Architecture Styles - LANDMARK WEST · in Washington. DC, Classical features Roman dome anel arches...

Architecture StylesSpotter's Guide

CLASSICAL TEMPLES TO SOARING SKYSCRAPERS

Sarah CunliffeJean Loussier

EDITORS

Sarah Cunliffe, Clare Haworth-Maden,Michael Kerrigan, Donna F. Shelmerdine,

Stephen Small, M. Jane TaylorCONTRIBUTORS

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THUNDER BAY

P'R'E'S'S

San Diego, CalifC)rnia

The Classical Heritage

"1 ~3

LEVI: The U.S. Capitol

in Washington. DC,

Classical features

Roman dome anel arches anel

grace}ill Corinthian columns. U

was built in 1793 to a byWilliam Thornton aud subse

quently nwdified by Ncod(cIsicist

Benjamin Henry Latrobe.

Grand AmbitionsThe Romans also set about building a much

wider range of public structures. As well as

temples and theaters, they married Classical

styles with engineering prowess to create

aqueducts, bridge~, palaces, basilicas,. bathhouses, and sewers-many of whieh still

stand In doing so, the Romans gave to

posterity a rich architectural vocabulary that

we have returned to repeatedly whenever we

have sought symmetry, order, and beauty in

our built landscape.

STYLE FILE

Notable Features:Common elements in allthe Classical stylesinclude symmetry andvisual order. as well asthe use of columns thatsupported lintels, arches, and vaults.

Where and When:Mediterranean region;c. 6th century BC to3rd century AD.

BELOW: Columns that

lh] teis were III II() ng

the basic components

olchiteetllre. 1I1is

a Creek {elll'u/ein J-tr1ri,uerdo Oil

the isle ,out/w rn

THE CLASSICAL STYLEInfluences fromEarlier CivilizationsIt is hard to believe that such inf1uence has

been exerted hy a 2,500-year-old civilizationof smal] that were scattered around

the eastern Mediterranean. But when the

Greeks the architectural traditions

of their ancI;stors in the region, as well as their

Persian and neighbors, they laiddown klll1ldations It)!· \'Vestcrn architecturethat arc still intact.


Columns and LintelsIn the sixth Be, the ancient Greeks

the use of columns and lintels

supports bearing the wcight of bor-

to create structures of unpar

alleled and power. This

Classical style is best symboli/.ed by the ele

gant Doric and Ionic temples of the flfth

Be:. T'he pmity and beauty of buildings sucb as the Parthenon and the

Erec1ltlwioll on the Acropolis in Athens,Greece, had influence on later

ami eSDcciallv on the Homans.

The GI'eek Influenceon Later Architecture

tiieir across the

iVlediternll1ci\l1world ill the Hrst and second

clmtmjps Be. Ihe r:OlTlans IIsed Creck styles

(and to build imposing,Ililil brilliant

But tbe HomallS did not imitate. Theymaterials

and added curve.s-

domc--!o thc ~traightarch ilecturc that

the Greeks.

IiIi'

I:

I

III,

II

I,


BELOW: A column and capital at the

Doric at Sounion, Greece.

17

THE DORIC ORDER

Simple SupportsTbe plain, fluted Doric columns

emerge directly from the plinth(thcre is no column base). The flut

infi may have evolved from tied bundles of reeds or sticks, placed into

holes in the ground, that were used

for supports in earlier times.

The plain, circular echinus (an

inverted bell-shaped capital) and flat,

undecorated, square stone abacus

togcther form a simple capital that supports a

plain architrave. Above that, the fricze alterenates between triglyphs and metopes as you

scan horizontally. Triglyphs (meaning "three

slits") are possibly a stylized tbrowback to the

ends of cross beams originally used to support

the roof. The metopes carried carved marble

or terra-cotta panels depicting heroic narra

tives or images of the gods.

Occasionally, the Doric style has a slightly

heavy look due to the thickness of columnssuch as those at the temples at Paestum, butsHch criticism cannot be leveled at the

Parthenon, Athens, which appears perfectly

balanced despite its monumental size.

An Enduring LegacyThe Doric order is seen mostly on the Greekmainland and in the Dorian Greek colonies in

Italy. Modern use of this order can be seen in

many public buildings, including the OldPatent Office in Washington, D.C.

The nrst, and simplest, order to develop was the Doric-appearing betweenabout 1O00 and 600 BC. It was perfected inthe late sixth and early fifth cen

turies BC. Its roots in earlier architectural styles are clear. Sonle elements are

reminiscences of the structural necessities of wooden construction petrified in

stone as ornamental features.

How Orders Were Used

Some buildings, like the Parthenon, fol

Iowa single order (i.e., Doric). But many

Classical buildings combine orders, s\lch

as the Propylaea on the Acropolis, whichcombines Doric and Ionic, and the

Temple of Apollo at Bassae, Greece,which has a Doric cxterior, an Ionic inte

rior, and the first known example of aCOt1nthian column inside.

The Homans often combined orders.

The exterior of the Coliseum, illr cxam

pIe, stacks Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian

floors on top of each other. Eventually,

new orders devcloped, using and modi

fying features of the original models,such as the Tuscan, Roman Doric, and

Composite, which mixed elements ofthe Corinthian and Ionic orders.

and columnBELOW:

6

detail (if II Neoclllssicol

What Is an Order?An order defines the style and structure of

the columns, capitals, and entablature used in

a building. How the column is fluted; what

style of decoration the capital has; the structure and ommnentation of the frieze and cor

nice-all of this is set by rules.

The principal sections of an order are the

column (which has a capital on top and,

depcnding on the order, a base below) and

the entablature (which typically consists of anarchitrave, a fricze above that, and thcn a

layer of stone jutting out above the frieze,whidi is called a cornice).

THE CLASSICAL ORDERSThe Classical orders of Doric, Ionic, and C0l1nthian are three styles of post

and lintel that have been used and developed by architects from Classical

times to the present day. Togetber with the Roman dome and arch, they are

the basic vocabulary of most architecture in the \Vestern, Classical tradition.


19

STYLE FILE

Where and When:Greece, Roman Empire;from c.350 Be.

Major Influences:Previous orders ofancient Gree.karchitecture.

Notable Features:Lavishlyechinusbell-shaped

Carved leaves andas

Volutes

ABOVE AND BELOW: Corinthian

columns, Classical and Neo

classical, with elaborate

The New LeafThe order's main distinguishing fea

ture is an eehinus (see page 17) that is

lavishly dccorated with serrated acan

thus leaves, palm leaves, and spirals.Small volutes at each corner give the

capital the same appearance from all

sides, making it better suited to cor

ners than the Ionic capital.


THE CORINTHIAN ORDER

Monumental StyleEarly, and subtle, examples of the

Corinthian capital can be seen on the

Choragic Monument of Lysicrates in Athens,

completed in 334 Be. Initially this style was

used primarily for interior columns. The ear

liest exam pIc of a Corinthian capital used asthe sole exterior column order is probably the

temple of Olympian Zeus in Athens, com

pleted in the second century BC. Perhaps the

grandest building of the Corinthian order isthe TClnple of Bacchus at Baalbek, Lebanon,until thc Classical revivals began.

The Corinthian was the last of the orders to be developed; it flourished during

the Hellenistic period (fourth to first centuries BC), and its lavish carving anddecoration became a hallmark of the Roman architecture that followed.

Scrolls and ScallopsAs with the other orders, the Ionic is

quickly identified by its capital,which curves into scrolls (or volutes)

at its edges to frame the top of thc

column. The column fluting is scal

loped at the top and bottom, and thearchitrave is slimmer than in the

Doric order. On the frieze, a band of

stone, often richly carved with fig-

lues, replaces the Doric metopes

and triglyphs. c'==

Ionia and BeyondThe Ionic order originated, and is most com

monly found, in the Greek cities of Ioniaislands and coast of Asia Minor, now western

Turkey). Invented around ,550 BC, it was per

fected in the early fifth century BC and

adopted on the Greek mainland later in the

same century. Some of its flnest examples arcin Athens, such as the Erechtheion, built inmarble between 421 and 406 BC.

STYLE FILE

Where and \I\lhen;

Turkey ancl Greece; from5th century Be.

Notable Features:Scrolled capitals;Scalloped fluting at topand base of colurnns;

Slimrner architraves;CarvE~dfriezes.

Major Influences:Ancient Greek buildings

in the Doric order.

THE IONICORDER


The Ionic order began about ,5,50Be. It has a lighter, more slender feel thanthe Doric, yet is often richly carved and decorated, and includes elaborate,

tiered bases for its columns (which are missing entirely from Doric columns),

took

at the

En:chtheioll, Lehieh is ))([1'1 or

the ill Athells

BELOW: lrJllie colllilms IlIlhe

ojAtllI;tlc Nike in Athens.

THE HAGIA SOPHIA

It "seems not to restupon solid masonry,to cover the spaceits golden dome suspended from heaven,marveled Procopiusof the new ChurChof Hagia Sophia. Built532-7 in Constantinople by the emperorJustinian, this famouschurch Cwhi\:hwas con,verted into a mosqueunder Ottoman rule)represents the Byzantine achievement at itsheight. So daring waSits design, however,that it twice collapsedand had to be rebuilt.The see todaywas completed in 1346,

AnOvE:lnerru,gniAc:enf

Hagia Sophia ("Holy Wisdom"),

whuse minarets were added

up on its CO<'11)/:JCsl'on

church to mosque.

The Dome from RomeThe great problem with any dome is that of

controlling the outward thrust of all that

unsupported weight. The use of' tapering tri

angular "pendentives" allowed this thrust to

be directed downward, The word "penden

tive" literally means "hanging," and such

structures Ieally do seem to be suspended inthe air. Vast loads could be distributed around

arched windows and held up by gigantic sup

ports, while still conve)ing an impression of

gravity-dehing grace.

Byzantine and Romanesque Architecture

The Basic BasilicaThe basic form for the Christian church was

taken over from that of the Roman basilica

the rectangular room in which a magistrate or

public flgure gave audiences, Long and open,with colonnaded aisles at either side, it

allowed large congregations to come together

and mingle freely. Another popular ground

plan was that of the Greek cross (in which

cach arm is equal). The obvious Christian

symbolism apart, this layout offered the ideal

basis for the building of impressive domes.

Body and SoulByzantine builders matched their Roman

predecessors in ambition and accomplish

ment. taking teehniques like the arch anddome to new levels of refinement. To the

massive monurnentalisrn of their forebears.

however, they added a new and paradoxical

dimension, creating impressions of quite

eerie ethereality. Typically, the Byzantine

structure appears squat and solid from tbe

outside; within, though, the impression is of

weightlessness and light. Another Roman

technique-that of mosaic-was used to

shimmering effect to give an extraordinarysense of spiritual transcendence.

(/ !I/O,Wjue

Whe"""",nd When:Constantinople(Istanbul, Turkey) andthe Byzantine Empire ineastern Mediterrqneanand Near East;c. AD 400-1453.

Mqjor Influences:Roman technologies;Christian spirituality.

BYZANTINE

STYLE FILE

Not",ble Fe",tures:Rounded arches;Domes;Interior' mosaics.


Unlike ancient Home, Constantinople was conceived as a Clllistian capital. ltsgreatest monnments were to be its churches. That bias can be overestimated

over time, religious sites would be spared, while secular buildings werecleared-but the pre-eminence of ecclesiastical architecture is still clear.

HIGHT: Ti,e j(rt/'iIJe Milseum.

}'.!imhlli, tJ/lill in the

eel/tllry (IS the Church

Sm:!ur Olltside the

Wall, (tJeCliIlSe

SANTIAGO DECOMPOSTELA

35

The tomb of the ApostleJames made this cathedral in Galicia, Spain,one of medievalChristendom's mostimportant places ofpilgrimage. Its imposingtunnel-like interiornlakes up in atmos"phere \Nhat it lacks indecorative ebullience;light streams sparinglyin through \Nindows sethigh above buttressingaisles. The blankness ofthe exterior" walls is broken up by ornamentalarches; the main portalsale riChly ornamentedwith sacred statuary.

BELOW: The tower in a

Hom.anesque city wall, Italy.

ABOVE: The Constantine church

oISan Lorenzo Ftwri Ie M/{Ta,

H01/{e (no


SimplicityHomanesquc architects were at their case with

rectangu lar forms, so the basilica plan

rernained popular for churches; columned

aisles and chapels could readily be added

around the sides. The result was frcquently

crucifCJrln, with perhaps a semicircular apse at

the eastern end for the main altar. Ceilings

wew carried by simple, semicircular arches, or

barrel vaulting. Towcrs tended toward stubbi

ness-construction techniques simply did not

allow for anything morc slender and tall.

A Virtue of NecessityThe Europe of the first millcnnium had losttouch with what should have been its inheri

tance of Classical learning-including thegreat manuals of Classical architecture.

Builders worked by trial and error, then, and

many of the features of the Homanesque style

reflect the practical steps they found toaccommodate thcse theoretical limitations.

The rounded arch, for example, had been

prized by the Romans on aesthetic grounds: it

was not an especially efficient way of bearing

loads. Hcnce the squat forms of so rnanyHomanesque structures, their massive, windowless walls and the ranks of thick-set

columns to be seen within. But architects of

the time understood clearly how to make

these limitations a source of strength:

Homanesque buildings seem imprcssive nowin their unity and restraint.

Giovmlld

Where "od When:Western Europe

(Carolingian Germany,France, northernItaly, and Spain).;c. WOOc1100.

Major.lnfluEloces:Romelh buildit'1gs,especii311ytheir arches.

ROMANESQUE


Hornanesque architecture takes its name from its use of the rounded arches so

popular \vith tbc Homans, but beyond tbat the similarity is superficial. European

architects in the tenth and eleventh centuries created their own distinctive style

of arcbitecture, prodllcing buildings of great dignity and simplicity.

and Paolo, Yenice,

BELOW: 'the

cfutrch

:35

New Possibilities

By the twelfth century, however, it was begin

ning to look as though the possibilities of

Romanesque architecture had been pretty

much exhausted. Fortunately, new tech

niques were opening up new opportunities

for design: the glories of the Gothic age were

just arounc! the corner.

buttressing, and though they gave the most

spacious interior a boxy, subdivided feel, they

gave Homanesque architecture a new flexibil

ity that had never before been seen. The but

tressing dIect of groin-vaulted side aislesallowed rnain walls to be less massive than

previously, allowing for the inclusion of

clerestory windows above the aisle roof. At

the elevcnth-century Abbey of Cluny,

France, the square bays were replaced at the

eastern-apse end by circular forms, but the

chapels still radiated outward from the cen

ter, giving the effect of a conical duster of"cells" like those of a beehive.


TRANSITIONAL TOURNAI

Belgium's TournaiCathedral was begunin 1146 and completedalmost two centurieslater, in 1325; thus, itsconstruction bridged theRomanesque period andthe high Gothic. Bothstyles are clearlyevident In the finishedbuilding. Tournai's cluster of towers, spectacular as they are, have allthe restraint of theRomanesque, as doesthe rounded apse andthe barrel vaulting ofthe nave. The wildexuberance of thetransepts and choir--both built in the Gothicperiod---serves toundmline the sobrietyof these sections.

BELOW: To/tmai Cathedml, in II

World War II

Increased Elaboration

Homanesque architecture was essentially aus

tere. The blankness of an external wall may

have bcen hroken up by the addition of a por

tico, or nonload-bearing arches or pilasters

Inay have been incorporated f(J]' decorative

effect. But the soaring spires and stainedglass windows of later Gotbic: architecture

were as yet unavailable: Hornanesejlle build

ings impress by virtuc of their simple dignity.

It was much the same story inside, though

new possibilities hac! been opened up by theuse of "groin vaults." Architects had learned

to intersect barrel vaults at right angles,

enclosing a square space known as a

\vhich became the basic unit of ground-plan

Groin vaults werc built to be nmtllally

Where and When:Thmughout the

area,architects in the

north (France andGermanv) were

the mo.st

STYLE FILE

c.1100·,·1250.

LATE ROMANESQUE

Mqjor Influences:Roman· architecture.

Notable Features:(iroin vaulting;Oen~s·tol-v windows;Increased use of(semi)circular floor plan.


In southern Europe-especially Italy-Roman ruins remained an ever-presentinf1uencc, and for a long time architects kept closely to established f()[ms.

Farther north, however, builders were increasingly emboldened by their Illas-

of' construction techniques and were setting their sights higher-literally.

115

ABOVE A~"IJ BELOW: The

Alhamhra Spain.

OPPOSITE: The Bano.\' de la

Encina castle was constructed

by the Moors in 986.

Islamic Architecture

Within and Without

Light, air, and space are all key to the appeal of

the Alhamlml, a felrtified palace complex on an

outcrop above Granada. vVith its delicately orna

mented stucco interior walls and ceilings, deco

rative screens, and ornate brickwork, this jL1Stly

celebrated monument is an architectnral show

case, but is perhaps most remarkable of all f(lr its

intimate courtyards and peaceful gardens. Space

was as important to the Islamic architect as the

solid walls and roofs that contained it; gardens

were conceived as symbolic earthly paradises.

and airiness is exhilarating and is only enhanced

by the abundant light that streams iu from so

many horseshoe-arched windows, set very high.

The Damascus of the West

AI-Andalus was the one part of the Istunic

empire in which the writ of the Abbasids never

ran: it remained an Umayyad hold-out fe)r sev

eral centuries, The C:rand Mosqne at Cordoba

was accOl:dingly modeled on that of Damascus,

thougb the Moorish masterpiece had a charac

ter all of its own. It occupied the site of an old

Visigothic church, mnch of whose masomy was

incOllJorated into the northwest corner-so its

"conversion" into a cathedral in 12:36 is an irony.

It remains distinctly different, thongh: ahove

columned aisles nse a riot of interlocking or

stacked-up horseshoe arches, often delicately

lobeel j(lr extra ornamental complexity; the alter

nating terra-cotta and crcam slabs of their sur

ronnels crcate a decorously festive rnooe!. The

is massivc-the third-largest rnosqnc

ever con.structed-but the stmctnre seems to

t10at weiglltlessly, borne lip by its slcnder

colnlllils and shapely arches. The scnsc of space

Major Influence.s:LJrnayyacl;Abbasid.

STYLE FILE

Notable Features:I-Iorseshoe clrches, oftenlobed and constructed'vvith polycr-wor1lepatterning;

Dorries;fVlosaics;

L..asting legacy a distinctrnozarabic influence onthe :;panish archib~ctule(even ec:cIE~sja5tjcal)oflater, Christian tjrrIE~s.

Where. and \I\Ihe.n:In late 8th imd 9th

Mour-ishillfluencc\ extended O\lE~r

rnuch b"f' Spain; thereafte~r incr-easinglyf.:rlE'd to' Arlclalusia untilthe: -13th" century.

MOORISH ARCHITECTURE

Islamic Architecture

Andalusia, sonthern was hOin the encl of the eighth century the stable, pros

perous-clild Islamie-kingdonl of al-Andalus, Under the Moors--Arab and

Berber invaders who had made the short crossing from north Africa-some of theworld's most beantifill monuments were built here:

81

The Renaissance and Beyond

Florence V5. VeniceA Florence dominated by the Medici family

may have led the way to the Renaissance in

Italy, hut the port city of Venice was not to

lag too far behind. A wealthy republic in its

own right, Venice had a trading network

extending far to the east, frorn where artisticinfluences were imported, along with materi

al commodities. The headline story of the art

and architecture of the Henaissance may be

the rediscovery of the Classical heritage, but

the impact of trade with the East (and, later,the Americas) was arguably as crucial.

lL DUOMO

Renaissance artists andscientists found in theClassical cc'xample a liberation from a medleva\mind set ;3chooled in5ub5erviE:nt~evensuper5tiboU5--~adherence to the authority ofthe Church. On the faceof it, Italian architectshad never abandonedt:heir Cla~;sical inheritance, but in truth theRornane:::;que vvas really"Rornan" only superficially. Not until FilippoBr"unelle::.,chi's greatOuomo, or cathedral, inFlorence (1420-36) dowe see triunlphantrecapturing of theF\Orrians' structuralengineering skills, andthe enterprising spirit ofthe etas';Ical builders.

ABOVE: Chdtem.t de CharnlJord

(1$19-47), Loire Valley, France.

Leonardo da Vinci is thought to

have been involved in its

BELOW: The domed Church of

Santa Maria di Loreto, Rome.

The Human Scale"Study good architecture," Leonardo da Vinci

urged the readcr hoping to attain expertisc in

art; the proportions of a fine bnilding, hc

had all the balance of the perfect human

body. The hnman f()nn was now accepted asthe nltimatc standard of beauty, jnst as the

hnman mind was regarded as the lllti mate

guarantee of truth. Humanism Ilourished firstin where wealthy f~lnlilies likc the

JVIridicis and the Borgias were lavishing

patronage on artists, architects, and scholars.

Their aim may have been self-glorification,

Lut they ended up glorifying humankind.Soon tbese new values were spreading, hrst

to France, and then to Germanv. thcthe British Isles,

eellfer

Notable Features:Classical :..::;tylE!s, includingdomes and arches;

HerrinS-db<?n(~ bdck\/vorkfor greater strc-,;ngth.

THE RENAISSANCE

STYLE FILE

J)lIorliO illAIlOVI':: Florellce; 13rllllelleschi:y

Major Influences:Roman ruins, still to beseen across Italy;

RediscovE-:n~c1wr"itings ofVitruvius and others.

l'Where and 'When:ItalY), sp.re.,adir'i9 to Franceand bEi,/ond; 15th·· 16thcentunes.

_~ ._. __ . __ . J

The Italian Renaissance of thehfteenth centm)' was underwritten byeconom

ic prosperity: trade flourished, increasing wealth while extending cultural hori

zons; the principles of modern banking were imported from the Islamic world.

i\rtistic patronage became a way of expressing the pride and prestige of a com

mnnity or private magnatc-and architecture was the most visible of the arts.

The RE:~nai55anceand Beyond

invast itsWay just as

The Two-in-One ChurchAndrea Palladio (1.508-80) was later to

become ;lssoeiated with an almost ostenta

tiously modest version of Neoclassicism (see

pages J :3S-39), but in his own day be wasFamed lor his Mannerist works, His 11

llederltUl!' church was built to thauk God f(lr

Venice's (Ieliverance from plague in 1.57.')-76,

but fOl' "II its pious intent, it has an air of

it, too, is two huildings in one, The

Ihst, seen across the water, is a luassive, squat

structure set ofT by its lofty campanile and

c101ninatcd by its dome; the second is defined

its elegant, Greek-templelike facades,


Commissioned by the city authorities, ABOVE: Palladio\ Il Hcdentore

Michelangelo laiel out the whole trapezoidal church, Venice

piazza as a "frame" lelr the ancient equestrianstatne of Marcus Aurelius, He did so with

astonishing success, thongh f(lr some this veryenlistment of architecture in the service of

sculpture may have underlined the feeling

that Mannerisln was about self-indulgence,

Over the Top?"Mannerism" was not necessarily a term of

approval: such self~eonseious virtuosity was

viewed with some suspicion, Michelangelo's

Piazza clel Campidoglio in HOIne was typical,

achievcd with breathtaking beauty and .iaw

dropping panache, but almost too brilliant in

its exeeution,vVhere a High Henaissancearchitect would bave worked to ensure that

everything looked exactly right, Michelangelo

courted the reaction tbat everything was

somehow perfect and yet slightly wrong, The

Museo Capitolino (left, in the picture

Ie))'exarnple, is a work of utterly accomplished

alld yet unsettling architectural ambiguity, Its

columns belong to a sing1c-

storied bnilding, whereas the tiered columns

between suggest a lnore compact creati(lIl,

Pia.::11

nOIll('

MANNERISM

Where-and When:Italy: c. 1S3Cl·90,

STYLE FILE

Major Influences:Crisis of confidence fol,

IO\Ning Charles V's sackof Rome in 1527;

Sense'that the aims ofthe Rfmaissance had allnow·been achieved.

Notable Features:Renaissance Classicalforms taken toextrernesof virtuosity;

Effects of exagger-ationand even inibaJance.

BI·:LOW:

riel

The Reriaissance and Bc=yonrl

Tbe word "mannerism" comesfi-Oln the Italian word 1!1aniera, "style" or "teeh

" It was first nsed in the mid-sixteenth century to refer to painters of a

younger generation who were starting to abandon their elders' (luiet, Classical

correctness fe)]'a more adventurously exhibitionistic style,


A surprisingly late irlVention, made as recentlyas the 14th century,the chimney stillseemed innovative inTudor times. The transition from a simple holein the roof to a verticalshaft that sucked upsmoke and Fumes,had changed horne lifeImmeasurably for thebetter. It is no surprise,then, that Tudor archItects should have madetheir chimney stackssuch a feature: elaborately curved, evencorkscreV\/ing constructions of patterned bnck.

85

CHIMNEYS

ABOVE: The Elizahethan-era

Ahhot Reginald:' Gatewa1j,

Evesham.

OPPOSITE: A Tudor house

in a historic, mral

in Wiltshire.


Nostalgic VirtuesIt's revealing that this style sho11ld have been

revived pages 188-89) for the "stock

broker Tlldor" of tvventieth-century suburbia;

even at their grandest, half~timbered build

ings had a cozy and intimate feel. These were

comparatively peaceful times, so the English

man's home uo longer had to be his castle:there was no defensive air, and where build

ings had once been alTayed round central

courtyards, more open (often E-shaped)

ground plans were now 11sed.

Function was never forgotten, though-in

fact, it was made a feature: the rough-cut

wood frame was invariably visible and gem:r

ally painted to contrast starkly with thc

walling in between. A style that's come to

symbolize "timeless" Englishness thus affords

intriguing comparisons with Postmodern

monuments like Paris's Pompidon Center

page 249), with its exoskeleton of pipesand ducts: both scorn to conceal their status

as artificial, built constructions.

Beauty in Black and WhiteThe system of construction known as haH~

timbering was actually of medieval origin,

but is generally held to have reached its high

point in Tudor England (148.5-1603), or,

Tnore specifically, the Elizabethan period

(Queen Elizabeth I, rcigned L5,58-16(),3).

Briefly, a timber framework was filled in withwhat is known as "wattle and daub"-a mesh

of interwoven reeds or twigs, eaulkcd with

mud and plaster, and whitewashed over. A

rough-and-ready method, it might be

thought, and yet in the late fHteenth and six

teenth centuries, this simple, yet effective,

buildi ng style was brought to an unprece

dented pitch of decorative creativity.

STYLE FILE

Major Influences:Medieval origins.

Where and When:A medieval method

refined in 16th- and17th-centul"Y England.

ENGLISH TUDOR

Notable Features:Timber framEeS,filled inwith and daub,generally painted incontrasting Colors.often black and white;

A "homespun" look;Proje!:tingupper stories;Thatched or tiled roofs.

'While the architects of the Renaissance and Baroque periods poured creative

energy into the of ever-more-astounding churches and palaces, house

building followcd its own, much quieter, course. Yet the well-designed horne

could, in its way, bc every bit as impressive as the grandest monument, as the

example of English Tudor architecture clearly shows.

PSYCHODRAMA

Lift up your eyes inRome's 17th-centurySan Ignacio Church,and instead of a ceiling,you see a host offigures streamingheavenward. Somethingof a craze in CounterReformation architecture, the trompe l'oeil("trick the eye") ceilingwas just one in a rangeof techniques used todisorient, dazzle, andgenerally bamboozle.On the one hand,"in-your-face" ornamentation, from gildedstatues to sweepingstaircases and spiralingcolumns; on the other,games of space withwall recesses and disappearing ceilings: all wascalculated to compelbelief in the shellshocked Vie\Ner.

89


Palaces and PropagandaSo rich an architectural mixture was far too

intoxicating to be left to the Church, The

Baroque style was quickly taken up in the sec

ular sphere. In France and central Europe,

where unpopular monarchies werc attempt

ing the same sort of ideological Fight-back as

the Catholic Cllllrch, Baroque palaces magni

fled the mystique of the ruling dynasties,

Though sometimes exuberantly ornamented,

exterior facades were often comparatively

restrained, though this beautiful simplicity

only heightened the shock and awe that

awaited the visitor within, Throughout the

latc seventeenth and early eighteenth cen

turies, the Baroque style continued to devel

op, with regional cliflerenees reflecting localtraditions and conditions.

An Aesthetic of AssaultThe architectural expression of the COUll ter

Reformation was the Baroque, a style that set

the symmetries of Renaissance Classicism oft

against the vvildest extravagances of ornamen

tation, Simple, barrel-vaulted ceilings were

transformed by spectacular paintings; florid

columns glowed in gold leaf and marble; plain

facades were bedecked with pilasters andornamental urns, ';\There the statues and

stained glass of the Gothic cathedrals had

offered scriptural instruction to the uneducated, these interiors ravished the senses and

took the soul by storm.

STYLE FILE

Meijor Influences:Renaissance Classical;

grovvth in dec-

driven by desire findarchitectural representation for a sense ofreligious (and latermonarchical) majestyand mystique.

Where and When :Italy,1

)gEngland, and

central Europe throughtrle1 7th and early 18th


THE BAROQUEIt was, perhaps, inevitable that Hcnaissance should lead to Hefonnation.

Protestantism placed the thinking individual at the very center of religiousfaith. What did CatholiCism, with its rules and hierarchies, have to ofler the

self-conscious, self-confIdent humanist? The Church launched a more

passionate, intensely experienced Catholicism in its Counter Reformation.

.RICIIT: The

(17.55-65, Anselmo Lllro.~,o.) ill

Prague:, Old 'llnell .'i1!'Wre.

Opposrn . AllOVI,: rhe IIweb!"

(,ollp,dioll of il/lcola Salvi:, Trevi

FOlllltain (17'J2-51) alld the

/f/(:ade Poli, BO/(Le.

detail


50 much seventy wouldhave been hard to bearhad it not been For thevery different Bar-oquespirit introduced intoSpain by Jose BonitoChurriguera ('16651725) and his followers.Churriguera's energetic,mesmerizingly ornate,yet at the same timedynamic and Fluid styleis now known a5 the"Churrigueresque. "Despite its narT18, itwould reach its zenithafter its originator'sdeath. in the mainFacade of MurciaCathedral (17305).

LEFT: The elaborate facade of a

Bal'Oqlle building in .Madrid.

OPPOSITE: The aus-tem

El Escorial

near ivfadrid,

by Juan de flerrem.BELOW: The almost Hococo

facacw of [vfurcia Cathedral.

This huilding is considered the

peak Churrigueresque

style of Spain~, "Colden Age"

CHEERFULCHURRIGUERA

97


almost aggressively plain in its design. Part

palace, part -Inonastery, part-mausoleum forhimself and for all the monarchs of Spain, this

vast monument was designed by Juan de

Herrera. Its beauty is chaste and intimidating;

the only COllcession that Herrera and the kingallowed thf:mselves was to arrange the COl11

pJex on a gridlike ground plan in honor of the

grid on which St. Lawrence was martyred.

The "Golden Age"Spain's discoveries and conquests in the

Americas brought a sixteenth· and seven··

teenth-century "Golden Age" (Siglo de Oro),

which corresponded with the Counter

Reformation and the Baroque. Spain's mon

archs took a leading role in promoting

CatholiCism and suppressing heresy, andthat purist fervor is evident in the art andarchitecture of the time.

As golden ages go, Spain's was a rcmarkably

austere, even gloomy, one: think of the paint

ings of EI Greco-despite their wild manner

ism, fundamentally simple-for example.

Philip II's great palace complex, San Lorenzo

dc EI Escorial (late sixteenth century), is

STYLE FILE

SPANISH BAROQUE

Where.and When:Spain; in "Golden Age"of 16th--1 7th centuries.

Major- Influences:Italian Baroque prinCiples,given a ne'vV slant andspecial impetus by thereligious fervor of theSpanish monarchy.

Notable Features:Austere movement

pioneered by Juande Herrera (1530-97):

More lavishly ornamented style introducedby Churrlguera.

By the seventeenth century, Spain already had a long and distinguished architec

tural It could boast some of Europe's oldest Homanesque architecture,

as well as great Gothic cathedrals like Burgos, Toledo, and Leon. The great

Islamic monmnents of al-Andalus page 44) were also pmt of its heritage,

even if they were preserved mainly for the propagandistic purpose of underscor

ing the success of the Cluistian reconqldsl;a ("reconquest") of the conntiy.

Architecture Styles - LANDMARK WEST · in Washington. DC, Classical features Roman dome anel arches...

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