The term "modern movement" refers to the architecture that developed in the United States and Europe during the world wars. The main characters of this movement were architects and engineers who wanted to distance themselves from academic styles, drawing inspiration from modernity (although they later rejected its decorative aspect).
Important was the so-called Chicago School, which made a decisive contribution to the development of a new typology of skyscrapers operating in a city such as Chicago, which in 1897 was almost wiped out by a fire on the face of the earth and for this reason had to be restored in a short time using fire-resistant materials such as concrete and steel. At the base of the building was a self-supporting steel frame consisting of beams and columns, which made it possible to reach a considerable height.
Two fundamental currents have developed in the modern movement: Rationalism (Le Corbusier) and Organic Architecture (Wright).
Rationalism aimed at achieving maximum essence and functionality, the desire to use materials in close connection with industrial production, the rejection of any decorative element and is characterized by a strong social and political will (it involves the construction of economic and functional housing, allowing even poorer segments of the population to live in decent conditions).
Ornamentation and criminality is the text of Adolf Loos, one of the greatest advocates of the abolition of ornamentation. He argued that architecture should be returned to principles of exceptional practical value, thus eliminating all unnecessary aspects such as decorations. This attitude is evident in his works, such as the Steiner House in Vienna, which is considered the emblem of 20th century architecture beyond the extreme simplicity of its facades.
Le Corbusier was one of the greatest architects of the 20th century. During his studies he travelled extensively and was fascinated by Greek architecture, in particular the Parthenon, which he considered to be a fundamental model of essence, measures and proportions, fundamental characteristics in the search for beauty. The fundamental characteristics of his architecture are the modular construction of reinforced concrete and the use of industrial processes.
In 1926 he published an essay in which there were five points for a new architecture:
- pilots, pylons that allow the house to be lifted off the ground;
- A roof garden that brings nature into the house;
- free plan
- free facade
- the ribbon window continues.
In 1919, Gropius founded the Bauhaus ("building house") in Weimar, bringing together the School of Craftsmanship and the School of Art, with the aim of abolishing the distinction between individual arts and creating a class of professionals capable of producing the highest quality products. It was a world art school, where practical classes were held in parallel with theoretical classes, which were boasted by teachers of Kandia and Klee calibre. In 1924, the headquarters in Weimar was forced to close because of the reduction in education that the Nazi government imposed in order to boycott schools. The following year, Bauhaus moved to Dessau, where, two years later, a new headquarters was built, the project of which was implemented by Gropius himself and is characterized by strong compositional clarity, with each function corresponding to its own body adapted to its use. Thus, the complex consists of five autonomous units, which, however, are coordinated in a single coherent form.
The Bauhaus is considered to be one of the symbolic buildings of modern architecture and is built according to criteria of the highest rationality and essence. The project also had a clear ethical matrix: to offer the best structures for educational activities to fully prepare students.
Frank Lloyd Wright is considered to be the father of organic architecture, whose name is linked to the concept of the need for a harmonious relationship between parts and the whole, between the building and the environment in which it is located.
Wright set out in six points the principles that architecture must respect:
- simplicity;
- the need for as many building styles as human ones;
- a harmonious relationship between the building and the environment;
- Choice of colours in harmony with the landscape;
- improvement of materials in their natural aspect
- the need for the spiritual integrity of the building, which should have had qualities similar to those of a human being, to ensure its durability.
In Wright's view, buildings are comparable to living beings and should therefore fit harmoniously into the environment in which they are built.
The theme of integrating architecture with the landscape is fundamental in all Wright's works, and even when he had to deal with the theme of cities, he adopted a strictly anti-urbanist attitude; an example of this is the ideal city that he designed, Broadacre City. This a large city "scattered" over the territory, so that every family could have a house with a piece of land.