I am not an architect but I am a huge enthusiast and love learning more both about the principles of architecture and about different architects.
I've recently travelled to Ljubljana, which is when I discovered the works of architect Jože Plečnik. He worked in Vienna, Prague, Belgrade and Ljubljana but it was in Ljubljana in particular that he blossomed. Even today he is known for having such a big role in the shaping of Ljubljana that the city itself is often called Plečnik's Ljubljana.
I am really fascinated by the idea that the city would look entirely different without just one architect. I was wondering if you guys know about any other such architect, who had such an instrumental role in shaping the city that the city would look entirely different without their contribution?
I don't really have anyone to add to those listed above, but oh man. Plecnik's work in Ljubljana is SO amazing. It's one of my favorite cities on the planet, the library is sublime, and the cemetery is perfect....
The Berlin one sees today (particularly the 19th Century inner-city districts) is probably most shaped by three people: Schinkel, Hobrecht, and Lenné.
Taut, Ungers, Gropius, Düttmann also had sizeable contributions in certain areas. And of course Wilfried Stallknecht und Achim Felz, who among others, developed the prefabricated mass-housing system used throughout East Germany.
It's tough to deny Herzog & de Meuron's impact on Basel - though their work does tend more towards object-buildings than urban planning (at least, as built).
Architects who alone contributed to the landscape of a city
I wa Hi.
I am not an architect but I am a huge enthusiast and love learning more both about the principles of architecture and about different architects.
I've recently travelled to Ljubljana, which is when I discovered the works of architect Jože Plečnik. He worked in Vienna, Prague, Belgrade and Ljubljana but it was in Ljubljana in particular that he blossomed. Even today he is known for having such a big role in the shaping of Ljubljana that the city itself is often called Plečnik's Ljubljana.
I am really fascinated by the idea that the city would look entirely different without just one architect. I was wondering if you guys know about any other such architect, who had such an instrumental role in shaping the city that the city would look entirely different without their contribution?
sir christopher ren. rebuilt a lot of london after a big fire.
nero rebuilt a lot of rome after a big fire.
Hausmann's Paris
Prospect Park / Central Park, New York - by Frederick Law Olmsted, who also shaped other cities through public space (The Emerald Necklace, Boston)
Barcelona: Cerda's Eixample district and the works of Antoni Gaudi
There are a lot of examples!
Corbusier: Chandigargh (sp?)
Niemeyer: Brasilia
William Levitt
Washington DC's historic core, thanks to a few, not just one: Pierre L'Enfant, Daniel Burnham, and Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr.
The Berlin one sees today (particularly the 19th Century inner-city districts) is probably most shaped by three people: Schinkel, Hobrecht, and Lenné.
Taut, Ungers, Gropius, Düttmann also had sizeable contributions in certain areas. And of course Wilfried Stallknecht und Achim Felz, who among others, developed the prefabricated mass-housing system used throughout East Germany.
Don't kill me for this one but, in NYC: Costas Kondylis and every single splinter firm that came out of it.
Robert Moses.
It's tough to deny Herzog & de Meuron's impact on Basel - though their work does tend more towards object-buildings than urban planning (at least, as built).
The Georgian architecture of Bath, England: John Wood the Elder, and John Wood the Younger.
Albert Speer, with plans for a new Berlin and by paving the way for large scale urban renewal across Europe.
Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux for Central Park, without which Manhattan would be uninhabitable.
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