47291 - History of Architecture 2

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student is able to recognise, historically place and critically evaluate the major architectures of the modern and contemporary period, from the 18th century up to the Second World War, 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 historical study path; - recognise the main systems of forms in relation to the said historical period; - describe and comment, in verbal and written form, an architecture belonging to the said historical period.

Course contents

The course is divided into two modules held respectively by Dr. Daniele Pascale Guidotti Magnani and Dr. Matteo Cassani Simonetti. The chronological span covered by the course has as its extremes the Roman Baroque and the present day. The contents presented during the lessons will be articulated as follows:

Module 1. The Roman Baroque
The Masters: Bernini, Borromini, Pietro da Cortona
Rainaldi, Fontana
The Roman 18th century

Module 2. Baroque experiences in Italy
Veneto: Longhena, Massari, Tirali
Emilia: Monti, Vigarani, Bibiena
Piemonte: Guarini, Juvarra, Vittone

Module 3. International Baroque Experiences
France (Mansart, Hardouin-Mansart, Le Vau)
Austria and Germany (Fischer von Erlach, Hildebrandt)
England: from Palladianism to Wren

Module 4. Comparing Capitals from Baroque to Neoclassicism
Roma
Torino
Paris
London, Edinburgh, Bath

Module 5. The rediscovery of antiquity in the second half of the 18th century
The antiquities of Athens, Paestum and Pompei
Piranesi

Module 6. Experiences of European Neoclassicism
France (architects of Utopia: Boullée, Ledoux, Lequeu)
England (the Adams, Soane, Nash)
Russia (Quarenghi)
Germany (Schinkel, Klenze)

Module 7. Architecture and the City during the Industrial Revolution
The architecture of Eclecticism and the new materials
The English Utopians and the applied arts
The capitals of modernity in Europe: Paris, London, Barcelona
America. Classicism and the Chicago School

Module 8. Modernity
Towards modernity. Art nouveau, jugend stijl, modernism
Art and architecture. The historical avant-gardes
From the Deutscher Wekbund to the Bauhaus
Classicism or modernity. Architecture in Italy, Germany, USSR

Module 9. The masters of 20th century architecture
The masters of modern architecture. Frank Lloyd Wright
The masters of modern architecture. Le Corbusier
The masters of modern architecture. Mies van der Rohe
The masters of modern architecture. Alvar Aalto and Louis Kahn

Module 10. Reconstruction and post-war architecture
Reconstruction in Europe
The American context
The activity of the masters in the post-war period
From Modern to International Style

Module 11. After the masters of modern architecture and up to postmodernism
From the Ciam to Team X. The legacies of the modern tradition
Radical architecture and the recovery of the rational
Architecture as design
Postmodernism in architecture

Module 12. On the threshold of the chronicle. Some alternatives after postmodernism
High tech
The genius loci, critical regionalism and the environmental paradigm
Deconstructivism
Digital architecture, the Bilbao phenomenon and the archistars

Readings/Bibliography

Modulo 1:

About Italian architecture, the bibliography is:

R. Wittkower, Arte e architettura in Italia 1600-1750, Torino, Einaudi, 1972 o edizioni successive, capitoli VII, VIII, IX, X, XII, XVI, XVII.

or:

A. Scotti Tosini (a cura di), Storia dell’Architettura italiana. Il Seicento, Milano, Electa, 2003, pp. 146-209; 226-261; 36-369; 400-423; 470-495, 588-613.

G. Curcio, E. Kieven (a cura di), Storia dell’Architettura italiana. Il Settecento, Electa, 2000, pp. 146-209; pp. 240-259; pp. 470-504; 516-539.

About European and 19th Century architecture:

C. Norberg-Schulz, Architettura Barocca, Electa, 1971, pp. 318-322; 327-338.

C. Norberg-Schulz, Architettura Tardobarocca, Electa, 1972, pp. 311-354.

R. Middleton, D. Watkin, Architettura dell’Ottocento, Electa, 1980, pp. 5-202.

Modulo 2:

The student may choose to prepare by studying the two volumes of Leonardo Benevolo or that of William J.R. Curtis or, as a further alternative, that of Jean-Louis Cohen.

L. Benevolo, Storia dell’architettura moderna, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2014 (I ed. 1960)

L. Benevolo, L’architettura del nuovo millennio, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2014 (I ed. 2006)

W.J.R. Curtis, L'architettura moderna del Novecento, Milano, Mondadori, 1999, o edizioni successive

J.-L. Cohen, The Future of Architecture. Since 1889, London-New York, Phaidon, 2012

Teaching methods

Lectures, seminars, tutorials, study trips.

The student is also called upon to elaborate a timeline relating to the main works and events presented during the lectures and indicated in the bibliography. Examples for the elaboration of this study tool are uploaded on the Virtual Platform.
The student is also invited to make use of a personal notebook in which he/she can illustrate, by means of drawings and photographs, the most representative buildings discussed during the lectures.

Assessment methods

The History of Architecture II examination aims to verify the attainment of the knowledge and skills foreseen. The minimum threshold of learning is the student's ability to place the works of architecture illustrated during the course in the correct chronological order and to understand their formal, linguistic, social and functional values in the cultural context of their time.

The examination assesses students’ achievement of the learning outcomes associated with the two modules that make up the course. Assessment takes the form of a final oral examination conducted jointly by the two course instructors and lasting approximately 20–30 minutes. The final grade is based on the average of the grades awarded independently by the two instructors during the examination:

• 18–20: limited knowledge of the subject matter.
• 21–23: partial or approximate knowledge of the subject matter, with limited critical engagement.
• 24–26: satisfactory knowledge of the subject matter, with an adequate level of critical engagement.
• 27–29: good knowledge of the subject matter, with a sound capacity for critical analysis.
• 30–30L: excellent knowledge of the subject matter, together with an outstanding ability to develop an independent and well-structured critical perspective.

During the examination, students may consult the notebook and timeline prepared as part of their individual study. AI can be a useful tool to support individual study by providing further insights, summaries, and self-assessment activities. However, even at the study stage, we consider the personal reading and review of texts, the direct observation of buildings (wherever possible), and the manual reworking of material through diagrams, redrawings, and sketches to be fundamental and integral components of academic education and cultural development. These stages cannot be replaced by any technological or other instrumental aid. Indeed, it is through these activities that students can truly understand the subjects they study and make them part of a lasting personal body of knowledge—a body of knowledge that can be drawn upon throughout their education and beyond, and that provides an essential foundation for developing a critical approach to the other design and technical subjects that make up the architectural curriculum. We therefore strongly discourage the use of AI at any stage of the learning process in architectural history. For cultural development to be effective, the learning process should be carried out as far as possible through personal reflection and through discussion with the instructor and fellow students. The student’s personal responsibility also extends to the choice of study methods, as these choices will shape their academic development and, ultimately, their future professional practice. With regard to the assessment of learning, the use of AI is prohibited during the in-person examination. Any use of AI constitutes a violation of academic integrity.

Teaching tools

Lessons will take place with constant use of graphic and photographic material that will be presented through video projections. The teaching material will be accessible from the dedicated page on the Virtual Platform.

Office hours

See the website of Matteo Cassani Simonetti

See the website of Daniele Pascale Guidotti Magnani