Table of Contents

Introduction

Architecture is a term that refers to a process, profession or documentation. With regards to a process, it is considered to be the activity of designing and construction buildings and other physical structures by person or computer. Usually its primary focus is to provide shelter. It can be considered to be a wider concept when including terms like landscape, furniture, and other environmental builds. With regards to profession, architecture is a role in which the individuals provide the services needed, and with documentation it usually is based on drawings that define structures and/or behaviors.

The earliest means of work on architecture can be taken back to the Roman architect Vitruvius in the early 1st century CE. According to him, a good building should satisfy three principles of firmitatis utilitatis venustatis (durability, utility, beauty). Architecture overall can be achieved and has been achieved is multiple ways. In this paper we focus on architectural structure through the periods of European, Modern, Asian and American architecture. Throughout these periods of time, architecture has evolved with regards to the three principles. Each period has something unique about it that classifies it to it historical term.

European Architecture

Classical Architecture

From the rise of ancient Greece until the fall of the Roman Empire, great buildings were constructed according to precise rules. The Roman architect Marcus Vitruvius, who lived during first century BC, believed that builders should use mathematical principles when constructing temples. "For without symmetry and proportion no temple can have a regular plan," Vitruvius wrote in his famous treatise De Architectura, or Ten Books on Architecture.

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Gothic Architecture

Gothic Architecture slide show portraing Gothic cathedrals across Europe

Gothic architecture began mainly in France where builders began to adapt the earlier Romanesque style. In Spain, the pointed arches and elaborate stonework of Moorish architecture also influenced builders. One of the earliest Gothic buildings was the ambulatory of the abbey of St. Denis in France, built between 1140 and 1144.

Originally, Gothic architecture was known as the French Style. During the Renaissance, after the French Style had fallen out of fashion, artisans mocked it. They coined the word Gothic to suggest that French Style buildings were the crude work of German (Goth) barbarians. Although the label wasn't accurate, the name Gothic remained.

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Renaissance Architecture

Before the dawn of the Renaissance, Europe was dominated by asymmetrical and ornate Gothic architecture. During the Renaissance, however, architects were inspired by the highly symmetrical and carefully proportioned buildings of Classical Greece and Rome.

Features of Renaissance Buildings:

Phases of the Renaissance:

Artists in Northern Italy were exploring new ideas for centuries before the period we call the Renaissance. However, the 1400s and 1500s brought an explosion of talent and innovation. During the early 1400s, the painter and architect Filippo Brunelleschi designed the great Duomo (cathedral) dome. Brunelleschi also rediscovered the principles of linear perspective.

During the 1500s, the great Renaissance painter Michelangelo Buonarroti painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and designed the dome for St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. A Classical approach to architecture spread through Europe, thanks to books by two important Renaissance architects:

As Renaissance approaches to building spread to France, Spain, Holland, Germany, Russia, and England, each country incorporated its own building traditions and created its own version of Classicism. By the 1600s, ornate Baroque architecture emerged and became the dominant style in Europe.

Long after the Renaissance period ended, however, architects were inspired by Renaissance ideas. At the turn of the twentieth century, American architects like Richard Morris Hunt designed grand Renaissance Revival style homes that resembled palaces and villas from Renaissance Italy.

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Baroque Architecture

In Italian, the word barocco means bizarre, and Baroque architecture certainly was extravagant. Buildings in the Baroque style have many of these features:

Elements of the elaborate Baroque style are found throughout Europe and also traveled to Latin America and European settlements around the world. While Baroque architecture was always highly decorated, it found expression in many ways.

Italian Baroque: Catholic Popes in Italy wanted architecture to express holy splendor. They commissioned churches with enormous domes, swirling forms, huge spiraled columns, multicolored marble, and lavish murals. The same exuberance was expressed in non-religious buildings. Example: The Trevi Fountain in Rome

French Baroque: The Baroque style became more restrained in France. While lavish details were used, French buildings were usually symmetrical and orderly. The Palace of Versailles shown above is a landmark example.

English Baroque: Baroque architecture emerged in England after the Great Fire of London in 1666. Architect Christopher Wren used restrained Baroque styling when he helped rebuild the city. Example: St. Paul's Cathedral

Spain and Latin America: Builders in Spain, Mexico, and South America combined Baroque ideas with exuberant sculptures, Moorish details, and extreme contrasts between light and dark. Called Churrigueresque after a Spanish family of sculptors and architects, Spanish Baroque architecture was used through the mid-1700s, and continued to be imitated much later. Example: Casa del Prado in California is a lavish re-invention of Spanish Baroque, or Churrigueresque, architecture.

Rococo: In Germany, Austria, Eastern Europe, and Russia, Baroque ideas were often applied with a lighter touch. Pale colors and curving shell shapes gave buildings the delicate appearance of a frosted cake. The term Rococo is often used to describe these softer versions of the Baroque style. Example: Hermitage Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia.

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Neo-Classical Architecture

In 1563, Renaissance architect Giacomo da Vignola outlined the principles of Classical architecture in a treatise titled The Five Orders of Architecture (compare prices). A few years later, another Renaissance architect, Andrea Palladio, described his own approach to Classical architecture in The Four Books of Architecture.

These books were widely translated and inspired builders throughout Western Europe. In the late 1700s and early 1800s, the newly formed United States also drew upon classical ideals to construct grand government buildings and smaller private homes.

The word Neoclassical is often used to describe an architectural style, but Neoclassicism is not actually any one distinct style.

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Beaux Architecture

The Beaux Arts (French for "fine art") style originated in the École des Beaux Arts in Paris. Many American architects studied at this legendary architectural school, where they learned about the aesthetic principles of classical design and brought them to the United States.

Also known as Beaux Arts Classicism, Academic Classicism, or Classical Revival, Beaux Arts is a late and eclectic form of Neoclassicism. It combines classical architecture from ancient Greece and Rome with Renaissance ideas. Beaux Arts is characterized by order, symmetry, formal design, grandiosity, and elaborate ornamentation. In the United States, the Beaux Arts style led to planned neighborhoods with large, showy houses, wide boulevards, and vast parks. Due to the size and grandiosity of the buildings, the Beaux Arts style is most commonly used for public buildings like museums, railway stations, libraries, banks, courthouses, and government buildings.

The popularity of the Beaux Arts style waned in the 1920's, and within 25 years the buildings were considered ostentatious. Later in the 20th century, postmodernists rediscovered an appreciation of the Beaux Arts ideals.

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Neo-Gothic Architecture

Gothic Revival was a Victorian style that borrowed details from Gothic cathedrals and other medieval architecture. In the early twentieth century, Gothic Revival ideas were applied to modern skyscrapers. Twentieth Century Gothic Revival buildings are often called Neo-Gothic.

Neo-Gothic buildings have many of these features:

Famous Neo-Gothic Buildings: The Chicago Tribune Tower shown here was built in 1924. The architects Raymond Hood and John Howells were selected over many other architects to design the building. Their Neo-Gothic design may have appealed to the judges because it reflected a conservative (some critics said "regressive") approach.

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Art Deco Architecture

The Art Deco style evolved from many sources. The austere shapes of the Bauhaus School and streamlined styling of modern technology combined with patterns and icons taken from the Far East, classical Greece and Rome, Africa, Ancient Egypt, India, and Mayan and Aztec cultures.

Art Deco buildings have many of these features:

By the 1930s, Art Deco evolved into a more simplified style known as Streamlined Moderne, or Art Moderne. The emphasis was on sleek, curving forms and long horizontal lines. These buildings did not feature zigzag or colorful designs found on earlier Art Deco architecture.

Famous Art Deco Buildings The Chrysler Building in New York City was built in 1930. For a few months, this Art Deco skyscraper was the tallest structure in the world. It was also one of the first buildings composed of stainless steel over a large exposed surface.

The architect, William Van Alen, drew inspiration from machine technology for the ornamental details on the Chrysler Building: There are eagle hood ornaments, hubcaps and abstract images of cars.

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The Era of Victorian Style Architecture (1837-1914)

This era began with the reign of Queen Victoria I over the United Kingdom in 1837. The era lasted until 1914, although the Queens reign ended in 1901. This era started during the industrial revolution, led by Britain, where manufactured goods made tools for building more affordable and readily available to the consumer. These advanced woodworking machines and tools lead way to a house with more elaborate exterior design and turned away from the standard symmetrical shapes and simple colors. There are many different types of styles that occurred in the Victorian Era. Discussed will be the Gothic Revival, Italianate, Second Empire, Stick/Eastlake, Shingle, Folk Victorian, and Queen Anne styles.

In the beginnings of the Victorian Era, the world was entering into the machine age, where handcrafted building was being phased out. Lumber Mills made pre-cut and formed wood readily available for building, and machined tools took away tedious tasks. Although the advanced machinery allowed builders to go to new heights, it took away from the use of local materials and traditional craftsmanship. In 1880 John Ruskin set off The Arts and Crafts Movement in reaction to the Industrial Revolution and the early Victorian home styles that came from it. From the revival of hand craftsmanship the “Queen Anne” style of the Victorian Era arose.

Gothic Revival (1840-1880)

An early style of Victorian homes is the Gothic Revival, whose idea comes from European cathedrals and castles in medieval times. It is often referred to as the “Pointed Style” because of its unique pointed features. This was one of the first residential Victorian Style homes. The first Gothic Revival homes were made out of stone and brick, but since most people couldn’t afford bricks, an American version of Gothic Revival was created using lumber and factory made trims.

Image 002 Typical features include:

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Italianate (1860-1880)

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The ideas of the Italianate style of the Victorian Era are based on the buildings of the Italian Renaissance, and the Federal Era, mixed with ideas of early Victorian homes. This style contains very elaborate detail, finite porch decoration, decorative eves, and often contained a central square tower on the roof. In the United States, 15% of Italianate homes have this tower. The body of the house is mainly rectangular, two or three stories, and contains a flat roof. In some cases the exterior wood was textured and painted to resemble stone, because it was too expensive. Some designs included sliding doors and a veranda for families to gather in the summertime.

Image 002 Typical features include:

Stick/Eastlake (1860-1890)

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The Stick Style home, which is often referred to as the Eastlake Style, is characterized as the transition between the Gothic Revival homes to the Queen Anne. This style is very geometric because its style uses vertical and horizontal planes that go beyond the normal box structure. The use of planks placed horizontal, vertical, or diagonal on top of exterior walls give the Stick Style home its unique appeal. These homes often include huge overhanging second story porches, decorative truss work, carved panels, and lattice work along porch eves. The exterior décor was so complex that many pieces are ordered from a catalog and put together like a puzzle at the site.

Image 002 Typical features include:

Second Empire (1865-1880)

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The Second Empire style ideas came from French Architecture during the Second French Era. The most distinguishing feature of the Second Empire home was its mansard roof. The mansard roof contains two slopes on each of its sides, the bottom slope being very steep, almost vertical, and the top slope is nearly flat and only has a slight pitch. The roof crest is decorated with iron trim and contains elaborate dormer windows. The exterior is made of wood, brick, or stone and had much detail and ornamentation to make it look grand and expensive.

Typical features include:

Folk Victorian (1870 -1910)

Image 002 The Folk Victorian homes took the simplicity of the square, symmetrical, or L-shaped building style to a new level. Using the new tools of the industrial revolution they added decorative trims to turn the National or Folk style homes into the Folk Victorian. Unlike most of the other Victorian styles, this is the simplest, and does not contain bay windows, towers, or elaborate moldings.

Typical features include:

Shingle (1880-1900)

Similar to the Stick/Eastlake style the Shingle Style Victorian differs in that its exterior is completely covered in rustic cedar shingles. Another distinguishing factor of the Shingle home is that it has a rather informal floor plan and odd shapes established with its building. These homes took advantage of the newly affordable wood products in stock. Machines in manufacturing made the repetitive cutting of shingles easy to buy in bulk for house siding. These homes did not include the lavish Victorian décor that the other styles have, but was still a part of the Victorian Era of architecture.

Image 002 Typical features include:

Queen Anne (1880-1910)

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The Queen Anne Victorian style is the most lavishly decorated and rich style of all of the Victorian Era. This style is also most recognized and often the home we think of when we hear of a Victorian style home. They contain original designs that were bold, colorful, and asymmetrical, with no flat surfaces and elaborate trim all over. Architect Richard Norman Shaw is recognized for the beginning of this style as he took the old-English cottage and combined with the décor of the Victorian era to come up with a beautiful home style.

Typical features include:

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Modern Architecture

Modern architecture is a set of building styles with similar characteristics, including simplification of form and the elimination of ornament. It was first received in the early 20th century and adopted by many influential architects. Its popularity strengthened after World War II and became the main architectural style in institutional and corporate buildings for three decades. Exact origins of this style are still in debate. The three biggest architects of this style are Le Corbusier in France, and both Ludwig Mies van de Rohe and Walter Gropius in Germany.

The main characteristics of modern architecture as:

Brutalism

Brutalism also known as brutalist architecture is a form of architecture that became popular in the 1950’s to the mid 1970’s. The term was coined by the English architects Alison and Peter Smithson in 1954 coming from the French term béton brut, or “raw concrete”. Brutalist buildings are formed with striking blockish, geometric, and repetitive shapes, and often revealing the textures of the wooden forms used to shape the materials. Normally it is rough from unadorned poured concrete. Not all Brutalist buildings are formed from concrete though. Since Brutialist quality can appear through a rough, blockly appearance some building materials included brick, glass, steel, rough-hewn stone, and gabion. It should also be noted that not all buildings with an exposed concrete exterior can be considered Brutalist.

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During the middle twentieth century, as Great Britain was economically depressed, and communities were looking for inexpensive construction and design methods, Brutalism began to gain a lot of momentum. In the end no matter the budgets architectures had they appreciated the qualities and perhaps the simple nature of the style. Now combined with the socially progressive intentions behind brutalist “streets in the sky” housings like Corbusier’s Unité, brutalism was promoted as a positive options for forward-moving, modern urban housing. Now in practice however, many of the buildings built in this style lacked many of the community serving features of Corbusier’s vision. In the end the roughness of the concrete lost its appeal and became vulnerable to spray-can graffiti.

High Tech

High-tech architecture, also known as Late Modernism or Structural Expressionism, is a style of architecture that emerged in the 1970’s. It incorporated elements of high-tech industry and technology into the building design. High-tech architecture appeared as a revamped modernism, basically an extension of the previous ideas aided by advances in technological achievements. This type of architecture serves as a bridge between modernism and post-modernism. There is some confusion in the 1980’s with respect to distinguish between high-tech and post-modern architecture. Much like Brutalism, High-tech architectural buildings reveal their structure on the outside as well as the inside, but with much visual emphasis is placed on the internal steel and/or concrete skeletal structure as opposed to just exterior concrete walls.

Buildings designed in high-tech architectural style usually consist of a clear glass façade, with support beams exposed behind it. The most famous and recognized building that was built in this style is the I.M. Pei’s Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong. Also the World Trade Center towers were technically built with a high-tech concept with its steel exoskeleton.

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The history of this architecture focuses mainly in Europe and North America. After destructions of historical buildings in Europe during World War II, repairing them was considered a difficult matter. It was from that architects had to decide between using historic elements or replacing it with new materials. The style got its name from the book High Tech: The Industrial Style and Source Book for The Home, published in November 1978. High-tech architecture was basically just a response to growing disillusionment with modern architecture. This type of architecture created a new aesthetic in contrast with standard modern architecture.

Deconstructivism

Deconstructivism, also known as deconstruction, is a development of postmodern architecture that began in the late 1980’s. It is characterized by ideas of fragmentation. This means interest in manipulating ideas of a structure’s surface or skin, non-rectilinear shapes which serve to distort and dislocate some elements of common architecture like structure and envelope. In the end, the finished appearance of the buildings exhibit many different styles characterized by stimulation. Some important events in the history of this architectural movement include the 1982 Parc de la Villette architectural design competition, the Museum of Modern Art’s 1988 Deconstructivist Archtecture exhibition in New York, and the 1989 opening of the Wexner Center for the Arts in Columbus.

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Highlighting from the Museum of Modern Art exhibition in 1988 it is known to have put the movement into the spotlight. In the end it brought fame and notoriety to the key practitioners. Architects like Peter Eisenman, Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, Coop Himmelblau, Rem Koolhaas, Daniel Libeskind, and Bernard Tshumi where presented at the exhibition.

Functionalism

Functionalism, in architecture, is focused around the principle that architects should design a building based on the purpose of that building. The statement itself although is less self-evident than it first appears. At times it is a matter of confusion and controversy within the profession. Now functionalism itself can be traced back to the Vitruvian triad, this is where ‘utilitas’ stands alongside ‘venustas’ and ‘firmitas’ as one of three classic goals of architecture. Functionalist views were typical with some of gothic and revival architects as well.

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Coined in the 1880’s by Chicago architect Louis Sullivan, ‘form ever follows function’, this credo is associated much with this modernist belief. That is that a building’s size, massing, spatial grammar and other characteristics should be driven alone by the function of the building. It is although viewed as being very ironic since Sullivan used a lot of intricate ornament, because a common belief among functionalist architects is that ornament serves no function. It also doesn’t address whose function he means. For example, the architect of an apartment building can easily be cross-purposed with the owners of the building with regards to how the building should look and feel. They should also be cross-purposed with the future tenant as well. Regardless, the credo is a significant and enduring idea.

Blobitecture

Architecture in the past century has been driven by many types of factors. There has been a large move towards integration between nature and the manmade world of architecture. Great examples of this come from the styles of blobitecture, organic architecture, and sustainable architecture.

The first of these, blobitecture is a very interesting style that draws inspiration from various organisms in nature. The idea in this architecture style is to emulate amoebas, and various other organic life forms. Instead of using perpendicular lines and straight shapes, blobitecture uses various curves, and dounded shapes. While this is a fairly new architectural style, dating from within 15 years, many buildings have begun to appear all over the world. In southern England, on the river Tyne, exists the Sage Gateshead designed by Norman Foster to serve as a musical center for education and performance. The large slug was designed with maximum attention to acoustic properties and perfect use of space.

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Blobitecture is a very new style that was first described by Greg Lynn in 1995 when discussing the importance of new computational power and computer aided design for architecture. The name of this style comes from a computer science term BLOB, which refers the binary representation of an object. Advances in computer science have made blobitecture possible due large amounts of computation and mathematics that are required and could have only been made possible by CAD methods.

Greg Lynn Discussing the impact of calculus and CAD methods on Architecture

Organic Architecture

Organic architecture can in many ways be very similar to the previously discussed blobitecture. Instead of emulating nature like blobitecture, organic architecture attempts to integrate with nature so that the building and the surroundings can be one. Instead of believing the regular design styles that “form follows function,” most organic architects believe that “form and function are one.” The design is to build the entire structure from the inside, similar to how a tree grows from the inside of a seed. Many architects design the entire building, including insides to ensure that everything flows together perfectly and matches.

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This style of architecture has been around for the end of the 1900’s and become incorporated into many ideas as the materials and styles became accepted and possible. The most famous building based on this style is the opera house in Sydney by Jorn Utzon in 1973. In addition to famous organic buildings, there are architects who’s entire career has been based on these styles. Frank Lloyd Wright, the designer of Fallingwater in Pennsylvania is one of the most well known organic architects.

Sustainable Architecture

Norman Foster: Building on the Green Agenda (A discussion oc computer methods that help architects create environmentaly friendly buildings)

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While blobitecture, and organic architecture are in general used to strongly influence the look and feel of a building, sustainable architecture adds an additional dimension. This style refers more towards making buildings sustainable, using recycled materials, and introducing technologies that lower the impact of the building and its inhabitants on the environment. The architects aim for maximum efficiency and sustainability.

Buildings created with this new style in mind should not need to rely on the local power grid for power, sewage, and waste management. Most of them are designed with wind turbines and solar power to provide electricity for the house. In addition to generating their own electricity, buildings must maximize the use of these limited resources. Proper insulation, highly efficient heating and cooling systems, as well as perfectly optimized air flow allows these buildings to maintain livable conditions with very limited resources. Some buildings have become efficient enough that they produce more electricity than they require. This allows that extra electricity to go back onto the public grid and lower the request on power plants. While this is very low, it is a noble goal that many architects are strongly pushing for.

Besides limiting the consumption of houses when creating sustainable buildings, we must also consider what is created inside the house. Waste management and water treatment become very important parts of a house. These limit the amount of trash that must be hauled out of the house and into environment polluting landfills. Recycling helps to both reduce the amount of output, as well as input that goes into constructing such houses. Expensive and environmentally dangerous insulating materials can be replaced with cheaper alternatives like recycled denim. This field of architecture is constantly changing as new technologies bring by new possibilities and help improve the efficiency of our current homes.

Many aspects of sustainable architecture hint as isolationism unfortunately. To counter this many architects have found different ways to combat this by combining living arrangements and maximizing the use of space. In addition to the housing being efficient, affordable and good for the environment, these new houses combine living quarters to use less space. Independent living quarters, yet shared common areas like living rooms, dining rooms, and kitchens have brought about a culture of social sustainability.

Image 022 (Living complexes in Austrlia that feature solar power cells, water treatment, recycled construction materials, water heating with sun power, and rainwater as input water.)

Blobitecture, organic architecture, and sustainable architecture are only a few of the various styles of architecture that have emerged under the general name of modern architecture. These styles as well as the past 50 years have been driven by various factors in our changing world. Failing economies and an increased need for efficiency or a severely damaged environment have driven us to new ideas that impact life styles completely. As our world continues to change, modern styles will continue to reflect the important factors and problems of our world.

Asian Architecture

A slideshow of Chinese Architecture. 4 Mintutes of architecture across china.

West Asian Architecture

Builders in West Asia always had a serious problem - there was not enough stone or wood. But there was lots and lots of clay. So their buildings were usually built of brick, or mud-brick. West Asian builders got so used to building in brick, that even buildings which are built of stone often look like they are made of brick.

Another thing which made West Asian people build a certain way is the constant arrival of nomadic people into the area: the Persians, the Parthians, the Arabs. All of these people were used to living and entertaining in tents, and they built their houses and palaces kind of like tents, so they would feel at home.

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The Sumerians, about 3000 BC, were the first people to build big buildings in West Asia: they built ziggurats, or towers made of clay bricks, with temples to the gods on top of them. They also built city walls out of bricks (But recent excavations seem to show that people in southern Iran were building big ziggurats about the same time, and maybe even earlier).

The Assyrians, about 1000 BC, did not build ziggurats anymore, but they built themselves great palaces out of limestone. And city walls, still out of bricks.

When the Babylonians threw out the Assyrians, about 600 BC, there was a sort of revival of old pre-Assyrian ideas, which showed up in building clay brick buildings again, like the famous Ishtar Gate at the top of this page.

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But soon after that the Persians conquered West Asia (in 539 BC). These nomads did not build anything at all for some time, but when they did decide to build a palace at Persepolis (the city of the Persians) they hired the best workers from all over West Asia and the Mediterranean to work on it. Some of the men who worked on it were Greek.

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The Persians were eventually defeated by Alexander the Great in 331 BC, which led to a great many Greek temples and theaters and gymnasia being built all over West Asia and even into India in the Hellenistic period.

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The Hellenistic kingdoms were then conquered, about 100 BC, by the Romans (in the West) and the Parthians (in the East). The Romans built many Roman-style buildings all over their part of West Asia. They built amphitheaters and temples and paved roads and aqueducts. The Parthians, because they had been nomads, did less building at first, but they also built roads and temples.

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Both the Romans and the Parthians ruled for a long time, but then around 650 AD the Arabs conquered both empires and reunited West Asia in the Islamic Empire. The Islamic caliphs built many beautiful mosques and palaces and other buildings. The Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem may be the most famous example.

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When the Crusaders came to West Asia in the 1100's AD, they built castles and churches as well, like the fortress of Acre. But the Seljuks, the Mamluks, and the Ottomans continued to built beautiful mosques and palaces, too.

Korean Traditional Architecture

Korean traditional architecture is characterized by its harmony with nature. It has developed through the assimilation of various cultural e]ements learned from foreign countries, or better learned from their human brethren, Since antiquity Koreans have developed a special inclination towards nature, adapting themselves to the environment, interacting with the changing tide of human thought and ideologies in the open arena of human civilization. From time immemorial, Koreans have held the belief that the heavenly world is located in the high blue sky, representing the blissfully brilliant and eternal utopia. According to such thinking In regard to the world and the universe and because of their serene and cozy natural environment, Koreans have formulated their own traditional architecture, Such characteristics are rustic, yet they gracefully harmonized with the surrounding nature. The origin of Korean architectural traditions may be traced back to Northeastern Asian culture, namely the Scytho-Siberian origins, which was the cradle of Oriental culture. In primitive ages it was customary to honor the dead with sumptuous burial artifacts. The belief in animistic worship and in the eternity of the soul can still be witnessed in Korea among the remains of dolmens, which are the tombs of primitive people.

Since the introduction of the Chinese culture of the Han Dynasty the basic system of wooden building frames has been passed down to recent years, Such structures coincidentally blended with other indigenous architectural details. Korean architecture has also been affected by a number of Oriental conceptual thoughts: yin and yang, interpretation of the five elements (metal, wood, water, fire and earth), geomancy, Taoism and Confucianism either directly or indirectly. Buddhism, introduced to Korea around the fourth century, also exerted great influence on Korean architecture. During the Three Kingdoms Period (lasting about l ,000 years from the first century B. C.), a great number of Buddhist temples were built. Unfortunately, most of them were burned to ashes in a series of wars and invasions.

After the unification of the Three Kingdoms by the Silla Dynasty in 668, the development of Korean architecture outgrew its previous rustic simplicity. Under the cultural influence of the Tang Dynasty of China, Koreans fulfilled their historical task of assimilating the influx of foreign culture with indigenous and innate aspirations. it is significant to note that the cultural heritage of the Unified Silla has been passed dow l to the present. Pulguk Temple in Kyonju reflects the splendid architecture of the Unified Silla dynasty, and the rock cave shrine, Sokkuram, located in the north of the temple on a mountain represents the cultural achievement of the time.

During the Koryo period, artistic expressions were characterized by "contemplative beauty," freed from man's limits imposed on form. The emphasis sifted to the internal mind and self control under the influence of Zen Buddhist thought. Ever since, such "contemplative beauty" has constituted a part of the Korean cultural heritage. A representative temple building of the time is Kungnakjon (Hall of Paradise Enshrining Amitabha), at Pongjong Temple, one of the oldest extant wooden buildings in Korea. The building vividly portrays the architectural style of the early Koryo period.

In the Choson (Yi) Dynasty Period (l?92-1910), Confucianism was upheld as the national ideology. With the decline of Buddhism, Confucian buildings such as Confucian shrines, regional schools, and academies were erected throughout the country. Palatial buildings are representative of the architecture of this age, highlighting the essence of Korean architectural legacy. During this period, foreign cultural influences transformed and modified the existing patterns and formed the distinctive characteristics of Korean architecture. Namdaemun (South Gate), the main access to the downtown area of Seoul, was built in l396 and has been the oldest extant building welcoming visitors to the capital. As the most representative example of traditional Korean architecture it has been designated as National Treasure No. l .

In architectural design, Korean architects took full notice of the surrounding terrain in their effort to create perfect harmony with nature. No Korean building was designed or constructed to manifest a confrontation or challenge of human works against the natural environment, Both in design and in engineering, artificial contrivances were kept subdued, in favor of highlighting the beauty of nature as it is. In the use of building materials, attention was paid to keep natural elements intact.

Throughout the ages, Korean architecture has reflected the human scale, imparting a feeling of intimacy to viewers. Few traditional Korean buildings are grand iu size. Rather, they give an impression of coziness and tidiness, and are from being overpowering or imposing. Korean artisans relied more on the working of nature than on their own craft, exerting their personal ingenuity or wisdom less, thus providing greater room for their instincts to operate. As a result, Korean architecture reflects less of human calculation or craft than of liberal and carefree simplicity.

In order to create visual elegance in external forms several design skills were contrived. The middle portion of columns were shaped convex swelling, namely entasis, The columns on the periphery were slanted slightly inward, while the tops of comer posts were extended slightly higher in relation to the others. All these efforts were made to evoke a feeling of stability and to achieve aesthetic harmony with the delicate and elegant shape of the roof and the eave lines in the appearance of the building.

A variety of decorations and colors were also used in Korean traditional architecture. In China, decorations tended to be extremely elaborate, sometimes to the extent of superfluity or grotesqueness. Japanese decorations are more simple and delightful. The characteristic decorations of Korean architecture might be found in between the two, maintaining the beauty of moderation in the use of color and architectural decoration.

Korean traditional architecture can be aesthetically characterized by moderate elegance in decoration and humble openness in architectural design. The moderate use of color might have derived from the country's serene landscape. The humble openness in design may have grown from the tendency of Korean people to adapt themselves to nature. These major characteristics may have evolved from ancient times by Korean master architects. Unlike their Chinese counterparts who were excessively preoccupied with strict symmetry, or the Japanese who were extremely concerned with the miniature, Korean architects tended to give a more comprehensive effort to maintain order and harmony with nature. The concern manifested both inside and outside architectural space, which consequently led to its humble openness.

American Architecture

During the early years of American history, American craftsmanship suffered greatly because of a high demand for quality European products. European craftsmanship had a long line of tradition to draw upon, while American craftsmanship was limited to only a few early inspirational styles. American craftsmanship took off in the late 1800’s after the beginning of the arts and crafts movement. The most successful and popular American artists were those that combined an old-fashioned style with the most current manufacturing and production processes. The true arts and crafts reformists emphasized a return to traditional lifestyles and a more simplistic lifestyle with their work.

American Arts and Crafts Society

The first American arts and crafts society was founded in 1895 in Minneapolis, and this was followed closely by other societies and exhibitions. Home design in particular took off during this period, as artists and architects stressed the craftsman-style home. These homes were typically a small number of spacious rooms with natural earthen or stone dividers. The arts and crafts movement ended by 1916, though homes were built in the craftsman style for more than a decade later.

Colonial Style

Colonial-style homes were constructed in the 1700‘s through the 1850‘s. The style consisted of square, symmetrical shapes with a door in the center of the home. Typically the door would have columns on either side and a decorative crown. Five windows across the front and a pair of chimneys, one on the left and one on the right, were expected. The style was inspired by larger, more elaborate homes that were being built in England at the time. The original English style was inspired further by the Italian renaissance and ancient Greek and Roman architecture. Typically, American homes were less ornate than their English counterparts. However, the style was a favorite of wealthy colonists, and even more humble dwellings tended to imitate the style during the time.

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Pueblo

Pueblos are Native American communities found in the Southwestern United States. Pueblos are constructed out of sand, clay, water, and a fibrous organic material such as sticks or straw. The mixture is made into bricks and strengthened in fire. Homes were constructed flat roofs and many rooms. Often, they were stacked on top of each other and connected to other structures in the community. Typically, pueblos were built in areas that were easy to defend. For example, Acoma, meaning “the place that always existed”, is located about 60 miles outside Albuquerque, New Mexico, on a cliff face 357 feet high with limited access.

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Chicago School

The Chicago school of architecture was active at the end of the 1800’s and the early 1900’s. Chicago school buildings are generally built with a steel frame and masonry cladding. This style allows for large plate windows to be used, a staple of Chicago school architecture. A particular window was developed during this period, dubbed the “Chicago window”. It consists of a large pane window flanked on either side by a smaller double-hung sash window. Many landmark buildings in Chicago are done in the Chicago school style, including the Auditorium building and the Rookery building. Famous artists and architects associated with Chicago school include Daniel Burnham, Louis Sullivan, and Martin Roche.

American Reneissance

The American Renaissance took place at the turn of the 20th century and was characterized as the feeling that the United States was the heir to Greek classical culture. Strong feelings of nationalism pervaded the time period, expressed through rapid improvements in technology and academic classicism. This was the same time period in American history as the Gilded Age, during substantial population growth following the Civil War and Reconstruction and when wealthy Americans were prone to showy displays of their fortunes and power.

Conclusion

As you see architecture has evolved throughout the years of history. Each structure relates to the three principles presented by Vitruvius in one way or another. By viewing the different periods of architecture history, (European, Modern, Asian, and American) you see how architecture is unique and evolved with periods of time throughout the history of the world. Architecture itself is construction, services, and documentation that will continue to influence and change with culture throughout time.

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