CONCEPTS IN ARCHITECTURE

Prof. Ar. ABITHA MJ

•Conceptualizing architecture various approaches- understanding concepts behind the various

architectural manifestations in relevant traditional , historical, vernacular examples.

•Understanding concepts, Ideas , philosophy behind the works of few architects choosing from
the modern, post modern and contemporary periods in the context of the west and India.
• A concept is an idea, a theory or notion, but in architecture we could also describe a

concept as 'an approach' to the design. When we think of an architectural concept,

we think of an abstract idea, one that is unchanging throughout the design process.
FRANK LlOYD WRIGHT
About the architect: Frank Lloyd Wright (June
8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an
American architect, interior designer, writer,
and educator, who designed more than 1,000
structures, 532 of which were completed. His
creative period spanned more than 70 years.
Philosophies:Wright believed in designing
structures that were in harmony with
humanity and its environment, a philosophy
he called organic architecture. This
philosophy was best exemplified by Falling
water (1935), which has been called "the best
all-time work of American architecture". Frank Lloyd Wright
 FALLING WATERS
 The organically designed private residence was intended to be a nature retreat for its owners.
 The house is well-known for its connection to the site. It is built on top of an active waterfall
that flows beneath the house.
 The fireplace hearth in the living room integrates boulders found on the site and upon which the
house was built .
 The ledge rock which protrudes up to a foot
through the living room floor was left in place
to demonstrably link the outside with the
inside.

 Integration with the setting extends even to

small details. For example, where glass
meets stone walls no metal frame is used;
rather, the glass and its horizontal dividers
were run into a caulked recess in the
stonework so that the stone walls appear
uninterrupted by glazing

 The stone floors are waxed, while the hearth

is left plain, giving the impression of dry rocks
protruding from a stream.
Johnson wax House Racine,WI,USA FRANK Lloyd WRIGHT

• S.C. Johnson and Son Administration Building

Often referred to as the Johnson Wax Building, its
most identifiable element are the Dendriform
columns, the name used by Wright because of
their tree like shape.

• Wright‟s ability to effortlessly incorporate the

organic metaphor into his architecture is revealed
in the building via a tall slender mushroom column
that tapers to a base of a mere 9-inch diameter.

• They rise 30 feet and terminate at the roof level as

broad circular lily pads of concrete 18 1/2 feet
. wide. Wright‟s imagination led to creating these
hollow cored columns that serve as storm water
drains and which feature hinged bases with pin
jointed bronze shoes
J o h n s o n w a x H o u s e- E x t e r i o r
Johnson wax House Racine,WI,USA FRANK Lloyd WRIGHT
• The circular lily pads of concrete are woven together by a membrane of Pyrex glass tubing that
illuminate spaces with natural light. The use of Pyrex glass tubing allowed for a lot of diffused
light to enter the interior of the Johnson Wax Building. The large workspace is well lit with
indirect light and very little glare, resulting in a work environment conducive for creativity.
• The mushroom columns and glass tubing ceiling formed a large workspace, nearly one half acre
in size. The Great Room, as it is referred to, is furnished with specific Wright designed pieces,
two circular elevators, and a mezzanine.
Johnson wax House Racine,WI,USA FRANK Lloyd WRIGHT

• The exterior walls are non-load bearing

and were constructed using red brick.
Other materials used in the construction
of the Johnson Wax Building included
red Kasota sandstone and reinforced
concrete with cold drawn mesh used for
the reinforcement. He also designed
over 200 different shapes of bricks that
can be found in the building. The earthy
colors he used including his signature
Cherokee Red color were typical of
Wright‟s work at the time
Johnson wax House Racine,WI,USA FRANK Lloyd WRIGHT

• Wright provided almost utopian workspace,

self-sufficient and a bit futuristic. The modern
streamlined atmosphere was communicated
through a consistent circular language; curved
corner profiles, rounded shapes in furniture
pieces, and use of Pyrex glass tubing extending
beyond roofing materials for wall dividers and
replacing conventional windows.
ZAHA HADID
INTRODUCTION
Iraqi-born British architect known for her radical
deconstructivist designs. In 2004 she became the
first woman to be awarded the Pritzker Architecture
Prize.
In 1983 Hadid gained international recognition with
her competition-winning entry for The Peak, a leisure
and recreational centre in Hong Kong. This design, a
“horizontal skyscraper” that moved at
a dynamic diagonal down the hillside site, established
her aesthetic:
The geometric designs are characterized by a
sense of fragmentation, instability, and movement.
This fragmented style led her to be grouped with
architects known as “deconstructivist”
ZAHA HADID FAMOUS WORKS
HEYDAR ALIYEV CENTER IN BAKU.
LONDON AQUATIC CENTER.
HIGHLINE CONDO.
GUANGZHOU OPERA HOUSE ,CHINA.
GALAXY SOHO IN BEIJING, CHINA.

HEYDAR ALIYEV CENTER IN BAKU

Introduction
The Heydar Aliyev Center in Baku, Azerbaijan (2007–2013) is a gigantic cultural and
conference centre containing three auditoriums, a library and museum, with a total space of
10,801 square metres on a surface of 15,514 square metres, and a height of 74 metres.
Consisting of eight storeys, the centre includes an auditorium with 1000 seats, exhibition space,
conference hall, workshop and a museum.
HEYDAR ALIYEV CENTER IN BAKU

DESIGN CONCEPT
 No straight line was used in the project of the complex. The shape of the building is wave-
like and the overall view is unique and harmonic. Such an architectural structure stands for
post-modernist architecture and forms oceanic feeling. The lines of the building symbolise the
merging of past and future.
 The design establishes a continuous, fluid relationship between its surrounding plaza and the
building‟s interior.
 Fluidity in architecture is not new to this region. In historical Islamic architecture, rows, grids,
or sequences of columns flow to infinity like trees in a forest, establishing non-hierarchical
space.
 Continuous calligraphic and ornamental patterns flow from carpets to walls, walls to ceilings,
ceilings to domes, establishing seamless relationships and blurring distinctions between
architectural elements and the ground they inhabit

AU D ITO R I U M INTERIOR EXTERIOR FLUID WALLS

Geometry, structure, materiality
• The building‟s skin surface so continuous that it appears homogenous, required a broad range
of different functions, construction logics and technical systems had to be brought together and
integrated into the building‟s envelope. .
• Principally consists of two collaborating structural systems: a concrete structure combined with
a space frame system.
• The surface geometry fosters unconventional structural solutions, such as the introduction of
curved „boot columns‟ to achieve the inverse peel of the surface from the ground to the West of
the building, and the „dovetail‟ tapering of the cantilever beams that support the building.
• To emphasize the continuous relationship between the building‟s exterior and interior, the
lighting of the Heydar Aliyev Center has been very carefully considered.
• The lighting design strategy differentiates the day and night reading of the building. During
the day, the building‟s volume reflects light, constantly altering the Center‟s appearance
according to the time of day and viewing perspective.
• The use of semi-reflective glass gives tantalizing glimpses within, arousing curiosity without
revealing the fluid trajectory of spaces inside.
• At night, this character is gradually transformed by means of lighting that washes from the
interior onto the exterior surfaces, unfolding the formal composition to reveal its content and
maintaining the fluidity between interior and exterior.
• In this architectural composition, if the surface is the music, then the seams between the
panels are the rhythm. Numerous studies were carried out on the surface geometry to
rationalize the panels while maintaining continuity throughout the building and landscape.
 HIGH LINE CONDO- NEW YORK

• The building is wrapped in metallic ridges that join

sinuously across the facade, and jut out from the
floor plates to form balconies and terraces with
rounded edges.
• Large floor-to-ceiling windows curve around the
corners of the apartments, mirroring glass
balustrades.
• The main entrance space at one end of the L-shaped
building is 1.5 storeys high, creating a split-level plan
across the development that is articulated
prominently on the exterior.
• "These split levels are expressed within the
interlocking chevrons of 520 West 28th's hand-
crafted steel facade, which carries the spirit of
Chelsea's industrial past," said by t he architect
ZAHA
• Spanning three levels, the most expensive residence

boasts a lacquered white internal staircase, and five

bedrooms, a balcony on its lower level and large

private rooftop.

• The building is designed with multiple cores,

providing several private elevator lobbies with 11-

foot coffered ceilings and tailor-made counters.

• The feature incorporates a glass panel that acts like

a skylight for the private swimming pool directly

underneath.

• The interior spaces share a futuristic appearance. An

entryway has a grey wall with a texture that looks
rather extraterrestrial, while planting provides
accents for the otherwise monochromatic palette.
• The 25-yard (23-metre) subterranean lap pool is one of several amenities available to
residents, along with an IMAX theatre and a gym
 LONDON AQUATIC CENTER
• The architectural concept of the London Aquatic Centre is inspired by the fluid geometries of
water in motion, creating spaces and a surrounding environment that reflect the riverside
landscapes of the Olympic Park. An undulating roof sweeps up from the ground as a wave -
enclosing the pools of the Centre with a unifying gesture of fluidity, while also describing the
volume of the swimming and diving pools.
• The Aquatics Centre is designed with an inherent flexibility to accommodate 17,500 spectators
for the London 2012 Games in „Olympic‟.
• Layout :The Aquatics Centre is planned on an orthogonal axis that is perpendicular to the
Stratford City Bridge. All three pools are aligned on this axis. The training pool is located under
the bridge with the competition and diving pools located within the large pool hall enclosed by
the roof.
• The pool hall is expressed above the podium by a large roof which arches along the same axis
as the pools. Its form is generated by the sightlines of the 17,500 spectators in its Olympic
mode. Double-curvature geometry has been used to generate a parabolic arch structure that
creates the unique characteristics of the roof. The roof undulates to differentiate between the
volumes of competition pool and the diving pool.
 LE CORBUSIER
 Le Corbusier was a Swiss-French
architect, designer, painter, urban planner,
writer, and one of the pioneers of what is
now called modern architecture.
Internationally influential Swiss architect
and city planner, whose designs combine
the functionalism of the modern movement
with a bold, sculptural expressionism.

LE CORBUSIER FAMOUS WORKS

NOTRE DAME
VILLA SAVOYE
UNITE DE‟ HABITATION.
GROUPE MONTONI
RONCHAMP, LOCATION:NOTRE DAME
Ronchamp sits among a wooded terrain secluded from the rest of the commune.
The chapel is placed atop a hill on the site setting itself on a metaphorical pedestal giving added
importance. Unlike most of Corbusier‟s other works consisting of boxy, functional, and sterile
volumes.It‟s more of an irregular sculptural form where the walls, the roof, and the floor
slope. Stylistically and formally it is fairly complex; however, programmatically it is relatively simple:
two entrances, an altar, and three chapels.
The space is meditative and reflective in purpose.
RONCHAMP, LOCATION:NOTRE DAME
 The walls of Ronchamp give the building its sculptural character. The thick (4‟-12‟ thick), gentle
curving walls act as a practical method of supporting the concrete and masonry construction,
as well as the massive curvilinear roof.
 However, the walls do not solely act as structural and sculptural elements; they also act as
acoustic amplifiers, especially in the case of the eastern exterior wall that reflects the sound out
over the field from the outdoor altar.
RONCHAMP, LOCATION:NOTRE DAME
 The most striking part of Ronchamp is the curved roof that peels up towards the heavens. The
curving roof appears to float above the building as it is supported by embedded columns in the
walls, which creates a 10 cm gap between the roof and the walls, which allow for a sliver of
clerestory light. The roof is actually the only glimpse of mechanized influence in the overall
design of Ronchamp; the roof‟s curvature mimics the curves of an airplane wing. It‟s
aerodynamic in design and in all of its massive and heavy qualities it still appears weightless.
 VILLA SAVOYE

 Le Corbusier is famous for stating, “The house is a machine for living.” This statement is not
simply translated into the design of a human scaled assembly line; rather the design begins to
take on innovative qualities and advances found in other fields of industry, in the name of
efficiency.
 In response to his aspirations and admiration of mechanized design, Le Corbusier established

“The Five Points” of architecture, which is simply a list of prescribed elements to be incorporated

in design.

 Pilotis

 Flat Roof Terrace

 Open Plan

 Ribbon Windows

 Free Façade

The Pilotis that support the decks, the ribbon windows that run alongside the hull, the ramps

providing a moment of egress from deck to deck;

 The lower level serves as the maintenance and service programs of the house. One of most

interesting aspects of the house is the curved glass façade on the lower level that is formed to

match the turning radius of automobiles of 1929 so that when the owner drives underneath the

larger volume they can pull into the garage with the ease of a slight turn.

 The living quarters, or the upper volume, are fitted with ribbon windows that blend seamlessly

into the stark, white façade, which void the façade(s) of any hierarchy. The ribbon windows

begin to play with the perception of interior and exterior, which does not fully become

expressed until once inside.

 Typically, the living spaces of a house are relatively private, closed off, and rather secluded.
UNITE DE‟ HABITATION

The Unite d‟Habitation a large complex to accommodate roughly 1,600 residents.

Le Corbusier‟s idea of the “vertical garden city” was based on bringing the villa within a larger
volume that allowed for the inhabitants to have their own private spaces.
• 1,600 residents divided among eighteen floors.
• The roof becomes a garden terrace that has a running track, a club, a kindergarten, a gym,
and a shallow pool.
• Beside the roof, there are shops, medical facilities, and even a small hotel distributed
throughout the interior of the building. The Unite d‟Habitation is essentially a “city within a
city” that is spatially, as well as, functionally optimized for the residents.
• The massive volume appears to be floating,
the ribbon windows resemble the cabin
windows running along the hull, while the roof
garden/terrace and sculptural ventilation
stacks appear as the top deck and the smoke
stacks.
• One of the most interesting and important
aspects of the Unite d‟Habitation is the spatial
organization of the residential units. Unlike
most housing projects that have a “double-
stacked” corridor (a single hallway with units
on either side), Le Corbusier designed the
units to span from each side of the building, as
well as having a double height living space
reducing the number of required corridors to
one every three floors.
 CHARLES CORREA
Architect, Planner, activist and theoretician, charles
correa is one of the few contemporary architects who
addresses not only issues of architecture, but of low
income housing and urban planning as well.
His work covers a wide range, from the mahatma
Gandhi memorial at the Sabarmati Ashram in
Ahmedamed and Bangalore.
He was Chief Architect for Navi Mumbai for the new
city of 2 million people across the harbour from
Bombay, and was appointed by Prime Minister Rajiv
Gandhi as the first chairman of the National
commission on urbanisation.
 Kanchanjunga Apartments , Mumbai

 The Kanchanjunga Apartments are a direct response to

the present culture, the escalating urbanization, and the
climatic conditions for the region.
 In Mumbai, a building has to be oriented east-west to
catch prevailing sea breezes and to open up the best
views of the city.
 These are also the directions of the hot sun and the heavy
monsoon rains. The old bungalows solved these problems
by wrapping a protective layer of verandas around the
main living areas, thus providing the occupants with two
lines of defense against the elements.
Kanchanjunga Apartments , Mumbai
Terrace garden

Sit out space

Section across two units

Sit out space

 Kanchanjunga Apartments , Mumbai
 Interlock of four different apartment typologies varying from 3 to 6 bedrooms each.
 Smaller displacements of levels.
 Differentiated between the external earth filled terraces and the internal elevated living
volumes.
 Effectively shield these high rise units from the effects of both the sun and monsoon rains.
 Achieved by providing the tower with relatively deep, garden verandas, suspended in the air.
 The building is a 32 story reinforced concrete structure with 6.3m cantilevered open terraces.
 The central core is composed of lifts and provides the main structural element for resisting
lateral loads.
 The central core was constructed ahead of the main structure by slip method of construction.
MATERIALS & COLOURS
 The garden terraces of Kanchanjunga apartments are actually a modern interpretation of a
feature of the traditional Indian bungalow; Veranda.
 In India and other Asian countries, one finds a predominance of reds and yellows.
 SABARMATI ASHRAM- Ahamedabad
 DESIGN CONCEPT :- The main concept is that each building group in causal meandering
pattern, creating a pathway along which the visitors progresses towards the centrality of the
water court.
 PLAN OF SABARMATI ASHRAM :- The site on the Sabarmati river bank. it is the part of the
larger ashram complex and is integrated into its garden.
 Correa took the words of mahatma Gandhi, “I don‟t want my house to be walled on all sides
and my windows to be stuffed. I want the cultures of all the lands to be blown about my houses
as freely as possible but I refused to be blown off my feet by any of them.”
 SABARMATI ASHRAM

 Interior Rooms Contain The Collection Of The Museum.

 The Rooms Are Enclosed By Brick Walls And Wooden Louvered Screens
 All Five Rooms Are Part Of 6mt Square Module. Correa‟s Subtle Changes Of The Enclosure
Allow For Variety In The Module‟s Lighting, Temperature‟ And Visual Permeability.
 A Square, Uncovered Shallow Pool Is Located Between The Five Rooms. Water body Closed
space ARRANGEMENT
 CONSTRUCTION :- The materials used in the construction are similar to the other buildings in
the ashram: tiled roof, brick walls, stone floors and wooden doors.
 The only additions are the RCC channels which act as beams and as rainfall conduits and which
permit additional construction to be added in future.
 No glass windows are used anywhere in the building; light and ventilation being provided by
operable wooden louvers.
SABARMATI ASHRAM

 The museum uses a simple but delicately detailed post and beam structure.
 Load bearing brick columns support concrete channels, which are both support the
wooden roof and direct rainwater.
 Boards are nailed underneath the joist and tiles are placed atop the joints.
 The foundation is concrete and is raised about foot from the ground.
 Wooden doors, stone floors, brick columns and ceramic tile roofs are the palette of the
building.
SABARMATI ASHRAM
Tube house, Gujarat

 “Tube" house was first prize winner in an All-India competition for low-cost housing
organised by the Gujarat Housing Board. Though the programme specified walk-up
apartments, these row-houses provided the same density and larger living space per family.
 The section is shaped so that the hot air rises and escapes form the top, setting up a
convection currents of natural ventilation. Inside the units there are almost no doors;
privacy being created by the various levels themselves, and security by the pergola-grid
over the internal courtyard.

The heated air raisng along the

sloped ceiling, escapes through a vent
at the top. Fresh air, drawn in to replace
it, sets up a convention current of
natural ventilation- controlled current of
natural ventilation-controlled by the
adjustable louvers next to the entrance
door.
Tube house, Gujarat
Post modern architects
 Robert Venturi
Vanna venturi house.
Episcopal academy.

 Philip johnson
Bank of america center.
Glass house pavilion for the
glass house.

 Frank O Gehry
The dancing house .
Guggenheim bibao.
Modern architects
 Le corbusier
Notre dame
villa savoye.

 Frank llyod wright

Falling water
Contemporary architects
 Santiago Calatrava
World trade center transportation hub , new york

Deconstructivisim architects
 Rem Koolhaas- seatle library
 Daniel libeskind- grand canal theatre.
Indian architects
 B.V DOSHI
Sangath building
Vitra design museum

 RAJ REWAL
Hall of nations
Parliment library

 CHARLES COREA
Kanchanjunga Apartments
Jawahar Kala Kendra