U N I T 3 THE MASTERS OF MODERN ARCHITECTURE Last century saw dramatic changes and an astonishing diversity in architecture, although the exact characteristics and origins of modern architecture are still open to interpretation and debate. This Unit deals with the most important trends of the first half of the 20th century and introduces the most famous architects of the period. A. FROM 1900 TO 1970 Many architectural historians see modern architecture as based mainly on technological and engineering developments and the availability of new building materials, such as iron, steel and glass, which led to the invention of new building techniques. Other historians consider modern architecture a matter of taste, a reaction against the eclecticism and stylistic excesses of the Victorian Age and Art Nouveau. Whatever the origins, at the beginning of the 20th century several architects around the world began developing new architectural solutions to integrate traditional models and the new technological possibilities. The works of Louis Sullivan in Chicago, Victor Horta in Brussels, Antoni Gaudi in Barcelona, Otto Wagner in Vienna, among many others, can be seen as a common struggle between old and new. By the 1920s, the most important figures in modern architecture had established their reputations. The Big Four are commonly recognized as Walter Gropius and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in Germany, Le Corbusier in France and Frank Lloyd Wright in the USA. Modern architecture is usually characterized by the principle that materials and functional needs determine the result, by an emphasis of horizontal and vertical lines and the creation of ornament using the structure of the building. Also the simplification of form and elimination of unnecessary details and the concept that form follows function . In 1932, the International Exhibition of Modern Architecture, which took place at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York, introduced an emerging architectural style characterized by simplified geometry and lack of ornamentation and called it the International Style. While the International Style never became a dominant style in residential buildings, in institutional and commercial architecture, it became the only acceptable design solution from about 1932 to mid 70s. The most commonly used materials were glass for the fa ade, steel for exterior support, and concrete for the floors and interior supports. The style became most evident in the design of skyscrapers. Perhaps its most famous buildings include the United Nations Headquarters (Le Corbusier, Oscar Niemeyer, Wallace K. Harrison) and the Seagram Building (Ludwig Mies van der Rohe), both in New York City. During the middle of the century, some architects began experimenting in organic forms that they felt were more accessible. Oscar Niemeyer, Alvar Aalto and Eero Saarinen were three of the most prolific architects and designers in this movement called Organic Modernism , which has influenced contemporary modernism. GLOSSARY availability: something that is easily obtainable dominant: principal 134 matter: a task or a situation you have to deal with to struggle to: fight trend: a new development, tendency