Tag: gothic | ArchDaily

Cologne Architecture City Guide: 16 Historical and Contemporary Projects to Discover in the City of Spires

Maria-Cristina Florian — Wed, 16 Oct 2024 05:00:00 +0000

With its culturally and historically rich context, the city of Cologne, also called Köln by its locals, is considered one of the most important centers in West Germany. Nestled on the banks of the Rhine River, the city unfolds its architectural narrative through the interplay between historical landmarks, and contemporary interventions. In the old town, the medieval Cologne Cathedral, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the tallest cathedral in the world, dominates the skyline. The cityscape is also shaped by the Twelve Romanesque churches of Cologne.

Exploring Cameroon's Cathedrals: a Heritage Influenced by Byzantine and Gothic Movements

Paul Yakubu — Fri, 19 Jan 2024 07:30:00 +0000

Cameroon boasts a rich architectural heritage of Catholic Christian worship buildings. These buildings encompass various styles, including contemporary designs, Terracotta brick explorations, and Gothic, and Byzantine architectural influences. Since the arrival of missionaries and colonial communities in 1890, numerous religious buildings have been constructed with the involvement of local communities. These buildings not only contributed to the development of the Christian faith but also served as venues for the exchange of architectural ideals between the local and foreign communities.

Notre Dame Cathedral, Bangui: A Local Iteration of French Architecture in Central Africa

Paul Yakubu — Fri, 05 Jan 2024 07:30:00 +0000

Located in the city of Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic, is the Notre Dame Cathedral. This large red brick church was built in the early 1900s in the French colonial style. As the city grew from a small outpost to a colonial capital, the building was formed as a cultural and symbolic fusion of European and Central African architectural styles. Designed by French architect Roger Erell, the cathedral showcases local construction craftsmanship, provides a space for spiritual solace, and contributes to the national identity of the country.

The Reconstruction of Notre Dame’s Spire Nears Completion

Maria-Cristina Florian — Mon, 11 Dec 2023 06:30:00 +0000

In April 2019, a devastating fire engulfed the 860-year-old Notre Dame Cathedral in Pars, severely damaging its wooden roof and leading to the collapse of the 19th-century spire, originally designed by Viollet-le-Duc. Immediately after, French President Emmanuel Macron promised that the iconic monument would be restored in just 5 years, an ambitious deadline. As the restoration of the roof structures nears completion, in February 2023, the scaffolding for the reconstruction of the spire has been assembled. The Spire is expected to be finished by the end of the month.

Vienna's Architectural Evolution: 21 Landmarks Spanning Baroque, Secession, and Contemporary Styles

Nour Fakharany — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 04:00:00 +0000

Often referred to as the “City of Music,” Vienna stands as a living testament to architectural evolution across centuries. Bring together an array of styles, ranging from the grandeur of Baroque palaces to the innovative Art Nouveau designs and the Vienna Secession movement, visitors are drawn to the city for its architectural marvels. Vienna's eventful past is reflected in its architectural landscape, which has withstood wars, imperial expansions, and the changes of numerous artistic trends while managing to maintain its unique identity as a symbol of resilience and reinvention.

The Story Behind Frankfurt's New Old Town and how the Community Revived its Medieval Identity

Dima Stouhi — Fri, 26 Aug 2022 07:30:00 +0000

The architectural identity and urban fabric of the old city of Frankfurt has grown organically over centuries. Shops, bars, and craftsmen's workshops have always attracted a lot of visitors to the area between the Cathedral, or "Dom" in German, and the Römer, the main square in the center of Frankfurt. Historically, the area included buildings of many different styles, such as Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and Classical architecture, which most locals only knew about from black and white photographs, the town’s famous miniature model in the historic museum, or stories passed down through generations.

Enriching Architecture: Stained Glass

Rebecca Ildikó Leete — Sat, 02 Jul 2022 07:30:00 +0000

Predominantly associated with places of worship, stained glass has been used by artisans across the globe for thousands of years in an array of art ventures and installations. Intensifying architecture with vivid color, the process of stained glass refers to a particular action in which glass has been colored via metallic oxides during its manufacture, using different additives in order to create a range of hues and tones.

The Origins and Evolution of Gothic Architecture

Kaley Overstreet — Tue, 14 Jun 2022 04:00:00 +0000

The word “Gothic” often envokes a description of mysterious homes, or a modern-day group of people who have an affinity for dark aesthetics, but what the gothic architectural style historically brought to the built environment could not have been more opposite. Gothic designs were actually created to bring more sunlight into spaces, mainly churches, and led to the design and construction of some of the world’s most iconic buildings.

How the Renaissance Influenced Architecture

Rebecca Ildikó Leete — Mon, 23 May 2022 04:00:00 +0000

After a prolonged period known as the Middle-Ages, a growing desire to both study and mimic nature itself began to emerge, with an inclination to discover and explore the world. Between 1400-1600 A.D. Europe was to witness a significant revival of the fine arts, painting, sculpture, and Architecture. The ‘Renaissance’, meaning ‘rebirth’ in French typically refers to this period of European history, although most closely associated with Italy, countries including England and France went through many of the same cultural changes at varying timescales.

Spotlight: Raymond Hood

Vladimir Gintoff — Sun, 29 Mar 2020 03:30:00 +0000

In a short but prodigious career Raymond Mathewson Hood (March 29, 1881 – August 14, 1934) had an outsized influence on twentieth century architecture. Born in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, Hood was the son of a box manufacturer in an affluent Baptist family.[1] He attended Brown University before studying at MIT School of Architecture, later graduating from the École des Beaux-Arts in 1911. While in Paris, Hood met John Mead Howells, who in 1922 would select him as a partner for the design of the Chicago Tribune Tower. The team would beat out many more avant-garde entries by the likes of Walter Gropius, Adolf Loos, and Eliel Saarinen, with their own Neo-Gothic edifice that mimicked the Butter Tower of Rouen Cathedral.

Gothic Construction Techniques Inspire ETH Zurich's Lightweight Concrete Floor Slabs

Osman Bari — Thu, 05 Sep 2019 07:30:00 +0000

With the intention of maximizing available space and avoiding steep construction costs, researchers from ETH Zurich’s Department of Architecture have devised a concrete floor slab that with a thickness of a mere 2cm, remains load bearing and simultaneously sustainable. Inspired by the construction of Catalan vaults, this new floor system swaps reinforced steel bars for narrow vertical ribs, thus significantly reducing the weight of construction and ensuring stability to counter uneven distributions on its surface.

Iconic American Buildings Re-Envisioned in the Gothic Revival Style

Vasundhra Aggarwal — Wed, 12 Dec 2018 04:00:00 +0000

With its intricate ornamentation and complex ribbed vaulting, Gothic architecture introduced a slenderness and exuberance that was not seen before in medieval Europe. Epitomized by pointed arches, flying buttresses, and tall spires, Gothic structures were easily identifiable as they reached new heights not previously achievable, creating enigmatic interior atmospheres.

The Characteristics of 12 Architectural Styles From Antiquity to the Present Day

Julia Daudén — Mon, 13 Aug 2018 07:00:00 +0000

History has often been taught in a linear way. This way of teaching has often left out grand historical narratives, and focused primarily on the occidental world.

Gothic Architecture Meets High Fashion in Guo Pei’s Gravity-Defying Dresses

Rory Stott — Fri, 06 Jul 2018 17:05:00 +0000

In what has to be one of the most spectacular collisions of high fashion and architecture, fashion designer Guo Pei has tapped into the "immutable" qualities of Gothic buildings with a series of outfits inspired by vaults, spires, flying buttresses, and elaborate window tracery. According to Vogue, the Chinese designer described her work as "a dialogue between the human body and spatial dimension," while Pei's own Facebook post explained her Fall 2018 collection with just a short phrase: "Time flows unhurriedly, while architecture stands immutably."

"Gothic": Exhibition of Architectural Models

Rene Submissions — Tue, 17 Oct 2017 19:30:00 +0000

The exhibition "Gothic: The Age of the Great Cathedrals" will begin in Switzerland in December 2017 in the choir of the Cathedral of St. Nicholas in Fribourg. It will go to the Cathedral of Bern (Berner Münster, Cathedral of Bordeaux and Church of St. Germain l'Auxerrois in Paris. The idea of this project is a journey through the extraordinary saga of these great medieval buildings. This adventure begins with the construction of the Basilica Cathedral of Saint-Denis, the place where Gothic art was born. Throughout the exhibition, the visitors will discover secrets of 17 monuments chosen among the most beautiful, the most emblematic. They will encounter this medieval art movement that has overwhelmed Europe and wished to build always higher, larger and more beautifully!

How a Novel Saved Notre-Dame and Changed Perceptions of Gothic Architecture

Richard Buday — Tue, 05 Sep 2017 09:30:00 +0000

This article was originally published by Common Edge as "It’s a Book. It’s a Building. It’s a Behavioral Intervention!"

AD Classics: Red House / William Morris and Philip Webb

Luke Fiederer — Fri, 16 Jun 2017 04:30:00 +0000

In the heart of a suburb just east of London stands an incongruous red brick villa. With its pointed arched window frames and towering chimneys, the house was designed to appear like a relic of the Middle Ages. In reality, its vintage dates to the 1860’s. This is Red House, the Arts and Crafts home of artist William Morris and his family. Built as a rebuttal to an increasingly industrialized age, Red House’s message has been both diminished by the passage of time and, over the course of the centuries, been cast in greater relief against its context.

5 Fun Easter Eggs Hidden in Gothic Architecture

Meg Neal — Fri, 24 Mar 2017 09:30:00 +0000

This article was originally published on Atlas Obscura as "Five Architectural Easter Eggs Hiding on Gothic Cathedrals."