Impact of Palladio

Palladio's design are extremely important. He had such a vast influence in the development of Western architecture and his palaces and villas were imitated for 400 years all over the western world. He was the first architect to systematize the plan of a house and consistently to use the ancient Greco-Roman temple front as a portico, or roofed porch supported by columns. A roofed porch supported by columns was his most imitated architectural design. My own home contains that design, as well as so many other structures around the world. That in itself shows the impact he made, and how important he really is. 

palladian villas

Villa: Gazzotti Grimani

Location: Bertesina

Rule Book

I believe the rules of architecture and design are things that should followed in order to design a great structure, but they are not absolutely necessary in all things designed. However, following these rules will help create a much more functioning and aesthetically pleasing structure, and we can see they were used in many interior and exterior designs.

St. Peter's Basilica

Strive for harmony and unity in all things. It is very symmetrical, and successfully comes together as one. 

Continue to layer groves + stacks. We the the layers and stack in the arches, and above the arches. There is a lot of vertical lines in this space, drawing your eyes upward. 

Place community needs before your own. Because this is a place of worship and it is a very large space, it allows the needs of multiple people to be met. 

Expressions of Faith

Through this lecture, I discovered one of my new favorite quotes.
"Light, God's eldest daughter, is a principle beauty in a building." -Thomas Fuller
After hearing this quote, I realized how much the element of light plays into many religious structures. For example, the pyramid built by the Egyptians rises up to one single point. A piece of gold shined at the top at all times of day, reflecting the light of the sun. The idea of the pyramid symbolized pureness and perfection, which is how many view their faith.
Another example of this would be the Pantheon, built by the Romans. It was constructed facing the north, considering where the sunlight would be shining through during the autumn, winter, spring, and summer equinoxes.  At the autumn equinox, the light of the oculus reaches the upper hemisphere of the coffered dome. At the winter solstice it reaches its height. At spring equinox it touches the base of the dome, and shines through the grill above the front door. At the summer solstice it is totally on the floor. 
Many cultures incorporate a tremendous amount of decoration throughout their temples and other religious structures. The hindu cosmos are a great example of this, because your eyes are constantly moving and you're always finding something new to look at. 
The first thing that comes to mind when I think of faith expressed through architecture is stained-glass windows. The purpose of stained glass windows doesn't allow people to see outside, but it allows light to shine through, it adds beauty to a building, and often represents an honorable person. Some also tell stories. They flourished during the medieval period and were prominent in the Gothic period and the Renaissance. Today, you can find them in many churches and Cathedrals all over. Different cultures express their faith through designs in different ways. A structure becomes sacred because of what inspired the designer to construct it.  

Pope Villa

Latrobe helped develop American architecture through his designs of the White House and the U.S. Capitol building. and He was the first professional architect and engineer to work in America. Him being the designer of these famous buildings in our nation's capital shows his importance. 

 The plans for the hallway leading to the rooms changed to a less common design. Large windows in the drawing and dining room allow natural night to shine through. There is a very interesting layout and it is evident space is efficiently used. The lower level of the home is smaller than the top because the servants resided there, while the wealthy was on the upper level of the home. 

 The wood block wallpaper gives the interior more depth. Seeing it at a small scale rather than a larger one was disappointing because it looked like it used to be a very interesting aspect of the room. 

Unit 1 summary

I believe all designs can be described and analyzed by both principles and elements. Before the beginning of this course, I didn’t look at designs the way I do now. I used to look at an object or structure and only recognize it was aesthetically pleasing, without breaking down why. After completing unit 1, I see things from a completely different perspective. I went to Rome last fall, and saw various incredible structures with fascinating history behind them. An example would be the colosseum. Through the last lecture on Roman structures, I broke down the principles and elements of the colosseum and realized how many principles and elements make it what it is. Not only do I look at large structures differently at this point, but I also can take more from simple and smaller designs as well; such as a small model, or a teapot. On my first visit back to my hometown this month, I went to one of my favorite restaurants designed by a family friend of mine. In my previous visits to this restaurant, I noticed the aspects that made it beautiful, but after learning how to determine the principles and elements, I looked at it from a designer’s perspective and also noticed its modernism. After touring the campus with the class, I do not just walk by white hall anymore without much thought. I notice the detailed design in the door, and the use of brick and concrete throughout it. Not only in this class, but my other design classes as well, I have learned principles and elements can be pulled from any design in the world. No matter what you’re looking at, at least one principle or element can be given.

The Power of Ten

  I enjoyed this activity not only because of the abstract product, but also because I didn't know what to expect while putting together our 8x8 squares to create one large image. I found it difficult to portray the tiny image I was given and wasn't sure how it would look compared to its surrounding squares, but I believe it ended up being successful.