Question – Architecture emblematic of community
Architecture in the twentieth century was often designed with the explicit intent of fostering a strong sense of community. Write an essay that examines the manner in which three specific works that we’ve encountered since the midterm worked to achieve this objective.
In your essay, be sure to provide information as to who the specific community was for whom the architect was designing, the ideas that he or she was working with to attain the goal of creating an environment that would foster a sense of community, and the way that these ideas were implemented in physical space. Make sure you use the selected works to offer physical evidence to support your answer.
Baker House by Alvar Aelto (keynotes below)
-Both inclusivity as a community (common spaces, like Dining Room with “Moon Garden” and individual space to withdrawal from community (dorm rooms)
-Each dorm room has its own view of the river by using a serpentine form for the building on the river side
-Furniture custom made for each individual room
-Sense of privacy in individual rooms
-Related to grid of the campus on the side facing away from the river
-Expression of circulation on exterior
-Building felt very porous because you could easily move between floors and allow students to mingle with each other
Salk Institute by Louis I.Kahn
Los Angeles Central Public Library; Bertram G. Goodhue
