THE MODERN DREAM- BP 11

I used Mies van der Rohe's Lake Shore Drive Apartments to explore the rise of modernism and why it is so important to 20th century designers today.  I believe some of the main reasons modern design was made so important is because it was finally made possible.  With the industrial revolution, the means of building higher buildings were finally available.  Style and substance followed the fact that it was actually possible.  The stylistic features were simply to let the form speak, rather than the function- which was a style in itself. 

Prototype for glass towers that became a mark of modernization

The Lake Shore Drive Apartments were two identical glass towers, one placed perpendicular to the other.  The style came because the buildings were "reduced to their simplest terms, functionally and structurally" (Roth, 538).  The modernistic style, form, and function, were also popular in this building because the form could FIT several functions.  For instance, the building could be turned in any orientation, facing any direction.  The building could also be used for several different reasons such as offices, or apartments, or corporate headquarters.  For these reasons, these buildings became the prototype for modern towers around the globe.

The buildings could face any direction/ be placed in a number of orientations

Plan View

I believe that modern design has caught on to twentieth century designers since then because of the functionality of modern design.  Their designs will be liked and picked because it will have several functions and possibilities, plus the simplicity of it all is so beautiful compared to the crowdedness and over decorated styles from before.

Stylistic Characters- Mies van der Rohe's proposed design.  Simplistic.