Aalto, Le Corbusier, And Mies van der Rohe

Alvar Alto, Le Corbusier, and Mies van der Rohe are three synonymous with the modern movement in architecture. They helped to define this movement with their unique theories and ideas on industrial production. Over the course of their respective careers they would utilized and improve upon their theories to benefit the built environment as they saw necessary.

Villa Savoye

            Le Corbusier earned his fame in the modern movement by his advancement of his principles for a successful design. His first theory was the Domino Theory, in which he viewed the building elements as horizontal planes of the program that could be stacked to allow a strong vertical circulation between floors. This theory helped to create open floor plans. Le Corbusier developed his 5 Points out of New Architecture from his Domino Theory.

Ozenfant Plan

Pavilion Suisse

            His first point was the Pilotis, elevating the main building off the ground on stilt like columns. This was the first time in history the building technology (steel and concrete) was available to try this new concept. This innovation is most evident in his Pavilion Suisse. His next three points: the free plan, free façade, and long horizontal windows, help express and emphasize how the building is supported by slender columns and not load bearing walls. This helped to give buildings a totally different aesthetic and perspective. The Villa Savoye built in 1928 displays the concept of long horizontal windows. This new structural model allowed him to only place interior walls where he wanted them and not where the structure dictated.  The last of his 5 points was a usable roof plane as an extension of the interior living space.

            He took these principles and tried to solve the housing crisis by developing affordable prototype housing, but this idea never became a reality do to cost of construction.  As he further developed his style he began to add dramatic curvilinear forms to highlight the important elements of the building. This is evident in his design of the Ozenfant residence where he chose to put emphasizes on vertical circulation. In my opinion the le Corbusier’s fame is somewhat undeserved; he was not the first to come up with these ideas he was just the first to really write about and document these principles.

Farnsworth House

Farnsworth House Plan

            Mies van der Rohe was developing his own theories about modern architecture during the same time period as Le Corbusier. Mies believed that architecture should be based on function and that the building should be a general container and should not force a specific use. Mies had a highly simplified and practical view on modernism which is apparent in main of his buildings. Perhaps one of his most famous projects, the Farnsworth House build in 1951, attempts to demonstrate the movement and flowing nature of life. He does this by seemingly removing the exterior walls, to blur the line between inside and outside, by making them all glass around the entire perimeter of the house.  

            Mies adopted many of Le Corbusier’s 5 points. He tried to maintain an open floor plan which is evident in his 1935 Hubbe House. He also aldopted the Pilotis system in several of his projects such as the Farnsworth House.  Mies found openness and modularity to be an important aspect of his design. His main career focus was on developing a general cubic form that aloud for a highly developed and logical division of space. Mies focus on a good quality of life and the spaces within his buildings helped him to leave a lasting impact on the modernist movement.

Baker House

            The last architect is Alvar Aalto who was heavily influenced by classical Nordic architecture. Aalto Designed based on the functional organization of spaces and how people should circulate threw them. The windows in the Essen Opera house constructed in 1959 display how the interior function can directly affect the building’s exterior form and aesthetic.  

Baker House plan

            The pure form driven idea allowed Aalto to express detail in the minimalism of his buildings. This let him place importance on the concept of the building and the emotion it should evoke. The Baker House built in 1947 at MIT houses all of the private spaces into one curvilinear shape, allowing all communal to be paced on into the orthogonal geometries surrounding the main form. In plan this creates a strong distinction between types of space. Aalto was famous for his use of materials allowing the building idea to become stronger by the addition of addition of a material as opposed to the need for a functional skin. He always chose a crafted based material such as brick. He did this because he believed in the importance of craftsmanship over industrial production. This is where he differed from most other modern architects.

Essen Opera House

           Aalto’s Experimental House built in 1953 emphasized the importance of the masonry craft by creating different patterns which allows visitors to see the endless possibilities of human craftsmanship over industrial production. Aalto also designs with nature strategically utilizing day lighting. This is why in my opinion he is my favorite of the three because he broke the rules of the traditional idea of the modern movement.