writing an architectural analysis

1. make observationsWhat do you see?

2. describe what you see expand on observation what can you say about your observations?draw conclusions

3. why did the architect make the choices s/he made?

what is effect of choices? how do form and content interact?

Here’s a sample:

Freedom Tower (One World Trade Center) New York, NY

Daniel Libeskind

Step One:

First you and your partner need to make your own observations about the building. Fill in as much of the chart as you can just by using your own critical thinking and observation skills.

What do you see when you look at the picture?Use your terminology to help describe what you see.Start to draw some conclusions about the building you are looking at.

 

Information Architect  Daniel Libeskind 

Building name  One World Trade, or The Freedom Tower 

Location  NYC 

Date  Finished in May of 2013 

Purpose  Mostly an office building 

  

Observations (What do we see?)  Description (Be specific and use terminology)   Spire 

Rises from what looks like a glass parapet.  Not really coherent with the rest of the building façade.  Probably an antenna.   

 Façade  

Shiny silver, reflective surface.  Probably combination of metal and glass.  Composed of series of inverted triangles rising from a traditional cube shaped base.  An unexpected shape that is interesting to the eye. 

   

Conclusions:  why did the architect make specific choices?  what is relationship between form & content in the building?   Spire 

Creates a strong final push to the twisting of the triangular base.  Specifically used by the architect to add height in order to accomplish the goal of having the building be 1776 feet tall, so it can symbolically represent America’s renewed fight for freedom.   

 Façade  

The triangles give an unexpected shape to the building, creating a sense of motion that rises from the stable base.  Gives a sense of motion, like the building is twisting around and reaching upwards.  Almost like it is rising from the ashes of the ruins of the previous building.  The architect seems to have wanted to create a building that gives off a feeling of motion and light in order to counteract the location and purpose of the building. 

Step Two:

Now that you have established your own opinions on the building, you and your partner can harness the power of the internet to see what other people, including hopefully the architect, have to say about it.

Look your building up and see what else you can find out about it.Find pictures that showcase other facades and angles of the building, including interior shots.

Step Three:

Finally, use all of this information to create an iMovie about your building that you will present to the class.

Your movie should be 2 – 5 minutes long.It should include both audio and visual components.It should provide identify the building by name, the architect, and the location of the building.The more information about your building, the better.

Step Four:

Sit back and enjoy a life well-lived, content in the knowledge that you have learned about an important building.

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Walter Netsch

1

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0f/USAFA_Cadet_Chapel.jpg

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Frank Gehry

2

Cesar Pelli

Petronas TowersKuala Lumpur, Malaysia

3

30 St. Mary Axe London, England

Norman Foster

4

Flatiron Building New York, NY

Daniel Burnham

5

Casa Mila Barcelona, Spain

Antoni Gaudi

6

Farnsworth House Plano, Illinois

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe

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Taliesen West Scottsdale, Arizona

Frank Lloyd Wright

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Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Cleveland, Ohio

I.M. Pei

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Bauhaus Dessau, Germany

Walter Gropius

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Notre Dame du Haut Ronchamp, France

Le Corbusier

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Burj Al Arab Dubai, UAE

Tom Wright

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Burj_Al_Arab,_Dubai,_by_Joi_Ito_Dec2007.jpg

Crystal Cathedral Garden Grove, California

Philip Johnson

13