Introduction This report will discuss the career of prominent Italian architect, Renzo Piano. Topics discussed include: design approach, influences, building typology and the materials used, as well as a biography of Renzo.
Biography Born into a family of builders at Genoa, Italy in 1937, Renzo Piano’s entire life has involved buildings. He once said, “I don’t remember a single thing in my childhood that was not related in some way to buildings” (Brainy Quote, 2017). Renzo graduated from the Polytechnic University in Milan, 1964 (Jodidio, 2008, p. 520). From 1965-1970, Renzo travelled between the US and the UK to complete his first works (Jodidio, 2008, p. 520). In 1971, he co-founded ‘Piano and Rogers’ with Richard Rogers. The duo
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Renzo stated in an interview, “Architecture is about exploring. Culturally, historically, psychologically, anthropologically, and topographically, every job is different.” Renzo is particularly well known for adapting designs to their location. He later went on to say “(architecture) should make a contribution to the contex. … you must employ a homeopathic process, ... you can easily destroy their (cities) subtle dynamics” (Archinect, 2006). Renzo respects that is it important to not become self referential with design. Therefore, to truly understand the reality of a city, Renzo will never accept a new job without visiting the space first. This is to find the fundamental emotions, which he states is the true source of inspiration (Archinect, 2006). Furthermore, Renzo and his team will make hundreds of models after research to test their theories. “Versions enable us to understand how the pieces will work with each other”, Renzo once said (BMIAA, 2015).
Influences of Renzo
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This building is capable of such thing by including shops, museums, offices, restaurants and apartments within (Jodidio, 2012, p. 91). The purpose of the design is to be “a sharp and light presence in the London Skyline” (Piano, 2000). The London Bridge Tower opened in 2012 and is currently the tallest building in Europe, although for Renzo, the height of The Shard was never something he strived for (Jodidio, 2012, p. 91) (The Shard,
Andrea Palladio was born in 1508A.D. in Italy. At a very young age he became a stone mason, however his journey into architecture began when he met Gian Giorgio Trissino who immediately saw ability in him and decided to mentor Palladio. Trissino combined a study of classical architecture with architecture of the time, all the while allowing Palladio room to develop a style of his own. In time Palladio was constructing villas through out the country side of Italy, in all he constructed 30 villas, 18 of which are still standing today. Perhaps Palladio’s most famous work was the Villa Rotondra or La Rotondra which was started around 1565 and took approximately 4 years to build and was greatly inspired by the Pantheon in Rome. It is interesting to note that la Rotondra is different from Palladio’s other villas in a number of ways, and it is evident that these differences help distinguish it from the rest. The main differences between Palladio’s Rotondra and his other work are, The Rotonda is set on a hilltop, it is located near a...
It is the new decade after the end of world war two and modernism is a well-established practice. Its pioneers and spearheads are prevalent figures looming over the new architects and designers who are trying to make their mark in the shadows of such historically influential people. With new technologies and materials emerging from the world wars the next era of modernism had started to evolved, bringing with it philosophies and ideas which seemed far removed from those of the pioneers of modernism “What emerged in the late 1940s and 1950s was an expanding synthesis of questions utterly removed from the confident statements of the pioneers.”(Spade 1971,10) Two significant buildings were designed in the 50's, both of them for educational institutes and to house students of architecture, there were both designed in completely different styles and methods. The first is Ludwig Mies van der Rohes' Crown Hall, finished in 1956 and designed as a part of a campus master plan for the Illinois Institute of technology in Chicago. Mies' design for Crown Hall is one of his most realised expressio...
But all those pianists had to confront with Beethoven when he arrived to Vienna from Bonn. Beethoven was advanced in the piano playing at his time. He came with his rough and overwhelming playing for those times and his surprising improvisations, he was broking all the law in name of the expression. Pianos were no safe with him, he broke more pianos than anybody in Vienna and he played only his music with few exceptions. He admired Clementi and C P E Bach as classic masters but he was creating a new school of piano playing. He was plagued of piano problems and for most of his life he used Viennese pianos at first a five-plus octaves and then a six octaves instrument. In 1818 he received a magnificent grant piano with a range of over six octaves but by that time his hearing was gone.
Italian art and culture changed numerous times throughout history, bringing about some of the world’s most unique and beautiful design concepts. While many marvel at the beauty of magnificent architecture, one-of-a-kind paintings, and breathtaking sculptures, the interiors of these buildings were just as remarkable. Rebirth of classical architecture became prominent along with the notion of an ideal city, where proportions were of the upmost importance. Many early interior architects used patterns and colors, along with strategically placed furniture, to create rooms of unity and proportion. With the architectural rediscovery of classical design, artisans and designers of the time were called upon to create interiors that met those needs.
I had a chance to visit this building and as I stood under the edge of the building looking upward I was amazed by the beauty and precision, and stunned by the size and splendor. Inside I could not get past the entrance and a guard told me I wasn’t allowed to take pictures. The interior with its light colored marble walls and double height ceiling is breathtaking, I stood there and I felt a tremble run through my body. I can honestly say this is one of my favorite buildings in New York.
But these contrived differences give rise to esthetic difficulties too. Because inherent differences—those that come from genuinely differing uses—are lacking among the buildings and their settings, the contrivances repre...
During the period of Renaissance, human’s thought and intelligence has reached its highest and its effect on the architectural form, it became clear and its engagement of rational aspect on the building. Mainly geometrical forms are the characteristics which can be identified. Not so long after Renaissance period of Baroque architecture was introduced, rather than logic and reasoning they wanted to capture the emotional atmosphere by using the architectural elements such as light, height, crafted art, costly materials and so on as being mentioned by(Scotti 2007, 5-10).
Bie, Oscar. A History of the Pianoforte and Pianoforte Players. trans. by E. E. Kellett
In order to create innovative public architecture, considered to be the most civic, costly, time intensive and physical of the arts, the project holds a degree of risk, strife, and negotiation . Overcoming these tasks and creating worthy public architecture is a challenge designers try to accomplish, but are rarely successful. The people involved in a potential public building, can be larger than the building itself. Public architecture tries to please all, even the doubters and critics, but because of the all these factors, a building is closer to failing than succeeding.
People are made of complexities and contradictions. Venturi recognized that buildings should be complex and complicated, too. He theorized and built buildings inspired by this principle, and succeeded because of his emphasis on individual experience and the interaction between humanity and architectural forms. In pursuit of this goal, his pluralist and revolutionary style of architecture embraced difference and ambiguity and rejected the rigid rules of modernism. While undoubtedly influenced by Venturi’s ideas, later postmodern architects failed to live up to his principles by forming their own inflexible rules and not concentrating on the human experience with buildings.
The essence of modern architecture lays in a remarkable strives to reconcile the core principles of architectural design with rapid technological advancement and the modernization of society. However, it took “the form of numerous movements, schools of design, and architectural styles, some in tension with one another, and often equally defying such classification, to establish modernism as a distinctive architectural movement” (Robinson and Foell). Although, the narrower concept of modernism in architecture is broadly characterized by simplification of form and subtraction of ornament from the structure and theme of the building, meaning that the result of design should derive directly from its purpose; the visual expression of the structure, particularly the visual importance of the horizontal and vertical lines typical for the International Style modernism, the use of industrially-produced materials and adaptation of the machine aesthetic, as well as the truth to materials concept, meaning that the true nat...
In developing this contemporary and iconic building, the design focuses on practical attributes and optimises energy efficiency. The design strategy encapsulates four key aspects:
Jencks believes “the glass-and-steel box has become the single most used form in Modern Architecture and it signifies throughout the world ‘office building’” (27). Thus, modern architecture is univalent in terms of form, in other words it is designed around one out of a few basic values using a limited number of materials and right angles. In...
Renzo Piano was born on September 14, 1937 in Genoa, Italy, into a family of builders. He graduated from the school of Architecture, Milan Polytechnic in 1964. During his studies, he often worked under the design guidance of Franco Albini, but in his spare time he would work steadily at his fathers building shop. This is where he truly developed a love for the trade. Between the years 1965 and 1970 he worked with many great architects like, Louis I. Kahn, Z. S. Makowsky and Jean Prouve, but the most influential collaboration in Piano's life was that with Richard Rogers in 1971. His collaboration with Rogers lead to many great things. One of which was the "Piano & Rogers" agency. Together Rogers and Piano designed a number of buildings in Italy and in England. Their most famous was the Pompidou Center built in 1972 in Paris, France. This building was designed to hold some of the worlds most beautiful modern art, so naturally the design had to be modern. It is constructed mostly of high-tech steel and glass, with a beautifully designed exoskeleton adding to its complexion (Renzo Piano Building Workshop Official Site). Renzo Piano has designed and brought to life so many structures all over the world. Some of his most famous include Kansai, the world's largest air terminal in Osaka Bay, Japan, where Piano proved himself a master of the gigantic project and again with the imposing Bercy Shopping Center in Paris, as well as a massive and beautiful National Science Museum in Amsterdam. His soccer stadium in Bari, Italy is like no other in the world, with its great swaths of blue sky interrupting the usual monotony of stadium seating. His versatility is displayed further in such projects as the beautiful sweep of a nearly one thousand foot long bridge that curves across Ushibuka Bay in Southern Japan, with the design of a 70,000-ton luxury ocean liner (Great Buildings On-line). In 1998 Piano was selected as the Laureate of the Pritzker Architecture Prize. This is the professions highest honor which bestows a $100,000.00 cash prize and a gold medallion. The purpose of the Pritzker Architecture Prize is to honor annually a living architect whose built work demonstrates a combination of those qualities of talent, vision and commitment, which has produced consistent and significant contributions to humanity and the built environment through the art of architecture.
The buildings and skyscrapers today look totally different that what was there years ago. Each culture also had it’s own specialty when it came to architecture; Taking a long look at the way the modern world works is very fascinating. Major parts of daily lives were once used by people who lived hundreds of years before us. Many contributions have been made by many time periods. The Renaissance has changed not only the technology we use but, the art we see and what we read and write. Without the renaissance a lot of the advancements that have been made might not have existed. Many building and such are still around in Europe. They’ve been around for so many years and are still appreciated and fascinating. Although the style and the looks of architecture might have changed a lot of the techniques remain the same. Aliberti believed that proportion in architecture mattered just as much as aesthetic. Proportions make a building very strong, sturdy, and durable if done properly while building. Brunelleschi created lifting machines to help build tall buildings to make it easier and faster to create. He created ways to life up cranes and such. Today, we use many vehicles to enhance building