Peer Reviews

Ashley- Ashley did a great job summarizing Frank Lloyd Wright and his designs.  I like how she went in to detail about the certain types of characteristics and styles Wright used throughout his career.  I also enjoyed looking at her chosen pictures, they were different from the other pictures student chose.

Hailey H-  I like how Haley discussed some of the historical aspect of this time.  It was a nice lead-in to Frank Lloyd Wright.  She also did a nice job at mentioning Wright's connection to the Chicagoland area and how much of an impact he left there.

The Emergence of Modernism

The Emergence of Modernism began in 1900 and lasted about 50 years.  It was during this time that advances were made with structures such as skyscrapers, trains, photography, and movies.  Art Nouveau and the Prairie Style contributed to this Modernist movement.  With the machine as the source of inspiration many of the designs were beginning to look industrial, cold, and clean.  No ornamentation was included in these designs and most of the style was very functional.  Some of the most important pioneers during this time included Frank Lloyd Wright, Walter Gropius, Ludwig Mies Van Der Rone, and Le corbusier.

Frank Lloyd Wright was the 1st major modern architect in America and from this time.  He was born in Wisconsin and later went on to designing buildings all over the Chicago land area.  In addition to being an architect, Wright was also an interior designer, writer, and educator.  He designed over 1000 structures along with 532 works.  Frank Lloyd Wright worked under Adler and Sullivan for a while but left to start his own business in Oak Park, IL in 1893.  It was then that Wright began his new style of architecture which was called "Prairie Style".  He made sure that there was unity in his planning, materials, structure, and site.   The architecture was very organic and Wright made sure to consider the effect on man and the environment.  Some of Frank Lloyd Wright's more well known structures include The Robie House, The Winslow House, Unity Temple, The Rookery, and Falling Water.

Past

Present

Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1MNySVj0S0

Peer Reviews

Angie-  I think Angie's blog was well said and nicely organized.  She touched upon the key points of Protomodernism which resulted in an overall excellent blog post.  It was not exceedingly long and held my attention.

Emma-  Emma covered all the main parts of Protomodernism in a way that was easily understood.  She also included a nice overview of the Deutcher Werkbund Movement, the Vienna Secession, and the De Stijl Movement.  Her blog also provided unique, images for the current applications.

Protomodernism

The Protomodernism period started in 1897 and lasted until 1959.  One could begin to see the emergence of modernism throughout the many projects from this period.  It was also a time of significant experimentation with forms and ideas.  The Deutscher Werkbund Movement, the Vienna Secession, and the De Stijl Movement were all included in the Protomodernist time.  The Deutscher Werkbund began in Munich, Germany in 1892: then Vienna, Austria in 1898; and finally Berlin, Germany in 1899.   The Deutscher Werkbund was founded by Herman Muthesius and included high quality design as well as beauty.  This movement was equivalent to the Arts and Crafts movement in that it too was a protest, a protest against artistic establishment.  It was a lead in, for International Style and Art Deco Style.  Next was the Vienna Secession.  During the Secession many advances were made in art, history, psychology, and philosophy.  In addition, the interest for culture and design grew.  One could see the unity of the arts during this time.  The Secession Building, designed by Josef Olbrich was solemn, yet festive, and was a major symbol of a "proto-modern" building.  Some of the other influential figures from this time were Gustav Kilmt, Otto Wagner, Adolf Loos, Joseph Hoffman, and Koloman Mosser.  Finally, was the De Stijl movement which began in the Netherlands in 1917.  The term "De Stijl" means "the style" in Dutch, which is a very fitting adjective for this time.  Most of the designs during the De Stijl movement revolved around elementary shapes as its main focus, planes, colors, and horizantal and vertical lines.  Two important figures during this time were an architect named Gerrit Rietvald and an artist named Piet Mondriad.  Gerrit Rietvald was one of the most influential designers of the century.  Some of his works include the famous Schroder House whose design featured a flexible floor plan as well as bringing the indoors and outdoors together.  Piet Mondriad was an artist inspired by cubist art form from France.  He wanted to create a "new plasticity" all while focusing on the use of primary colors.  Some of his works include "Composition in Red, Blue and Yellow" and "Broadway Boogie Woogie."  Lastly, Protomodernism helped introduce the world to Frank Lloyd Wright.  He was an early contributor to Modernism and developed an "American" architecture and vocabulary.  His main focus was on residential homes and making them into "Prairie Style."  His color palette was drawn from the indigenous plants of the Midwest and used throughout his designs.  One of his most famous buildings that really exemplifies his best work is the Robie House.  

Past

Present

Extra Credit: The Robie House
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plAjz9phId0

Peer Reviews

Allysia- Allysia's blog was very informative and to the point.  She talked about the elements that made up Art Nouveau and what the main focus was during this time.  Her pictures also corresponded well with her descriptions.  And finally, the extra credit video showed us more interiors which gave us additional insight to the design elements.

Holli- I like how Holli described the Art Nouveau period.  Her post was worded very nicely and the pictures she chose gave a lovely perspective of the designs and characteristics that were mentioned.  Overall I believe she did a great job and helped me to understand this time period better.

Art Nouveau

The Art Nouveau period began in 1890 and lasted until 1910.  Belgium and France were the main leaders of this movement and it was during this time, Europe was peaceful and prosperous.  In addition, Art Nouveau was known for rejecting academic models, history,and the Victorian style.  It instead used nature as an inspiration for design.  This included trees, flowers, birds, vines, etc.  Besides the designs being based on nature, this movement used modern materials and techniques.  For example, the people from this period used iron and glass as well as industrial production as their form of technique.  Many of the interiors also used electric lighting and had curvilinear attributes.  Some of the influential designers and architects of this time were Victor Horta, Henry Van de Velde, and Hector Guimard.  Victor Horta was a Belgian architect, designer, and teacher.  His work during this movement was quite extensive.  He created unique iron rails and handles, twisted iron balconies, large window frames, and featured asymmetrical facades.  Henry Van de Velde was also important during this time.  He began as a Belgian painter and designed his own house in 1894.  His designs were very sculpture like.  Furthermore, he helped to clarify "ornamentation" vs. "ornament."  Finally Hector Guimard was the most significant figure in Paris at the time.  Apart from designing hotels, Guimard created the entrances for France's metro system.  Finally, Paris and the school of Nancy were major centers of Art Nouveau, in addition to being artistic and intellectual centers.

Past

Present

Extra Credit:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUyuoG2W2Ls