Modern architecture and its styles were formed under the influence of architectural styles and trends that preceded the modern era. Through modern styles in architecture, one can understand the essence of the present time, comprehend the existing concepts of beauty, harmony, aesthetics and proportion.
Modern styles in architecture:
- Modern
- constructivism
- minimalism
- hi-tech
- deconstructivism
- kitsch
- and others
Architectural style can be defined as certain common characteristics shared by buildings in a certain period of time.
Modern
Art Nouveau is a style of architecture that is called differently in different countries. Modern in Russia and England, Secession in Austria, Jugendstil in Germany, Art Nouveau in France, etc.
At the same time, it is a protest against the imitation of historical houses, something fresh and progressive. In Art Nouveau for the first time began to use the latest materials – alloy (high quality steel), concrete, glass, and later – plastic, supplemented by the introduction of the usual that were used – wood and stone. This allowed to give building systems free and unusual, including mythical forms.
Building form Art Nouveau asymmetrical, buildings are voluminous, there are no straight lines, but despite all of the above abundant components of the decor, from time to time even excessively. Facades of buildings were decorated with random drawings of various forms. Buildings in Art Nouveau style are beautiful, although together with this highly functional.
During modernism, the construction of high-rise buildings became widespread. With the development of Art Nouveau in it was allocated several directions, although some characterize them as separate styles in architecture.
This neoromanticism with the restoration of the customs of Romanesque style, Gothic, Renaissance, neoclassicism, rationalism with ordinary forms, its opposite – irrationalism, brick style, conjugated with the rejection of plaster, northern Art Nouveau (aka national romanticism, formed in Scandinavia). The most prominent representatives of Art Nouveau are Otto Wagner, Victor Orta, Peter Behrens, Hendrik Berlage, Andrei Belogrud, Leon Bogusky and others.
Constructivism
In the 1920s there was the latest style in architecture – constructivism, which is considered a fresh direction of proletarian art, embodied and in construction forms. The main idea of constructivism – skill must serve production. This is how production art appeared. The main materials were concrete and reinforced concrete.
Architects designed not only industrial buildings, but also residential buildings, clubs, cultural buildings. In the late constructivism there was a multifunctional method, according to which there was a scientific test of multifunctional purpose of buildings, and the actual tasks were combined with artistic. The main architects of constructivism are Leonid, Victor, Alexander Vesnin, Moses Ginzburg.
Minimalism
In the late 1940s, the building style of minimalism began to develop, the slogan of which is “nothing superfluous”. The greatest spread it received in the 1960s. In the premises of this style are minimized components of decor, decoration and other “excesses”.
There comes the search for flawless ratios, the latest color combinations. The exterior is dominated by high quality steel and other alloys, curved shapes. At that moment, a lot of time is devoted to functionality.
Hi-tech
At the end of the 1970s, the hi-tech style came to replace it, which has become firmly established in modern architecture. This style of modern architecture can be called the style of high technology, which conditions the life of modern man. Its slogan: “The house is a machine for dwelling”. Ascetic design with large solid forms, the widespread introduction of alloy and glass, ultramodern systems and technologies – this is the style of high-tech.
Idealization of progressive technologies, the search for solutions to the problems of connecting energy and resources are inextricably linked to the close connection in the life of man technology. There are three main currents within the high-tech trend – industrial, geometric and bionic high-tech.
Buildings in the industrial hi-tech style are so-called “storeys”, characterized by the removal of parts of communications to the facade of the building (stairs, elevators). Geometric hi-tech is associated with a complex frame system with the introduction of fresh parts of structures (for example, air-supported and air-insulated systems).
Bionic high-tech is the introduction of forms of living nature in architecture. Membrane slabs, hinged assemblies, elastic threads have become components of buildings. The possibilities of hi-tech style are energy-generating buildings, mobile constructions.
Deconstructivism
In the 1980s, as a counterbalance to Russian constructivism, a fresh style in architecture was noticed – deconstructivism, which is characterized by broken forms, visual complexity, aggressiveness. The main adherents are Jacques Derrid, Peter Eisenman, Daniel Libeskind.
In the 1990s, a fresh trend in architecture appeared – techno style, which from time to time is evaluated as a trend of high-tech. For techno style is typical grotesque image of ubiquitous technologism.
Buildings are transparent, glass walls are bent along a complex curve, and the components of communications are taken out of the wall – pipes work as a typical component of the decor.
Exterior in techno style rather resembles factory workshops, warehouses, hangars, but not a residential building. Cabinets look like safes and industrial containers, amorphous chairs – like randomly forgotten bags, furniture legs – like tripods.
The walls have a rough texture, the main colors of furniture are grayish, dark, khaki, red, materials – glass, alloy, plastic. Widely used perforated and knobby sheets of metal. Techno style is a challenge to classical comfort and harmony.
Kitsch
Another new trend in architecture and interior design called kitsch (translated from Germanic – cheap, tasteless). This trend is characterized by a flashy, shouting style, pseudohistoricity of architecture, unsophisticated imitation, it is some parody of existing styles.
Its main task – the desire to stand out, to demonstrate their own uniqueness. Fashion for kitsch arises while the old styles are getting boring, and others have not yet come to replace them.
Summarizing all of the above, we can conclude that modern styles in architecture are characterized by aggressiveness, which takes place in the vast technologism, clutter of similar elements, the use of synthetic building materials, dark colors.
At the same time, modern architectural styles do not stand still, they are constantly improving, bringing fresh parts and components and creating new trends.
