Modern Architecture: Quick

History, Variations, and

Characteristics
By  Nadia Fauzia
5/5/2020
Modern architecture, or modernist architecture, otherwise known as modernism, is a style dating
back to the 1900s. It was a reaction to the large-scale advancement of construction technology.
The main idea is to emphasize function and forego ornament and decoration with rational use of
materials, particularly glass, steel, and reinforced concrete. A style that embraces minimalism,
modern architecture has left a significant mark in the architectural scene.

A Respond to Preceding Styles

Around the end of the 19th century, few architects began to challenge the more traditional styles
of Beaux-Art and Neo-classicism that were dominating Europe and the USA. One of those was
the legendary American architect, namely Frank Lloyd Wright. He resolutely refused to be
associated with any specific architectural movement, so he invented his own unique style.
Having no formal academic background in architecture, he started working in the Chicago office
of his mentor Louis Sullivan, who was considered “father of modernism” and “father of
skyscrapers” as he was the first to popularize the “form follows function” tenet in 1896 as well
as the first to construct steel frame high-rise buildings in Chicago. Both, along with Henry
Hobson Richardson—prominently known for his revival style, “Richardsonian Romanesque”—
were later deemed as “the recognized trinity of American architecture”.
Sullivan Center (then Carson, Pirie, Scott and Company Building) by Louis Sullivan (1904-
1906) | Source: urbanland.uli.org
Wright, who was previously famous for his Prairie houses, set out to break free from all
traditional precepts including his earlier signature style, so he worked on houses adorned with
textured blocks of cement, which later named “Mayan style” after the ancient civilization’s
pyramids architecture. For this reason, he was recognized as the prominent figure of modern
architecture, because even though steel-framed skyscrapers had begun to appear in the USA
since the end of 19th century, these building façades were still highly decorated in Neo-Gothic,
Neo-Renaissance, and Beaux-Art architecture style. For some time until 1922, he experimented
with mass-produced modular housing. He then identified this architecture as “Usonian”, which is
an amalgamation of “USA”, “utopian”, and “organic social order”.
Halt in the USA
In 1929, the Great Depression era started to occur, gravely affecting Wright’s business. Fewer
wealthy clients wanted to experiment with his Usonian style. From 1928 until 1935, he built just
two buildings: a hotel near Chandler, Arizona, and perhaps his best all-time work, Fallingwater,
a weekend home in Pennsylvania that he designed for couple Liliane and Edgar J. Kaufman. It is
an awe-inspiring structure incorporating concrete slabs suspended over a scenic waterfall; a
picturesque fusion between nature and architecture.
Wright's Fallingwater (1928-34) | Source: britannica.com 
While Fallingwater is one of the most notable modern architecture by American architect, the
first modern style house in the USA would be the Schindler house of Austrian architect Rudolph
Schindler, which he built in 1922. He also contributed to American modernism with his work,
Lovell Beach House, in Newport Beach. Another Austrian architect Richard Neutra, who moved
to the USA in 1923, designed Lovell Health House in LA for the same client, becoming a
significant force in American modernist architecture.
Schindler house | Source: archdaily.com
Modernism in Europe
In Europe, modern architecture was pioneered by the early modernist architects, led by Walter
Gropius and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in Germany, Le Corbusier and Robert Mallet-Stevens in
France, and Konstantin Melnikov in the Soviet Union. They aim to emphasize forms and
eliminate any kind of decoration. In the 1890s, Victor Horta and Hector Guimard started the Art
Nouveau movement in Belgium and France respectively, introducing new styles of decoration
that was based on vegetal and floral form. The style flourished for a while until it was replaced
with Art Deco began to rise after World War I, where stylized decoration and modernist forms
complement each other.
Just like Wright, European architects experimented on materials and techniques that would give
them the flexibility to create new forms. Auguste Perret and Henry Sauvage were the firsts to use
reinforced concrete for apartment buildings back in 1903-1904. Previously used only for
industrial structures, reinforced concrete offers the adaptability to create large spaces sans the
need of supporting columns, becoming an efficient replacement for bricks and stones as the
primary material for modern architecture.

In the following year, Perret alone designed the first concrete garage on 51 Rue de Ponthieu,
Paris, where the concrete was left bare, embracing honest use of materials. He also was the man
behind the masterpiece of reinforced concrete construction that is Théâtre des Champs-Élysées
(1911-13). With the use of concrete, no pillar blocked the view to the stage, maximizing the
spectators’ experience inside.

Théâtre des Champs-Élysées interior | Source: theatreinparis.com

Modernist Architecture Characteristics
It’s quite easy to tell modern architecture apart from traditional architectural styles. Simple and
straightforward, modern architecture features clean lines without any ornament; embracing less
is more value deeply. It emphasizes on horizontal massing with broad roof overhangs and aclinic
planes. Glasses are used generously to let in as much natural light to the open-plan interiors.
Walter Gropius and Adolf Meyer's Fagus Factory in Alfeld | Source: itinari.com
For the materials, modern architecture incorporates modern systems such as steel frames,
exposed concrete blocks, curtain walls, ribbon windows, and column-free interiors. That being
said, natural materials are no stranger to modernist architecture. Wood, stone, and brick are
sometimes featured, albeit in simplified ways.
Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House in Chicago | Source: franklloydwright.org 
Modern architecture didn’t take structural innovation lightly. Asymmetrical compositions and
geometric forms are equivalent to the style, defining the functional design of the architecture.
This is especially due to the form follows function principle of modernism.
Wright's Solomon Guggenheim Museum (1946-59) | Source: britannica.com
Evolution of Modern Architecture
Since its birth, modernist architecture evolved into different variations across the globe. In
Germany, modernism was synonymous with the Bauhaus, founded by Walter Gropius in 1919.
Nearing World War II, many notable Bauhaus architects migrated to the USA, introducing the
style, which later rebranded as the International style. It developed further in the country until it
was replaced by Postmodernism, led by Louis Kahn and Eero Saarinen.
In Britain, subtle hints of modernism emerged in the early 20th century against the strong
influence of classicism. One of the first modern buildings in Britain was that of Peter Behren,
finished in 1925, in the years where Art Deco was on its way to becoming popular. After World
War II, modernism in Britain further evolved into what was known as New Brutalism, inspired
by Le Corbusier’s works.
Royal National Theatre by Denys Lasdun | Source: crlrestoration.eu.com 
Dutch architects embraced modernism in the form of De Stijl (The Style), featuring strong
geometric lines and the articulations of functional elements. In Italy, the early 20th century was
the time where the fascist dominated the government, constraining Italian architects’ quest for
modern language and identity. Nevertheless, the Futurist style was finally conceived, using
streamlined forms with visions of dynamism, speed, and urgency.
Pirelli Tower (1958-60) by Gio Ponti and Pier Luigi Nervi | Source: wikipedia.org
Slow emergence of modernism also occurred in Nordic countries. From the mainstream Nordic
Classicism, it evolved into Functionalism. Interestingly, modernism in Nordic went beyond
aesthetics. It influenced town planning, building regulations, public building programmes, and
social movements.
Auditorium of the University of Technology, Helsinki by Alvar Aalto (1964) | Source:
finnisharchitecture.fi