Theories of Architecture(EAPS4202)

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University of Palestine Faculty of Applied
Engineering Urban Planning Dept. of
Architecture, Interior Design Planning
Theories of Architecture(EAPS4202) Lecturer
3 Theory, History Criticism (Part I) Dr.
Hazem Abu-Orf
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Primitive Architecture

• Primitive (15000-20000 BC)
• The word primitive is fundamental to the
  discipline of architecture in the West, providing
  a convenient starting point for the myth of
  architectures origins.
• Primitive includes contributions from some of
  todays leading architectural commentators and
  practitioners, including Dalibor Vesely, Adrian
  Forty, David Leatherbarrow, Richard Coyne, CJ Lim
  and Richard Weston.
• It is structured around five sections,
  Negotiating origins, Urban myths,
  Questioning colonial constructs, Making
  marks, and Primitive futures, and means
  original highlighting ideological and spiritual
  thinking.

The Kanaka Village, New Caledonia, Exposition
Universelle, Paris 1889 Source Le Monde
Illustré, 27 June 1889
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Primitive Architecture
Ancient Egypt (5000-100BC)

• Style adopted
• Eternity believes
• The use of sloped walls, Cornice (horizontal
  decorative molding), Columns that are associated
  with the shapes plants and/or animals , in
  addition to the use of ornaments and sculptures
• Strong and gloom buildings
• Creativity in engravings (is the practice of
  incising a design onto a hard, usually flat
  surface, by cutting grooves into it), and in
  using colors and
• Lighting is feasible through doors and/or small
  window openings.

Egyptian vegetal entanglement Source Gottfried
Semper, Der Stil (18603)
An example of a cornice along the top of the
Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Building in downtown
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Primitive Architecture

• WEST ASIATIC (MESOPOTAMIA (4500-600 BC), PERSIA
  (500 BC 1700 AC )
• Style adopted
• Buildings are usually made of bricks, mud and
  glazed bricks and decorated with architectural
  tiles
• The use of pointed and semi-circular vaults,
  domes
• Lighting is feasible through doors and small wall
  openings and
• The use of ornaments, engravings and metals
  (usually bronze).

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Classical Architecture1. Greek Period
(1000-100) BC)
THE TUSCAN TEMPLE ACCORDING TO VITRUVIUS.

• Style adopted
• Known as Vitruvius Architecture highlighting the
  principles of order , arrangement, eurhythmy
  (beauty), symmetry and propriety (perfection) and
  economy
• The use of large scale stones, stone lintels and
  the use of vaults
• It emphasizes a very fine architecture based on
  proportions and details
• It looks at approaching issues of optical
  illusion
• Columns styles used are Doric , Ionic and
  Corinthian
• It uses sculptures, engravings and ornaments and
• The often use of colors through paints.

VITRUVIUS' DORIC ORDER COMPARED WITH THE TEMPLE
AT CORI AND THE DORIC ORDER OF THE THEATRE OF
MARCELLUS 5.
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Classical Architecture2. Roman Period

• Style adopted
• Buildings categories are Theatres, Forum and
  Baths
• The use of Greek columns styles, in addition to
  Tuscan and Composite
• The use of concrete
• The use of coffered domes and vaults
• It adopts cladding with tiles and
• The style much emphasizes strength, majesty, and
  Great structures.

A TYPICAL ROMAN Theatre
A TYPICAL ROMAN Bath
PLAN OF A TYPICAL ROMAN HOUSE
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Christian Architecture1. Byzantine Period
(350-1850 AC)

• Style adopted
• The use of colored/red marble for columns with
  bronze annulets. The architecture of the time
  focused on churchs buildings, (e.g. basilican
  churches) with atrium various antique
  sculptures
• The use of vast domes with drum, and semi-domes
  and
• The use of mosaic, ornamentation and picturesque
  arts (in an exaggeration manner).

The dome is constructed with ribs of brick
converging Conon a ring in the centre, and
springing from forty piers set on radiating
lines, the panels between dome rib and rib being
also of brick.
S. SOPHIA-CONSTANTINOPLE
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Christian Architecture2. Romanesque (550 1150
AC)

• Style adopted
• All work is bound with circular arches and
  vaults
• It embodies Equilibrium concept within
  structures
• The use of vaults with ribs and panels
• Quadripartite and sexpartite vaults
• New elements emerged such as
• Campanile Porch Wheel ( rose ) window.
• Ornamentation is derived from animals and plants
• The use of fresco
• Sculptures are used within walls and vaults and
• Pictures of priests are often illustrated as
  decoration.

S. Paolo Church
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Christian Architecture3. Gothic (1150 1500AC)

• Style adopted
• Pointed arches are used to cover rectangular
  areas
• Equilibrium in structures
• The use of ribs and panels as well as flying
  buttresses
• The emphasis is on high and ambitious spaces
• The use of stained glass windows
• Ornaments ( structure ) and ornamentation and
• Expression of freedom and religious compromise.

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Islamic Architecture (650 AC Now)

• Style adopted
• New building types emerged
• Privacy ( small openings entrance spaces)
• Ornaments the use of stalactites (Mukarnas )
  Forbidden to shape human beings, therefore,
  creativity in geometric and linear ornaments
  (Arabesque )
• Engravings in stone and wood and
• Other elements Mashrabya, Mosaics, Calligraphy .

Cluster Approach
Court Yard
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Classical Theory of FormsRenaissance (1400-1800
AC)

• Originally started in Italy (and in particular,
  Florence, Rome and Venice) spreading out all over
  the world
• The born of new social class, especially wealthy
  class having freedom of thought
• Revival of previous classical and traditional
  styles
• Established by artists, neither by architects nor
  by structural engineers. Therefore, interest of
  shape, proportions, and architecture started at
  the time to be an essential part of fine arts
• Symmetrical plans and elevations regardless of
  function and utility
• Use of massive walls, made of stone with
  gradation from rough to smooth texture
• Semi-circular vaults and small semi-circular
  openings in lower stories and
• The use of column styles that are massive in
  size largely using drummed domes.

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Industrial RevolutionMid 18th Century

• The period is characterized by the use of
  machines, advocating industry with the result of
  mass and/or rapid production instead of
  handicrafts
• Accordingly, there was the use of manufactured
  building materials and adopting new building
  techniques, building upon modern architecture
• The period places emphasis on an increase of
  population (within 130 years the inhabitants of
  England rose from 9 to 45 millions), urbanization
  therefore spread out (in 1871, as for instance,
  64 of the Germans were living in the countryside
  and 5 in urban areas. By the contrast, in 1933,
  only 33 of the population were living in the
  countryside and 30 in the urban areas)
• New building types emerged such as, factories,
  shops, administrative buildings, highways,
  stations, bridges, exhibitions, hospitals etc
  and
• The emergence of industrial towns.

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19th Century Architecture

• General features of the century
• The 19th Century was rich in music, painting,
  novel and poetry. However, it did not develop any
  characteristic associated to architectural forms,
  both in spatial composition and urban planning
  and
• The century much emphasizes both cultural and
  technical transformations.

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19th Century Architecture

• CULTURAL TRANSFORMATIONS
• Neo- classical architecture has emerged of two
  different but closely related developments
• A sudden increase in human being capacity to
  exercise control over nature
• The fundamental shift occurred in the nature of
  human consciousness in response to major changes
  taking place within the society and
• Architects at the time began to look for a true
  style through the re-appraisal of antiquity.

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19th Century Architecture

• CULTURAL TRANSFORMATIONS The style adopted is
  Neo- classical architecture
• Architects of the style adopted
• Boullee Geometrical purity of monumental
  (directly associated with that of
  heritage)form. (Modern Movement )
• The Modern Monument/Movement has its focus on
  building projects that were rational, functional,
  innovative and rich, with strong political and
  cultural identitiesfuturistic in all senses, and
  at all costs, and bathing in an optimistic faith
  in progress.

Boulee, project for a cenotaph for Isaac Newton
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19th Century Architecture Neo- classical
architecture

• Architects of the style adopted
• Durand Economic and appropriate structures could
  be created through the modular alteration of
  fixed plan types providing alternative
  elevations.
• Labrouste The primacy of structure and the
  derivation of all ornaments from construction
  (structural rationalism) - Structural classicism
  of Labrouste .
• Choisy 1899 The essence of architecture is
  mainly construction. To exhibit arts is by
  ignoring the whole teaching of history.
• Schinkel Romantic classicism trends to stress
  the physiognomic aspect (reflection of inner
  character) of the form.

Durand- modular forms
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19th Century Architecture Neo- classical
architecture
System buildings from prefabricated components

• TECHNICAL TRANSFORMATIONS STRUCTURAL
  ENGINEERING
• Bridges (in 1779, the first cast iron bridge
  (30m) , in 1786 Tom Pain designed a monument to
  the American revolution cast iron bridge that
  made in England (71 m). In 1801, a bridge over
  the Thames river by Thomas Telford ( 180m).
  Bridge projects usually uses cast iron
  (compression strength).
• Joseph Paxton Crystal Palace in 1851- consists
  solely of steel and glass a huge structure that
  was built in 4 months only.
• Gustave Eiffel Eiffel tower in 1889 , the
  monument to modern movement (300 m).
• Steel buildings with large spans of steel,
  bridges, train stations , highways, etc.

Crystal Palace
The emergence of railway industry in 19th
century
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19th Century Architecture

• Historical Development
• 1st quarter developed underground, bridges,
  roads, sewage, canal systems lighting.
• Mid Century Victorian style and wandering,
  eclecticism, neo-classicism, gothic revival (Sir
  Charles Barry the House of Parliament
  (1840-65), Beaux-Arts (Opera house in Paris by
  Charles Granier), construction using the
  materials of iron, steel and glass. The Modern
  Movement actually started after WWar II and has
  its impact until now.
• Late century civilization reached a very low
  level in design, excessive ornaments and a cross
  misunderstanding of mass production. As a result,
  reactions were motivated by, for instance,
  William Morris English Arts and Crafts movement
  (1850-1914 ).

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Summary
Description Types Architectural Styles
Ancient Egypt Persia emphasizing original architecture Architecture Primitive
Greek Roman periods using Vitruvius principles adopting certain column styles, sculptures, ornaments, engravings and largely the use of large buildings. Classical Architecture
Byzantine, Romanesque Gothic focusing on Churchs buildings Christian Architecture
Developed new buildings types, mosques governmental buildings, using calligraphy, arabesque and focuses largely on the term privacy. Islamic Architecture
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Summary
Description Types Architectural Styles
Established by artists architecture is an art. Classical Theory of Forms (Renaissance)
New buildings emerged, new materials for construction produced and industrial towns were born. Industrial Revolution
1st quarter developed infrastructure facilities, 2nd quarter introduced styles of Victorian, Eclecticism, Neo-classical Modern Movement.3rd quarter witnessed a transformation in meanings paving the way for new concepts in the 20th century Architecture. 19th Century Architecture