What is architecture: definition, styles, history, examples. Architectural monuments

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

We live in the 21st century and do not think that the buildings, monuments and structures around us are built according to architectural designs. If cities have a centuries-old past, their architecture preserves the era and style of those distant years when temples, palaces and other structures were built. Definitely, everyone can say what architecture is. This is all that surrounds us. And, in part, he will be right. We will talk about architecture in more detail in the article.

About architecture

And yet, how comprehensive is the meaning of the word architecture? There is an opinion of some people that architecture is the construction of buildings, and the architect is the one who builds these buildings, that is, a simple builder. True, a layman who does not understand anything in art can argue like that. In fact, the answer to the question of what architecture is is that it is primarily the art of constructing buildings. An architect, like an artist or a composer, creates masterpieces by putting his ownsoul.

The most famous architects whose names the whole world knows: Leonardo Da Vinci, Michelangelo Buonarroti, Bartolomeo Rastrelli, Rafael Santi, Konstantin Melnikov, Alexei Shchusev, Alvar A alto. The modern understanding of architecture is the unique art of building design and layout to create a spatial environment for human life.

Ancient architecture

Historically counted from the architecture of Ancient Egypt. A characteristic feature in the construction of buildings is the slope of the walls, characteristic of residential buildings. The tombs, the necropolis, the pyramid of Cheops and the Columns are all Egyptian architectural monuments.

Pyramids are the most recognizable symbol of ancient Egypt, despite the fact that other civilizations such as the Maya or the Chinese also used this shape. The pyramids at Giza remain imposing monuments thousands of years after they were built. However, the pyramids are not the pinnacle of the architecture of Ancient Egypt, they only give an understanding of what it was like and what the architecture of those times was.

An important role was played in the development of architecture by Ancient Greece. Historians refer to the main buildings of the Acropolis of Athens with the temples included in it: the Parthenon, Apteros and the Erechtheion.

Greek architects created some of the best buildings in the entire ancient world, and some of their structures, such as temples, theaters and stadiums, have become an integral part of cities. The ancient Greeks are rightly known for their magnificent Doric and Ionic temples that have gone down in history.architecture. An example is the Temple of Athena. It was built in the middle of the 5th century BC to house a giant statue of Athena and advertise the glory of Athens to the world. She still stands majestically on the acropolis of the city.

Roman architecture continued the legacy left by the earlier architects of the Greek world. The Romans expressed special reverence for the established architectural monuments. However, they were great innovators and quickly mastered new construction methods, using new materials and uniquely combining existing technologies with creative design. Thanks to this, they created a number of new architectural structures: a basilica, a triumphal arch, a monumental aqueduct, an amphitheater, and granaries. Ancient Roman architecture is known to history for its structures based on beams, arches, vaults and domes.

The relationship between architecture and art

The history of architecture has been intertwined with art for centuries. This is confirmed by the following reasons.

1. Many religious buildings have been designed with aesthetics in mind as well as functionality. They were created to inspire as well as serve a public function. As a result, they included the services of a wide range of artists and decorative craftsmen, as well as laborers.

2. In many of these buildings, the exteriors and interiors were:

   as showcases for fine art (Sistine Chapel); frieze and relief sculpture (Parthenon, European Gothic cathedrals);stained glass art (Chartres Cathedral); mosaics and metal structures.

3. The architecture of buildings, as a rule, was combined with the development of visual arts and was reflected in the corresponding styles of the Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo, Neoclassicism.

Architecture styles

The legacy left behind by architects of all time around the world can sometimes be difficult to understand. Let us dwell on the fact that the style is characterized by features that make a building or other structure noticeable, and historically identifiable. What are the features? These may include elements such as form, construction method, building materials, and regional character. That is why the architecture of buildings can be classified as a chronology of styles.

Based on this, it can also be assumed that several styles could be fashionable in different countries, and their change occurred gradually. They could go out of fashion, and, sometimes, returned in new interpretations. For example, classicism has been revived many times and found new life as neoclassicism. Each time he was revived, there were noticeable differences.

Gothic Features

The term Gothic means a style of architecture and art. It was introduced during the Renaissance as a derogatory designation for all the architectural art of the Middle Ages. It was considered truly "barbaric", destroying the classical art of antiquity.

The main feature of Gothic architecture is the pointedarch, according to many experts, originated in Assyrian and then Islamic architecture. This pointedness directed the weight of the ceiling onto the supporting piers or columns at a much steeper angle than previously possible with Romanesque rounded arches.

This allowed the architects to raise the vaults much higher and thus give the impression of reaching the sky. Instead of massive thick walls, small windows and drab interiors, the new buildings of Gothic architecture featured thin walls often supported by flying buttresses (protruding portions of a wall) and huge stained glass windows, exemplified by the Sainte-Chapelle (1241-48) in Paris.

The spread of the Gothic style

The building that marks the true start of the Gothic era was the abbey church of Saint-Denis, near Paris. Although pointed arches and columnar clusters had only been used before in Saint-Denis, these features came together and the building became a kind of prototype for more churches and cathedrals in the region known as the Île-de-France. Over time, the Gothic style spread throughout France, England, Germany, Spain and Italy.

The architectural heritage of the Gothic are palaces, castles, municipal town halls, guilds, abbeys and universities. This style best illustrates gothic cathedrals:

• In northern France: Notre Dame Cathedral (1163-1345); Reims Cathedral (1211-1275); Chartres Cathedral (1194-1250); Amiens Cathedral (1220-1270).
• In Germany:Cologne Cathedral (1248-1880).
• In Austria: St. Stephen's Cathedral Vienna.
• In Spain: the cathedrals of Burgos, Toledo and Leon.
• In England: Westminster Abbey and cathedrals: Salisbury, Exeter, Winchester, Canterbury and Lincoln.

Features of the Baroque

At the beginning of the 16th century, a new style direction appeared, the name of which is baroque (Italian barocco, lit. - strange, bizarre).

The Baroque style of architecture can be seen as more intricate, detailed and more ornamental in the Renaissance. More swirls, more complex manipulations of light, color, texture and perspective. If we talk about cathedrals, then on their outer side there are more prominent facades, domes, columns, sculptures and other decorations. On the inside, the floor plans were more varied, with frescoed ceilings.

Baroque is an emotional style that makes full use of the theatrical potential of the urban landscape. An example of this is St. Peter's Square (1656-67) in Rome, in front of the domed St. Peter's Basilica. As they approach the cathedral, visitors are given the impression that they are embraced by the arms of the Catholic Church, which causes a feeling of awe.

Spread of Baroque in Europe

In general, baroque architecture is part of the struggle for religious supremacy, the hearts and minds of admirers across Europe. On a political level, this style of architecture was used to support the absolutism of reigning monarchs such as the kingLouis XIV of France. From Italy, the Baroque spread to the rest of Europe, especially to the Catholic countries, where each of them, as a rule, developed its own interpretation.

In England, the leader of the Baroque style was Sir John Vanbrug (1664-1726), designer of Blenheim Palace. The German baroque spread to Poland, the B altic countries and eventually to Russia. It bore a significant resemblance to the Italian Baroque, with the addition of an even greater tendency towards exuberant decoration, especially of the interior. It also differed from the Italian forms in that it eschewed harsh contrasts of light and dark in favor of a more diffuse and serene luminosity.

Baroque in Russia

In Russia, Bartolomeo Rastrelli (1700-1771) was mainly responsible for the style known as the Russian Baroque, but which included elements of both early neoclassical architecture and rococo.

Rastrelli designed the Winter Palace (1754-1762), the Smolny Cathedral (1748-1757) in St. Petersburg and remodeled the Catherine Palace outside the city. A lot of buildings have survived to this day, allowing us to draw conclusions about what architecture and architecture was like in Russia in the 17th-18th centuries. This is Golitsyn's house in Moscow, the stone Pogankin chambers in Pskov.

Baroque in France

French architects, like artists, saw themselves as professionals dedicated to serving and glorifying their king. They developed a baroque style that was more restrained than the Italian one: the ground plans were less complex and the façades more austere, with more respect for the details and proportions of traditionalarchitectural orders.

The greatest achievement of the French Baroque is the Palace of Versailles, built for Louis XIV outside of Paris: a huge U-shaped mass with two long wings, almost undisturbed by small low arcades on the main façade overlooking the garden.

Rococo architecture

During the reign of King Louis XV of France, a more ornate, playful style of architecture emerges, the definition of which is rococo. Unlike other major architectural movements such as Romanesque, Gothic, or Baroque, Rococo is all about interior design. It originated and remained in France, where we althy nobles were unwilling to rebuild houses and castles, preferring instead to rebuild their interiors. As a result, Rococo architects are essentially interior designers. They limited themselves to the creation of carefully decorated rooms with beautiful plaster, frescoes, tapestries, furniture, mirrors, porcelain, silks.

Rococo style in Europe

While sophisticated baroque architecture was found in France, Italy, England, Spain and South America, the softer styles of rococo found their admirers in Germany, Austria, Eastern Europe and Russia. Although Rococo was mostly limited to interior decor and decorative arts in Western Europe, Eastern Europe was carried away by Rococo styles both inside and out. Compared to Baroque, by definition, Rococo architecture tends to be softer and more graceful. Colors are pale and curvilinear shapes predominate. Catholic Germany,Bohemia and Austria easily adopted the Rococo style, combining it with the German Baroque. Fluffy stucco interiors were popular in Turin, Venice, Naples and Sicily.

Rococo in Russia

Catherine I, Empress of Russia from 1725 until her death in 1727, was one of the great female rulers of the 18th century. An example of Rococo architecture is the palace near St. Petersburg, named after her - the Catherine Palace (pictured below).

Its construction was started in 1717 by her husband Peter the Great. By 1756 it had been expanded specifically to rival Versailles in France. It is said that Catherine the Great, Empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796, greatly disapproved of the extravagance of the Rococo.

Summarizing the above, we can answer the question, what is architecture. This is what makes you wonder and discover new facets, seeing the creations of architects, their masterpieces. Architecture is music in stone.