Twentieth-Century Architecture

Level: Undergraduate

Division: The New School for Public Engagement

School: School of Undergraduate Studies

Department: Humanities

Course Number: NARH 3861

Course Format: Lecture

Location: Online

Permission Required: No

Topics:

• Architectural History, Theory & Criticism
• Design History, Theory & Criticism

Description:
This course serves as an introduction to the major concepts and historical circumstances informing architecture and urban design in the 20th century. Central themes include the impact of modern technology on building form, changing attitudes toward ornament and eclecticism, the rise of the metropolis and the suburb, and the sociopolitical concerns underlying most of these issues. Although lectures focus on Europe and the United States, we also consider major projects in Japan, India, and Latin America. Students become familiar with the works and words of noteworthy architects, from Le Corbusier to Frank Gehry, and the revolutionary messages of architectural groups, from the destructive vision of the Italian futurists to Archigram's comic-book renderings of a nomadic architecture. Course material is presented through posted lectures, images, video, and podcasts. To offer a broader cultural framework, two class sessions focusing on the music of the same period are taught by the instructor of NMUS3740.