Frank Lloyd Wright....the importance of his work, length of career, the number of completed projects, the greatness of his work, and his living legacy. Wright inspired or mentored many, many Architects who would have great careers of their own. Kahn, is my number 2.
I'm also going to vote for Kahn, as a personal opinion rather than an objective selection. To me, it seems that Wright and Kahn developed in some ways more complete buildings than some other architects, where every element of the design was part of an integral, holistic vision - a comprehensive experience. I feel like Corbusier and Mies didn't quite reach that level of richness within individual buildings, probably in part because their ideas (and/or the ideas of the movements which they belonged to) were so ambitious with regards to larger issues in society that their representations in buildings would inevitably be less complete.
Which leaves Wright and Kahn, and I feel that Wright's ego was ingrained in the actual design of his buildings to such a conclusive extent that those designs often overpower their visitors' personal experiences and interpretations. Kahn buildings on the other hand retain a sense of restlessness and instability within a simultaneously consistent pattern of design grammar. At a more gut level, Kahn's buildings also produced a more powerful experience for me compared to the Corbusier and Wright projects which I have visited.
Absolutely no question, FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT. Additionally, is it not interesting, that in my graduate school of Architecture, he was hardly mentioned!
Please, do not respond that he was essentially a 19th c. Architect. See, Falling Water, Kaufman house, or study his USONIAN houses for the middle class.
I never get Corbu books....oh, there arent many of them....other than the ones he wrote himself. Seriously, examined truthfully, Wrights contribution is pretty hard to top.
Rather than going for style, I'll opt for substance. Which is not to say that substance is without style, just that humanitarian ideals are more important. That would put people like Fuller, Behrens, Safdie and maybe Utzon at the top of the list.
I'm not even done my undergraduate degree yet, but I've found Sverre Fehn to have the most interesting and clever work that I've studied thus far. His Nordic Pavilion stands out as one of the most brilliant plays on light I've come across, and the theory/explanations behind his Glacier Museum are fantastic (currently re-reading "The Pattern of Thoughts" again). Most probably won't agree with me, mainly because of the (low) breadth of his work, but I reference his work in almost all of my studio projects in recent months. Its just so damn interesting.
best Architect of the 20th century
While there are so many great ones. My pick would be Lou Kahn!
That was the first name that popped into my head when I saw this thread.
Frank Lloyd Wright....the importance of his work, length of career, the number of completed projects, the greatness of his work, and his living legacy. Wright inspired or mentored many, many Architects who would have great careers of their own. Kahn, is my number 2.
Me. But seriously ffolks, le corbusier. Nothing touches the import of that architect. Well, except for maybe, George Costanza.
mies
I'm also going to vote for Kahn, as a personal opinion rather than an objective selection. To me, it seems that Wright and Kahn developed in some ways more complete buildings than some other architects, where every element of the design was part of an integral, holistic vision - a comprehensive experience. I feel like Corbusier and Mies didn't quite reach that level of richness within individual buildings, probably in part because their ideas (and/or the ideas of the movements which they belonged to) were so ambitious with regards to larger issues in society that their representations in buildings would inevitably be less complete.
Which leaves Wright and Kahn, and I feel that Wright's ego was ingrained in the actual design of his buildings to such a conclusive extent that those designs often overpower their visitors' personal experiences and interpretations. Kahn buildings on the other hand retain a sense of restlessness and instability within a simultaneously consistent pattern of design grammar. At a more gut level, Kahn's buildings also produced a more powerful experience for me compared to the Corbusier and Wright projects which I have visited.
Absolutely no question, FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT. Additionally, is it not interesting, that in my graduate school of Architecture, he was hardly mentioned!
Please, do not respond that he was essentially a 19th c. Architect. See, Falling Water, Kaufman house, or study his USONIAN houses for the middle class.
Kahn is way down the list, after Corbu, and Mies!
Wright? Kahn? Corb? Oh gag me with a spoon!
It's obviously Victor Gruen. Like, duuuhhhhh...yo!
Wright is not even the best American architect, well, perhaps to my aunt or grandmother he was, that's why I got all those damn books for Christmas.
I never get Corbu books....oh, there arent many of them....other than the ones he wrote himself. Seriously, examined truthfully, Wrights contribution is pretty hard to top.
Rather than going for style, I'll opt for substance. Which is not to say that substance is without style, just that humanitarian ideals are more important. That would put people like Fuller, Behrens, Safdie and maybe Utzon at the top of the list.
I'll go with the poetic yet popular choice and pick Kahn.
I'm not even done my undergraduate degree yet, but I've found Sverre Fehn to have the most interesting and clever work that I've studied thus far. His Nordic Pavilion stands out as one of the most brilliant plays on light I've come across, and the theory/explanations behind his Glacier Museum are fantastic (currently re-reading "The Pattern of Thoughts" again). Most probably won't agree with me, mainly because of the (low) breadth of his work, but I reference his work in almost all of my studio projects in recent months. Its just so damn interesting.
Gropius... seriously? Is this even a question?
Lutyens
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