ALTERNATIVES

millenial observations    reaching heavenward    duomo:the cathedral at Florence    

venezia:city of floating stone    villas in the veneto    rinascimento:renaissance    

testing boundaries + breaking rules    outside the box: a holistic view

THE “DARK” AGES

Pre-renaissance architecture was built mainly in cathedrals. This era was known as the dark ages but was it really dark? Lots of strides were taken in the world of architecture through famous cathedrals. There were lots of details within the structures and they were built on grand scales. Some of the cathedrals that shaped this era were the St. Madeline, the St. Marie, and the Abbey Church. The Duomo cathedral, the cathedral of Florence, best marks the transition from pre-renaissance into the renaissance. This cathedral marks the end of the dark ages and the beginning of medieval / renaissance era. This distinct mark in the skyline had the biggest dome made since the Pantheon.

THE RENAISSANCE

In the renaissance we saw a rebirth of antiquity, the rebirth of individualism, the start of humanism, the reconnection to the natural world, and the glorification of the state as art. Before the renaissance most architecture was based religiously, the church was very powerful in society, and on a living space townhomes were prominent. As the world moved into the renaissance we saw a rise in the merchant world, a fall in the church’s power, a more unified center, and palazzos were popular. The progressive center of the renaissance was the town of Florence. Implications of the revival of the past came about, design and architecture defined this span of time. Geometry became a prominent fundamental in the designing of buildings. Open space was introduced into the private home.

SUM IT UP

Within the alternatives unit we saw the implication of commodity, firmness, and delight tenfold. Attention was drawn from church and its power toward the individual. We saw great progression in this unit. Major changes and large strides were taken in architecture within this period of time.