In 1884, Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí began work on La Sagrada Família (the Expiratory Church of the Holy Family,) a Catholic cathedral in Barcelona, Spain. What began as a modest Gothic Revival design by fellow architect Francisco de Paula del Villar transformed, under Gaudi’s direction, into a massive monument to Catholicism, Catalonia, and the city of Barcelona. Neither of the Gothic tradition nor Catalan Modernisme, La Sagrada Familia is known for its striking individuality at the turn of the twentieth century. as well as its enormous scale and plethora of motifs. While many people abhore the intense decoration and towering height, (people have obviously also thought it worthwhile because the building is still under meticulous construction to this very day and completion is anticipated in 2020, marking 140 years of construction.) Gaudi did not mind that the construction would last beyond his death because, when given the extent of his efforts, La Sagrada Familia became a vessel through which Gaudi could finally build to fruition the architectural conceptions he had been developing with previous projects. Throughout his career , Gaudi strove to imbue his architecture with a sense of life, and he was able to do this through geometry. [1] Meticulous calculations allowed Gaudi to translate this inspiration into architectural experiences. La Sagrada Familia was [Gaudi’s opportunity to literally build an illustration of the intimate connection he felt between nature and
Religion has played a huge role in the history of the world of architecture. We can get a deeper look in the minds and attitudes of people when we look at their beliefs – specifically their religion. But even though religion played a huge role in the approach to architecture, the pursuit of beauty and power can also explain to us the approaches and the outlooks of those who built or designed buildings from the ancient world.
Church of the Holy Sepulchre is also known as the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre and the Church of the Resurrection (Orthodox Christians). Originally identified as being outside the settlement of Calvary, it is located in the Old City of Jerusalem, Israel and is considered one of the holiest sites in the world, as well as being a central destination for Christian pilgrims. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre was originally built by the Roman Emperor Constantine (272-337) in 330 CE upon the site of a Roman temple. It has since been controlled by Arab rulers, reclaimed by Christian crusaders, repeatedly ruined by fires and conquests, and long been subject to regional religious and political tensions. The Holy Sepulchre is a central Church in
The painting The Holy Family with Saints Anne and John the Baptist, 1592 (oil on canvas) was created by Italian painter Sofonisba Anguissola (c.1532-1625). It is currently held at the Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami, as a gift from Mrs. Forbes Hawkes and Bridgeman Images. This painting is among the unique pious narrative paintings by Anguissola. “The Holy Family” is the last dated painting by the artist. It was executed when she had just returned to Italy after spending 14 years working for King Philip II at the Spanish court. By this time, she had already married to a Genoese ship captain. Her various visits to court and her personal contacts with great painter at that time largely inspired herself. Through these contacts, she successfully stayed in touch with current developments in art. By closely observing this masterpiece, I argue that the artist perfectly sustain the beauty of counter-reformation arts in her work by use of light and shadow, delicate brushwork and accurate proportions of each subjects.
On the fifth of February, I went to my church, Villa Rica Christian Church. In my church, there is a nursery for kids ranging from birth to two. The first toy was a rectangular box that has shaped holes on the lid. On the lid, there are four shapes—triangle, square, star, and circle. The second toy, is a panel with four different popups of Sesame Street characters. To trigger the popup, a kid has to either turn, press, or push a button. The third toy is a child-like abacus with five rows of beads that vary by colors—red, yellow, blue, green, and orange.
In this essay, I will not only be discussing at the connections between Renaissance architecture and cosmology as well as music, but also the what Renaissance architecture is and how it played a key part in architectural design today. The Renaissance period took place during the early 15th century to early 17th century, the age of Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael. Architects of the time took inspiration from classical Roman architecture. This means it is an analysis of architecture in the ancient world, especially ancient Greece and Rome. What the Renaissance learnt from the Romans has how they used the space, looked at the form and had somewhat accurate measurements. And so, they copied elements and modified it, for example, many columns having a slightly intruded appearance on walls to give decoration to the building. They loved looking at the design and proportions and the mainly thrived in Italy during the early semester. It wasn’t until the latter years where Renaissance architecture started to spread throughout Europe, where many architects were fading from the gothic style previously used. However, large numbers of buildings incorporated a mixture of Renaissance and Gothic styles. A famous building built during the Renaissance period is St Peter’s Basilica, made in Rome, which was designed by many
Architecture is often mistaken as purely an art form, when in actually it is where art and engineering or art and practicality meet. For example, painting is an art, when preformed well it yields a beautiful picture that evokes a deep human reaction and brings pleasure to its viewer, however this painting provides no function, it cannot shield us from the rain or protect us from the wind or snow, it is purely form. An insulated aluminum shed provides shelter and protection from Mother Nature; however, it is a purely functional building, it was drawn by an engineer, not conceived by an artist to have form. The culmination of form and function is Architecture, the Greeks and Romans fathered this idea and Palladio’s study of roman architecture taught him his valuable truth.
Many decades’ architects have failed to seal the enormous hole in the roof of the great Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore. In 1418, the city Fathers announced a contest for the idea dome design; a promise of gold and eternal fame was granted for anyone who is able to construct it. A goldsmith, Filippo Brunelleschi won the contest by proposing his design of “double dome” to the Fathers.
Different architects have different styles because they are trying to get at different things. Architecture is not just about making something beautiful anymore, it is about trying to get across a set of ideas about how we inhabit space. Two of the most famous architects of the twentieth century, one from each side, the early part and the later part up until today each designed a museum with money donated by the Guggenheim foundation. One of these is in New York City, it was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. The other is in bilbao, Spain, and it was designed by Frank Geary. My purpose of this paper is to interrogate each of these buildings, glorious for different reasons, to show how each architect was expressing their own style.
Antoni Gaudi was a Catalan architect from Spain who lived from 1852-1826 and was the master of Catalan Modernism. Most of Gaudi’s work was marked by his 3 passions of life; religion, nature and architecture. His works show various unique styles that he attained through researching natural forms and employing them in his buildings while studying every detail of his creations, assimilating into his design every innovative design solution. He was influenced by Neo-Gothic art and became a main part of the Modernisme movement, even though his works transcended the design of mainstream Modernisme. He used organic styles inspired by forms he found in nature and rarely drew plans, instead much preferring to use models and 3D moulding. His works
All over the world, people still come to admire the beauty of European cathedrals. Many of the cathedrals are fragile due to age, neglect, pollution, and insufficient funds available to restore these historical and magnificent buildings. Nevertheless, visitors to these architectural masterpieces are fascinated by the design and structure of these churches. The cathedral builders using their own ingenuity, expertise, and limited resources were able to defy the laws of gravity and time. (Icher 30)
Gropius traces the growth of the New Architecture and the work of the now well-known Bauhaus, with accuracy, calls for a new artist and architect educated to new materials and approaches as well as meeting the requirements of the age. It is also mentioned in The New Architecture and the Bauhaus that the intention of the Bauhaus was not to reproduce any “style”, system or belief, but simply to exert a revitalizing impact on design. Even though the outward forms of the New Architecture differ primarily in an organic sense from the old, it is the inevitable logical product of the intellectual, social and technical conditions of our age. A gap has been made with the past, allowing us to face a new aspect of architecture corresponding to the technical civilization of the age we live in. The analysis of the dead styles has been destroyed. Furthermore, the new building throws open the walls like curtains to allow an abundance of fresh air, daylight and sunshine. Instead of securing the building ponderously into the ground, it poises them lightly, yet firmly at the same
At first sight the Sagrada Família is awe inspiring and breath taking and with this has become recognized as the universal symbol for Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain's capital city, and is unmistakably one of the most magnificent structures ever erected in this region. Spain is embedded with cultural tradition and it is believed its rich history is traced back somewhere within four hundred years of when Rome was established. Thus, setting forth the foundation and importance of history and the conviction of this culture to wrap their hearts around the place that has become what Barcelona is recognized for. The Sagrada Família's design was perfected by Antoni Gaudi, an architect, who was innovative and forward thinking in his creations and who
This majestic cathedral decorated the land of Paris, dominating both the history of architecture as well as religion history. The cathedral still stands proudly after enduring an eventful history over many centuries. Truly a fascinating historic building to behold, ‘Our Lady of Paris’, another term for Notre-Dame of Paris, portrays many diversified characteristics which will help identify a structure as Gothic. One may lay eyes upon this building and refer it to one of Gothic’s grand structure. For many, their first concept of Gothic architecture derives from some reference to this majestic construction. In this research, I shall consider the following questions as an approach to appreciate and comprehend Notre Dame de Paris’s architectural aesthetic and value better:
Although it does resemble Gothic architecture, it does so in a unique way that is characteristic of the architect Antoni Gaudi (The Sagrada Familia). However, Gaudi’s masterpiece does not follow the definition of Gothic style architecture. “This new architecture, based on the precision of geometry, can be effectively adapted to the new graphic and building technologies. As a consequence, the quality of the works in the Sagrada Familia increases clearly as the construction processes technology is improved. This project is therefore advanced for its time and is also very suitable to the technologies of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries” (Aguado et al., 94). Gaudi believes that the inside of La Sagrada Familia should be left strictly for worship and the outside should tell the story of the Catholic faith. The story that Gaudi wishes to portray can be told by the towers, the east entrance, and the west entrance, which all resemble different aspects of the life of Jesus Christ. This is uncharacteristic of Gothic style cathedrals and basilicas because there are usually small chapels inside the church that explain the stories that relate to Catholicism. Gaudi also has a unique style of architecture that uses geometry to create pillars, columns, arches, as well as allow more light to enter his Gothic style building that had never been seen before. His unique take on the Gothic style was
The crowning jewel of Mannerist Architecture is Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome. This great structure is the out come of a series of classical revival styles that were established and developed during this course in history. This was a time where famous architects like Brunelleschi and Michelangelo were pushing boundaries and testing new waters. Architecture of the time was seeking to express the culture and religion through evermore ornamented and magnificent