The Architecture Portal

Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings or other structures. The term comes from Latin architectura; from Ancient Greek ἀρχιτέκτων (arkhitéktōn) 'architect'; from ἀρχι- (arkhi-) 'chief' and τέκτων (téktōn) 'creator'. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural symbols and as works of art. Historical civilizations are often identified with their surviving architectural achievements.
Architecture began as rural, oral vernacular architecture that developed from trial and error to successful replication. Ancient urban architecture was preoccupied with building religious structures and buildings symbolizing the political power of rulers until Greek and Roman architecture shifted focus to civic virtues. Indian and Chinese architecture influenced forms all over Asia and Buddhist architecture in particular took diverse local flavors. During the Middle Ages, pan-European styles of Romanesque and Gothic cathedrals and abbeys emerged while the Renaissance favored Classical forms implemented by architects known by name. Later, the roles of architects and engineers became separated.
Modern architecture began after World War I as an avant-garde movement that sought to develop a completely new style appropriate for a new post-war social and economic order focused on meeting the needs of the middle and working classes. Emphasis was put on modern techniques, materials, and simplified geometric forms, paving the way for high-rise superstructures. Many architects became disillusioned with modernism which they perceived as ahistorical and anti-aesthetic, and postmodern and contemporary architecture developed. Over the years, the field of architectural construction has branched out to include everything from ship design to interior decorating. (Full article...)
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The Gardens by the Bay (GBTB) is an urban park spanning 105 hectares (260 acres) in the Central Region of Singapore, adjacent to the Marina Reservoir. The park consists of three waterfront gardens: Bay South Garden in Marina South, Bay East Garden with the Founders' Memorial in Marina East and Bay Central Garden in the Downtown Core and Kallang. The largest of the gardens is the Bay South Garden at 54 hectares (130 acres) designed by Grant Associates. Its Flower Dome is the largest glass greenhouse in the world.
Gardens by the Bay was part of the nation's plans to transform its "Garden City" to a "City in a Garden", with the aim of raising the quality of life by enhancing greenery and flora in the city. First announced by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at Singapore's National Day Rally in 2005, Gardens by the Bay was intended to be Singapore's premier urban outdoor recreation space and one of the country's national icons. (Full article...)
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Did you know (auto-generated) -

- ... that architect Donald MacKay designed a fire station which later burnt down in the Great Seattle Fire?
- ... that T. E. Lawrence travelled 1,000 miles (1,600 km) on foot alone during a three-month tour of crusader castles while writing his thesis about the Crusades and European military architecture?
- ... that Benjamin F. McAdoo was the first Black architect to be licensed in the U.S. state of Washington?
- ... that confectioner William Westerfeld hired architect Henry Geilfuss to design his home in San Francisco, and then died in it?
- ... that Lanfranco Cirillo is the architect of Putin's Palace, a palace complex on the Black Sea coast allegedly built for Vladimir Putin which is estimated to have cost over one billion US dollars?
- ... that the Cathedral of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows in Suzhou is known for its "hybridity" of Chinese and Western architecture?
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