1. POLITEKNIK SULTAN IDRIS SHAH
Architecture Unit, Department of Civil Engineering
C 2329
History of
Modern
Architecture
Lecture 02:
Modernism
• modern classicism
• expressionism
• cubism
• futurism
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3. POLITEKNIK SULTAN IDRIS SHAH
Architecture Unit, Department of Civil Engineering C 2329 History of Modern Architecture
A.E.G High Tension Factory,
Berlin,German 1910
Factory, Modern Classicism
Peter Behrens
• "Turbinen Fabrik A.E.G." .
• "three-pin arch" steel frame.
• glass and steel with masonry
• dry and powerful style, free of historic
influences
• utilize new materials was a key factor
Peter Behrens
Peter Behrens was born in
Hamburg in 1868. Originally
trained as a painter,
Behrens eventually
abandoned painting in
favor of graphic and
applied arts. Behren can be
considered a key figure in
the transition from Jugendstil
(art Nouveau) to Industrial
Classicism. He played a
central role in the evolution
of German Modernism.
MODERNISM : MODERN CLASSICISM Prepared by SKA

4. POLITEKNIK SULTAN IDRIS SHAH
Architecture Unit, Department of Civil Engineering C 2329 History of Modern Architecture
Notre Dame du Raincy 1922
Church, Modern Classicism
Auguste Perret
• Reinforced
concrete
• shallow concrete
vaulted ceilings
• gossamer window
walls
Auguste Perret was born in Ixelles, Belgium in 1874.Perret created an architecture
that effectively blended modern theories with Gothic forms. In contrast to most
modern theorists, Perret showed a concern for detail and texture. He established
a connection between natural forms, classical symmetry and order, and the
structural system of concrete.
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5. POLITEKNIK SULTAN IDRIS SHAH
Architecture Unit, Department of Civil Engineering C 2329 History of Modern Architecture
Einstein Tower 1919
Laboratory, astronomical observatory
Erich Mendelsohn
• Bearing Masonry, concrete over brick
• curvaceous, streamlined form
• aggressive and massive forms
Erich Mendelsohn was born in Allenstein, East Prussia (now Poland) in 1887. These early experiences
generated a personal philosophy of "Dynamism" that demonstrated an attitude that was both
expressionistic and personal in nature. Mendelsohn used no historical precedents in formulating his
designs. As a result, his early buildings avoid the eclectic borrowing that mark so many of his
contemporaries. Indeed, his architectural ideas were derived from expressionistic sketches and
romantic symbolism.
MODERNISM : EXPRESSIONISM Prepared by SKA

6. POLITEKNIK SULTAN IDRIS SHAH
Architecture Unit, Department of Civil Engineering C 2329 History of Modern Architecture
FUTURISM 1914-15
(Unbuilt buildings) electric power station,
Monumental building
Antonio Sant’Elia
Futurist architecture began in the early-20th century, characterized by anti-historicism and long
horizontal lines suggesting speed, motion and urgency. Technology and even violence were among
the themes of the Futurists. The movement was founded by the poet Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, who
produced its first manifesto, the Manifesto of Futurism in 1909. The movement attracted a number of
architects. Among the latter there was Antonio Sant'Elia, who, though he built little (being killed in WWI),
translated the Futurist vision into bold urban form. The unbuilt designs and theories of would go on to
influence both the Constructivists and a branch of Italian Fascist architecture.
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7. POLITEKNIK SULTAN IDRIS SHAH
Architecture Unit, Department of Civil Engineering C 2329 History of Modern Architecture
CUBISM 1912-15
Czech Cubism Museum
Josef Gocar
• the only truly cubist buildings were those
designed in Czechoslovakia by a few
bohemian artists.
A direct link between Cubist Art and Cubist Architecture does not exist. However both share the same
characteristic of dealing with geometrical shapes and forms. Often Cubist Artists painted abstract
objects, as dissected geometrical shapes. Often buildings, based on Cubist principles, are designed as
geometrical interlocking shapes or quite simply as a single geometrical shape.
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