Mies van der Rohe (Architect)
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe was a German architect, born in 1886 and active from 1920's to the 1960's. He died in 1969.
He created buildings and skyscrapers for Berlin (where there is a continental climate) that became the modernist style and have been called, by William McDonough (an American architect), when transferred to America 'vertical gas chambers' because of their lack of opening windows for ventilation, and their all-glass facade which would overheat on most days, especially in the summer causing discomfort and thermal stress for their occupants.
He had a number of well-known sayings which have been frequently misinterpreted as "less is more", so all you get is a roof, floor, and glass walls around the outside. The more is the aesthetic or emotional response with many people appreciating this look. He said "God lies in the details" to mean that you must work to get the details right (to give the best look or aesthetic emotional response), and in so doing seeking and finding God.
He spent a lot of time designing the Barcelona chair that is used in many waiting rooms and movies, even to the extent of going back in his 60's and trying to improve it, saying it was the hardest thing he had designed in his life. The author assumes this is because we use a chair differently to how we use buildings, and at different times need much more of a chair and others much less.
His notable buildings include:
- Seagram building (shown below, a skyscraper, that many others copied)
- Farnsworth house, for Dr Farnsworth, who insisted on walls between the bedroom and kitchen.
He moved to Chicago in the late-1930s and drew upon the International Style for some of his most celebrated modernist works. The AMA Plaza (formerly the IBM Plaza), was his last building and exemplifies his trademark minimalist aesthetic.
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki
Featured articles and news
Introducing or next Guest Editor Arun Baybars
Practising architect and design panel review member.
Quick summary by size, shape, test, material, use or bonding.
Types of rapidly renewable content
From forestry to agricultural crops and their by-products.
Terraced houses and the public realm
The discernible difference between the public realm of detached housing and of terraced housing.
Put digitalisation and sustainability at the core of curricula
Project management educators are urged.
Looking back at the influence of climate events
From a designer and writer: 'There are limits to growth but no limits to development'.
Terms, histories, theories and practice.
Biophilic design and natural light
Letting in the light and natural elements into spaces.
APM Programme Management Conference 2024
Strategies for Success.
Residential takes the reins as contract awards even out
Contracts down, but remain above the last quarter of 2023.
Celebrating Eid and the largest mud-brick building.
Barry Kingscote claims prestigious CIOB CMYA Award.
The British Mosque: an architectural and social history
The story of some 1,500 mosques or more in Britain.
Heat pump refrigerants, efficiencies and impacts
R12 to R1270 what are the differences?
Global heat pump market in 2023
Challenging times with positive but modest outlook.
Beyond the infrastructure pipeline
Opportunities and chokepoints.