Contemporary Building - International Style + Modernism Contemporary Architecture - what do this term mean? e-architect			World Architecture : index Architecture News World Buildings
Zeitgeist : Contemporary Buildings
This site focuses on contemporary buildings around the world. However, a basic understanding of what ‘contemporary’ often denotes is useful. Certainly within the field of architecture ‘contemporary’ denotes not just new or modern by age (ie by default) but something deliberately of our time. The phrase ‘zeitgeist’ is often used to describe something which - as the German translation suggests – is truly ‘of our time’, that is in the spirit of the time. To take an example, Le Corbusier would consider his main body of buildings (middle period anyway, around the thirties) to reflect the times in the same way the planes and cars did, but other architects’ contemporaneous buildings - in say the Classical style – to not be ‘contemporary’. Thus contemporary buildings should exude the nature of the time in which they are built and not use past styles or typographies. In fact many current buildings reuse Modern typographies ie stylistic devices from the International Style. Let’s be bold and suggest some: Allan Murray’s A1, A2 and G1 buildings at Edinburgh Park all use simple forms; they all use flat planes of white render; glazing wraps around corners; fenestration is often fabricated from black mouldings akin to Le Corbusier’s fenetre longeur. Thus these buildings from the turn of the 21st century are (loosely) described by some commentators as being contemporary buildings whereas in fact they are more accurately described as current buildings (though this becomes weaker every year that passes) or neo-Modern buildings. ‘Contemporary Buildings' suggests forms and spaces that are anti-vernacular, comfortable with new materials and non-local materials & forms, using architectural language that is not generally steeped in past typographies or traditions. Contemporary Architects - Definition Summary Modern Houses World Architecture - City Guides: Barcelona Architecture Cambridge Architecture Copenhagen Architecture Edinburgh Architecture Glasgow Architecture Hong Kong Architecture New York Architecture Paris Architecture Contemporary Buildings: Featured Architects: Santiago Calatrava David Chipperfield Terry Farrell Foster & Partners Future Systems Frank Gehry Zaha Hadid Michael Hopkins Toyo Ito Rem Koolhaas Henning Larsen Daniel Libeskind MVRDV Rennie Mackintosh Richard Meier Enric Miralles Jean Nouvel Renzo Piano Richard Rogers Moshe Safdie New Houses Office Buildings University Buildings Museum Buildings World Architecture : e-architect - a guide to key buildings across the globe Comments / photos for the Contemporary Buildings page welcome: info@e-architect.co.uk Contemporary Buildings - page: adrian welch / isabelle lomholt			Key Links: Contemporary Housing Contemporary Building Books Architects Contemporary Interiors