93690 - Construction History M

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student is able to recognise, historically place and critically evaluate the major architectures of the contemporary period, from the 1920s to the present day, knowing the main construction aspects and having the ability to place them in the city and the territory in which they are located. In particular, the student is able to - carry out archival research - carry out bibliographical research - critically structure a course of historical studies - recognise the main systems of forms in relation to the said historical period - describe and comment, in verbal and written form, on architecture belonging to the said historical period.

Course contents

The course aims to focus on certain themes in international architecture and engineering from the 1920s to the early decades of the new millennium. The choice of works, designers and, more generally, case studies and typological themes is intended to encourage the study of aspects of contemporary history not covered in courses already taken by students. The openness to new geographies, languages and critical readings is intended to stimulate the study and in-depth analysis of the proposed topics, while encouraging further research proposals, including from an interdisciplinary perspective, in order to provide additional stimuli and broaden the educational path.

The three modules will be organised with a view to a critical comparison between protagonists and works in local contexts and international perspectives, both in Italy and in the rest of the world. Particular attention will be paid to the Nordic countries, where training and the proposal of different professional figures very often go beyond the strictly national sphere. The comparison and discussion of each topic in the course programme will refer to Italian and international publications, which will be cited and made available to students in order to facilitate the reading of the proposed topics.

 

INTRODUCTION. Introduction on the origin, evolution and end of the modern movement

 

SECTION 1. 1920-1945_Geography of the modern movement. Interpretations and adaptations

The transition from classical to modern in the work of Auguste Perret and Erik Asplund
Ove Arup, Robert Maillart and Pier Luigi Nervi: a new vision of engineering
Kenzō Tange and the new generation of Japanese architects (Fumihiko Maki and Kishō Kurokawa)
The origins of the modern movement in America: the work of Lucio Costa and Richard Neutra

 

SECTION 2. 1945-1980_The second half of the twentieth century: construction, reconstruction, theories and utopias

Between North and South America: Niemeyer, Dieste, Candela, Saarinen and the Case Study Houses

Northern geographies: Sverre Fehn, Jørn Utzon, Sven Markelius and Sigurd Lewerentz

Architecture and/or engineering? Episodes of a possible dialogue in the second half of the twentieth century

Schools and protagonists of Italian architecture in the second half of the twentieth century

 

SECTION 3. 1980-2020_The last decades of the contemporary era. Towards a history of the present

The New York Five, the Californian school and the new South American generation

Philip Johnson and the evolution of language. From the Pritzker Prize to the Archistars

Postmodernism: from Paolo Portoghesi to Ricardo Bofill for architecture and the city

Paradigms of the new millennium between deconstructivism, high-tech and urban redevelopment

 

 

Readings/Bibliography

Bruno Zevi, Storia dell'architettura moderna, Einaudi, Turin 1950

Sigfried Giedion, Spazio tempo e architettura. Lo sviluppo di una nuova tradizione, Hoepli, Milan 1954

Eduardo Torroja, La concezione strutturale. Logica ed intuito nella ideazione delle forme, Unione tipografica - Editrice torinese, Turin 1966

Francesco Dal Co (ed.), Storia dell'architettura italiana. Il secondo Novecento, Milan, Electa 1997

William J.R. Curtis, L’architettura moderna dal 1900, Phaidon, Londra 2006

Kenneth Frampton, Tettonica e architettura. Poetica della forma architettonica nel XIX e XX secolo, Skira, Milano 2005

Kenneth Frampton, The Other Modern Movement. Architecture, 1920-1970, Yale University Press, New Haven 2022

Other texts will be pointed out and made available at the end of each lecture.

Teaching methods

Lectures, monographic seminars and an exercise to be completed by the end of the course.

Assessment methods

Verification of acquired knowledge will take place by means of an oral examination on the syllabus and evaluation of the annual exercise.

Teaching tools

All course materials will be available on the ‘virtual.unibo’ platform.

Office hours

See the website of Giovanni Bellucci