gothic revival differ from Neoclassical revival
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Arch 207
10
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11
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12
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13
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5
Date due 4/6
Mid-19th Century Architecture Culture, Theory, and Technology
Stockstad, Ch 27, Curtis Ch 2, 4
How do iron and steel change architecture
Date due 4/13
The Beaux-Arts
Stockstad, Ch 27, Curtis Ch 2
What historical periods influence the Beaux-Arts
Why is historical revival architecture still being built in the late 19 th and early 20th centuries
Date due 4/20
The Shingle Style and the Chicago School
Stockstad, Ch 27, Curtis Ch 2
What forces converged to bring about the sky scraper in Chicago in the late 19 th century
Date due 5/4
Arts & Crafts and Art Nouveau
Stockstad, Ch xx, Curtis Ch 3, 5
What are the key characteristics of Art Nouveau architecture, and how does it relate to Art
Nouveau in other fields of the arts
Course Materials
Required Textbooks:

Stokstad, Marilyn, Art History, Second Edition (Phaidon,) in the Pratt Bookstore.

Curtis, William J., Modern Architecture Since 1900, 3rd edition,. (Prentice Hall)
(You will also use this book next semester in ARCH 308, Modernism)

Hacker, Diana, Rules for Writers, Bedford/St. Martin's, 2000 (Fourth Edition)
This is the Pratt-wide handbook for writing style
Lecture Outlines
Included in this syllabus are outlines for each week’s lecture topic. Students are expected to read the
outline before each lecture and are advised to use the outline during the lecture as a guide to notetaking. Lecture outlines include a general introduction to the period, a list of architectural
characteristics, a list of important buildings and artifacts, specialized terminology relevant to the
period, and a brief bibliography for further reading and research in the period. In some cases,
illustrations are also included with the lecture outline, but only when those buildings or artifacts are
asterisked (*) and not represented in the textbook.
Please note that all items marked with asterisks (*) under Important Buildings & Artifacts will be
emphasized in exams. Students are required to master a complete identification for each asterisked
work.
History Notebook
You are required to keep a history notebook with material from ARCH 207, and later from ARCH 308.
Get a three ring notebook and by the end of the semester place in it the material listed below.
Include:

This course outline

Your notes from the lectures and sections

Your Reading Summary assignments (give us a copy each week, keep a copy for yourself)

Your midterm (put it in a three hole plastic document folder)

Your final (when you get it back)
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You must bring the notebook to class on the day of the final exam.
You will need this material when studying for the licensing exams.
Supplementary References
You may wish to purchase the following reference books (available in paperback) which will be of use
in this course and throughout their architectural education.

John Fleming, Hugh Honour, Nikolous Pevsner, The Penguin Dictionary of Architecture, 4th edition
(London: Penguin Books Ltd, 1991).

Cyril M. Harris, ed., Dictionary of Architecture and Construction (New York: Mc-Graw-Hill, 1975).
[Note: this book was revised and expanded in 1993, but the older, cheaper edition is still generally
available.]
Throughout the semester students may wish to consult the following pictorial references books, all of
which have useful illustrations. All are available in the Pratt library or the New York Public Library.

Trewin Copplestone, ed., World Architecture: An Illustrated History (New York: McGraw-Hill,
1953).

Banister Fletcher, A History of Architecture on the Comparative Method (1896; many reprints and
expanded editions available).

Henry A. Millon, Key Monuments of the History of Architecture (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall,
1964).

John Julius Norwich, ed., The World Atlas of Architecture (Boston: G.K. Hall, 1984).
For further reading: While each lecture outline includes a suggested bibliography for the given period,
the following series are recommended as well. Various titles in these series cover most periods from
pre-history to the present day. Series titles and publishers are listed below.




Great Ages of World Architecture (New York: George Braziller).
History of World Architecture (New York: Rizzoli).
Pelican History of Art (New Haven: Yale University Press).
World of Art (London: Thames and Hudson).
Course Format
Weekly meetings of this course consist of 1 1/2-hour lectures, attended by all students, followed by 1hour sections in which the class breaks into small groups. The lectures are formal slide-illustrated
surveys of a given period which introduce students to the general historical and cultural context and to
key architectural monuments and art works of the period. In general, the goal of each lecture is to
demonstrate the period’s breadth and to acquaint students with important concepts and ideas as
expressed in the period’s art and architecture. Lectures are intended to stimulate debate about each
period, but students are asked to hold questions which arise for discussion in their individual sections.
Sections are informal classroom seminars between the instructor and a small group of students. The
goal of each section is to examine the material presented in the lecture in greater detail, be it a
discussion of cultural concepts, an in-depth analysis of a particular building or artifact, or the
relevance of this period and its monuments to contemporary architectural practice. Sections provide
students with the opportunity to ask questions and to clarify ideas and concepts regarding material
presented in lecture or in the textbook. Sections will also include discussions of course assignments,
note-taking and study methods, reviews for exams, and other related topics.
NOTE ON CHEATING AND PLAGIARISM:
Students are reminded that cheating and plagiarism are not permitted, and can lead to
serious consequences.
Pratt Institute holds issues of academic integrity in the highest regard. So do we.
Instances of cheating, plagiarism, and misappropriation of intellectual property will not
be tolerated and will be handled in the following manner:
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Arch 207

We are required to report the incident to the registrar, and it will be recorded in
your file.

More than one report to the registrar during your entire time at Pratt will result in
a hearing before the Academic Integrity Board, at which time appropriate
sanctions will be decided. These may include dismissal from the Institute.

We will determine the nature and severity of the infraction and apply appropriate
sanctions that can range from asking you to repeat the assignment, failing you for
the assignment, failing you for the course and/or referring the case to the
Academic Integrity Board.
For more details about these procedures please see the Student Handbook, the Pratt
Bulletins, and the Judicial Procedures at Pratt pamphlet.
CHEATING
If you are using dishonest methods to fulfill course requirements, you are cheating.
Examples of this include, but are not limited to:

Obtaining or offering copies of exams or information about the content of exams in
advance.

Bringing notes in any form to a closed book exam.

Looking at another student’s paper during an exam.

Receiving or communicating any information from or to another student during an
exam.
PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism is a bit more complicated, but the rules of documentation and citation are
very specific and are tailored to different academic disciplines. Types of plagiarism
include:

Including any material from any source other than yourself in a paper without
proper attribution. This includes material from the Internet, books, papers from
other students, and from any other source.

The extensive use of the ideas of others in your paper, even if in your own words,
without proper attribution.

Turning in work as your own that was done by another person.
Please remember that all written work must be in your own words or cited and
documented appropriately. If you do not understand how to do this properly, it is
your responsibility to ask.
WEEK 1.
PRE-COLUMBIAN AMERICA
This lecture discusses the cultures which flourished “before Columbus” in Central (Meso) and South
America.
PRE-COLUMBIAN MESOAMERICA
Introduction
The geographical setting is the Mexican peninsula and other parts of Central America, including
Guatemala and Honduras. Much of this large area is tropical, marked by dry and rainy seasons. A
number of distinct cultures flourished within specifc zones of this region, including the Olmec and
Totanac peoples on the Gulf Coast of Mexico; Teotihuacan, Toltec, and Aztec cultures in the Valley of
Mexico; the Zapotec, and Mixtec in Oaxaca, Mexico; the Maya in Yucatan, Mexico, as well as other
parts of Central America. These cultures flourished during several millenia which are divided into
three periods: Preclassic (2000 B.C.-300 A.D. with Early, Middle, and Late division); Classic (A.D. 300900); and Postclassic (A.D. 900-1521). The end date of 1521 indicates the year of conquest by the
Spanish.
These Mesoamerican cultures share a number of characteristics including their calendrical systems,
religious beliefs, technological advances, and social organization.
 Time: 2 Calendars: 365 day agricultural & 260 day sacred calendar; 52 year century celebrated
with New Fire Ceremony
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 Technology: Advanced naked-eye astronomy; glyphic writing; vigesimal number system (based on
20) with zero; no wheeled vehicles, cattle, or horses
 Religion: Plumed Serpent Quetzalcoatl/Kukulcan (return expected in 1519 A.D.); rain deities Tlaloc
& Chacs; dualism; hierarchically tiered heavens & hells; Four Suns (previous worlds); jaguars &
eagles (clan designations); Caves of Emergence
 Social: theocratic with dynastic rulers, distinct classes and castes, and priestly and/or warrior
aristocracies.
Characteristics of Mesoamerican Architecture
 Ceremonial cities of stone
 Design around large plazas
 Stepped temple-pyramids
 Ball courts
 Corbel arch severely limits span length
 Carved stone ornamentation, originally colorfully painted; prominent motifs include the Feathered
Serpent (Quetzalcoatl) and rain deities (Tlaloc, Chacs)
 Astronomical alignments of major structures to solstices and equinoxes, Venus, Sirius, the Pleiades,
and other important stars & constellations
OLMEC CULTURE [4 Quarters – Pyramid]
The Olmec culture was the first Mesoamerican “pyramid” culture with ceremonial compounds (some
with earthen pyramids) at La Venta, San Lorenzo, and Tres Zapotes in Veracruz and Tobasco
provinces, Mexico. The Olmec numerical system, hieroglyphs, and artistic motifs were used by
successive cultures. The Olmec culture is known especially for its colossal basalt heads, jaguar-baby
motifs, and cave-emergence images in art.
TEOTIHUACAN CULTURE [Pyramid]
Considered the first highly influential urban civilization; it flourished between 150 B.C. and 750 A.D
(Classic Period) when it disappeared for unknown reasons. The magnificent capital city, Teotihuacan,
is 30 miles north of Mexico City in the Valley of Mexico. This earliest Mesoamerican city had an
astronomically-aligned grid layout with massive ceremonial pyramids and temples, and residential
courtyard compounds housing a large population (100,000 or more). Teotihuacan is rightly regarded
as a well-spring of civilization, having widespread artistic and spiritual influence on successive cultures
all over Mesoamerica. Note: the Teotihuacan culture is sometimes called “Toltec,” but this is
misleading. This largely peaceful, highly spiritual culture should not be confused with the later warrior
culture of the Tula Toltecs.
Teotihuacan architectural techniques and characteristics:
• Pyramids and platforms in the Talud-tablero style
• Obsidian used in mortar
• Painted murals and bas reliefs
• Images of feathered-serpent god Quetzalcoatl and rain god Tlaloc
• Astronomically aligned grid layout (within a pyramid archetype civilization)
THE MAYA [Pyramid]
A highly developed, artistic, literate, and pyramid-building culture centered mainly in Mexico's Yucatan
Peninsula and in Central America. Very adept in astronomy, mathematics and calendrics. Some major
Mayan towns include Cuello, Dzibilchaltun (Preclassic:); Tikal, Copan, Palenque, Uxmal (Classic);
Chichén Itzá, Tulum (Post-Classic).
THE TOLTECS [Pyramid – Radiant Axes]
A Post-Classic warrior culture in the Valley of Mexico. Influenced by the Teotihuacan, the Toltecs
invaded the Yucatan producing the “Postclassic Maya” civilization. Toltec was a model culture to the
Aztecs. The capital Tula has a platform pyramid with large stone warrior statues, similar to the
Temple of the Warriors at Chichen Itza.
THE AZTECS [Radiant Axes]
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A Post-Classic empire based in the Valley of Mexico. A.D. 1428-1521. Noted for Calendar Stone; well
developed engineering and agriculture; human sacrifices to Sun God. The capital of Tenochtitlan is
now Mexico City.
PRE-COLUMBIAN SOUTH AMERICA
Introduction
The geographic setting is the coasts and highlands of western South America stretching from
Columbia and Ecuador through all of Peru into parts of Bolivia and Chile. The area is bounded by the
ocean to the west, the Andes to the east and beyond the mountains the dense, vast rainforest of the
Amazon.
Though the Incas dominated pre-Columbian South America, they were not the only culture at the time
(and, in addition, were not a very ancient culture). Their empire was contemporaneous with that of
the Aztecs, spanning from 1438 to the Spanish Conquest in approximately 1532. Before the Incas, a
number of cultures thrived in Ecuador, Columbia, Peru, and Bolivia. Archeologists are still discovering
evidence of other cultures throughout South America. These pre-Incan cultures include:
 Valdivia: Ecuador, 3500-1600 B.C.; well-developed prehistoric pottery showing some similarities to
Neolithic Jomon of Japan [Great Round]
 Huaca Prieta: Peru, 2300-1200 B.C.; early Neolithic settlement with evidence of semi-subterranean
houses, plant domestication, textiles, basketry [Great Round]
 Kotosh: Peru, ca 1850 B.C.; Temple of the Crossed Hands [4 Quarters]
 Cerro Sechín: Peru, 1500 B.C.; rectangular platform temple with brutal, monumental, sculpted
monoliths showing warriors, human trophy heads, and priests sacrificing people by chopping them
apart [4 Quarters]
 Chavin: Peru, ca. 1000-300 B.C.; the capital Chavin de Huantar had the “Staff God” and the Lanzon
Stele; Chavin pottery has Chinese-looking motifs [4 Quarters – Pyramid]
 San Agustín: Columbia, ca. 1000 B.C.- A.D. 800; site long occupied by different cultures and known
for its rich variety of tombs; its
stone carvings, some monumental; and gold funerary
offerings [4 Quarters – Pyramid]
 Mochica: Peru, 100 B.C - A.D. 700; the capital Moché had canals and Pyramids of the Sun and
Moon; the Mochica made unique, sexually-explicit, pottery figures Pyramid]
 Nazca: Peru, 100 B.C - A.D. 700; highly developed state society with pyramid cities is famous for
constructing the immense networks of lines and figures in the Nazca desert; also known for pottery
and textiles [Pyramid]
 Tiahuanaco: Peru and Bolivia, A.D. 100-1100; Centered around Lake Titicaca (the legendary
birthplace of the sun); cultural ancestors of the Incas; their capital, Tiahuanaco in Bolivia, had the
Gateway of the Sun, a pyramid, and a large sunken courtyard complex with terra cotta heads
tenoned into the walls [Pyramid]
 Huari: Peru, 250-1100; a powerful warrior state that spread Tiahuanacan culture [Pyramid--Radiant
Axes]
 Chimu: Peru, 1100-1470; coastal empire conquered by Incas; extensive capital city of Chan Chan
had nine major rectangular palace compounds [Radiant Axes]
THE INCA [Radiant Axes]
From 1438 to 1532, the Inca ruled a highly organized, bureaucratic empire with capitals at Cuzco,
Peru, and Quito, Ecuador. Their society was based on the allyu, a large clan or kinship-linked village.
Although they had no wheeled vehicles and no written language, the Inca kept elaborate state records
on quipus (knotted strings). They were masterful engineers and built impressive road systems lined
with government buildings, terraced agricultural fields, irrigation canals, bridges, etc. As in most preColumbian cultures, weavings and textiles were important. Like the ancient Egyptians, the Inca had
brother/sister royal marriages and practiced mummification. Incan rulers claimed descent from the
Sun God Inti, were religiously tolerant, and expected their creator god Viracocha to return. The
capital city of Cuzco was the focus of a remarkable sun-like ceque system of 41 radial alignments of
328 huacas or “spirit places.” The maintenance of the system and the celebration of its huacas
coordinated the entire Incan culture and social structure with the calendar, the landscape, religion, the
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ceremonial cycle, astronomy and the cosmos, molding all into a powerful mirror of the dominant
Radiant Axes archetype.
Characteristics of Incan Architecture
 “Cyclopean” stonework
 Trapezoidal doors & windows
 Importance of the sun
 No surviving ornamentation
Important Pre-Columbian (Meso & South American) Buildings & Artifacts
OLMEC, Colossal head, La Venta, Veracruz, Mexico, c.800 BC - 800 AD (12-3)
* TEOTIHUACAN, Teotihuacan, Mexico, c. 350 BC -650 AD (12-4, 12-5, 12-6): so-called “Avenue of
the Dead”
with Pyramid of the Moon, Pyramid of the Sun, Citadel with Temple of Quetzalcoatl
MAYA, Nunnery Quadrangle, Uxmal, Yucatan, Mexico, 600-900
MAYA, Caracol observatory, Chichén Itzá , Yucatán, Mexico, 11th century
* MAYA, Pyramid of Kukulcan or “Castillo,” Chichen Itza, Yucatan, Mexico, 900-1521 (12-13)
MAYA, Ball Court, Chichen Itza, Yucatan, Mexico, 900-1521
AZTECS, Tenochtitlan (Mexico City), 1438-1521
AZTECS, Sun Stone, Mexico, 1500
PRE-INCAN, Nazca Desert Figures, Peru, 100 B.C.-300 AD (12-16)
PRE-INCAN, Gateway of the Sun, Tiahuanaco, Peru, 300
* INCAN, Machu Picchu, Peru, 1500 (23-7): “Hitching Post of the Sun” “Tower of the Sun,” and
terraced fields
INCAN, Ceque System of Cuzco, Peru. 1438-1532
Bibliography
Aveni, Anthony F. Skywatchers of Ancient Mexico. Austin: U of Texas, 1980.
Bennett, Ross S., ed. Lost Empires, Living Tribes. Washington: National Geographic Society, 1982.
Benson, Elizabeth, ed. Mesoamerican Sites and World Views. Washington: Dumbarton Oaks, 1982.
Bingham, Hiram. Lost City of the Incas. 1948; rpt. New York: Atheneum, 19??
Coe, Michael D. The Maya. London: Thames & Hudson, 1993.
Coe, Michael, et al. Atlas of Ancient America. New York: Facts on File, 1986.
Ferguson, William M. and Arthur H. Rohn. Mesoamerica’s Ancient Cities. Nimot: U of Colorado, 1990.
Heyden, Doris. Pre -Columbian and Meso-American Architecture. New York: Abrams, 1975.
Ivanoff, Pierre. Monuments of Civilization: Maya. New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1973.
Lanning, Edward P. Peru Before the Incas. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, 1967.
McIntyre, Loren. The Incredible Incas and their Timeless Land. Washington: National Geographic
Society, 1975.
Muser, Curt. Facts and Artifacts of Ancient Middle America. New YorK E.P. Dutton, 1978.
Stierlin, Henri. Art of the Inca. New York: Rizzoli, 1984.
Stierlin, Henri. Art of the Maya. New York: Rizzoli, 1991.
Stierlin, Henri. Living Architecture: Ancient Mexican. Grosset & Dunlap, 1968..
Stierlin, Henri. Living Architecture: Mayan. New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1964.
Stephens, John. Incidents of Travel in Central America, Chiapas and Yucatan. 1841; rpt. New York:
Dover, 1969.
Thompson, J. Eric S. Maya History and Religion. 1970; rpt. Norman: U of Oklahoma, 1990.
Zuidema, R.T. “The Inca Calendar” in Native American Astronomy. Austin: U of Texas, 1977.
WEEK 2
INDIA & SOUTHEAST ASIA
HINDU ARCHITECTURE [4 Quarters — Pyramid]
The geographic setting: The subcontinent of India, varying from arid to tropical climates. Cultural
context: traditional dark-skinned Dravidian population mostly based in small farming villages, with
many cultural characteristics similar to the Neolithic: reverence for goddesses, sacred bulls and cows,
serpents, etc. In 1500 B.C., invasion of nomadic, sheep-herding, light-skinned Indo-European (Aryan)
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culture with a color-based caste system, sky and war gods, and later, a sophisticated body of Vedic
literature (Rig Veda, Upanishads, etc.). Hinduism is a combination of indigenous Dravidian and
superimposed Vedic traditions. Vedic caste system and social hierarchy are reflected in the mystical
diagrams called mandalas on which Hindu temples and cities are based.
Mandalas are meditation aids in the spiritual quest for transcendence of the ordinary, phenomenal
world, which is considered illusory when contrasted with the eternal life of pure consciousness. The
contrast between unity/eternity (center of the mandala) and multiplicity/temporality (outer parts of
the mandala) forms the basic focus of the meditation. The ritual chanting of mantras associated with
various parts of the mandala helps to coordinate form and space, sound and energy to achieve
cosmic harmony. The Hindu temple is a 3-dimensional mandala, giving form to cosmic harmony.
Characteristics of Hindu temples
• Design based on mandalas — e.g. the Vastu Purusha Mandala
• Buildings and cities model the caste system and the Hindu world view
• North Indian temple (Nagara style): division into one or more assembly halls with pyramidal roofs
and a sanctuary (garbha-griha) contained within with a phallic tower
• South Indian temple (Dravida Style): simple sanctuary under a pyramidal roof
• Temples are used for individual and small group rituals involving offerings and purification
• Inner sanctuary is usually very plain and may contain a lingam
• Temples = the cart or chariot (ratha ) of the spirit = old nomadic Vedic carts of the gods
Glossary
Bindu: Extensionless point, symbol of the cosmos in its unmanifested state; often the central point of
a yantra, the focus of meditation; beginning of the cosmic dance
Chakra: “Wheel,” a center of subtle energy in the spine; Dharmachakra = “Wheel of the Law”
(Buddhism term)
Deva:
A god
Dharma: Divine law and moral code
Garbha-Griha: “Womb house,” the inner sanctuary of a Hindu temple
Kundalini: Subtle energy that rises up the spinal column activating the consciousness-altering nerve
centers or chakras, symbolized as a Serpent Goddess
Lingam: (pl. linga), phallus, usually Shiva’s, found in temple sanctuaries and roadside shrines; also
the phallic tower (Sikhara) of a Hindu temple
Mandala: Concentric meditation diagram used in plans of temples and cities
Mantra: Sacred sound affecting cosmic form through sonic vibration, invokes deities for
their
protective blessings of places and persons
Yantra: Mystical diagram, a tool for meditation which harnesses cosmic forces, a type of
mandala
Raja: King or lord
Ratha: (Or rath) cart, temple modeled after a cart, chariot of the spirit, equivalent of the
Egyptian sacred barges
Tantra: Esoteric yoga seeking a spiritual union of opposites, a variant of the Sacred Marriage focusing
more on spiritual realization than on physical fertility
Vastu purusha mandala: A type of yantra used for temple and city plans in North India
BUDDHIST ARCHITECTURE [Pyramid]
Geographic setting: Buddhism originates in Northern India and Southern Nepal (Bodh Gaya) in the 6th
cent. B.C. and spreads throughout India, Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia, and the Far East. By the 13th
cent., Buddhism is forced out of India by the Moslem and Hindu Dynasties. Cultural context:
Buddhism develops out of Hinduism in a search for simplicity, purity, and equality (it rejects the Vedic
caste system). Siddhartha Gautama (ca. 563-483 B.C.) attained enlightenment while meditating
under the Bodhi Tree and became the Buddha (meaning “the awakened one”). He commanded his
disciples to build stupas at crossroads to hold relics of the enlightened ones to encourage others to
follow the Buddhist spiritual path. The stupa is an image of the Buddhist world view.
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Characteristics of the Buddhist stupa
• Mounded sacred structure used as a reliquary and circumambulated by devotees in imitation of the
Buddha’s sunwise path around the Bodhi Tree when he became enlightened (most stupas have little
or no interior space)
• Based on garbha-griha (“womb-house”) of Neolithic burial mounds
• Model of Mount Meru as World Mountain with Bodhi Tree as axis mundi
• Model of “macrocosmic” human body (geometric forms symbolize chakras, senses, elements, seed
sounds, levels of consciousness, etc.)
• Form and sculptures illustrate life and teachings of the Buddha
• Parts of the stupa: anda = “egg” (hemisphere), harmika = square top where relic came to be
located, torana = gates, medhi = base.
• Evolves into the pagoda in China and Japan
ANGKOR
[Pyramid — Radiant Axes]
Geographical setting: jungles of Cambodia (Kampuchea).
Cultural context: The fabulous expanse of canals, reservoirs, and ornamented buildings at Angkor is
an expression of the theocratic civilization of the Khmers, 9th - 15th centuries A.D. Angkor was their
capital city and contained several elaborate tomb/temple complexes such as Angkor Wat, built by
Suryavarman II (Surya = “Sun,” varman = “protector”) in the 12th century. The architecture of
Angkor lacks the structural sophistication developing in the Gothic cathedrals in the West at the time
— the Khmers relied only on the simple corbel vault — however, its opulent, visionary perfection rivals
anything done in the West before or since.
Angkor Architectural Characteristics
• Square, cross-axial tomb/temple complexes made of stone corbel-vaulted galleries and towers
• Surrounded by vast system of irrigation canals and reservoirs
• Hindu and Buddhist motifs
• Elaborate bas reliefs and carvings throughout Angkor showing serpents, the “Churning of the Sea of
Milk,” dancers, floral motifs, deities, heavens and hells, donors and patrons, myths and legends,
writing, historical battles, etc.
• Symbol of World Mountain with the devaraja lingam (phallus of the God-King) at the center
• Site of Sacred Marriage between God-King (Devaraja) and priestess representing the sacred serpent
Important Buildings & Artifacts
SOUTH INDIAN HINDU, Rock-cut rathas (Mahabalipuram Mamallapuram), India. Early 7th c. A.D.
(9-25)
NORTH INDIAN HINDU, Vastu Purusha Mandala
NORTH INDIAN HINDU, Bhubaneswar temples (Brahmeshvara, Mukteshvara, Lingaraja), 11th c.
A.D.
NORTH INDIAN HINDU, Surya (“sun”) Temple, Konarak. 13th c. A.D.
* BUDDHIST, Great Stupa, Sanchi, India. 2nd c. B.C. (9-9, 9-10, 9-11)
BUDDHIST, Chaitya Hall, Karle, India. Early 2nd c. A.D. (9-12, 9-13)
* BUDDHIST, Borobudur, Java, Indonesia. A.D. 800 (Lect.)
BUDDHIST, Queen Dedes as Prajnaparamita, Java, Indonesia. Early 13th c. A.D. (Lect.)
Angkor Temples (Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, etc.) Cambodia. 10th-13th c. A.D. (Lect.)
Bibliography
Cohen, Joan. Angkor: Monuments of the God-Kings. Abrams.
Fontein, Jan. The Sculpture of Indonesia. National Gallery of Art & Abrams.
Freeman, Michael, and Roger Warner. Angkor: The Hidden Glories. Houghton Mifflin.
Govinda, Lama. The Psycho-Cosmic Symbolism of the Buddhist Stupa. Dharma.
Huntington, Susan L. The Art of Ancient India. Weatherhill.
Khanna, Madhu. Yantra: The Tantric Symbol of Cosmic Unity. Thames & Hudson.
Kramrisch, Stella. The Hindu Temple, 2 vols. Motilal Banarsidass (Delhi)
Miksic, John, and Marcello Tranchini. Borobudur: Golden Tales of the Buddhas. Shambhala.
Olschak, Blanche Christine, and Geshé Thubten Wangyal. Mystic Art of Tibet. Shambhala.
Rowland, Benjamin. The Art and Architecture of India. Penguin.
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Snodgrass, Adrian. The Symbolism of the Stupa. SEAP/Cornell
Volwahsen, Andreas. Living Architecture: Indian. Grosset & Dunlap.
Zimmer, Heinrich. The Art of Indian Asia, 2 vols., edited by Joseph Campbell. Princeton.
WEEK 3
CHINA & JAPAN
CHINA
Geographically, China is a vast country formed like a series of terraces from the Tibetan Himalayas
and the Mongolian steppes to the west and north down to the fertile river valleys of the southeast in
which civilization developed and flourished. The north is always seen in China as a negative direction
— the dark, cold, source of “barbarian invaders”— while the beneficent south is the direction of fertile
land and the sun’s warmth and light.
Far Eastern architecture contrasts with that of the West in that it stems from a deep-seated desire to
live in harmony with nature rather than to conquer nature. Consider the dragon — symbol of nature’s
power. Unlike the West, with its tradition of the heroic Dragon-Slayer, the Far East loves and respects
its dragons. Also, in landscape painting, people are completely integrated into the natural setting.
Several cultural influences are pronounced:
Taoism (pronounced “Daoism”): Philosophy founded in the 6th c. B.C. by Lao Tzu and written in the
Tao te Ching. It values the yin “feminine” principle and following the tao (the Way) revealed through
the mystical contemplation of nature. Taoism influenced the naturalness and spontaneity of Chinese
landscape architecture and painting.
Confucianism: A social and moral code written in the 6th c. B.C. by Confucius. It values the yang
“masculine” principle and stresses the patriarchal chain of authority and the duty to conform to social
and moral obligations. Confucianism influenced the symmetry and formality of Chinese architecture
and portraiture.
Buddhism: Religion founded by Siddhartha Gautama in India in the 6th c. B.C., which stresses nonattachment and the transcendence of ego as a means of dealing with life’s suffering. Buddhism
entered China in 65 A.D., and the marriage of the Buddhist stupa and an indigenous type of Chinese
watchtower produced the pagoda.
Architectural Characteristics
SECRETS OF CHINESE ARCHITECTURE AND PLANNING
• Geomancy: (geo = earth, mancy = divination) or “feng Shui” ( = wind and water): divination of the
earth’s yin and yang subtle energy currents and topographical formations for the proper siting of
buildings, cities, tombs, furniture, travel routes, etc. Yin & yang = the principle of opposing
complimentary energies: Yin = darkness, cold, night, the moon, North, “female,” water, valleys,
receptivity; yang = light, warmth, day, South, the sun, “male,” earth, mountains, activity.
• The Ming T’ang: Legendary heavenly mansion of the “Son of Heaven”; identified with the Pole Star
as the center of the universe; prototype for palaces, capital cities, royal temples, etc.
CHINESE PLANNING PRINCIPLES (seen in cities, palaces, houses, etc.)
• Courtyards: walled enclosure with gates
• Symmetry about the North/South axis
• Orientation to the South
• Protection against the North
CHARACTERISTICS OF BUILDINGS
• Podium of rammed earth
• Wood columns on stone bases
• Wood roof support systems
• Tiled roof
• Non-structural walls
JAPAN
The geographic setting: forested, volcanic islands of Japan, with a predominantly temperate climate
ranging from very cold in the north to sub-tropical in the south. Subject to hurricanes, earthquakes,
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and tidal waves, and heavily timbered. Insular life, but nonetheless influenced by contact with China,
Korea, Indonesia and Southeast Asia, and Polynesia. Traditionally dependent on rice-farming and
fishing. Several cultural influences are pronounced:
Shinto: nature-based religion with roots in prehistoric shamanism and goddess worship. Veneration of
the kami or spirits of places, things, and certain people (e.g. the emperor). Myths about the
primordial parents Izanami and Izanagi, the Sun-Goddess Amaterasu, etc. Architectural example: Ise
Shrine, 3rd century A.D. or earlier. As the Imperial Ancestral Shrine, Ise had two temples: the Naiku
dedicated to the Sun-Goddess Amaterasu and the Geku honoring the Goddess of Agriculture (and
Beer). The Naiku symbolized a granary holding the Imperial paraphernalia (jewel, mirror, and sword).
Ise is reconstructed (without nails) every 20 years to renew the structures and their kami.
Buddhism: Buddhism entered Japan in A.D. 538 and flourished in various sects, producing a multitude
of temples, monasteries, nunneries, and important works of art.
Zen Buddhism (Ch’an in Chinese, jhana in Pali, dhyana in Sanskrit): Imported from China and
adopted as a reform movement against the growing ritualism and dogmatism of the older schools of
Japanese Buddhism, Zen increased in importance between the 12th and 17th centuries. Its simple,
disciplined ways appealed to the military rulers (Shogons) and their warrior aristocracies (samurai)
during Japan’s feudal period. Assimilating the appreciation of nature and the irrational found in
Taoism and Shintoism, Zen encouraged simplicity, humility, asymmetry, spontaneity, subdued natural
materials, the contemplation of nature and the changing seasons (in Zen gardens, for instance),
appreciation of the moment (as in the tea ceremony) and of the essences of things (as in the arts of
flower-arranging and calligraphy).
Architectural Characteristics
• Influences from China, Korea, etc. (See CHINESE ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTERISTICS in the
previous section of this SYLLABUS.)
• Use of impermanent materials due to the availability of wood and bamboo and the frequent need to
rebuild after earthquakes, hurricanes, and volcanic eruptions
• Modularity resulting from the use of timber products: tatami mats, shoji screens, etc.
• Play of formality and spontaneity
• Very fine woodworking
• Tendency toward miniaturization (gardens, flower arranging, bonsai trees), perhaps related to living
on small islands
Important Buildings & Artifacts
Chnia, Bronze Ceremonial Vessel, royal tomb, Anyang, Henan Province. Shang Dynasty, 12th c.
B.C.
China, Terra Cotta Army: Cavalryman and Horse, Tomb of Emperor Shi Huang Di (Mount Li),
Lintong, Shenxi Province. Qin Dynasty, ca. 210 B.C. (10-1)
China, Tang Dynasty Horse, A.D. 618-907. Terra cotta tomb figurine.
China, Emperor Ming Huang’s Journey to Shu, Li Zhaodao (A.D. 670-730), Tang Dynasty. Ink &
color on silk
China, Guan Yin, Song Dynasty, A.D. 960-1279. Polychromed wood. (Lect.)
* China, Forbidden City, Beijing, Ming Dynasty, 17th c. A.D. & later. (Lect. and 21-9)
China, Temple of Heaven, Beijing (Peking). 15th-18th c. A.D. (Lect.)
* Japan SHINTO, Ise Shrine, Ise, Japan. 3rd century A.D. or earlier. (11-5)
* Japan BUDDHIST, Horyu-ji, Nara, Japan. A.D. 610. (11-6)
Japan BUDDHIST, Katsura Imperial Villa, Kyoto, Japan. Early 17th Century A.D. (Lect.)
Bibliography
Blunden, Caroline and Mark Elvin. Cultural Atlas of China. New York: Facts on File, 1983.
Chang, Kwang-chih. The Archæ ology of Ancient China. Yale.
Collcutt, Martin, et al. Cultural Atlas of Japan. Facts on File.
Cotterell, Arthur. The First Emperor of China. Holt Reinhart Winston.
Herrigel, Eugen. Zen in the Art of Archery. Vintage (and other editions).
Laurence G. Liu. Chinese Architecture. Rizzoli.
Masuda, Tomoya. Living Architecture: Japanese. Grosset & Dunlap.
Morse, Edward S. Japanese Homes and Their Surroundings. Dover.
Okakura, Kakuzo. The Book of Tea. Dover (and other editions).
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Paine, Robert Treat, and Alexander Soper. The Art and Architecture of Japan. Penguin.
Sickman, Laurence, and Alexander Soper. The Art and Architecture of China. Penquin.
Watanabe, Yasutada. Shinto Art: Ise and Izumo Shrines. Heibonsha.
Willetts, William. Chinese Art, 2 vols. Pelican.
Yu Zhuoyun. Palaces of the Forbidden City. Viking/Allen Lane.
WEEK 4
EARLY RENAISSANCE
Introduction
Geographic setting: In Italy the important cultural centers of the Early Renaissance were located north
of Rome. The city of Florence was the first significant economic and artistic hub; other centers
followed such as Pisa, Milan, Venice, Mantua, Ferrara, and Urbino.
In the 14th century Italy was politically divided into different self-governed independent city based
political units that developed on their own terms creating a great variety of artistic schools like the
Florentine, Sienese, Lombard, Umbrian, and Venetian. Toward the end of the 14th century Italy
slowly started to become an economic power based on trade and banking. Cosimo de’Medici the Elder
of Florence, the wealthiest businessman in Italy, led in intellectual and artistic patronage. At this
point the different people started to think of themselves as a unified entity with the desire to connect
with the splendours of the Roman Empire and their classical past. Thus, we have the term
“Renaissance” which means “re-birth,” a term that was coined in 1550 by the art historian Giorgio
Vasari. A “re-birth” implied the birth of Humanism whose main purpose was to establish a scholarly
program which included art and architecture for a select group of intellectual people to recreate and
even surpass their ancestral world of classical antiquity. Important to Humanistic thought was that it
was centered on the human world of the here and now rather than on the medieval emphasis on God
and the church.
Early Renaissance Architectural Characteristics
• The role of the architect emerges as separate from that of the master builder
• Architectural theory influences the design of buildings and the city
• The appearance of from is more important than the actual form
• The idea of building types based on the principles of Republican Rome are re-introduced
• Roman classical motifs are revived in new ways
• Emphasis on neo-platonic ideal forms
• Concepts of symmetry, order, balance, and harmony are used in design
• Systems of modular design evolve based on the analysis of the human form
• The invention of perspective influences design
Important Buildings and Artifacts
* Dome of Florence Cathedral, Filippo Brunelleschi, Florence, Italy, 1417-36, lantern completed 1471
(17-33 & 34)
Foundling Hospital facade, Filippo Brunelleschi, Florence, Italy, c. 1419 (17-35.)
San Lorenzo, Filippo Brunelleschi, Florence, Italy, c. 1421-46 (17-36, 17-37)
* Palazzo Medici-Riccardi, Michelozzo di Bartolommeo, Florence, Italy, begun 1444 (17-38)
Palazzo Rucellai, Leon Battista Alberti, Florence, Italy, 1455-70 (17-38, 17-39)
Gates of Paradise, Lorenzo Ghiberti, Florence Baptistery, 1425-52 (17-50-17-51)
Tempio Malatesta, Leon Battista Alberti, Rimini, Italy, c. 1450 (Lect.)
Sant’Andrea, Leon Battista Alberti, Mantua, Italy, 1470 (17-41, 17-42, 17-43)
Terminology
arcade
architrave
balustrade
brackets
cartouche
centering
cornice
crossing
engaged half column
entablature
intarsia
lantern
loggia
motifs
oculus
pediment
pilasters
quoins
rusticated
sacristy
sanctuary
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transept
vanishing point
17
Bibliography
Borsi, Franco. Leon Battista Alberti: The Complete Works. New York: Electa/Rizzoli, 1989.
Johnson, Eugene. S. Andrea in Mantua: The Building History. University Park: Penn State Press,
1975.
Klotz, Heinrich. Filippo Brunelleschi. New York: Rizzoli, 1990
Murray, Peter. Renaissance Architecture. New York: Electa/Rizzoli, 1978.
Saalman, Howard. Filippo Brunelleschi: The Buildings. University Park: Penn State Press, 1993.
Wittkower, Rudolf. Architectural Principles in the Age of Humanism. New York/London: W.W. Norton,
1962.
WEEK 5
HIGH RENAISSANCE AND MANNERISM
Introduction
The geographic setting: Rome becomes the center of the arts; other important centers in Italy include
Florence, Milan, Mantua, Venice, and Vicenza. International travel and exchange brought the
Renaissance to France, England, the Netherlands, Spain, and surrounding areas.
High Renaissance
With the fall of Constantinople in 1453, Rome once more claimed to be the political center of Christian
Italy led by a strong papacy that saw itself in Imperial terms and wanted to recreate and surpass the
Roman Empire in all its monumental splendor. Thus the church became the main patron of the arts
and architecture, and commissioned the building of a new St. Peter’s among many other projects.
Mannerism
Mannerism appeared as a movement of young architect’s who felt that the High Renaissance, namely
Bramante, had achieved pure classicism and they were challenged to find a different more exciting
style. They experimented with the rules of classicism to find new combinations. Mannerism is a
sophisticated and intellectual play with the orders.
High Renaissance Architectural Characteristics
• Clear articulation of the classical vocabulary
• Clarity of structural function of the classical order
• Simplification of elements
• Repetition of identical elements
• Symmetry
Mannerism Architectural Characteristics
• Entire facade is much richer in surface texture
• Much applied surface decoration
• The classical language is not clear
• There is no visual structural clarity
• Complex rhythms
Important Buildings and Artifacts
* David, Michelangelo, Florence, Italy, 1501-4 (18-12)
* The School of Athens, Raphael, Vatican, Rome, Italy, 1510-11 (18-8)
Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo, Vatican, Rome, Italy, 1475-1541 (18-13, 18-14. 18-15, p 659)
* Tempietto, Donato Bramante, San Pietro in Montorio, Rome, Italy, 1502 (18-19)
* Saint Peter’s, Michelangelo, Vatican, Rome, Italy, c. 1546-64 (18-43 & p. 663)
San Giorgio Maggiore, Palladio, Venice, Italy, c. 1566 (18-35, 18-36)
* Villa Rotonda, Palladio, Vicenza, Italy, 1566-69 (18-63, 18-64)
* Madonna with Long Neck, Parmigianino, Florence, Italy, c. 1535 (18-52)
Palazzo del Tè, Giulio Romano, Mantua, Italy, 1525-32 (18-21)
* Vestibule of the Laurentian Library, Michelangelo, Florence, Italy, 1524-59 (18-18)
Chateau de Chambord, Domenico da Cortona (?), Chambord, France, 1519 (Lect.)
Escorial, Juan Bautista de Toledo and Juan de Herrera, Near madrid, Spain, 1563-84 (18-69)
Terminology
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chiaroscuro
contrapposto
frontispiece
gables
hemicycles
lunettes
peristyle
piazza
segmental pediments
triglyphs
Bibliography
Ackerman, James. The Architecture of Michelangelo. London: Zwemmer, 1966.
Blunt, Anthony. Art and Architecture in France: 1500-1700. London: Penguin, 1981.
Boucher, Brude. Andrea Palladio: The Architect in His Time. New York: Abbeville, 1994.
Bruschi, Arnaldo. Bramante. London: Thames and Hudson, 1977.
Hartt, Frederick. Michelangelo. New York: Abrams, 1984.
Howard, Deborah. Jacopo Sansovino: Architecture and Patronage in Renaissance Venice. New Haven:
Yale University Press, 1975.
Kubler, George. Building the Escorial. Princeton University Press: Princeton, 1982.
Lieberman, Ralph. Renaissance Architecture in Venice. New York: Abbeville, 1982.
Murray, Linda. The High Renaissance. New York: Praeger, 1967.
Murray, Linda. Late Renaissance and Mannerism. London: Thames and Hudson, 1967.
Shearman, John. Mannerism. Harmonsworth: Penguin, 1967.
Summerson, John. Architecture in Britain: 1530-1830. Harmonsworth: Penguin, 1983.
Tavernor, Robert. Palladio and Palladianism. New York: Thames and Hudson, 1991.
Vasari, Giorgio. The Lives of the Artists. Trans. Julia Conaway Bondanella and Peter Bondanella. New
York: Oxford University Press, 1971.
Vitruvius, Pollio. The Ten Books on Architecture. Trans. Morris Hicky Morgan. New York: Dover,
1960.
WEEK 6
BAROQUE & ROCOCO
BAROQUE
The Baroque style originated in Italy and then spread northward during the 17th century where it
evolved into several distinct regional variations in which Baroque and local tendencies merged. In
Italy it is associated with the Counter-Reformation in the Catholic Church (based in Rome). Elsewhere
in continental Europe, it is associated with the heavy concentration of political power which developed
in “divine-right” or absolute monarchies, as in France during the reign of Louis XIV. These institutions
(church and monarchy) utilizied architecture to persuade adherents of their complete authority in
spiritual and political realms. This “persuasion” was accomplished through the sheer size of buildings
(especially palaces), the extension of the designed environment from the buildings into the
surrounding landscape, and the emotional involvement of onlookers in the architectural experience.
In Italy, Baroque activity was concentrated in Rome under papal patronage, especially of Paul V and
Urban VIII. A reinvigorated Catholic Church became preoccupied with making the city of Rome into a
visual expression of its spiritual power, especially in the rebuilding projects of the St. Peter’s and the
Vactican, but also in a variety of smaller churches, fountains and adornments in public squares.
In France, Baroque architecture became a concrete emblem of the centralized state, exemplified in a
variety of state-sponsored building programs (palaces, churches, hospitals, military schools). It also
reflected the systematic organization and regulation of social and cultural activities which included
through founding of Academies of various arts and sciences and the enforced gathering of societal
leaders in a single, unified court at Versailles. Court activity required an appropriate architectural
setting which Baroque forms served practically and symbolically.
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In England, the Baroque was not institutionalized. Rather, it influenced the work of a limited group of
architects working for those Protestant nobles who achieved the “bloodless revolution” (1688) which
established the constitutional monarchy. This class wanted greater political power for parliament
(Whigs) and subscribed to the political principles of Locke which argued that a civil society must be
based on natural rights of all people rather than divine rights of royalty—one of the first statements of
modern Liberalism. This produced a doctrine of individualism among the Whigs and an emerging
middle class. Baroque architecture in England may be seen as a direct expression of this individualism
as the design and construction of private estates became a means to the owner's expression of social
independence and self-importance.
The Baroque, especially in Italy, contrasts decidedly with the balanced and dispassionate ideals
embodied in Renaissance designs, though it, too, utilized a classical vocabulary. With respect to the
dynamics of stylistic evolution, the Baroque can be seen as an outgrowth of the Renaissance. In
Baroque architectural interiors, painting and sculpture were often coordinated into a complete
aesthetic experience which sought to heighten and extend spatial and perceptual realities through
dramatic and dynamic compositions which were often illusionistic. This experience may be understood
as a continuum or synthesis of space/time/light. Scuplture intended to be seen fully in the round and
over-sized, often enourmous, paintings characterize the art of the period. Artistic themes included
naturalism, the passions of the soul, a transcendental view of reality, and exploitation of allegory.
As the Baroque spread to northern European countries it was not simply wholesale extension of the
Italian manner and not all characteristics of the Italian Baroque are evident in norther buildings.
Sensuous forms, such as undulating curved surfaces are rare, for example. Also, the symbolic
implications change: e.g., monumental scale, which is associated with the Counter-Reformation in
Italy, implies political absolutism in France and liberalism in England; moreover, Baroque motifs were
sometimes employed simply because they were fashionable.
The Northern Baroque was a synthesis of the imported style and local, national styles. In France and
England in particular, Baroque architecture retained traditional building forms which originated in
earlier Gothic and Renaissance architecture in the region. In particular, northern Baroque buildings
have an evident classical quality (carryover from the Renaissance). While the Baroque spirit is
apparent in overall impressiveness and grandeur, the elements themselves are clear and restrained
(rather than overlapping and dynamic).
Baroque Architectural Characteristics (Italian)
• utilized Renaissance classical vocabulary, but extended (as if to infinity), Renaissance systems for
the orderly subdivision and organization of space
•contrasts with Renaissance; Baroque architectural forms were dynamic, not static; continuous not
subdivided; emotional, not rational; sculptural, not planar; and massively scaled
•integration of painting, sculpture, architecture into single environment characterized by dramatic
lighting and spatial illusions
• monumental size and scale in public buildings: colossal order, large unbroken masses, vast exterior
spaces; grand conceptions and bombastic details
• seemingly infinite extension of main architectural axes into surrounding landscape ; exterior ”rooms”
formed of shrubbery geometrically shaped and arranged, terraces, pools; thus, nature incorporated
into the architectural scheme and, symbolically, subdued;
• centralized organization: radial planning (“rond point,” a French motif), entry and main rooms
(“corps-de-logis”) with symmetrical wings
•grand, imposing effects: integrated use of all arts; in interiors: mirrors, illusionistic painting (”trompe
l”oeil”) and sculpture, sensuous materials, elaborate staircases, in landscape: vistas, fireworks
Regional Variations of Baroque Architectural Characteristics
France: Italian characteristics merged with local French tradition to include
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• clarity in overall organization: expression of separate parts subdued in favor of unified balanced
whole; hence horizontal rather than vertical emphasis; visual economy
• traditional five part elevations formed by vertical ”pavilions” at center and ends; origins in late
Middle Ages
• overall quality: grace, lightness: airy bays, fine scale, long continuous lines, gradual transitions
• concern with rules and principles governing architecture (as well as nature, art, society)
England: Italian characteristics took on local English details including
• geometric elements : bold and distinct, often undecorated rectilinear rather than curved
• traditional building forms: medieval parish church with single western steeple; spires, towers,
battlements
• preference for experiment and empirical investigation rather than a priori belief in universal
standards
•scientific view that natural beauty is rooted in geometry (esp. Christopher Wren)
ROCOCO
The Rococo was an 18th century style which evolved in France out of the late Baroque and spread
throughout Europe, especially to Germany. Its forms and patterns of organization are akin to those of
the Baroque, but its spirit is intimate, delicate, and playful. It is associated largely with interior design
and decoration and is found typically in palaces and churches and, in France, is characteristic of a
small townhouse known as the “hotel.” The Rococo is extremely elaborate and decorative, and is
sometimes not regarded as a fully developed form of architecture. Rococo buildings tend to have
modest exteriors, but florid, almost “orgiastic” interiors with surfaces completely swathed in gold and
painted decoration.
As it arose in France, the Rococo may be seen as a social reaction to the formality and scale of court
society typified by Versailles. Thus, it can be understood as typical of the upper middle class and
lesser aristocracy living in Parisian townhouses (as opposed to palaces) and possessing economic
limitations but cultivated taste. It reflects a desire for informality, privacy, indulgence in personal
interests. Eventually, it also became the style of the monarchy, namely that of Louis XV, and
indicates a re-orientation of court activity away from formality and pomp toward amusement and
escape and the indulgences of sensual pleasure, fantasy, sentimental longing.
Rococo Architectural Characteristics
• residential plans: small scale, intimate and inward turned, variety in organization and room shapes,
invention
• continuity in all decorative surfaces: curvilinear elements; dissolution of divisions—overlapping,
intricate interlocking, eroded edges
• lightness: in materials and colors—plaster, gold; in forms—2-D decoration, filagree, rocaille
shellwork
• decorative motifs: non-Classical motifs: arabesques (twisting linear configurations); fantastic
(herms, masks, sphinxes, batwings); naturalistic (leaves, twisted branches); exotic (Chinoiserie)
Important Buildings & Works of Art
Italian Baroque
Church of Il Gesù , Giacomo della Porta, Rome, ca. 1575-1584 (18-44, 18-45, p 686)
* Piazza of St. Peter’s (San Pietro), Gianlorenzo Bernini, Rome, 1656 (19-3)
Baldacchino of St. Peter’s, Gianlorenzo Bernini, Rome, 1624-33 (19-2)
* Ecstasy of St. Theresa, Cornaro Chapel, Gianlorenzo Bernini, Rome,1645-52 (19-8 & 19-9)
* David, Gianlorenzo Bernini, 1623 (19-10)
* San Carlo Alle Quattro Fontane, Francesco Borromini, Rome, 1638-41 (19-4, 19-5, 19-6)
Sant Ivo Della Sapienza, Francesco Borromini, Rome, 1642 (Lect.)
Chapel of the Holy Shroud, Guarino Guarini, Turin, 1667-1694 (Lect.)
Entombment, Caravaggio, 1603 (19-18)
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French Baroque
* Palace of Versailles, Louis Le Vau and Jules Hardouin-Mansart, begun 1669 (19-21, 19-22, 19-23, p
741)
Dutch Baroque
Self-Portrait, Rembrandt van Rijin, 1667 (19-57)
English Baroque
St. Paul’s Cathedral, Christopher Wren, London, begun 1675 (19-70, 19-71)
Blenheim Palace, John Vanbrugh, Woodstock, 1705 (19-72)
Rococo
* Church of the Vierzehnheiligen (Fourteen Saints), Johann Balthasar Neumann, Staffelstein,
Germany, 1743-72,
(26-5, 26-6, 26-7)
Benedictine Monastery Church, Jakob Prandtauer, Melk, Austria, 1702-36, (19.30-19-31)
Departure from Cythera, Jean-Antoine Watteau, 1717 (26-9)
Bibliography
Blunt, Anthony. Art and Architecture in France, 1500 to 1700. New York: Penguin, 1973.
Blunt, Anthony, ed. Baroque and Rococo: Architecture and Decoration. New York: Harper & Row,
1978.
Blunt, Anthony. Borromini. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1979.
Downes, Kerry. English Baroque Architecture. London: Zwemmer, 1966.
Hart, Vaughan. St. Paul’s Cathedral: Sir Christopher Wren. London: Phaidon Press, 1995.
Held, Julius and Donald Posner. 17th and 18th Century Art. New York: Abrams, 1971.
Marder, Tod A. Bernini and the Art of Architecture. New York: Abbeville Press, 1998.
Norberg-Schulz, Christian. Baroque Architecture. New York: Abrams, 1972.
Norberg-Schulz, Christian. Late Baroque and Rococo Architecture. New York: Abrams, 1974.
Otto, Christian F. Space Into Light, The Churches of Balthasar Neumann. New York: The Architectural
History Foundation, 1979.
WEEK 8
NEOCLASSICISM
Historical & Social/Cultural Background
• historical era 1750-1830s: a radical transition in Western society: dissolution of the preindustrial
world and emergence of modern civilization; in architecture, it marks the beginning of an ”age of
revivals”
•circa 1750, Renaissance epoch was carried to a close; new ideas evolved concerning the way
buildings should be designed and interpreted, and about which stylistic precedents from the past
constituted the correct model or basis for design; made possible eclecticism in the 19th century;
brought about in two important and different late 18th century architectural movements:
Neoclassicism and the Picturesque
• period of the Enlightenment : skepticism regarding all unquestioning acceptance of authority leads
to rejection of traditional attitudes in politics, society, and religion in favor of an open-minded quest
for concrete knowledge of human nature and the surrounding world; optimistic belief that individuals
and entire societies can be progressively reformed and perfected; expressed in utopian, or idealized,
architectural designs and city planning projects; culmination in the American Revolution of 1776 and
French Revolution of 1789
• definitive principle of Enlightenment thought: faith in man’s ability to reason, or make sound
judgments based upon logical thinking; believed universally applicable in the study of man and
nature; derived from the example of cause and effect present in newly emergent physical and
biological sciences
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• outgrowth of Enlightenment philosophy: the scientific study of the past and new interest in history;
differences between previous civilizations discovered to be merely the logical outcome of differences in
their respective historical situations; hence no one can be deemed intrinsically more valuable as a
model than any other; this acknowledgement encourages a new sense of cultural relativity,
undermines the authority of the Renaissance as the only acceptable precedent and leaves the way
open for the acceptance and use of styles from other eras
•Neoclassicism involved the rejection of the Baroque and Rococo because of their superfluous
elaboration, hence distortion of Renaissance ideals; proposed instead a return to Roman and Greek
architectural origins (not just a more correct version of the Renaissance) in order to redefine the
fundamental principles of the classical tradition (Marc-Antoine Laugier’s Essay on Architecture, 1753);
this philosophical stance occurs alongside new archaeological research, often performed by architects
themselves, in the form of scaled drawings reconstructing the appearance of ancient buildings
published in the 1750’s (Julien David Leroy’s Ruins of the Most Beautiful Monuments of Greece, 1758;
James Stuart and Nicholas Revett’s Antiquities of Athens, 1762)
•movement was diverse rather than unified with variations across European nations and the United
States; in each place the meaning and uses of classicism varied
•architects frequently disagreed about: whether Greece or Rome was Classicism's true source;
whether Classical vocabularies should be interpreted strictly or freely (Giovanni Battista Piranesi, Of
the Magnificence and the Architecture or Rome, 1761)
•reliance upon rationality tempered by sensationalism, or doctrine that all knowledge is derived from
experience through sensations, including emotional reactions like pleasure, surprise and fear; led to
idea that architecture can affect the emotions, shape human experience, and direct human behavior;
suggested concept of “architecture parlante,” or architecture that “speaks” about its function and
purpose through ornamental symbolism and aims to moves the viewer emotionally (Claude-Nicholas
Ledoux’s Architecture Considered in Relation to Art, Morals and Legislation, 1804); introduced the
aesthetic category of the sublime--with attributes of obscurity, power, vastness and infinity--found in
nature but able to be contrived in architecture (Edmund Burke’s A Philosophical Inquiry into the Origin
of our Ideas of the Sublime and the Beautiful, 1757)
Architectural Characteristics
• elements drawn directly from Greek and/or Roman vocabularies : Greek Doric columns, Roman
domes, vaulting, apsidal niches
• visual simplification : (a) elemental shapes in volumes, plan forms, details (hemispherical domes,
semicircular niches, rectilinear edges); (b) restrained use of decoration; (c) continuity (blank wall
surfaces, uninterrupted rows of columns and windows); (d) simple contrasts (column/wall,
coffered/smooth surfaces)
• general spirit: ”noble, simple, tranquil” : qualities believed to be Classical and indicative of
Enlightenment desire to control passions with reason
• rational theories (e.g., Laugier): that building forms can be derived directly from principles, mainly
structural (e.g., Soufflot): columns used only for support with proportions determined structurally,
rather than aesthetically; elimination of pilasters because they are only decorative
• innovative rather than traditional combinations and composition
• formal simplicity taken to the extreme: unadorned, absolutely pure geometric shapes
• systematic symbolism (”architecture parlante”): (a) of building functions; (b) of architectural
character through imagery, dramatically large scale, lighting
• visionary and utopian Classical designs emphasizing the sublime, primal, tragic
• building designs meant to contribute to revolutionary social programs
Important Buildings & Artifacts (* indicates required work)
* Jacques-Germain Soufflot, Church of Ste-Geneviève (now the Le Panthéon), Paris, 1755-92
(Stokstad: 26-40, 26-41)
* Claude-Nicholas Ledoux, Town of Chaux, project, 1790-1804 [Stokstad: 26-42]
Claude-Nicholas Ledoux, Les Barrières, Paris, 1784-89
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Etienne Louis Boullée, Royal Library, project, 1784
* Etienne Louis Boullée, Cenotaph for Sir Isaac Newton, project, 1784 [Stokstad: 26-43]
* Jacques-Louis David, The Oath of the Horatii, 1784 (Stokstad, 26-48)
Jacques-Louis David, The Death of Marat, 1793 (Stokstad, 26-49)
Karl Friedrich Schinkel, Altes Museum, Berlin, 1822-30 (Stokstad, 27-30) [Curtis # 3]
Lord Burlington, Chiswick House, England, 1724-29 (Stokstad: 26.22, 26-23)
John Soane, Bank of England, London, 1791-1833
Thomas Jefferson, Monticello, Charlottesville, Virginia, 1770-84; 1796-1806 (Stokstad: 26-54)
Thomas Jefferson, University of Virginia, Lawn and Rotunda, Charlottesville, Virginia, 1817-22
Thomas Jefferson, Virginia State Capitol, Richmond, 1785-89
William Thornton, Benjamin Henry Latrobe, Charles Bulfinch, Thomas U. Walter, U.S. Capitol,
Washington, c. 1793-1867 (Stokstad, 27-28, 27-29)
Bibliography
Braham, Allan. The Architecture of the French Enlightenment. Berkeley, 1980.
Bergdoll, Barry. European Architecture 1750-1890. Oxford, 2000.
Middleton, Robin and David Watkin. Neoclassical and Nineteenth Century Architecture. New York, 1980.
Pierson, William. American Buildings and Their Architects: The Colonial and Neo-Classical Styles. Garden
City, 1970.
Vidler, Anthony. Claude-Nicholas Ledoux: Architecture and Social Reform at the End of the Ancient
Régime. Cambridge, 1990.
Stroud, Dorothy. The Architecture of Sir John Soane. London, 1984.
Summerson, John. Architecture in Britain, 1530-1830. Baltimore, 1963.
Watkin, David and Tilmann Melinghoff. German Architecture and the Classical Ideal. Cambridge, 1986.
WEEK 9
THE PICTURESQUE AND THE GOTHIC REVIVAL
In formal terms, architecture in the 19th century was characterized by a diversity of styles and, in
particular, a contest between advocates of classical design and proponents of gothic architecture – a
debate often referred to as the “battle of the styles.” Last week we examined the origins/emergence of
one side of the battle: Neo-classicism. This week we will consider the other side, the Gothic Revival
and its subsequent stylistic manifestation, High Victorian Gothic. While it is convenient to think of this
debate in terms of formal differences alone, the actual situation was more complicated, having less to
do with strict definitions of style, than with aesthetic theories and cultural sensibilities.
The Picturesque: a movement originating in England in the 18th century which comprised a visual
aesthetic and a theory about the nature of visual experiences; first taken up in the design of gardens,
landscapes, and finally architecture; its aesthetic principles of asymmetry and irregularity were in
basic opposition to those of the Renaissance (symmetry and consistency); inspired by compositions
seen in landscape paintings (hence the term ”Picturesque”) and reinforced by the persistence of late
Gothic architecture in England; the movement contributed to the end of the Renaissance (as had
Neoclassicism) by introducing an alternative style, the Gothic, and by suggesting that by virtue of an
associational response, any style can be found meaningful (be it classically-derived or
medieval/gothic). Associationism, the heart of Picturesque theory; an extension of Locke’s
sensationalism, expounded by British empiricist philosophers; argued that physical objects prompt
chains of associated ideas in mind of the observer, including emotional, literary and historical
associations; held that architectural meanings are triggered by such associations, as if mechanically,
by building appearances—a diversity of styles is thus encouraged by architects attempting to generate
a wide range of meanings, e.g., meanings evoked by the sight of a Gothic building might be thoughts
about the circumstances and values of medieval life
Picturesque architectural characteristics:
•
irregular forms : in buildings (informal corridors, asymmetrical elevations and massing); in
landscape (meandering paths, loosely clumped plantings)
•
variety of elements : in buildings (different room shapes)
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variety of experience : unfolding views, spaces; surprise; for the sublime, gloom, mystery
response to context : site conditions (topography views, regional character); interior functional
needs (volumes such as towers, bays); in landscape (plant forms)
introduction of Gothic style in houses but not necessarily interested in archeological accurateness
The Gothic Revival reflected two essential features of 19th-century architecture: historicism, or the
practice of reviving styles from the past; eclecticism, or the use of a variety of styles and/or the
combination of decorative elements from more than one style. Today we will focus upon the Gothic
Revival in England, and certain design echoes in America. In general, however, 19 th-century architects
felt free to borrow form and ideas from many different cultures, both Western and non-Western, and
from every major period in the past. In England, Gothic designs were first used rather playfully in the
second half of 18th century, they were intended to evoke literary associations and were often used as
follies in picturesque garden schemes; early use in gardens related to later idea that the character of
natural settings should inform architectural designs (a gentle setting, predominantly horizontal might
suggest an Italian villa; an irregular site in the woods, vertical in spirit, a Gothic cottage, etc.) and the
publication of numerous domestic architecture pattern books (e.g. John Claudius Loudon’s
Encyclopaedia of Cottage, Farm and Villa Architecture, 1833). By turn of the century, increasing
scholarly interest in Gothic buildings, too; prompted by nationalism and informed by antiquarianism;
archeologists sought to categorize its formal periods and to identify its national origin; debates arose
regarding whether it was the “national style” of France, England or Germany (Thomas Rickman’s
Attempt to Discriminate the Styles in English Architecture, 1819). As the century progresses, the style
begins to be widely used again for churches; Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin argued that it is the
only “proper” style for Christian churches (Contrasts, 1836; True Principles of Pointed or Christian
Architecture, 1841); Anglican reformers known as the Ecclesiologists hoped “correctly” restored
and/or newly designed and furnished Gothic churches will help strengthen the Church of England. By
mid-century, architects and theorists start to consider the “development” of the Gothic style, or its
formal evolution and progressive adaptation to meet modern needs; and its use for a variety of
building types, not just churches; as part of this quest, new design features such as polychrome,
horizontal banding and brick are borrowed from European Gothic examples – this creative blend of
eclectic elements is often referred to as High Victorian Gothic; concurrently, John Ruskin promoted
other “virtues” of Gothic design (especially that of Northern Italy), including its “truth” to nature,
honesty of construction, and expression of hand-craftsmanship (The Seven Lamps of Architecture,
1849; The Stones of Venice, 1851-53). Ruskin’s notion of truth to nature originated in his theories on
modern painting and his defense of the Romantic painter Joseph Mallord William Turner –
Romanticism is a term used to describe the a late 18th and early 19th-century emphasis upon free
artistic expression, love of nature, and intense emotional experience in the arts; not a style but an
attitude of mind, a sensibility. Ruskin’s attention to the role of the craftsman in Gothic construction
laid the foundation for the English Arts and Crafts movement of the late 19 th century, a topic that will
be discussed in the last lecture of this course.
Important Buildings & Paintings (* indicates required work)
Henry Hoare and Capability Brown, Garden of Stourhead, England, 1741 [Stokstad, 26-24]
Capability Brown, Weston Park, England, c. 1750
* Horace Walpole, Strawberry Hill, near London, begun 1748 [Stokstad 26-26, 26-27]
James Wyatt, Fonthill Abbey, Wiltshire, England, 1796
John Claudius Loudon, plates from Encyclopedia of Cottage, Farm and Villa Architecture, 1833
Andrew Jackson Downing, plates from A Treatise on the Theory and Practice of Landscape
Gardening,
Adapted to North America, 1841
Alexander Jackson Davis, Villa of Lyndhurst, Tarrytown, NY, 1838-65
J.W.M. Turner, The Fighting Temeraire, 1838 [Stokstad 27-20]
J.W.M. Turner, Stormy Sea Breaking in a Shore, 1840-45
* Charles Barry & A.W.N. Pugin, Houses of Parliament, London, 1836-60 [Stokstad 27-31]
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A.W.N. Pugin, own house, St. Marie’s Grange, England, 1835
A.W.N. Pugin, Church of St. Giles, Cheadle, England, 1840-6
* Richard Upjohn, Trinity Church, New York City, 1839-46 [Stokstad, 27-32]
William Butterfield, All Saints Margaret Street, London, 1849-59
* Deane and Woodward, University Museum, Oxford, England, 1853-60
George Gilbert Scott, St. Pancras Station, London, 1868-74
Peter Bonnet Wight, National Academy of Design, New York, 1861-65
Frank Furness, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, 1873
Bibliography
Atterbury, Paul and Clive Wainwright. Pugin: A Gothic Passion. New Haven, 1994.
Clark, Kenneth. The Gothic Revival, 1928; rpt. 1975.
Dixon, Roger and Stefan Muthesius. Victorian Architecture. New York, 1988.
Hersey, George. High Victorian Architecture: A Study in Associationism. Baltimore, 1972.
Pierson, William. American Buildings and Their Architects: Technology and the Picturesque, Garden City,
1970.
Thomas, George E., ed. Frank Furness: The Complete Works, New York: 1996.
Stanton, Phoebe B.. The Gothic Revival and American Church Architecture, An Episode in Taste, 18401856, Baltimore: 1968.
WEEK 10
MID-19TH CENTURY ARCHITECTURE CULTURE, THEORY, AND TECHNOLOGY
The 19th century in the West witnessed a turbulent transition between preindustrial and industrial or
modern civilization. The structure of society was transformed in every respect: representational
democracy replaced monarchy as the form of government; social equality replaced rigid class
distinctions as the principle of social organization; capitalism replaced the feudal system as the basis
of the economy; industrialization replaced handicraft as the means of production, or technology. The
effects of these revolutionary changes were compounded both by an unprecedented explosion in
population and by a mass urbanization which saw the uprooting and shifting of large populations from
small villages to unfamiliar burgeoning cities.
The pattern of daily life was now radically altered and materialism and comfort became vitally
important. Materialism reflected the prevalent optimistic belief that machines and mass production
would enable goods to become universally available and affordable (thus alleviating human misery).
At times, the reverence for machines could be almost religious. Materialism and comfort were also
important as symbols of personal economic and social success for the rising middle class. Since this
group had become a new influential patron of buildings, its values and preoccupation with substance,
quantity, and variety were evinced in architectural terms throughout the century.
All aspects of visual culture were drastically altered by the rapid progress of industrialization in the
middle of the 19th century. In architecture, these changes were reflected in the continued debates
over the old styles (classical vs. medieval revivals) and sensibilities (rationalism vs. romanticism) and,
increasingly, the new technologies (iron & glass, prefabrication). These debates became more
fractious due to the radical changes in practice brought about by industrialization. Rapid technological
progress drastically changed the materials and methods with which buildings were constructed. These
included the development of cast iron, glass, the balloon (wood) frame, the steel frame, reinforced
concrete, mechanical lifts (elevators), and the mechanical conditioning of the interior environment
(heating, ventilating, air conditioning, and plumbing). Though some materials and methods were not
new, the speed and scale at which they could now be manufactured, distributed, and utilized was
significant and deeply impacted building culture. Engineers and designers of so-called utilitarian
buildings were the first to adopt the new materials and methods, especially in large-scale
constructions such as bridges and exhibition halls. For architects, the new materials and technologies
initially added to the architectural confusion as designers were unsure how to employ the materials on
aesthetic grounds and often employed them in imitation of older materials and styles. Eventually,
critics and theorists began a search for architectural forms that exploited the potential of the new
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materials without resorting to stylistic imitation of the past. This search would dominate architectural
discourse in the later part of the 19th century.
In particular, the discourse of rationalism was reworked to embrace the realities of the industrial age.
Rationalism is a theory of design based on the premise that architectural forms should be derived from
practical rather than aesthetic considerations, mainly those having to do with structure and function.
Rationalism originated in the Neoclassical period and was associated with Greek and Roman
architecture, but by the mid-19th century, many rationalists had come to believe that Gothic
architecture was a purer expression of structural principles. Rationalism was not an organized
movement but simply a set of beliefs shared by a number of architects who practiced independently,
and whose architecture varied; also, some took up rationalist ideas through their writing, while others
employed these ideas in the design of actual buildings. One of the most significant outcomes of
rationalists' thinking was the realization that the 19th century could develop its own architecture,
independent of any in the past, if architects concerned themselves with underlying principles rather
than with style—and if they recognized the potential of the new materials of the industrial age. At
mid-century, Henri Labrouste, Eugene Viollet-le-Duc, and Gottfried Semper were some of the leading
voices of rationalism.
Viollet-le-Duc was one of the most influential architectural theorists in the 19th century and had a
profound effect on many important Modern architects such as Antonio Gaudi, Frank Lloyd Wright, and
Mies van der Rohe. He practiced occasionally, in the Gothic style, and was officially responsible in
France responsible for the historical restoration of Gothic cathedrals. The extensive study of Medieval
architecture this work required formed the basis for his theories. Viollet was the most important
proponent of structural rationalism which, in his view, had three main tenets:
1. Structural principles formed the basis of all great architecture in the past; all great architectural
forms in other words re in essence structural forms. Further, the structural forms themselves
depended upon the nature of the materials of which they were composed.
2. 19th century architects must use materials which have become widely available in their own age,
and must develop forms which exploit their structural properties, instead of using the new
materials to imitate shapes from past styles which had been derived from other materials. Iron,
for example, should not be used to replicate the pointed structural configuration of Medieval stone
arches but should be given its own proper shape.
3. As such, a new kind of architecture must arise which will be appropriate to the 19th century .
In art, especially painting, similar and perhaps more heated debates were underway which reflected
the profound changes that industrialization was bringing to society. These changes, which included
the concentration of capital in the hands of the bourgeoisie, burgeoning urbanization and
overcrowding in the cities, worker unrest and dissatisfaction with established institutions, eventually
erupted in a series of political revolutions and uprisings that swept across Europe at mid-century
(1848 in Paris, Vienna, Berlin, Rome--the same year Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels publish The
Communist Manifesto).
In art, the emergence of a movement known as Realism parallels these social and political changes.
The Realist painters rejected (or were rejected by) the art academies and the normal channels for
displaying and selling their work. They were not interested in history and its depiction but rather in
contemporary events, especially those in which the had participated or witnessed. They rejected the
action and emotion of both Neoclassicism and Romanticism in favor of sober depictions of quiet and
everyday events, especially those concerning the working classes with whom the Realist painters
sympathized. When dramatic events were depicted, the Realists favored a factual clarity that spared
no aspect of actual existence, however unpleasant.
Along side Realist painting, photography emerged in the 1840s as a direct by-product of the industrial
era (the processing of chemicals, mechanical reproduction, increased availability of camera
equipment). Though often used in a “painterly” manner to produce works that purposefully resembled
academic art (staged historical or allegorical/mythological scenes), it was the camera’s potential to
capture reality in all its detail and with factual precision that made it an important realist medium.
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Traditional painters balked that photography as an art, declaring it a science or, at best, a
documentary tool, but its widespread popular appeal, especially for portraits and travel photos,
guaranteed its acceptance as an art form for the industrial age.
Photography became increasingly important as a means of reporting contemporary events such as
wars, natural disasters, public ceremonies, and international expos. It was especially useful for
documenting the rapid changes to the urban fabric then underway, and many builders and planners
began to use photography to record the progress of their work. The photographic record of the socalled Haussmannization of Paris is a case in point.
Beginning in the mid 1700s and accelerating through the 1800s, the industrial revolution (and the
associated urbanization) was to have an impact on all areas of human experience: politics,
economics, social structures, public life, family structure, the arts, and architecture. The industrial
revolution effected architecture in three ways:
1. Changes in building types through changes in the society. The factory is the most obvious
example.
2. Changes in esthetics, particularly through changes in individual perception.
3. Changes in the materials and methods with which buildings are constructed. This is the most
direct (although not necessarily the most important) effect of industrialization,
and the subject of this lecture.
Architectural Concepts and Important Buildings & Artifacts
Items preceded by an asterisk (*) will be emphasized on quizzes and final
This lecture is concerned with the introduction of six major new materials, methods of construction,
or technologies. They are 1.) cast iron, 2.) glass, 3.) steel frame, 4.) reinforced concrete, 5.) balloon
frame wood construction, and 6.) mechanical conditioning of the interior environment (heating,
ventilating, air conditioning, and plumbing).
IRON
Cast iron made it possible for columns and other members to be far thinner and lighter than they had
been in stone. First used for bridges (sometimes imitating stone construction) and later in various
building types, including factories, department stores, and most notably exhibition halls. When
combined with glass, iron made possible large, light, transparent and airy spaces. The
pre-cast iron elements also led to repetitive, modular construction.
Royal Pavilion at Brighton, John Nash, England. 1815
Design for Factory, James Bogardus, United States. 1856
Biblioteque Ste-Genevieve, Henri Labrouste, Paris, France. 1843-50 [Curtis # 17]
* Crystal Palace, Joseph Paxton, London, England. 1851 [Stokstad 27-38] [Curtis p 20, # 14, 18]
Eiffel Tower, G. Eiffel, Paris, Fance. 1889 [Stokstad, p 940] [Curtis # 15]
Viollet-le-Duc, Project for a Concert Hall in Iron, 1872 [Curtis # 4]
Bibliotheque Sainte-Genevieve, Paris, France, 1843-50
GLASS
While glass had been available for centuries, in the mid 1800s it became possible to manufacture
large sheets of it in large quantities. The Crystal Palace, 1851, is the most important example of the
use of glass during this period.
STEEL FRAME
The steel frame is perhaps the most influential technological development in modern architecture,
leading to the skyscraper which dominates the world today.
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Home Insurance Company, William Le Baron Jenny, Chicago, 1883-85 (First modern
skyscraper, although still in iron.)
The Fair Buidling, William Le Barron Jenny, Chicago, 1891. Steel frame. [Curtis # 23]
Reliance Building, Burnham and Company, 1894, Chicago. [Curtis # 31]
* Wainwright Building, Louis Sullivan, St. Louis, Missouri. 1890-91 [Stokstad, 27-103] [Curtis # 32]
REINFORCED CONCRETE
Concrete had been used by the ancient Romans, and was rediscovered in 1774 by John Smeaton in
constructing the Eddystone Lighthouse. Concrete reinforced with iron (ferroconcrete) works in
tension as well as compression. The first example is 1868.
Trabeated system for reinforced concrete, Francois Hennebique, 1892 [Curtis # 67]
* Perret flats, 25 A Rue Franklin, Auguste Perret, Paris, 1903 [Curtis # 70, 71, 72, 73]
Project for an Industrial City, Tony Garnier, 1901-04 [Curtis # 78, 79]
Concrete Bridge, Robert Maillart, Tavanasa, Switzerland 1905
BALLOON FRAME WOOD CONSTRUCTION
Balloon frame is a general term which includes Western platform frame, etc. Developed in the mid
1800's, it replaces a few heavy timbers with many light members. It has been very important in the
development of the single family house.
St. Mary's Church, Chicago, 1833. First balloon frame building.
Also:
Edouard Manet, Dejeuner sur l’Herbe, 1863 [Stokstad 27-57]
John Roebling, Brooklyn Bridge, New York City, 1867-83 [Stokstad 27-39] [Curtis p 72, # 66]
Bibliography
Billington, David. The Tower and the Bridge. New York: Basic Books, 1983.
Clarke, T.J. The Painting of Modern Life: Paris in the Art of Manet and His Followers. Princeton, 1986.
Frampton, Kenneth. Studies in Tectonic Culture. Cambridge, 1995.
Fried, Michael. Corbet’s Realism. Chicago, 1990.
Giedion, Sigfried. Space, Time, Architecture. Cambridge, 1941 (various reprints).
Hearn, M.F., ed. The Architectural Theory of Viollet-le-Duc: Readings and Commentary. Cambridge:
MIT Press, 1990.
Johns, Elizabeth. Thomas Eakins: The Heroism of Modern Life. Princeton, 1980.
Levine, Neil. “The Romantic Idea of Architectural Legibility: Henri Labrouste and the Neo-Grec” in Arthur
Drexler, The Architecture of the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. New York: 1977.
Moffett, Charles S. The New Painting: Impressionism 1874-1886. Washington, 1986.
Newhall, Beaumont. The History of Photography. New York, 1982.
Pevsner, Nikolaus. A History of Building Types. Princeton, 1976.
Semper, Gottfried. The Four Elements of Architecture and Other Writings. Trans. Cambridge, 1989.
Week 11
The Beaux Arts
Historical Context
The term Beaux-Arts means, meaning literally the beautiful arts, refers to the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, a
French national school established after the Revolution (but descending from schools established by
Louis XIV) and reorganized by Napoleon. Architecture was taught at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts from
1819 until the student revolts of 1968. During the 19th century the Ecole enjoyed a reputation as the
world’s finest school of architecture, attracting students from around the world. Significantly, the
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Ecole des Beaux-Arts was not the only state school offering courses in architecture. The Ecole
Polytechnique and the Ecole des Ponts-et-Chaussées both provided architectural training but with a
focus on engineering and civil construction. By contrast, the Ecole des Beaux-Arts stressed the study
of architecture as a fine art with a strong emphasis on the classical tradition.
Education at the Ecole, which was tuition-free, was highly organized and progressive, though it was
not terminal in any strict sense and a diploma was not awarded until 1867. Students could stay on at
the Ecole for any number of years working toward the ultimate goal--winning the prestigious
competition for the Grand Prix de Rome which enabled the student to travel to Rome for further study.
The curriculum was divided between theory and practice. Theory, which included such subjects as
architectural history, archaeology, principles of construction and materials, and aesthetics, took place
in the lecture hall. Practice took place in the atelier which, for many students, was the center of
learning. Ateliers were studios of varying sizes (as many as 30 students) which were directed by
professors of the Ecole or independent architects of distinction. During a given course, the students
worked on programs established by the Ecole. There were three general categories of programs-public buildings, ecclesiastical buildings, private buildings--with such specific topics as baths, schools,
monuments, and even stores (but never factories or industrial buildings).
Students used a rationalist approach to these programs, proceeding from a belief in reason and
beauty derived from harmony and proportion. Initial design work began with a sketch that attempted
to distinguish significant program elements and to establish the parti or scheme of organization.
Once the parti was established, students worked out the composition and produced large-scale plans,
sections, and elevations. In completed designs the emphasis was on legible massing, formal planning,
axial symmetry, and monumentality with a strong graphic sense of marché (movement from street to
interior) and poché (thickness of the wall). As a style, Beaux-arts architecture is characterized by its
rich and creative use of classicism and the classical orders, including Roman, Renaissance, and
Baroque architectural precedents.
In the last quarter of the 19th century many American students went to Paris to study architecture at
the Ecole, Richard Morris Hunt and Henry Hobson Richardson among them. These students brought
back not only an enthusiasm for the style of architecture promoted at the Ecole, but also an
understanding of its rational basis as a compositional and programmatic tool that could be readily
adapted to meet the architectural needs of expanding urban centers. The Ecole also became a model
for the establishment of professional standards and professional schools of architecture in the United
States. The architecture schools at MIT, Columbia, and the University of Pennsylvania were all based
on principles of the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. In the United States, Beaux-Arts architecture is especially
associated with the so-called American Renaissance (1877-1917) when the 100-year old country was
seen to be entering a period of cultural maturity and was capable of fostering a resurgence of the arts
comparable to that of Renaissance Italy. Many of the nation’s art museums, university campuses,
libraries and other civic institutions date to this period. In this context, the American Renaissance and
Beaux-Arts architecture cannot be separated from the economic prosperity which made it possible. By
1900 vast amounts a capital, accumulated in such industries as oil, railroads, and land speculation,
were concentrated in the hands of a few wealthy families (the so-called Robber Barons) who became
patrons of the new institutions and the architects who designed them.
After the rise of modernism and the International Style, the term Beaux-Arts, which is often used
interchangeably with the term academic, was considered negative in connection to architecture,
wrongly implying a type of architecture that was retrogressive and old-fashioned. This dominant,
though distorted view of Beaux-Arts architecture was begun to be corrected in the 1970s when a
major exhibition of Beaux-Arts architecture appeared at the Museum of Modern Art. Today, we
understand this architecture as rigorously rational, programmatically complex, and fully engaged with
problems of institutional representation in the modern city.
Baron Georges Eugène Haussmann is largely responsible for the form of the city of Paris as we know it
today. From 1853 until 1868, Haussmann served as Prefect of the Seine in the direct employ of
Emperor Napoleon III who was determined to recreate the city as a triumphant imperial capitol
reflecting the wealth and power of the industrial bourgeoisie who had supported his rise to power--at
the expense of the working poor. Haussmann undertook public works on a grand scale, destroying
much of the medieval urban fabric and remaking the city through construction of a massive boulevard
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system which transformed the spatial and social patterns of Paris. Linking these new thoroughfares
were a related series of public monuments (some new, some already existing), such as Charles
Garnier’s Opera House and Chalgrin’s Arc de Triomphe, which provided focal points for the expansive
vistas Haussmann was opening up. His goal was to promote ease of circulation for people, goods, and
the police; to promote health through the introduction of light, air, drainage, and greenery; and to
choreography the social interactions of modern life.
The social and spatial realities of Haussmann’s Paris had a direct influence on a generation of artists
who emerged in the 1870s and were known as the Impressionists. The Impressionists found in
modern Paris a new and vital subject for their work. Departing from the sober chronicles of the
Realists, the Impressionists were inspired by the spectacle of the city: its boulevards, cafes, parks,
and theaters. These they sought to record not with factual accuracy of depiction, but as visual
“impressions” which indicated the effect of light, air, and physical movement through rapid daubs of
paint, intense use of color, and hazy transcription of form. Seemingly undisturbed by the political
realities of the modern industrial metropolis (worker discontent, class inequity), the Impressionists
“documented” daily life as a continual record of bourgeois leisure which included the demi-monde and
industry, but only as encountered by the apparently prosperous middle classes. Aesthetically, the
Impressionists grew out of the radical, non-academic tradition of the Realists, but, in their departure
from the literal transcription of visual reality led the way toward the modernism of the early 20 th
century.
Important Buildings
* Henri Labrouste, Biblioteque Ste-Genevieve, Paris, 1843-50 (Stokstad, 27-40)
* Charles Garnier, Opera House, Paris, 1861-74 (Stokstad, 27-41, 27-42)) [Curtis # 8]
Richard Morris Hunt, Biltmore (G.W. Vanderbilt estate), North Carolina, 1888-95 (Stokstad, 28-55)
Richard Morris Hunt, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, 1895-1902
* Daniel Burnham, et al, World’s Columbian Exposition, Chicago, 1893 (Stokstad 27-101) [Curtis #
36]
Richard Morris Hunt, Court of Honor
McKim, Mead & White, Agriculture Building Building
Louis Sullivan, Transportation Building
Daniel Burnham, Plan of Improvement for Chicago, 1909
Reed & Stern, Warren & Wetmore, Grand Central Station, New York City, 1903-13
McKim, Mead & White, Pennsylvania Station, New York City, 1906-10
* McKim, Mead & White, Boston Public Library, Boston, 1887-92
Bibliography
The American Renaissance: 1876-1917. New York, 1979.
Draper, Joan. “The Ecole des Beaux-Arts and the Architectural Profession in the United States.” In
The Architect. Ed. Spiro Kostoff. New York, 1977.
Drexler, Arthur, ed. The Architecture of the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. New York, 1977.
Jordy, William H. Progressive and Academic Ideals at the Turn of the 20th Century. American
Buildings and Their Architects, Volume 4. Oxford, 1972. (especially Chapter 7)
Middleton, Robin. The Beaux-Arts and Nineteenth Century French Architecture. London, 1982.
Stern, Robert A.M., et al. New York 1900: Metropolitain Architecture and Urbanism, 1890-1915. New
York, 1983.
WEEK 12
Historical Context
THE SHINGLE STYLE AND THE CHICAGO SCHOOL
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In the late 19th century, the city of Chicago was the commercial and industrial center of the midwest
of the United States, second only to New York City in its economic importance. Established as a
military outpost (on the western frontier) in 1812, Chicago was incorporated as a town in 1833 an
event which signaled the first of many cycles of land speculation and building booms. Situated on the
swampy banks of the stream-like Chicago River and lake Michigan’s western shore, and linked by
direct waterway to the economically-important Missouri River, Chicago was ideally situated to become
a transportation hub (by canal & railway) as the United States expanded westward. Known as “the
golden funnel,” Chicago received agricultural products from the farmlands of the west and shipped
them to eastern markets. Eventually, it also became the nation’s foremost center of meat-processing,
further powering the city’s economic engine and contributing to Chicago’s rapid development. By
1870 the city’s population was nearly 300,000.
Chicago’s rise to architectural importance was due, at least according to the mythology of modernism,
to the Great Fire of 1871, a conflagration which raged for 36 hours and destroyed 1/3 of the city
fabric, including nearly 18,000 structures, many of them in the downtown district known as the Loop,
the heart of Chicago’s economic and cultural life. As a result of the fire, nonmasonry construction was
banned and city-use patterns were drastically altered, especially downtown which saw the complete
cessation of residential occupancy as the Loop was rebuilt with increasing density and purposeful
centralization during the late 1870s and 1880s. Another development spurt was underway and by
1890 the city’s population reached one million.
The centralization of downtown Chicago required special buildings to accommodate the thousands of
people drawn to the city’s commercial heart during the working day. The demands of this
concentration of people and activities, combined with land costs and esclating real estate values,
eventually pushed buildings higher. However, this would not have been possible without a rapid
succession of technological developments. Advances in foundation engineering and metal frame
construction, reliable lighting systems (gas and electric), improvements in steam heating and fireproofing, and fast, safer elevators made the tall building--the skyscraper--a reality.
The “Chicago School” was not a school in any organized sense, but rather refers to the group of
architects practicing in and around Chicago from the time of the fire until the turn of the century
responsible for defining the tall building from a technical and, especially, an aesthetic standpoint. In
their work, the metal frame was used not only to realize a new building type, the skyscraper, but also
to create a new architectural idiom. In particular, Chicago School architecture is characterized by the
way in which aesthetic expression is derived from the structural or tectonic reality of the metal frame.
Though this expression could produce buildings of austere simplicity (which seemed to portend the
modernism of the early 20th century), it did not necessarily imply the exclusion of ornament or
historicizing veneers.
Important Buildings (* indicates required work)
Henry Hobson Richardson, Trinity Church, Boston, 1873-77
Henry Hobson Richardson, Crane Memorial Library, Quincy, MA, 1880-83
Henry Hobson Richardson, Allegheny County Courthouse, Pittsburgh, PA, 1883-6
* Henry Hobson Richards, Marshall Field Warehouse, Chicago, 1885-87 [Stokstad 27-102]
William Le Baron Jenney, Leiter Building, Chicago, 1879
William Le Baron Jenney, Home Insurance Building, Chicago, 1883
* William LeBaron Jenney, Steel frame from Fair Store, Chicago, 1891
Daniel Burnham & John W. Root, Monadnock Building, Chicago, 1889-91
Daniel Burnham & Co. (Charles Atwood, designer), Reliance Building, Chicago, 1895
Daniel Burnham & Co., Flatiron Building, New York City, 1902
Dankmar Adler & Louis Sullivan, Auditorium Building, Chicago, 1887-9
* Louis Sullivan, Wainwright Building, St. Louis, MO, 1890-91 [Stokstad 27-103]
Louis Sullivan, Prudential/Guaranty Building, Buffalo, NY, 1894-5
Louis Sullivan, Carson, Pirie Scott Store, Chicago, 1899; 1903-4
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Bibliography
Bletter, Rosemarie. “The Invention of the Skyscraper.” Assemblage 2 1987): 110-17.
Bluestone, Daniel. Constructing Chicago. New Haven: 1991.
Condit, Carl. The Chicago School of Architecture. Chicago: 1964 (and later editions).
de Wit, Wim, ed. Louis Sullivan: The Function of Ornament. New York: 1986.
Jordy, William H. Progressive and Academic Ideals at the Turn of the Twentieth Century. American
Buildings and Their Architects, Volume 4. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1972.
Rowe, Colin. “The Chicago Frame” in Mathematics of the Ideal Villa and Other Essays. Cambridge:
1982.
Willis, Carole. Form Follows Finance: Skyscrapers & Skylines in New York & Chicago. Princeton: 1995.
Zukowsky, John, ed. Chicago Architecture: Birth of a Metropolis, 1872-1922. Munich & Chicago: 1987.
WEEK 13
THE ARTS AND CRAFTS AND THE ART NOUVEAU
Historical Context
The rise of industrialization in the late 18th century caused a radical transformation of material
conditions in the west. Initially, these transformations (including mass-production, factory work, and
burgeoning urbanization) were regarded as progressive in terms of long-term social benefit, since it
was believed that they would eventually have a positive effect on society. However, by early in the
19th century, the down-side of industrialization was already becoming apparent. Factory work was
brutal and dehumanizing; factory conditions were intolerable, if not outright dangerous; factory towns
were overcrowded and polluted; and factory workers (including many children) were ill-paid and illhoused. Far from reaping the benefits of industrial capitalism, poverty-stricken workers formed a
new, but rapidly growing industrial underclass. By mid-century, social critics began to demonstrate
the ills of industrial capitalism and to document the dire living conditions of the working poor.
Friedrich Engles “The Condition of the Working Class in England” (1844) is a notable example.
In response to such critiques, there arose social reform movements which were morally committed to
societal betterment and which attempted to mediate the debilitating impact of industrialization.
Progressive manufacturers tried to improve the physical and economic conditions of laborers through
model factories, through profit-sharing plans, by providing decent housing and recreational areas;
visionary planners tried to institute new utopian communities; political reformers tried to develop new
political systems, such as socialism, which would provide a more equal distribution of wealth and
power. Some reformers focused on the effects of industrialization; others on its root causes. Militant
examples of the latter include the Luddites (1811), who rebelled against the tyranny of machine labor
by destroying factory equipment.
Growing out of social reform efforts were a number of groups and movements interested in the reform
of art and design. A.W.N. Pugin and John Ruskin were both influential theorists of art and design
reform who impacted what would emerge as the Arts & Crafts movement in England and the United
States in the second half of the 19th century and the early 20th century. In particular, their work
influenced the theorist and designer regarded as the guiding light of Arts & Crafts--William Morris.
Arts & Crafts
William Morris (1834-1896) was trained as an architect in the Victorian Gothic tradition, but turned
to the applied arts because he believed that the condition of social life in the 19th century made it
impossible to create good buildings. He became an outstanding designer, famous for his furniture,
carpets, and wallpaper, but was influential as a theorist as well as a craftsman. A founder of the
Socialist League in England, Morris was concerned with the relationship between art and social life and
thought the two were inseparable. Morris believed that the fundamental purpose of art (meaning all
designed objects, including architecture) was social and, as such, art had to enhance the life of its
owner and fulfill the life of its maker. For Morris, the quality of art could never rise above the moral
condition of society.
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Morris sought to reform contemporary art and design as he found it in England at mid-century. In
particular, he argued that the specialization of labor and use of machines in the manufacture of
aesthetic objects not only resulted in bad design, but also deprived artists of satisfaction in their labor.
As an alternative, he proposed that handcraft be revived, as practiced in the Middle Ages. In practice,
Morris was willing to use certain mass-production techniques (such as the handblocking of wallpaper),
because they enabled him to produce more affordable products. Morris also found that craftsmen in
capitalist societies destructively competed with each other. As an alternative, he proposed that
medieval-type guilds be re-established, so that designers could work cooperatively in supportive
communal groups in which they would teach and assist one another. Morris also believed that the
concept of high or fine art, that arose in the Renaissance and persisted in the present day, was
inherently undemocratic since it was neither affordable nor comprehensible to the mass public. As an
alternative, Morris proposed that greater emphasis be given to the applied arts or design arts
(including architecture) so that the most ordinary object in the most ordinary household would have
an elevated aesthetic quality. In this way, the experience of “art” could be shared by all humanity,
including the working people.
Through a design firm known as Morris & Company, through extensive lectures, and numerous
publications, William Morris influenced several generations of architects and designers in England and
the United States. Arts & Crafts societies sprung up across both countries in the 1880s and 1890s.
Though Morris’ program of social reform was often a starting point, his followers usually faced the
same inherent problem which had caused Morris himself to become disillusioned: in the age of the
machine, handcrafted products were simply too expensive, meaning that the good design Morris
championed for all people was, too often, only available to the bourgeoisie. While this did not negate
its aesthetic value, the social program of arts & crafts was often forgotten.
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is usually regarded as a form of decoration utilized in architecture and design. The term,
meaning literally “new art,” can be applied to a variety of buildings and objects produced in many
European countries at the turn of the century, though it went by different names and had different
characteristics in each place (Jugendstil, Stile Liberty, Secessionstil). Art Nouveau designers practiced
in France, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Spain, Italy, and in the United States as well. Art Nouveau
enjoyed a period of intense popularity among the European elite beginning around 1890, but the
movement was exhausted by 1910. It was inspired in part by late 19th century artistic movements
(including Post-Impressionism and Symbolism) and aesthetic theories and was influenced by the arts
& crafts movement, though without the moral underpinning and interest in social reform.
Art Nouveau constituted a stylistic transition between 19th century historical eclecticism and 20th
century modernism. Though it is not free of historical associations, it draws upon diverse traditions
including “exotic” high styles (such as Japanese architecture) and rediscovered vernaculars (such as
Celtic art). Its forms and ornamental language are also derived in large measure from nature and the
organic world. Images of living things such as plants, vines, flowing hair, and insects and natural
phenomenon such as sea waves and flames were meant to evoke energy and animation and to reflect
the dynamism of the turn-of-the-century. Because these references were unusual and largely
unfamiliar, Art Nouveau imagery was regarded as new, free, and youthful but its designers and
patrons. By its critics, including the early modernists, Art Nouveau was regarded as decadent because
of its ephemerality and luxuriousness.
Art Nouveau designers advocated the complete integration of the designed environment; ideally,
every feature of the building and its setting—exterior, interior, furniture, fixtures, furnishings, even
the clothing of the occupants—would be designed within a visually consistent, highly individualized
and customized architectural aesthetic. Art Nouveau design is characterized by its stylized ornamental
forms and two-dimensionality. Surfaces often possess a graphic linearity (either undulating or
rectilinear). Though the emphasis is on hand-craft and custom work (as opposed to mass production),
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new materials and technologies are employed for aesthetic and symbolic purposes. Certain aspects of
Art Nouveau architectural forms can be traced to the structural rationalism of Viollet-le-Duc and
Auguste Choisy.
Important Buildings & Designs (* indicates required work; other works may be discussed in
lecture)
* Philip Webb & William Morris, The Red House, Kent, England, 1859 [Curtis # 83, 84]
Philip Webb, Standen, Sussex, England, 1892-4
Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Beata Beatrix, 1860-70
Norman Shaw, Cragside, Northumberland, England, 1870-85
Charles Francis Annesley (C.F.A.) Voysey, Perrycroft, near Malvern, England, 1893
C.F.A. Voysey, Broadleys, Lake Windermere, Lancashire, England, 1898
C.F.A. Voysey, The Homestead, Essex, England, 1905-06
Greene and Greene, Gamble House, Pasadena, California, 1908 [Curtis # 93, 94, p 86 s]
James McNeil Whistler, Nocturne in Blue and Silver, 1872
James McNeil Whistler, Peacock Room for the Frederic Leyland House, London 1876
E.W. Godwin, White House, London, 1877-9
Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Hill House, Helensburgh, Scotland, 1903
* Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow, Scotland 1907-09 [Curtis # 37]
Hector Guimard, Metro station entrances, Paris, c. 1900 [Curtis # 43]
Hector Guimard, Castel Henriette, Paris, 1899
* Victor Horta, Hôtel Tassel, Brussels, Belgium, 1892-93 [Stokstad, 27-83] [Curtis # 40]
Victor Horta, own house, Brussels, Belgium, 1898-1900
Joesph Hoffman, Palais Stoclet, Brussels, Belgium, 1905-11
Joseph Maria Olbrich, Secession Building, Vienna, Austria, 1898-99
Gustav Klimt, Pallas Athene, 1898
Antoni Gaudi, Guell Park, Barcelona, Spain, 1900-14
* Antoni Gaudi, Casa Mila, Barcelona, 1905-07 [Stokstad 28-2] [Curtis # 51]
Antoni Gaudi, Sagrada Familia, [Curtis # 48]
Bibliography
Cumming, Elizabeth and Wendy Kaplan. The Arts and Crafts Movement. London: 1991.
Davey, Peter. Architecture of the Arts and Crafts Movement. New York: 1980.
Greenhalgh, Peter, ed. Art Nouveau 1890-1914, New York: 2000.
Hitchmough, Wendy. C.F.A. Voysey, London: 1995.
Madsen, Stefan. Sources of Art Nouveau. New York: 1976.
Naylor, Gillian. Arts and Crafts Movement. London: 1971.
Pevsner, Nikolaus. Pioneers of Modern Design. London: 1936 (and subsequent editions)
Russell, Frank, ed. Art Nouveau Architecture. New York: 1986.
Stansky, Peter. Redesigning the World: Morris, the 1880s and Arts and Crafts. Princeton: Princeton
University Press, 1985.
Pratt Institute School of Architecture
Undergraduate Architecture Program
Arch 207
History of Architecture II
Spring 2005
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