Before returning to classical values based on structure and reason, the formation of the middle class becomes the source of a new dynamic within design. The middle class can not afford the same as the upper, but want to feel as though they do. They strive to emulate the buildings and life of the upper crust of society and create a world that resembles that of the wealthy. Urban architecture takes on a uniform front so that buildings expand horizontally across the landscape and emulate the palace form. Each individual residence is a single world that fits within these castles of the city. The lavishness of the Baroque movement reached a new level with its spread from a distinct population to its employment throughout society as a whole.
The 17th and 18th centuries that followed reacted against the emotional excesses of Baroque design as did the Renaissance to the opulence of Gothic architecture. The fluidity and movement within comes to a standstill while design returns to its basis of structure and reason. This new architecture is “of pure elemental form expressing function…Such architecture was intended to communicate its purpose directly to the observer.” (Roth, pp.447-448) However, the theater of design is halted while the rules are rewritten.
Reflection to the past not only returns design to its basis in structure, but also reinterprets what denotes architecture. Design competitions and schematics become as important in the practice as the built environment. In drawing, architects found that they were, “freer…to create an architecture of pure volume declaring functional use.” (Roth, p.450) Is a building on paper able to express the design intentions and building’s story as well as the built structure? The “practice” becomes key. The design process itself now takes a front seat in building design and is able to effect design movement in society.
As the world expands across oceans, so does design. Instead of moving forward, residences and structures copy the past. Residential design from the English, Irish and French countrysides are placed on the new land. The colonies enhance their rebellion from Britain through their architecture, emulating Greece as the British were emulating ancient Rome. The American Revolution enhances motion, the colonies must change in response to their new government and new way of life. Soon after, the Industrial Revolution amplifies the rotation of the design cycle. “The building tasks that soon were the most pressing were those that provided the greatest use for the greatest number, the greatest public service to the community.” (Roth, p.463)
New materials, new technology, news. Information travels at a new speed and design follows suit. Glass and iron become major structural units and allow for new building forms to create new building types needed for rapidly changing societies. These new buildings “accentuated the already vast scale…all of them nearly pure structure, were the logical extension of the insistence on rationalism in design.” (Roth, pp.490-491) Extended glass expanses also allow for greater illumination of space. Interiors become more connected to the exterior by emulating exterior environments in a controlled manner. Boulevards with glass roofs become a shopper’s dream, greenhouses allow for exotic elements to live at any latitude. Iron and glass become important instruments in which to shed the past. Not only does the Industrial Revolution allow for a new illumination of space, but a new illumination of society and knowledge. Or so it was led to believe.
Do the technological advances of the Industrial Revolution also bring a revolution of knowledge? And, most importantly here, does it bring a revolution to design? Yes, new technology moves design forward in ways not yet known or understood, in this way knowledge also moves forward. But basic design ideals are put on hold. Once again design moves away from incorporating the landscape. Designs are placed on the landscape, environments are created and manipulated without regard to those surrounding. As we can see now, the two need to merge into a single form. Technology and the environment need to work together to create buildings that function with the natural processes of the earth. As populations grow and human interaction with the landscape continues to decimate the environment, design cycles back to its most basic form; structure and reason. What structure can we create that fits within the reason of sustainability.
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