Architecture has always had an impact on culture, politics, economy, and much more, even on the more individualistic level we feel its impact in intangible ways it has a way of changing our lifestyle, philosophy, and psychology. There have been a lot of people who have changed the way architecture processes or construction systems or how we interact with spaces. Let’s see people who helped transform architecture in the 21st century.
Jean Nouvel:
“Everyone is a product of his epoch”
French architect Jean Nouvel was born on August 12, 1945, and is well-known for his modern designs. The École Nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts is where he received his education.Among the various terms that may be used, to sum up architect Jean Nouvel’s career, the most important ones highlight his fearless search for novel concepts and his defiance of conventional wisdom to push the frontiers of the industry.’Persistence, ingenuity, energy, and, above all, an insatiable need for creative exploration’ were recognized by the jury as attributes abundant in Nouvel’s work.Nouvel’s mastery of the art was confirmed when he won the Pritzker Prize in 2008, the Wolf Prize in Arts in 2005, and the Aga Khan Award for architecture in 1989.
Lucerne Culture and Congress Centre, Switzerland
Museum Two, Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art, Seoul, South Korea
Frank Owen Gehry:
“I would like to make a building as intellectually driven as it is sculptural and as positive as it would be acceptable to hope.”
Canadian-American architect Frank Owen Gehry was born in February 1929 and currently resides in Los Angeles, California. He attended the University of Southern California to finish his education. Several of his designs have become internationally recognized structures, such as his home and well-known tourist destinations. In 2010, World Architecture Survey listed his designs as the most significant in the field of modern architecture. He was deemed “the most important architect of our age” by Vanity Fair because of this. Among the several honors Gehry has received for his works are the Pritzker Prize for the Walt Disney Concert Hall in 1989, the National Medal of Arts in 1998, the California Hall of Fame Inductee Award in 2006, and the Companion of the Order of Canada.
The titanium-clad Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain
Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, USA
Daniel Libeskind:
“To provide meaningful architecture is not to parody history but to articulate it.”
Born on May 12, 1946, Daniel Libeskind is an architect who is Polish-American. He finished his master’s degree at the University of Essex after completing his undergraduate studies at The Cooper Union. One could characterize his architectural style as de-constructivism, and he regards himself as a de-constructivist. He decided to join the ranks of the past’s representatives to expose the world to the horrors of his past while incorporating a fresh sense of hope and a determination to comprehend and absorb the past while also creating a better tomorrow than the one that passed. He strives to convey a powerful message and make an impression on the audience rather than turning architecture into a useless art form that is happy with its harmonious shapes. He claims that because there is so much violence in human existence, the structure of life is irreversibly warped and disturbed. This mindset is evident in the deconstructivist shapes he uses in his building designs.
Imperial War Museum North – Greater Manchester, England, United Kingdom
Jewish Museum, Berlin
Balkrishna Doshi
“Buildings are no different from a living organism, they are equals…when you design, remember that they must breathe, speak, and sing like the trees and the birds… all is possible when you become yourself.”
An influential figure in South Asian architecture, Balkrishna Vithaldas Doshi is an Indian architect located in Pune. He was born on August 26, 1927, and at 90 years old, his opinions on architecture are the pinnacle of practicality and elegance. He graduated from Mumbai’s J.J. School of Architecture. He was the first Indian recipient of the Pritzker Prize in 2018. Doshi has a reputation for producing serious, straightforward architecture from the start. His projects include residences for private clients, public administrations and utilities, educational and cultural institutions, and high-quality, authentic architecture. He has a strong sense of responsibility and a strong desire to use his craft to benefit his nation and its citizens.
IIM, Bangalore
Aranya Low-Cost Housing Development, Indore
Moshe Safdie
“Beauty connotes humanity”
Israeli-born architect Moshe Safdie (1938–) immigrated to Canada. The idea was undefined at first and he was well-known for his designs that use curved and bent lines to create geometry. “His designs emphasize the need to create meaningful, vital, and inclusive spaces that enhance the community, with attention to the building’s particular locale, culture, and geography.” Marina Bay Sands, a three-tower complex spanning 845,000 square meters in Singapore, houses a convention center, restaurants, a casino, a hotel, a mall, a theatre, and even an ice rink. Situated on sixteen hectares of reclaimed land, the resort boasts a height of fifty-five stories. The 340-meter-long cantilevered Sky Park spans the tops of the three buildings, serving as the anchor between them. He made his initial impact on architecture with his master’s thesis, which served as the inspiration for Habitat 67. Safdie gained notoriety after his groundbreaking first project and went on to create a plethora of cultural buildings, transforming his radicalism into a dramatic yet delicate style that is now well-liked all over the world. Safdie, who works primarily in Asia and the Middle East, emphasizes the incorporation of public areas and greenery into his modernist designs.
Virasat-E-Khalsa
Habitat ’67
Citations:
https://interestingengineering.com/culture/17-most-inventive-architects-of-the-21st-century
https://human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Art/A_World_Perspective_of_Art_History%3A_1400CE_to_the_21st_Century_(Gustlin_and_Gustlin)/08%3A_Millennial_Art_(2000-Present)/8.04%3A_Architecture_for_the_21st_Century http://dzinetrip.com/top-five-architects-in-the-21st-centur
