CritIt: September 2014

During the past century, there are over one thousand constructions by American architectural offices around the globe that have contributed to the international modern language of construction.The extent of their contribution is considered in relation to the impact of the style, materials, and technological advancements. As native and immigrant architects practice outside the borders of the United States, their projects help express an American ideology to the international community. The definition and identities of such projects are researched by OfficeUS. The historical archiving, presented at the 2014 architecture Biennale of Venice, exhibits some of the most famous structures which have altered the cityscapes from Tunis to Iran to Tokyo. The architecture firms, branches, and offices include SO-IL, REX architecture, Louis I. Kahn, Richard J. Neutra, the Office of Mies van der Rohe, JAHN, and Gensler, to name a few. The intention of the research initiative is to not only present those building forms that have had an international impact but also demonstrate the broader narrative of modernization. Over the centuries countries have been brought closer together as their topographical city layouts visually and conceptually correlate concerns and developments of modernization.

Frank Lloyd Wright- Jiyu Gakuen School- Tokyo 1921

Jiyu Gakuen School structure exhibits details deriving from Wright’s famous ‘prairie school’ style architecture; especially reminiscent of Robie House. The school demonstrates the architect’s interest in the details: custom designing the window frames, lighting, chairs etc.
The architect is famous for having said 'Less is only more where more is no good'.

SOM (Skidmore, Owings, Merill)- Amerika Haus, Berlin 1952-57

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM), one of the largest and most influential architecture, interior design, engineering, and urban planning firms in the world, was founded in 1936. Their 10,000 projects have extended beyond 50 countries.

Amerika Haus, an American library housing books and magazines on English literature, is considered to be an architectural treasure from the 1950s. Initially Walter Gropius was to be responsible for the design but the architect withdrew due to, what has been assessed as, financial disagreements. In fact the design resembles the Bauhaus outlook to modern design, especially articulated in the integration of the structure as a part of the overall building aesthetics. Though SOM built the structure in the place of Gropius, the ideology of form follows function is clearly a connection between the two. Access to natural light source is essential to the open space concept of spatial layout and design.

I. M. Pei- Luce Memorial Chapel, Taichung, Taiwan 1954-63

Luce Memorial Chapel was built on the campus of Tunghai University in Taichung, Taiwan, named in honor of the Rev. Henry W. Luce, an American missionary in China in the late 19th century.

The influence on the design is accredited to Le Corbusier's Philips Pavilion for the Brussels World’s Fair in 1958 and Louis Kahn's Yale University of Art Museum completed in 1953. However, unlike the French architect, Pei's Luce Chapel is not a thin-shell structure. The structure is made of lattice beams that change in dimension with height and reinforced concrete framework.The exterior is covered with yellow glazed tiles in diamond shaped forms which intend to echo the shapes of the coffer beams in the interior of the chapel.

TAC (The Architects Collaborative)- Interbau Housing Block, 1955-1957

The Architects Collaborative (TAC) was originally founded in 1945 by a group of graduate students of Harvard’s Graduate School of Design, soon joined by Bauhaus' famous Walter Gropius. However, unfortunately, in 1995, due mostly to financial difficulties resulting from political problems in the Middle East, TAC was forced out of business.

The housing project in West Berlin was contributed by various architects, including: Alvar Alto, Jacob Bakema, Paul Baumgarten, Luciano Baldessari, Le Corbusier, Werner Buttmann, Wils Ebert, Egon Eirmann, Walter Gropius, Arne Jacobsen, Fritz Jaenicke and Sten Samuelson, Gustav Hassenpflug, Gunter Honow, Ludwig Lemmer, Wassili Luckhardt, Oscar Neimer, Godber Nissen, Sep Ruf, Otto Senn, Hans Scharoun, Franz Schuster, Max Taut, Pierre Vago, and Jo van den Broek.
The housing system appears as building blocks in diverse orders that make up the overall complex. A play between colors, window openings, balconies, etc.

Pei Cobb Freed and Partners- Place Ville Marie, Montreal 1955-62

The architecture group was originally formed in 1955s under the title of I. M. Pei & Partners. Place Ville Marie is one of the 250 projects completed in over 100 countries across North America and around the world. The civic and commercial complex that sparked the Renaissance of modern Montreal. In the language of modern architecture, the overall structure appears to be made up of different towers on diverse platforms; a type of floating structure where the base appears to be a detached form.

Antonin Raymond-Gunma Music Center, Takasaki Japan, 1955-1961

Antonin Raymond is a Czech-American architect, who lived and practiced in the USA and Japan. Initially, he worked with American architects Cass Gilber and Frank Lloyed Wright, who had a direct influence on his architectural language, especially in the use of concrete for texture and structure that he would refine throughout his six decade career.

His studio practices explored traditional Japanese building techniques combined with the latest in American building innovations. Raymond applied these principles to a wide range of residential, commercial, religious and institutional projects in Japan, America and India. Along with British Architect Josiah Conder, Raymond is recognized as one of the fathers of modern architecture in Japan. The Gunma Music Center, the house of the Gunma Symphony Orchestra, is a dynamic structure with exposed materials of construction. The exterior articulates the interior divisions and expresses the dynamic expression of music.

Mies van der Rohe, Ludwig- Ron Bacardi y Compania, S.A. Administration Building,

Santiago, Cuba, 1957-60

Mies van der Rohe, a German architect, furniture designer and teacher who practiced in both Germany and later in the USA, is considered to be a leading figure in the development of modern architecture, along with Frank Lloyd Wright, Walter Gropius and Le Corbusier. His reputation rests on the skills and methods applied to buildings and projects and simultaneously on his rational approach to architectural education.

From a distance, based on the layout, exposed structure of Ron Bacardi y Compania, open spaces and large window walls, the building of Ron Bacardi y Compania is characteristic of van der Rohe language of modern design; a clear reflection of the same ideologies and concepts that were used in the construction of the Barcelona Pavilion. The design, whether residential or commercial, utilizes the same techniques, a universal ideology about modernity and the life that coincides between work and everyday life.

Marcel Breuer- Hotel La Flaine, Flaine France, 1961-76

Marcel Breuer is famous for such works as the Whitney Museum in New York and simultaneously for his furniture creations, such as the well-known and reproduced tubulaire 'Wassily' chair. La Flaine is massive concrete hotel in the middle of the wilderness, in a ski resort of France. The structure does not pretend to integrate into the environment but projects out of it, as does the form as it extends beyond the mountains, in a so-called miracle of technology. The manner to which the hotel goes beyond the mountain range demonstrates the extent of the technological advancements of the time, as the heavy mass balances itself beyond the limits of nature.
'The architecture of Flaine is an example of application of the principle of shadow and light which I adopted. The facades of buildings are cut as points of diamond. Sunbeams strike their facets under different angles; contrasted lightings result from their reflection.'- Marcel Breuer

James Stewart Polshek- Teijin Institute for Biomedical Research,Tokyo 1962-63

The partners of Polshek Partnership Architects
have renamed their practice Ennead Architects LLP. Teijin Institute of Biomedical Research is a repetitive building block that creates an overall exterior pattern, which does not reflect the practice and goings-on of the interior. One side of the structure appears to be windowless, or very limited access to natural light, to say the least, while the other plays between open an closed divisions

Louis Kahn- Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India 1962-74

Louis Kahn is considered to be one of the most important American architects of the postwar period, is widely admired for his great monumental works. Indian Institute of Management is one of the few works attributed to the architect outside the United States. The almost bare space, with little traditional aesthetic decorations, has an exterior facade that makes use of a play between circular and rectangular forms to create a dynamic structure. The interior corridors also appear to be barren, as the exterior forms penetrate the interior through light patterns and openings. The monotone color scheme of a terra tones reflects ‘nature’, a clearly man made form within the landscape of Gujarat.

Further reading: Marcus, George H. The Houses of Louis Kahn. 1st Edn. (Yale University Press, 2013)

CRSS- King Fahed University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia 1964-82

Caudill Rowlett Scott, Texas based architectural firm, in 2005 was named "Firm of the Century" by Texas A&M University College of Architecture where the company is now based. Originally founded in 1946 by Texas A&M professors William Wayne Caudill and John Miles Rowlett were then joined in 1948 by Wallie Eugene Scott, Jr., Caudill's student. In 1983 CRS became CRSS with the joining of J.E. Sirrine, an industrial engineering firm.

Among the many CRSS projects is the King Fahed University of Petroleum and Mineral public university in Saudi Arabia with programs not offered elsewhere in Saudi Arabia.

Richard Meier and Parters- Stadthaus Ulm, Ulm 1986

Stadthaus Ulm is an international landmark of modern architecture that encourages encounters with art, people, and culture a monastery stood in the square of today’s Stadthaus, previously the location of a Latin school. Though there were conflicts to the architect who would design and construct the building, in 1987 the population voted in favor of the construction in a referendum, re-positioning Meier and his partners as those responsible for the execution.

Cambridge 7 Associates- Osaka Ring of Fire Aquarium and Market, Osaka, 1987-90

Cambridge Seven Associates, Inc. was founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1962 by a group of seven designers with varied interests and backgrounds who believed their collaborative efforts would be far more effective than those of any individual. The Osaka Ring of Fire Aquarium and Market is an example of the mix-media and mediums that help build the final constructions.

'The bio-geographical plan of the building, with the Aleutians to the north, Antarctica to the south, and so on, allows the building to be clearly understood by its visitors. Blue exterior walls and red glass roof forms, crowned by glass skylights, further express the Ring of Fire.'

Frank O. Gehry- Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein, Germany,1989

The museum is one of Frank Gehry's first buildings in Europe. The Vitra Design Museum is among the world’s leading museums of design; and the museum library and document archive are available to researchers upon request. Originally designed to house Rolf Fehlbaum's private collection, however Gehry'built a functional-looking production hall and a gatehouse for the close-by Vitra factory'. The structure reflects Gehry's trademark style that appears sculptural, in a deconstructivist manner, rather than functional. The building exterior forms are a play between classical building materials and creative incentives in more modern materials, such as the use of titanium-zinc alloy.

Architecture critic Paul Heyer has been quoted for describing the museum as '... a continuous changing swirl of white forms on the exterior, each seemingly without apparent relationship to the other, with its interiors a dynamically powerful interplay, in turn directly expressive of the exterior convolutions. As a totality it resolves itself into an entwined coherent display...'

Steven Holl Architects- Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art, Helsingfors, Finland 1992-98

Steven Holl, an American architect and watercolorist, was in charge of the design for the Kiasma contemporary art museum of Finland, functioning under the umbrella of the Finnish National Gallery. Essentially, the main role of the museum is to function as an educational center that strengthens the general Finish public about art; simultaneously, the center acts as a meeting place where the public can absorb the every changing status of the art world. The main collection is focused on Finish contemporary art with the aim of continuously altering the exhibitions that also provide workshops, documentaries etc. t Its primary role is to educate the public on contemporary art and to strengthen the status of art in Finland in general.

Richard Meier and Partners- Jubilee Church 1996-2003

The Jubilee Church is a competition-winning project to commemorate the jubilee year 2000, located in Tor Tre Teste, just outside of Rome. The project, unique both in the form and the skeleton, is mainly composed of three main 'shells' with approximately similar spherical radius of 38m built from precast concrete blocks of 80cm thick x 3m tall x 2m wide. The detailed design of the shells was produced by Italcimenti, the Italian concrete supplier and fabricator. An exposed steel arch and truss system supports the glass roof of the church. Though the interiors seem basic, and lacking in aesthetic 'additions', the architectural form is to place the 'decoration' of the interiors, through the play of light, shapes, and forms.

Reiser + Umemoto- O-14, Dubai 2010

The New York based architecture firm creativity build a structure in Dubai that articulates both expression and innovation. The overall form does not integrate into any specific cityscape, it is intended to be located in 'nowhere place'.

Stan Allen Architect- Salim Publishing House, Paju Book City, Korea, 2008-2009

Stan Allen builds the publishing house in consideration of light and space. The interconnected work spaces are a part of the overall system of communication contributed by architectural decisions enforced on the company employees to create corporate dialogue in the working environment.

Rafael Viñoly- Fortabat Collection, Buenos Aires, Argentina 2009

Viñoly is a famous Uruguayan architect who transferred his family and practice to the United States in 1978. The Amalia Lacroze de Fortabat Art Collection is a museum of fine arts in Buenos Aires.

The building, a two-story modernist concrete, steel and glass structure that provides over 6,000 square meters of interior exhibition space. One of the main features of the structure located in the Puerto Madero distict is the mobile aluminium ceiling structure that opens and closes in accords to the sun's position. It is thought that Mrs. Fortabat requested the design feature for she is quoted for having said, 'I've always wanted to look at pictures and the stars at the same time.'

SOM- Chhatapali Shivaji International Airport, Terminal 2, Mombai, 2014

"T2 : Where Dreams Take Flight"The new terminal combines international and domestic passenger services under one roof, optimizing terminal operations and reducing passenger walking distances.

SOM designed the terminal inspired by the traditional Indian pavilions, mainly in the 'headhouse,' or central processing podium, that rests on an alternating, or adaptable, modular system. The core, central processing area, enables domestic and international services to be located in a singular terminal. The intention of the overall look and use of the structure is to announce India's technological advancement in the modern world while also conserving its own historical and cultural building heritage.