**This class will be taught on Zoom**
Modern and Contemporary architects have taken on the challenge to design buildings that are not only functional, but also beautiful and exciting to explore, that not only respond to our needs, but even offer new possibilities for us to live, work, learn, explore, etc. This class will focus on 6 pioneering architects: Frank Lloyd Wright, Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, Thomas Heatherwick, Santiago Calatrava and Herzog & DeMeuron, that took on the lead as visionaries in their fields, rethinking the potential of innovative materials, pushing new technologies, striving for sustainability, and creating most unique buildings which will stand out as the masterpieces of their era.
Week by Week Outline
Week 1, Frank Lloyd Wright
No other architect in the US changed the way we think about the built environment in modern times more than Frank Lloyd Wright. With a career spanning 7 decades, he first made a name for himself with his Prairie Homes, coining the term ‘Organic Architecture’ and culminating with Falling Waters, built on top of a waterfall! Taliesin East in Wisconsin was designed as his own experimental home, including the innovative FLW Fellowship, but it also became the site of terrible personal tragedy. In California the Hollyhock and Hanna Houses are amongst his most beautiful designs. His oeuvre grew to include places of worship and entertainment, factory buildings, hotels, with the Guggenheim Museum in NYC as his final and arguably most famous masterpiece – 8 of his buildings are on the UNESCO World Heritage List. We will explore many of his outstanding designs together and follow the development of his style, use of materials and techniques, including the decorative arts!
Week 2, Frank Gehry
LA based world-renowned architect Frank Gehry created his first pioneering buildings with unusual material inspired by their surroundings and in a deconstructive style, early on already thinking of architecture in sculptural terms. Soon his curvy, energetic signature style emerged and with the help of cutting-edge computer technology, the Disney Concert Hall in LA and the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao made him a Starchitect! Each one of his buildings seem unique and mesmerizing, inviting physical exploration. Each project also closely connects to its natural and cultural environment in always new ways. Gehry is also known for his furniture and lamp designs, which are independent of his buildings. A brand-new spectacular design is in the making for the Guggenheim Museum of Abu Dhabi, bringing together the expertise and creative brilliancy of a lifetime!
Week 3, Zaha Hadid
Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid was the first woman to receive the Pritzker Architecture Prize, a most innovative designer who created a wide variety of cutting-edge dynamic buildings worldwide. She started off her career focusing first on painting inspired by Russian Suprematism to find a revolutionary new approach to designing buildings and spaces and went on to create some of the most beautiful buildings of our time, using fluid curving lines, creating a sense of movement and freedom. Dedicated to exploring the most innovative materials and sustainable technology, her buildings also aim at being in close relationship to their surroundings, offering meaningful connections.
Week 4, Thomas Heatherwick
The British architect and designer Thomas Heatherwick, together with his studio, approaches each project, from building to furniture and object design with playful curiosity and a sense of experimentation, thus arriving at quite novel solutions. He engages people, inspiring an excitement to explore his spaces. Nature plays an important part in his designs, not only for creation of forms, but he also includes plants in his building designs, acknowledging their importance in our urban environment. His Goggle Campus structures in Silicon Valley use dragon sale solar panels for the roof, to make it energy efficient. A culmination of his engagement with nature might be his newest addition to NYC’s waterfront, Little Island, a unique circular pier, beautifully landscaped, with outside performance spaces and interactive public art.
Week 5, Santiago Calatrava
In the US the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava might be best known for the World Trade Center Transportation Hub in NYC and the Milwaukee Art Museum and his designs are beloved by many for their extraordinary sculptural qualities, elegantly white and seemingly gravity defying. His oeuvre includes many bridges, including Sundial Bridge in Turtle Bay, CA and transportation related buildings, reflecting the fluid dynamics of our time. His buildings consist of organic shapes, completely turning their backs to International Style regularity, becoming unique creations which are always surprising and exciting to explore.
Week 6, Herzog & De Meuron
The Pritzker Prize winning Swiss architect duo of Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron have graced many of our cities with their unique buildings and never fail to amaze. The De Young Museum in San Francisco, carefully designed to fit into its Golden Gate Park surroundings, is one of several impressive museum structures, including the famous Tate Modern and in the US the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, the Parrish Art Museum on Long Island, as well as the Perez Art Museum in Miami. They are also known for their sports arenas in Munich and Beijing, the extraordinary Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg and many residential and commercial buildings, always finding most unique designs, sensitive to their clients’ needs.