ART APPRECIATION JUNE 25, 2019

GEOVE R. ORCAJADA
NCP BATCH-5

 Alvar Aalto

Alvar Aalto (1898 - 1976), was a Finnish architect and designer. He was part of the Modern Movement
of Architecture, but he developed his own style, based on modernist architecture combined with the
usage of local materials and his own personal expression. Although Aalto was from a younger
generation, he is considered one of the master architects of Modern Architecture, along with Le
Corbusier, Mies Van Der Rohe and Walter Gropius, and today he is recognized as one of the most
important architects from that country.

Säynätsalo’s Town Hall might appear almost too

monumental for its context. Designed by Alvar Aalto in 1949, the town hall is a study in opposition: elements of classicism and
the monumental blended with modernity and intimacy to form a cohesive new center-point for the community. These and
other aspects of the design initially proved somewhat divisive, and the Town Hall has not
been without controversy since its inception.

 Santiago Calatrava

Santiago Calatrava Valls (born 28 July 1951) is a Spanish architect, structural

engineer, sculptor and painter, particularly known for his bridges supported by single leaning pylons,
and his railway stations, stadiums, and museums, whose sculptural forms often resemble living
organisms.[1] His best-known works include the Milwaukee Art Museum, the Turning Torso tower
in Malmö, Sweden, the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge in Dallas, Texas, and his largest project, the City of Arts
and Sciences and Opera House, in his birthplace, Valencia. His architectural firm has offices in New York
City, Doha, and Zürich.
 The Auditorio de Tenerife (Tenerife Auditorium) is an
arts venue on the seafront in the southern part of Port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
It was designed by the architect Santiago Calatrava in the expressionist style, and has been celebrated as the finest late-
modernist building in the Canary Islands.
The concrete building is characterized by its dramatic arch roof which sweeps up from the base to a height of 58 m
and curves over the main auditorium like a crashing wave. Being supported by only two points with the narrowed tip appearing
to be suspended, it was the first arch of its kind in the world.

 Norman Foster

Norman Foster, in full Lord Norman Foster of Thames Bank, original name in full Norman Robert
Foster, (born June 1, 1935, Manchester, England), prominent British architect known for his sleek,
modern buildings made of steel and glass.

30 St Mary Axe (known previously as the Swiss Re Building), informally known as The
Gherkin, is a commercial skyscraper in London's primary financial district, the City of London. It was completed in December
2003 and opened in April 2004.[10] With 41 floors, it is 180 meters (591 ft) tall[3] and stands on the former sites of the Baltic
Exchange and Chamber of Shipping, which were extensively damaged in 1992 in the Baltic Exchange bombing by a device
placed by the Provisional IRA in St Mary Axe, a narrow street leading north from Leadenhall Street.
  Antoni Gaudí

Antoni Gaudi, Catalan in full Antoni Gaudi i Cornet, Spanish Antonio Gaudí y Cornet, (born June 25,
1852, Reus, Spain—died June 10, 1926, Barcelona), Catalan architect, whose distinctive style is
characterized by freedom of form, voluptuous color and texture, and organic unity. Gaudí worked
almost entirely in or near Barcelona. Much of his career was occupied with the construction of the
Expiatory Temple of the Holy Family (Sagrada Família), which was unfinished at his death in 1926.

Over the course of 134 years of construction of the Sagrada Familia,

the unfinished masterpiece of Antoni Gaudi in Barcelona has experienced three unresolved conflicts. First, there was a lack of a
(contemporary) construction permit, the nonpayment of taxes, and finally the uncertainty about whether to finally build the
large plaza to the southeast that Gaudí imagined with the forced expulsion of up to 3,000 residents and lessees, all living in the
area surrounding Sagrada Familia’s Glory Façade. In recent days, these three issues have come to light almost simultaneously,
but let’s discuss them one by one. Bitterly upset by what he describes as "a project without plans in Gaudi's name" Councilman
of Barcelona Architecture, Urban Landscape and Heritage Daniel Mòdol called the Sagrada Familia a "giant Easter cake".

 Frank Gehry

Frank Owen Gehry, Born Frank Owen Goldberg; February 28, 1929) is a Canadian-born American
architect, residing in Los Angeles.
A number of his buildings, including his private residence, have become world-renowned attractions.
His works are cited as being among the most important works of contemporary architecture in the
2010 World Architecture Survey, which led Vanity Fair to label him as "the most important architect of
our age". Gehry's best-known works include the titanium-clad Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao,
Spain; Walt Disney Concert Hall in downtown Los Angeles; Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris,
France; MIT Ray and Maria Stata Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts; The Vontz Center for Molecular
Studies on the University of Cincinnati campus; Museum of Pop Culture in Seattle; New World
Center in Miami Beach; Weisman Art Museum at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis; Dancing
House in Prague; the Vitra Design Museum and the MARTa Herford museum in Germany; the Art Gallery
of Ontario in Toronto; the Cinematheque in Paris; and 8 Spruce Street in New York City.
 The Guggenheim Museum Bilbao is a museum of modern and
contemporary art designed by Canadian-American architect Frank Gehry, and located in Bilbao, Basque Country, Spain. The
museum was inaugurated on 18 October 1997 by King Juan Carlos I of Spain. Built alongside the Nervion River, which runs
through the city of Bilbao to the Cantabrian Sea, it is one of several museums belonging to the Solomon R. Guggenheim
Foundation and features permanent and visiting exhibits of works by Spanish and international artists. It is one of
the largest museums in Spain.

 Victor Horta
One of the greatest architects of the late 19th century, the Belgian designer Victor Horta is best
known for his Art Nouveau design work, and ranks alongside Paul Hankar (1859-1901) and Henry van de
Velde (1863-1957) as a pioneer of modern architecture in Belgium. His design for the Hotel Tassel in
Brussels (1893-4), for instance, is seen by art critics as the first example of Art Nouveau being introduced
into architecture from the decorative arts. As it was, the Tassel House became a manifesto for Art
Nouveau - sometimes called Style des Vingt, in Belgium, after Les Vingt - and an iconic example
of modern art, thanks to the use of revolutionary artistic, technological, and compositional elements.
The use of iron, for instance, as a material for both construction and decoration, as part of an
architectural program based on the open plan and the three-dimensional articulation of space, is Horta's
unique contribution to the development of late 19th century architecture.
Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (6 October 1887 – 27 August 1965), known as Le
Corbusier (French: [lə kɔʁbyzje]), was a Swiss-French architect, designer, painter, urban planner,
writer, and one of the pioneers of what is now called modern architecture. He was born
in Switzerland and became a French citizen in 1930. His career spanned five decades, and he
designed buildings in Europe, Japan, India, and North and South America.
Dedicated to providing better living conditions for the residents of crowded cities, Le Corbusier was
influential in urban planning, and was a founding member of the Congrès International d'Architecture
Moderne (CIAM). Le Corbusier prepared the master plan for the city of Chandigarh in India, and
contributed specific designs for several buildings there.