THE EXPLORATION OF DESIGN- US 3

Explorations is about exploring design across the world.  It is also about how technology influences design and vice versa.  Beginning with the Worlds Fairs, which has amazing impacts in design, it is the beginning of aesthetic movement, and the notion of spectacle becomes prominent.

Architecture is the driving force of the worlds fairs because it shapes the visitors entire experience.  Buildings and structures are built to make certain statements at each fair where people travel to them and gain a new way of seeing.  For instance, the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis, 1904, was named "The Ivory City" where they showed off their city as well as one-uped Chicago's "White City".  Design became a race in technology.  The Worlds Fairs also had political purposes, which brought about peace, persuasion, and the concept of working together.

 

 

1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition- "The Ivory City"

The Arts and Crafts Movement also further developed design.  There was the giant question of hand-craft or machine.  William Morris was an advocate of hand-craft design who believed that "Good Design for All" was a social responsibility.  Technology is influencing design completely with the help of machines, however, the hand-made followers like Morris said, "We do not reject the machine, we welcome it.  But we desire to see it mastered."  Most importantly, both designers who utilized the machine and those who believed that hand-crafted creations were of higher quality all began to REFORM.  It was the time to change to a better state; A time where unsatisfactory designs were changed and improved.  GOOD DESIGN FOR ALL.

Gustav Stickley's OPEN PLAN - A firm believer in the Arts and Crafts movement, Gustav Stickley designed his own furniture as well as incorporated Open Plans.  He incorporated horizontals, natural materials, wide eaves, and lots of expression.

The Art Movements created an even more expressionist move in design.  In the 1880's through the 1920's there was the Art Nouveau and Art Deco.  Post Impressionism brought about Georges Seurat, Vincent Van Gogh, aul Cezanne, and my personal favorite Piet Mondrian.  While they were breaking away from the rules, so were the designers.  They were all on a quest to be modern, but being modern could also mean reverting back to the past for help.  For instance, my favorite, Antonio Gaudi, designed in a Baroque like fashion, while at the same time getting modern inspirations from skeletal forms.

Antonio Gaudi's 'Casa Batllo'- "Buildings should not fall over under sunlight if at all possible."-Gaudi

 The Arts Movements also incorporated NATURE and was important on the level of materiality.  Sky scrapers were becoming more and more common and the way they were designed was in question.  Technology was influencing design and design was influencing technology.  For instance, zoning codes presented challenges for designers with the fire codes and light requirements.  The "step in' design was often used, proposed by William Van Allen with the Chrysler building.  As usual, past styles were seen in new designs, such as a gothic feel to the Woolworth building.

William Van Allen's Chrysler Building, utilizing the 'step-in' method.

 

Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe's Seagram Building, which dealt with the zoning codes by using a patio.

 Not only giant buildings, but also houses were showing technology advantages as well as the search for modernism.  Designers were searching for a style.  In many instances, color was either being completely stripped away, or used to pop surfaces.  Le Corbusier created free plans, with gardens on roofs, and the houses floating on stillets!

Villa Stein, another Corbusier design.  "A house is a machine for living."- Le Corbusier

Bauhaus modernism was developed along with Corbusiers designs.  Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe also incorporated this "boxy" style in his designs.  Along with this style was the notion of pushing new materials and technology to their full potentiality.  The use of steel, plastic, concrete, and glass were an implications of war and were heavily utilized.  Fascinatingly, even in modernism and post-modernism, the DESIGN CYCLE stood strong.  Previous styles were constantly used to influence modern designs.  For example, Corbusiers "notre Dame de Haut" had a Baroque quality to it but at the same time was modern, and technologically advanced in that it pushed the limitations of concrete.  Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's Fansworth house was a modern "glass box" but slightly resembles the Greek Temples, while still pushing the limitations of glass.

The quest for Modernism is a never-ending one and other forms of modern design are explored.  There's regional modernism and the Johnson Wax Movement pushed forward and breaks rules through the use of columns.  The Guggenheim Museum and several other buildings explor curve and other innovative design approaches in their quest for modernism, however not all of them function properly.  Modernism comes with much criticism, where function over form is in question.  Phillip Johnson argues that function is NOT important and neither is comfort because it does not contribute to beauty.  Instead, PEOPLE should adapt to buildings!  There is also the great question of "Is it modern or is it International?", which is still an existing question today, although we are definitely becoming more global.  

Scandinavian design pushes design forward in a way that combats the idea that function is not important.  To them, function is MOST important.  Their designs focus on affordability, functionality, materiality, and on solving problems.  They have design that makes sense.

Viipuri Auditorium, Scandinavian Design.  There are waves on the ceiling that help solve the problem of sound waves.

Finally, following modernism comes the great post modernism.  Technology and the past are still the main forces.  The Boston Public Library "echos the past without copying it", while Robert Stern is creating mansions that look like they're from the past as well.  Post Modernism is still continuing the exploration of modernism but is said to have a "sadistic twist" to it.  For example, the AT&T headquarters has a 'Chippendale twist', and the Aronoff Center is 'deconstructive', as if a bomb went off.

Aronoff Center, Peter Eisenman- Deconstructive Design

Overall, modernism is something all designers are searching for and all designers try to explore.  Technology helps to push the search forwards where new materials are available and also the capabilities to build certain structures, but also the past is always relevant and is always an influential part of design- no matter how modern it is!