Portal:Architecture
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Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings or other structures. The term comes from Latin architectura; from Ancient Greek ἀρχιτέκτων (arkhitéktōn) 'architect'; from ἀρχι- (arkhi-) 'chief' and τέκτων (téktōn) 'creator'. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural symbols and as works of art. Historical civilisations are often identified with their surviving architectural achievements.
Architecture began as rural, oral vernacular architecture that developed from trial and error to successful replication. Ancient urban architecture was preoccupied with building religious structures and buildings symbolizing the political power of rulers until Greek and Roman architecture shifted focus to civic virtues. Indian and Chinese architecture influenced forms all over Asia and Buddhist architecture in particular took diverse local flavors. During the Middle Ages, pan-European styles of Romanesque and Gothic cathedrals and abbeys emerged while the Renaissance favored Classical forms implemented by architects known by name. Later, the roles of architects and engineers became separated.
Modern architecture began after World War I as an avant-garde movement that sought to develop a completely new style appropriate for a new post-war social and economic order focused on meeting the needs of the middle and working classes. Emphasis was put on modern techniques, materials, and simplified geometric forms, paving the way for high-rise superstructures. Many architects became disillusioned with modernism which they perceived as ahistorical and anti-aesthetic, and postmodern and contemporary architecture developed. Over the years, the field of architectural construction has branched out to include everything from ship design to interior decorating. (Full article...)
Selected article –
Sustainable architecture is architecture that seeks to minimize the negative environmental impact of buildings through improved efficiency and moderation in the use of materials, energy, development space and the ecosystem at large. Sustainable architecture uses a conscious approach to energy and ecological conservation in the design of the built environment.
The idea of sustainability, or ecological design, is to ensure that use of currently available resources does not end up having detrimental effects to a future society's well-being or making it impossible to obtain resources for other applications in the long run. (Full article...)General images –
Did you know (auto-generated) -
- ... that confectioner William Westerfeld hired architect Henry Geilfuss to design his home in San Francisco, and then died in it?
- ... that St. Bernward in Döhren was consecrated in 1893, when part of Christoph Hehl's design of a basilica in the Romanesque Revival style was built, but the building was only completed after World War II?
- ... that Canadian architect Barry Downs contributed to the redevelopment of the Expo 86 site in Vancouver, the largest private development in North America at the time?
- ... that after architect Frà Antonio Cano died of a fall from scaffolding at his new Cathedral of Our Lady of the Snows, Alberto della Marmora accused him of destroying many former basilicas?
- ... that Lynda Simmons co-founded Architecture + Women NZ with Sarah Treadwell, Julie Wilson and Megan Rule to push for equity in New Zealand architecture?
- ... that architect John Henry Hirst designed at least nine Grade II listed buildings, including Cambridge Crescent, Harrogate, which hosts the newsroom of the Stray Ferret?
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- Basic topics Architect • List of architects • Architecture • List of architecture firms • Style • List of buildings • New article announcements • more....
- Architectural history Timeline of architectural styles • Ancient Egyptian • Harappan • Inca • Mayan • Persian • Sumerian • Ancient Greek • Roman • Byzantine • Romanesque • Moorish • Gothic • Renaissance • Mannerism • Baroque • Ottoman • Palladian • Neoclassicism • Revival • Jugendstil • Art Deco • Modern • Postmodern • New Classical • more....
- Architectural theory Critical regionalism • Postmodernism • Deconstructivism • Modernism • Islamic • more....
- Architecture of the world Denmark • Germany • India • Madagascar • Norway • Russia • United Kingdom • United States • more....
- Awards Aga Khan Award • Driehaus Architecture Prize • International Architecture Awards • Pritzker Architecture Prize • more....
- Building science Architectural engineering • Earthquake engineering • Green building • Structural engineering • Acoustical engineering • Building defects • more....
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- Landscape architecture Landscape architects • History • Desire lines • Energy-efficient landscaping • Greenway (landscape) • materials • Landscape design • Landscape maintenance • Landscape planning • Natural landscaping • Site planning • more....
- Law Contract law • Property law • Employment law • Land law • Tort • Equity
- Economics of Architecture Cost management • Quantity surveyor • Critical path analysis • Elemental cost planning • Cost–benefit analysis
- Planning and Urban design Topics • Zoning • Growth management • Land-use planning • New Urbanism • more....
- Architecture museums Shchusev Museum of Architecture • Museum of Finnish Architecture • German Architecture Museum
- By Year: 2015 in architecture • 2014 in architecture • 2013 in architecture • 2012 in architecture • 2011 in architecture • more....
- Vernacular architecture Timber framing • Thatching • Vernacular architecture of the Carpathians • Indian vernacular architecture • Vernacular architecture of Indonesia • Vernacular architecture in Norway • Open-air museum • Architecture of Samoa • Sasak architecture • Zakopane Style
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