History of Architecture & Design: Le Corbusier's works - Essay Example

History of Architecture & Design Introduction Architecture and design have evolved alongside the several other cultural and social changes in the society; modern designs seek to offer users of the facilities greater gratification right from the appearance of the structures and the convenience of access and use that such structures promise to the users. Modern day structures portray greater aesthetic appeal besides the convenience they offer the users who seeks to access specific features of the facilities. Among the busiest structures in the modern society are the airports, which serve as the gateway to countries all over the world. The airports serve as the first impression when entering a particular country. Governments therefore spend billions of dollars to ensure that they develop aesthetic structure that guarantee the convenience and comfort of the millions of users of such facilities annually. Among the pioneers of modern architecture whose ideas has influenced the design of modern day architecture was a Swiss known as Charles-Édouard Jeanneret-Gris, known commonly as Le Corbusier. His description of airports in the 1920s centered on the need to improve the aesthetic features of the design besides the several other features considered in the design in order to safeguard the need for convenience. Infusing aesthetics in such huge structures that have become some of the busiest in the modern societies would prove a major challenge, which he set to solve thereby influencing the design of some of the largest and most beautiful airports in the world (Lapunzina, 2005). Among the largest and busiest airports in the world are Incheon International Airport in Seoul South Korea designed and developed in the 1990s and the famous John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York. The two are essential gateways to the two respective blocs with John F. Kennedy International Airport serving as a gate way to the Americas while Incheon International Airport serving as a gateway to the eastern bloc. Among the most iconic works done by Le Corbusier that influenced the design of cities and major facilities in cities including airports was the Villa Savoye which embodied economic utilization of land among other resources in the development of property and the portrayal of aesthetics in doing so. The renowned architect employs a concept he refers to as the five point of architecture. Most airports including the JF Kennedy in New York and the Incheon International Airport in Seoul have employed the same concept in planning for land one of the key resource in the development of airports. Airports cover large tracks of land owing to the size of the airplanes and the millions of people such facilities attract. Furthermore, airports do not require tall buildings, which may prevent navigation of the airplane. The five points of architecture influenced the design of the airports thus encouraging the economic use of the land. In constructing the villa of Savoye, Le Corbusier supports the bulk of the structure on strong pillars spread and spaced evenly thereby spreading the weight of the entire structure on the ground. The design was not only unique but also equally beautiful. The bulk of the structure remains elevated from the ground thereby leaving the space below the structure for other secondary uses. As explained above, modern day airports are busy with the JF Kennedy in New York receive more than a million visitors per month. Coupled with the threats of terrorism and the need to maintain law and order in such places has influenced the employment of the same concept in the design and construction of the airports (Curtis, 1999). The figure below displays terminal four of the JF Kennedy airport. Most of the structure is elevated thus resting on several pillars. The design of the terminal makes it appropriate for the services that take place at the terminal. The elevation leaves adequate space below the structure for parking among other services. Most people who go to the airport to meet their friends and family entering the country prefer sitting at higher levels in order to watch the scenic view of the airplanes landing and taking off at the facility. Residents of New York use the airport as a recreational facility with schools and collages taking students to the facility for field trips. This implies that most of the users prefer the elevated floors. The design of the terminal therefore improves the relevance of the facility as a sightseeing location in the city. Most businesses in the airport use the higher floors that offer them strategic location for sightseeing. Figure 1 A photo of terminal 4 at the JF Kennedy displaying the elegance of the structure standing several meters from the ground owing to the implementation of Le Corbusier’s five points of architecture. The design leaves space beneath the facility thereby forming room for parking among other fundamental services at the facility thereby minimizing overcrowding. The floors offer visitors vantage position for sightseeing. Security is a basic feature in every airport. Security agents in the country use several technologies to ensure that the facility and the entire country by extrapolation are safe. The design of the airport should help improve the security of the facility. The five points of architecture design is a preference in most airports globally owing to its role in enhancing the security of the facility. The elevation of the structure implies that everyone entering the facility must access higher floors in order to receive some of the basic services at the facility. The design of the terminal among several other terminals at the airport restricts those who use the facility to access the floors through specific gates fitted with fitting screening equipment. The design of the structure makes it easier to restrict the users of the facility to a single or specific gates thereby making it possible in implement such security features. The pillars and other equipment used in the construction of the airports according to the design vouched by Le Corbusier had specific requirements in order to increase the strength and endurance of both the pillars and the floors to the weight of the structure. The pillars are spaced evenly and constructed of steel reinforced concrete (Theodore, 2009). The light materials used in constructing the airports included aluminum a material which is not only light weight but equally string therefore capable of enduring the weight generated from occupants of the facility. among the key features that resulted from the five point developed by Le Corbusier included free facade implying walls standing freely and an open floor plan. The two resultant features have shaped the development of not only airports but also other larger facilities globally (Evers & koln, 2006). The free walls permit designers to manipulate the features of the walls thereby developing unique features that depict the aesthetic feature of the structure. The open floor plan on the other hand avails the architects with large spaces they therefore divide without necessarily erecting walls, as is the case at the JF Kennedy airport. Le Corbusier viewed airports as smaller cities. Most of the international airports such as the JF Kennedy in New York and Incheon International Airport in Seoul receive more than ten million visitors annually. This implies that without effective planning, the airports would easily become overpopulated a feature that may present myriad risks. Effective planning of the airports would therefore ensure that the facilities handle the millions of visitors effectively maintaining the security of the facilities (Coombs & Batchelor, 2013). JF Kennedy for example is one of the safest airports in the world with the authority managing the traffic into the facility effectively thereby averting any chances of the facility becoming populated. The design of the airport facilitates the security features required at the facility. Through the implementation of Le Corbusier’s architectural design, airport authorities at the facility control the traffic in and out of the facility effectively thereby ensuring that nobody accesses the facility without through scrutiny a feature that makes the facility safe from both internal and foreign visitors who might harbor plots to harm travelers at the facility (Weston, 2004). Beauty is an essential feature in Le Corbusier’s design. As explained earlier, modern day airports have acquired unique shapes and employed various features that make them aesthetic. The beauty of the facilities make the first impression to most of the visitors, the facilities have particular shapes that embody the uniqueness of modernism and the metaphors of technological sophistication. The images below display the sophisticated shapes of both airports. The two facilities embody the architectural developments in the contemporary society. The unique shapes are easily achieved by manipulating various features of the structures thereby balancing the weight of the entire structures evenly on the functional parts of the structure. Figure 2 A photo of the famous JF Kennedy, the magnificent structure has a unique shape that earns it a degree of beauty. From the vintage painting and the wooden decor of facility exemplifies the use of light materials to achieve greater aesthetic for the facility. Figure 3 A photo of the Incheon International Airport in Seoul, South Korea, the beautiful structure boasts spacious lounges for both the arrival and departure sections. Constructed in 1993 the modern facility employs some of the architectural features first developed by Le Corbusier such as the five points of architecture. The pillars supporting the weight of the entire building are visible. The pillars spread the weight of the entire structure evenly among them thereby sustaining the strength and stability of the facility. The design makes the facility accessible and equally spacious (Gordon, 2013). The design creates adequate parking space for the people using the facility besides the fact that the design provides the facility with an elegant poise, a fundamental aesthetic feature. Another integral architectural design feature in the construction of airports just as is the case with any other mega structure is development of the core. The two airports displayed above have unique shapes that portray their beauty. However, in manipulating the shapes of the facilities, architects must always safeguard the safety and stability of the structures. the stability of the structure especially the parts of the structures extending high into the sky require strong support pillars that traverse the entire height of the structures. Le Corbusier solved the challenge by designing central pillars that serve as backbones for the structure thereby providing strong support for the structure. The central pillars often referred to as the core is found deep in the structures and extends the entire height of the facilities. Such often harbor the elevators and consists of concrete hardened by steel. The core provides the building with the strength and runs deep into the foundation thereby spreading the weight of the extending parts of the facilities often hanging out. In addition to the core, the materials used in the construction of the facilities are lighter in weight and does not therefore exert more weight on the pillars. As depicted in the pictures alongside, most of the facilities are constructed using hardened glass and aluminum composite panels on the walls and on the roofs respectively. Coupled with aluminum reels the structures therefore become light a feature that improves their strengths and stability. The open floor plans achieved through the specific architectural design enhances the use of such materials as aluminum composite panels to construct the walls. Unlike concrete walls, the use of aluminum composite panels result in walls that weighs less thereby reducing stress on the pillars. Through such technologies, the facilities thus become stronger and more stable. In retrospect, Le Corbusier’s ideas have remained fundamental in the design and planning of modern urban centers. The designs of airports throughout the world have adopted a similar technology in a bid to improve the convenience of the facilities and the need to improve their security as well. Le Corbusier’s design has proven essential in the design and development of the facilities since it provides realistic solutions to some of the problems that face the design and construction of such facilities. The utilization of the five-point architecture for example has influenced the design of airports with most of such facilities showing preference for the design owing to the effective utilization of space. References Coombs, D. S., & Batchelor, B. (2013). American history through American sports: From colonial lacrosse to extreme sports. Santa Barbara, Calif: Praeger. Curtis, W. (1999). Modern architecture since 1900. New York: OUP. Evers, B. & koln, T. (2006). Le corbusier, In Architectural History from Renaissance to the present, eds. New York: Polity Press. Gordon, A. (2013). Le Corbusier's Role in the Controversy Over Eileen Gray's E.1027. The wall street journal. http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424127887324354704578637901327433828 http://www.jfkairport.net/ http://www.panynj.gov/airports/jfk-history.html Lapunzina, A. (2005). Architecture of Spain. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press. Theodore, D. (2009).The Architect as Totalitarian: Le Corbusier’s baleful influence. City journal. Vol 09 No 14. Obtained from: http://www.city journal.org/2009/19_4_otbie-le-corbusier.html Weston, R. (2004). Plans, sections and elevations: Key buildings of the twentieth century. London: Laurence King. Read More