Reflections

When one reflects they are looking back to past accomplishments or mistakes that have affected the end product. This unit has been about how architecture has improved and changed. The architects of the time looked back on past accomplishments and mistakes to improve their personal work. This lead to a revival in American architecture. In some instances architects took work of ancient cities and recreated them to suit their own taste. With this change came the usage of new materials such as glass, iron and concrete. These materials were used often in a large scale and the buildings that utilized these materials stuck out among the city they were in. The Crystal Palace is a wonderful example of one of the first attempts to used a cast iron frame and the concept of walls made completely of glass. The Crystal Palace was built simply to house the Great Exhibition of 1951 and since has been taken down. The Eiffel tower is an example of the use of iron in an unusual way for the time. It is made simply of iron and is a structural tower that continues to marvel people. During the reflections unit we talked about the constant competition between New York City and Chicago to have the tallest building in the United States and sometimes even the world. This still continues today and it seems that either of the two always take the prize for having the tallest building. This reflects back to Greece and Rome where tall columns were used to show hierarchy and power over others. We call this a wu-wu in class because the columns represented the male genital area. The tradition still plays on today and probably always will. This unit has really portrayed the movement that happened in design between the times. The architecture has changed and so has the way of thinking for not only the architects but the people of the world. The architects look to the past for ideas and methods for creating buildings but also look for individuality in their own work. So they take the foundations and build of them to create a new design and style that could in the future be the foundation for other architects work. A quote by Confucius says “By three methods we may learn wisdom: first, by reflection, which is noblest; second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third, by experience, which is the most bitter.” This quote sums up design and shows that reflecting on others works is often the best thing to do because it shows you care about keeping traditions alive even if these buildings are actually recreated.