"Less is More"
1886–1969
Mies van der Rohe was a German-American architect in the early 1900's. After reading about this architect, think about whether you agree when he is considered the father of Modern Architecture.
Mies was born in Aachen, Germany. His foremost influential education came from his employer, an architectural giant, Peter Behrens from 1908 to 1911. By 1912, Mies was executing his own works from his private firm in Berlin.
An INNOVATIVE MAN
In 1921, his first inventive design was for an all-glass skyscraper, which immediately gained international attention. Similar designs call for the use of steel frames while steel was still considered an innovation. In 1929, he designed his German Pavilion for the Barcelona International Exposition. It featured asymmetric design, original choice materials, and original orientation of spaces - all of which had rarely been experimented with before him. Also, for the Barcelona Exposition, Mies entered his design for his Barcelona chair, characterized by its chrome and leather elements.
THE CHANGING ENVIRONMENT
The 1930's was a changing period not just for individuals like Mies van der Rohe, but the world. In 1930, he became the director of the Bauhaus School in Dessau, Germany. Seven years later, he and his colleagues made an important emigration from Germany to the United States. Its importance is its measure of influence it had bestowed upon the development of global architecture. After the emigration, Mies and his associates continued the styles begun by the Bauhaus School and, in essence, created the new International Style, which dominated Our World of Architecture in the following years. Working out of his new office at the Armour Institute in Chicago, he began the new plans for an greater institute on the same location - Illinois Institute of Technology. he planned and designed the new campus up until the late 1950's. At his time at the institute he also contribute to the changing environment by giving his knowledge of architecture to his students and future architects.
The Seagram Building in New York, in collaboration with Philip Johnson, shows Mies' conceptual style of using the glass skyscraper with a steel-frame construction. this 37-story bronze-and-glass structure has become a signifying epitome of the International Style.
LESS IS MORE
Simplicity is a general rule in the architectural mind of Mies. He contradicted the style of Louis Kahn, who exposed internal structural elements. Mies limited the amount of exposure he would give to his work. Mies' well-known axiom, "Less is More", is a direct result.
Considering his geometric and unadorned buildings focus on elegant proportion and fine details, and that his achievements and beliefs had influenced much of modern architecture, many compare Mies van der Rohe with the other greats such as French architect Le Corbusier and American architect Frank Lloyd Wright.
What do you think? Does this man deserve the title of 'Father of Modern Architecture? Let us know.