Characteristics of Postmodern Architecture - Term Paper Example

Postmodernism Student’s Name: Instructor’s Name: Course Code & Name: Date of Submission: Postmodernism Postmodernism is a philosophy which upholds the integration of old and modern practices with new practices with an aim of producing a better output than the one which is in currently there. As opposed to the Modernism theory which emphasizes on the need to remove aesthetic and finite components of Traditional practices, Modernism blends the elements of traditional and modern practices to come up with products which are a state of art, meaning that they are out of the league of mode practices. The Postmodernism theory started off in the 1950’s and was assimilated by many artists, architects and writers. As at now, the application of Postmodernism is present in art, architecture, philosophy, literature, fiction, literary criticism and economics. Postmodernism is for the idea that occurrences should be interpreted scientifically and reality comes into consideration after appropriate interpretation. Postmodernism upholds change, therefore it specifically states that there is no absolute truth, no definite way of doing something, but as long as the doer of the actions can be able to interpret what he/she is doing, it is right. This explains why is largely accepted in the architectural world, where the design of constructions is only limited to the imagination of the architect and his/ her ability to interpret it (Aylesworth, 2005, p.2). Postmodernism in architecture is associated with reference, wit and ornament which were associated with ancient architecture. For this reason, it makes use of aesthetics and new /unique ways of designs and constructions which have replaced the formal shapes which are associated with Modernism architecture. This explains the new look of buildings, roads and other constructions. No construction is similar to the other one since each drawing is the sole work of an architect and his/ her perception of what is needed. This explains why Postmodernism constructions are more appealing to the eye than Modernism constructions. Postmodernism Architecture (World Museum, 2012, p.1 ) Modernism Architecture (World Museum, 2012, p.1 ) Therefore, Postmodernism is an important development in both Criticism of Modernism and the development of contemporary architecture. This is due to the fact that Postmodernism tends to compliment the shortcomings of modernism architecture for instance bringing in the aesthetic value, the creativity aspects among others. Postmodernism theory exists side by side with criticism. Various people are against it and specifically believe that it doesn’t exist. The proponents of Postmodernism on the other hand support its existence by giving real examples of what it is doing. As indicated earlier, post modernism derives its basis from the ability of an individual to interpret the existence of a phenomena/ situation scientifically after which understanding of the phenomena comes up. However, critics of Postmodernism believe that one has to understand something before he/ she is able to interpret it, which is the reason as to why Modernism upholds the existence of a definite way of doing something, for instance formalized shapes and formalized designs in architecture. Postmodernism challenges the past and the modern practices after which it comes up with ways of solving the shortcomings that crop up (Kirby, 2006, p.1). This is the reason as to why each Postmodernism architectural design is designed specifically to satisfy a specific need hence does not follow contemporary designs which dictate on how a design is supposed to look like. For instance the Twin Towers of Malaysia were designed to provide an image for Malaysia along with other objectives. The Petronas Twin Towers in Malaysia (Science Photo Library, 2012, p.1) The criticism of Postmodernism is coined in the following aspects: vagueness, moral relativism and Marxian criticisms. Critics who say that Postmodernism is vague point out that it does not stand for definite principles. Proponents of Marxian philosophies critic it with respect to Karl Marx’s teachings. Lastly attackers of Postmodernism term it as a theory which upholds deviant behaviors / practices from the generally accepted ones (Salberg, Stewart, Wesley & Weiss, 2009, p.1). Therefore, they term it as immoral due to its conception of new ideologies and older ones which had been done away with by Modernism. Postmodernism holds several core values which gives it its identity. As indicated earlier, Postmodernism architecture marks the return of wits, reference and ornament to the architectural field. Postmodernism arose from the criticism of modernism. Modernism was criticized for formalizing architecture, giving it a definite manner of practice and in the end forgetting to satisfy the needs of the people. Jane Jacobs is a very renowned critic of modernism and the evolution of architecture. She was very vocal about the modern ideal of a residential settlement. She supported the idea of having various forms of residential; for low income earners, middle income earners and high income earners. However, she was concerned about the density of residents in those residential hence advocated for a postmodern model which would take into consideration all the challenges (Gratz, 2011, p1). Jacobs insisted that architects should not be disillusioned by the urge to solve problems of postmodernism and at the end forget about the need to solve human needs. Jacobs insists that postmodernist should uphold purist intentions, which in turn will translate to architectural models which will improve the living conditions of people. Her activism approach on the reconstruction of some of the constructions and systems of Greenwich Village and New York City gave a critical view of what postmodernism should uphold. Jacobs acknowledges diversity, and states that it is upon it that new designs which improve living conditions of people are born. She specifically uploads the reconstruction of New York’s subway system and the addition of a water tunnel (Gratz, 2011, p1). She also hails the construction of the prospect and battery parks, upgrading of the residential housing and the reconstruction of central park. She also hailed the reconstruction of the residential buildings in her own town, Greenwich Village(Gratz, 2011, p1). Altogether, she stresses that there is no formalized way of practicing architecture, as long as the model chosen fits the needs of the intended users. Greenwich Village (Gratz, 2011, p1) As a result of the criticism, Postmodernism holds the several core values. First of all, it upholds the need for referential meaning (Ticha, 2012, p.53). This means that the meaning of a building must be discernable by non-architects. On this point, the architectural design for instance a building must be able to communicate to its viewer hence providing him /her with an opportunity to discern its meaning. This is in accordance with the Postmodernism theory which specifies that the understanding of a situation is only gotten after interpretation of the situation has been made using logical and scientific principles. Secondly, Postmodernism also holds a value for history. This explains the reason as to why it assimilates the wit, reference and ornamental aspects which were associated with traditional architecture. For this reason, it is a common trend for architects to include historical aspects into new designs for instance Egyptian, Roman and Greek architecture. Thirdly, postmodernism values the role of architecture to the society and community. For this reason, Postmodernism architects tend to design models which realize with the cultural, social, economical, aesthetical, moral and ethical needs of the society (Kaya, 1999, p.1). The return of wit in Postmodernism dictates explains how the architects are able to produce designs which fit to the needs of the society. Lastly, Postmodernism upholds complexity or pluralism. This is contrary to the Modernism theory which upholds simplicity. With respect to pluralism, Postmodernism integrates several aspects of traditional and modernism architecture into one design. This is wit. Basically, this is what is regarded to as pluralism. After this, an architect analyses the needs for which the construction he/she is designing is meant to meet. At this stage, he gives it meaning. The completed construction needs to be given a look which identifies it to its use. This is ornamental. Postmodernism arose so as to solve the shortcomings which were associated with Modernism architecture. The problems associated with modernism are as a result of the formality, ethical and philosophical aspects of architecture which it dictated. One aspect which Modernism upheld was simplicity which proponents of Postmodernism detested (Milavanovic, 1995, p3). There was a need to come up with buildings which were complex in nature, attractive to the eye and ones which could serve the specific needs for which it was erected. One of the founders of Postmodernism architecture who gave it its meaning was Robert Venturi who started off with his design of Guild House, Philadelphia. Guild House (Guild House, 2012, p.1) Another reason as to why Postmodernism architecture came into being is in order to communicate meanings to the people and add sensitivity to the buildings. There was also the need to break away from the formalized aspects of Modernism and traditional designs (Vermuelen, T & Akker, R. 2010, p.2). Over time, Modernism lost to Postmodernism lost in it’s strive to dominate the architectural world (Glaser, E. 2007). Over time, large scale failure which was associated to modernism led to many of the buildings which were constructed to be demolished so as to pave way for Postmodernism architectural designs which took into consideration this important aspect. For instance, the Pruit Igoe housing development was demolished because of this failure. After the demolitions in 1972, the paradigm shift from Modernism architecture to Postmodernism architecture took root (Rowe, 2011, p.1). Modernism Design Ashoka Hotel (New York Times, 2012, p.1) Postmodernism Piazza D’Italia Hotel (World Museum, 2012, p.1) Using Rustin’s reference for conceptual framework to analyze Modernism and Postmodernism, it can be seen that the rise of Postmodernism was also triggered by the social setting which was present at its time of establishment. Over time there was a change of society values but Modernism architecture did not align itself with the changes. (Burke, 2000, p.1) Because of this, Postmodernism proponents led by Venturi worked towards revolutionizing the architectural field into a Postmodernism approach which incorporated meaning, uniqueness, attractiveness, creativity and satisfying. This led to the liberalization of architecture, hence there was no single prescription of coming up with an architectural design. Famous Postmodern architects include Venturi AND Brown. The meanings of their architectural designs and other postmodern designs are coined in the ability of the viewer to discern its meaning, hence being able to understand it. In conclusion, Postmodernism is the way to go in today’s architectural solutions. Postmodernism is regarded to as a movement which marks the return of wit, reference and ornaments into architecture. Modernism architecture advocates for simplicity while Postmodernism advocates for complexity and pluralism. This is the reason as to why Postmodernism has won over Modernism in the architectural field. However, as successful as Postmodernism is, so does it has many critics against it. First of all, critics regard it as vague. This is because they regard Postmodernism as a theory which does not hold any principles. Secondly, Postmodernism’s architectural designs deviate from the conventional architectural regulation which is regarded as immoral. The critical argument against this is that it leads to people deviating from their morals when they exist in an environment which has already done so. Thirdly, critics are against the referential aspect of Postmodernism designs which give meaning to the constructions. All in all, Postmodernism is the way to go in architecture. This issue to than fact that postmodern constructions offer more utility to their users as opposed to Modernism designed ones. This is the reason as to why when one takes a glimpse at the buildings around, one can fail to get startled by the extent of creativity and innovation associated with the buildings; which consequently means that they are Postmodern. References Aylesworth, G.2005. Postmodernism, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Pp.1-10 Burke, B. 2000. Post-Modernism and Post-Modernity. Infed. 1-8 Guild House, 2012. Photographs of Guild House, Viewed on 15th September 2012 < http://www.google.co.ke/imgres?imgurl=http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2228/1878737836_2a42873ac1.jpg&imgrefurl=http://flickrhivemind.net/Tags/guildhouse/Interesting&usg=__dTvq3s-v9ODR4gcAyceG8qKE6ss=&h=333&w=500&sz=81&hl=en&start=2&zoom=1&tbnid=8JQUpL85URQLHM:&tbnh=87&tbnw=130&ei=_yBTUOv5LeKw0AWbkIGgBg&itbs=1> Glasser, E. 2007. The Modernism That Failed? The Sun, [online] viewed on 15th September 2011 < http://www.nysun.com/arts/modernism-that-failed/49501/> Gratz, R.2011. Enough With the Enough with Jane Jacobs already, Viewed on 15th September 2012. < http://www.planetizen.com/node/47822> Kaya, I. 1999.Modernism and Postmodernism: A Contrast in Perspective and Attitude, the Fountain. [Online] Viewed on 15th September 2011 < http://www.fountainmagazine.com/Issue/detail/Modernism-and-Postmodernism-A-Contrast-in-Perspective-and-Attitude> Milavanovic, D.1995.Dueling Paradigms: Modernist V. Postmodernist Thought, Humanity and Society.Vol.19, no.1, pp.1-22, New York Times, 2012. India Ink : Delhi’s Modernist Architecture in Photographs, [online] < http://india.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/05/31/delhis-modernist-architecture-in-photographs/ > Kirby, A.2006. The Death of Postmodernism and Beyond, Philosophy Now, Vol.1, no. 1, pp.1-5 Rowe, H. 2011.The Rise and Fall Of Modernist Architecture, Student Pulse. Vol.3, no.4, pp.1-1 Rybczynski, W. 2011. Was Postmodern Architecture Any Good? [online] Viewed on 15th September 2012 < http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/architecture/2011/11/postmodern_architecture_its_most_important_legacy_.html> Salberg, D, Stewart, R, Wesley, K & Weiss, S.2009. Postmodernism and Its Critics, Viewed on 15th September 2012 < http://anthropology.ua.edu/cultures/cultures.php?culture=Postmodernism%20and%20Its%20Critics > Science Photo Library, 2012. Petronas Twin Towers, Viewed on 15th September 2012 < http://www.google.co.ke/imgres?imgurl=http://www.sciencephoto.com/image/76387/large/C0011950-Petronas_twin_towers,_Malaysia-SPL.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.sciencephoto.com/media/76387/enlarge&usg=__Ba4qQsIjwNBltHt6a_lH17Vo6P0=&h=530&w=353&sz=45&hl=en&start=17&zoom=1&tbnid=z8sWc8NpjWKWsM:&tbnh=132&tbnw=88&ei=RCBTUMPBHKWo0AWbt4C4Cw&itbs=1> Ticha, J.2012.The Stone Modernism and Visual Weakness Of Digital Age. Autoportret, Vol.1, no.36, pp.53-58 Vermuelen, T & Akker, R. 2010. Notes On Metamodernism, Journal Of Aesthetics And Culture, Vol.2, no.1,pp.1-14 World Museum, 2012. A history of architecture-postmodernism, Viewed on 15th September 2012 < http://www.historiasztuki.com.pl/72_ARCHWSP_2-eng.html> Read More