MIES VAN DER ROHE

CONTEMPORARY INTERIOR DESIGNERS ID 0303

UNIT 2- BAUHAUS AND POST WAR MODERNISTS

• RAKESH
• GAYATHRI
• JISHANTH HARI
• SHREE SAKTHI
THE INTERNATIONAL
STYLE
• International Style, architectural style that developed
in Europe and the United States in the 1920s and ’30s and
became the dominant tendency in Western
architecture during the middle decades of the 20th
century.
• The most common characteristics of International Style
buildings are rectilinear forms; light, taut plane surfaces
that have been completely stripped of applied
ornamentation and decoration; open interior spaces; and
a visually weightless quality engendered by the use
of cantilever construction.
• Glass and steel, in combination with usually less
visible reinforced concrete, are the characteristic
materials of construction.
• The term International Style was first used in 1932
by Henry-Russell Hitchcock and Philip Johnson in their
essay titled The International Style: Architecture Since
1922, which served as a catalog for an architectural
exhibition held at the Museum of Modern Art.
The International Style grew out of three phenomena that
confronted architects in the late 19th century:

• Architects’ increasing dissatisfaction with the continued

use in stylistically eclectic buildings of a mix of decorative
elements from different architectural periods and styles
that bore little or no relation to the building’s functions,
• The economical creation of large numbers of office
buildings and other commercial, residential, and civic
structures that served a rapidly industrializing society, and
• The development of new building technologies centring
on the use of iron and steel, reinforced concrete,
and glass. These three phenomena dictated the search
for an honest, economical, and utilitarian architecture
that would both use the new materials and satisfy
society’s new building needs while still appealing
to aesthetic taste.
The International Style grew out of the work of a small group of brilliant and
original architects in the 1920s who went on to achieve great influence in their
field. These major figures included Walter Gropius and Ludwig Mies van der
Rohe in Germany and the United States, J.J.P. Oud in the Netherlands, Le
Corbusier in France, and Richard Neutra and Philip Johnson in the United
States.
 Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
Born :
March 27, 1886 (Aachen, Germany)
Died :
August 17, 1969 (aged 83) (Chicago, United States)
Nationality :
German (1886–1944), American (1944–1969)
Occupation :
Architect, well known for rectilinear forms, crafted in elegant simplicity,
epitomized the International Style and his famous principle that “less is
more”
Awards :
Pour le Mérite (1959)
Royal Gold Medal (1959)
AIA Gold Medal (1960)
Presidential Medal of Freedom (1963)

Buildings :
Barcelona Pavilion (1986) Barcelona Spain
Crown Hall (1956) illinois USA
Farnsworth House (1951) illinois USA
Highfield House (1964) baltimore USA
860–880 Lake Shore Drive (1949) illinois USA
 Type- Exhibition building
Barcelona pavilion-El Pabellón de Barcelona
Style- Modernism, minimalism
The Pavilion was conceived to accommodate the official reception
presided over by King Alfonso XIII of Spain along with the German
authorities. Mies was commissioned by Germany for design of the
pavilion to represent the country in the universal exhibition that was
going to take place in Barcelona during 1929.
Location-Barcelona,Spain.
(Initially it was planned for more central location but he preferred a
quieter option a bit further away from other buildings of the
exposition. )
Context- After world war 1 and the slow recovery of economy in
Germany, the pavilion wanted to represent the new status, a more
democratic open and progressive country through his architecture.

Nearly one year after it's completion the pavilion was dismantled
and it's material were sold to make up for some of the initial
investment due to the economic environment of Germany at the
Construction started 1928
time. Completed 1929
The site was empty for about 50 years until a group of architects
attempted it's reconstruction based solely on existing plans and
Inaugurated 27 May 1929
black and white pictures of that time. Demolished 1930 (rebuilt in 1986)
CONCEPT OF THE PAVILION
The concept of the pavilion is very minimal yet meaningful and with very sophisticated technical solutions and
materials.
The travertine plinth that elevates the space from street level with a sequence of open spaces interconnected
separated by straight lines.
This connects interior and exterior ina very fluid space.
In a pavilion the separation between enclosure and structure is very clearly distinct an architecture of skin
and bones.
Theoretically the roof structure is solely supported by eight metal pillars.there are cruciform with chromed
cladding to enhance their cleanness and with the double symmetry he reduces the directionality of the space
by giving the same importance to both access.
• If we zoom into the detail we can see that the cruciform pillars are actually 4L profiles bolted together and and
covered with a chrome metal sheet.
• The same pillars will also be seen in his took in that house other than steel in chrome the other materials of the
PAVILION are onyx marble, travertine and glass.
• The wall in the main spaceis African golden Onyx.
• The back wall uses green alpine Marbel.
• The entrance area is built with antique green Marbel of tino's and
• the wall in the front area is built with roman travertine as well as the plinth and the floor surface of the whole
PAVILION.
• The glass changes the spaces through color as well.
• Green Black gray aand clear whites for the different areas.
• The main axis is done through a stair parallel to the main volume of the pavilion that brings the spectator to an open
space before access in the building.
• Every aspect of the Barcelona Pavilion has architectural significance that can be seen at the advent of modern
architecture in the 20th Century;
• one of the most important aspects of the pavilion is the roof. The low profile of the roof appears in elevation as a
floating plane above the interior volume.
• The appearance of floating gives the volume a sense of weightlessness that fluctuates between enclosure and
canopy.
• With the low roof projecting out over the exterior and the openness of the pavilion,
• The pavilion is designed as a proportional composition where the interior of the pavilion is juxtaposed to two reflecting
pools.
• The smaller reflecting pool is located directly behind the interior space which allows for light to filter through the
interior volume as well illuminate the marble and travertine pavers.
• The larger, shallow reflecting pool compliments the volume as it stretches across the rest of the plinth.
• Its elegance and sleek lines establish a place of solitude and reflection
• BARCELONA CHAIR :
• The Barcelona chair is a chair designed by Mies
van der Rohe and Lilly Reich, for the German
Pavilion at the International Exposition of
1929, hosted by Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
• The Barcelona Chair exudes a simple elegance
that epitomizes Mies van der Rohe's most
famous maxim–“less is more.”
• Each Barcelona piece is a tribute to the
marriage of modern design and exceptional
craftsmanship.
• It is supported on each side by two chrome-
plated, flat steel bars. Seen from the side, the
single curve of the bar forming the chair's back
and front legs crosses the S-curve of the bar
forming the seat and back legs, making an
intersection of the two.
• BARCELONA CHAIR DIMENSIONS
SEAGRAM BUILDING :
• The Seagram Building is a modern office tower designed by famed German architect
Mies van der Rohe, in collaboration with Philip Johnson.

HEIGHT : 157 M

FLOOR AREA : 849,014 SQ.FT

FLOORS : 38

OPENED : 1958

BUILT : 1957

ARCHITECTS : Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Philip Johnson

ARCHITECTURAL STYLE : Modern architecture, International Style

LOCATION : 375 Park Avenue New York, NY 10152 United States

ABOUT THE BUILDING :
• It is one of the most notable examples of the functionalist aesthetic and a prominent
instance of corporate modern architecture.
• The Seagram Building is on the National Register of Historic Places, and has been
designated as an official city landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation
Commission.
• Mies was given an unlimited budget. This structure which resulted, and the style in
which it was built, had enormous influences on American architecture.
• One of the style's characteristic traits was to express or articulate the structure of
buildings externally.
• On completion in 1958, the Seagram Building's $41 million construction cost made it
the world's most expensive skyscraper at the time due to the use of costly, high-
quality materials including bronze, travertine, and marble, as well as lavish interior
decoration.
• The interior was designed to assure cohesion with the external features, repeated in
the glass and bronze furnishings and decorative scheme.
Plan and elevation of the building :
FACADE :
• The Seagram Building was built of a steel frame,
from which non-structural glass walls were hung.
Mies preferred the steel frame to be visible to all
• Mies used non-structural bronze-toned I-beams to
suggest structure instead. These are visible from
the outside of the building, and run vertically,
like mullions, surrounding the large glass
windows.
• This method of construction using an
interior reinforced concrete shell to support a
larger non-structural edifice has since become
commonplace. As designed, the building used
1,500 tons of bronze in its construction
• One aspect of a facade which Mies disliked was
the disordered irregularity when window
blinds are drawn
• As such, Mies specified window blinds which
only operated in three positions: fully open,
halfway open/closed, or fully closed.
PLAZA:
• The Seagram Building and the Lever
House across Park Avenue, set the architectural
style for New York City skyscraper for several
decades.
• It appears as a simple bronze box, set back from
Park Avenue by a large, open granite plaza.
• Mies intended to create an urban open space in
front of the building, despite the luxuriousness
of the idea, and it became a very popular
gathering area.
• The plaza was provided as part of the 1961
Zoning Resolution, which superseded the 1916
• the grand gesture of setting back the building
100 feet from the street edge, which created a
highly active open plaza.
• The plaza attracts users with its two large
fountains surrounded by generous outdoor
seating.
STRUCTURAL FEATURES :
• The 38-story structure combines a steel moment
frame and a steel and reinforced concrete core
for lateral stiffness.
• The concrete core shear walls extend up to the
17th floor, and diagonal core bracing (shear
trusses) extends to the 29th floor.
• According to Severud Associates, the structural
engineering consultants, it was the first tall
building to use high strength bolted
connections,
• the first tall building to combine a braced frame
with a moment frame,
• one of the first tall buildings to use a vertical
truss bracing system and the first tall building
to employ a composite steel and concrete lateral
frame
RESTAURANT AND OFFICE SPACE
• The building was home to The Four Seasons
Restaurant, designed by the architects, and
Brasserie, by Diller + Scofidio.
• The interiors of the restaurants were designed
by Philip Johnson.
• It now hosts three restaurants, The Grill, The
Pool, and The Lobster Club, all of which are
owned by Major Food Group.
• The office spaces above the lobby, furnished by
Philip Johnson, have flexible floor plans lit with
luminous ceiling panels.
• These floors also get maximum natural lighting
with the exterior being glass panes of gray
topaz that provide floor-to-ceiling windows for
the office spaces.
• The gray topaz glass was used for sun and heat
protection
CHARACTERISTICS:
• sleek glass and metal, rather than the
ornamental heavy stone and brick facades of previous
decades, the Seagram Building signalled a new era
of functional skyscraper, adopting a
minimalist, corporate aesthetic.

• The building used 1,500 tons of bronze, in

addition to travertine and marble. This was intended to
provide cohesion with the sleek, yet minimalist,
external aesthetic.

• The Seagram Building, with its use of modern materials and

setback from the city grid, became a prototype for future office
buildings designed by Mies as well as a model for many
buildings erected in its surroundings.
• This building, fifty years after its completion, is still admired by
many visitors everyday and sets an example of an International
style skyscraper amidst the New York skyline.