"Contemporary architecture is the architecture of the 21st century."
Incorporating modern design elements such as steel and glass with a focus on functionality and energy efficiency.
Modern Architecture: A style that emerged in the 20th century characterized by functionalism, clean lines, and minimal decoration.
Postmodern Architecture: A reaction to modernism, postmodern architecture combines elements from various styles and incorporates irony and whimsy into the design.
Deconstructivism: An architectural style characterized by fragmentation, angles, and an emphasis on the destruction of traditional forms.
Brutalist Architecture: A style characterized by the use of raw materials like concrete and an emphasis on function over form.
High-Tech Architecture: A style that emphasizes technology and is characterized by exposed mechanical and electrical systems.
Green Architecture/Sustainable Architecture: A design approach that seeks to minimize the impact of buildings on the environment by using sustainable materials and minimizing energy consumption.
Neo-Futurism: An avant-garde style that emphasizes technological progress and the exploration of new materials and forms.
Memphis Design: A postmodern design movement characterized by bright colors, bold patterns, and unique shapes, often featuring a mix of materials.
Organic Architecture: An architectural style that seeks to blend the design of buildings with their natural surroundings.
International Style: A style that emerged in the 1920s characterized by functional, box-like forms and an emphasis on simplicity and cleanliness.
Modernism: This style emerged in the early 20th century and is characterized by clean lines, minimal ornamentation, and the use of new materials such as reinforced concrete, steel, and glass.
Postmodernism: This style emerged in the 1970s and 80s as a reaction against the perceived elitism of modernism. It often employs playful, decorative features such as exaggerated arches, bright colors, and ornamental facades.
Deconstructivism: This style is characterized by an emphasis on fragmentation, unpredictability, and non-linear design. It often involves the use of non-rectilinear forms, distorted angles, and complex geometries.
Brutalism: This style emerged in the 1950s and 60s and is characterized by the use of raw, unadorned concrete. It often involves a strong emphasis on function and a rejection of decorative elements.
High-tech: This style emerged in the 1970s and is characterized by an emphasis on technology and the use of industrial materials such as steel and glass. It often features exposed mechanical and electrical systems as decorative elements.
Minimalism: This style is characterized by simplicity, neutrality, and the use of basic geometric forms. It often involves a focus on the interplay between light and space.
Neo-futurism: This style is characterized by a fusion of futuristic design elements with organic shapes and materials. It often involves the use of curves, biomimicry, and advanced technology.
Parametricism: This style is characterized by the use of advanced digital modeling techniques to create complex, non-standard designs. It often involves the creation of curvilinear forms and intricate, repeating patterns.
Regionalism: This style emphasizes the use of materials and design elements that are specific to a particular geographic region, climate, or culture. It often involves a sustainable approach to architecture, with a focus on local materials and traditional building techniques.
"No single style is dominant."
"Postmodernism, high-tech architecture and new interpretations of traditional architecture to highly conceptual forms and designs."
"Tube structures which allow construction of buildings that are taller, lighter and stronger than those in the 20th century."
"The use of new techniques of computer-aided design."
"Some feature concrete structures wrapped in glass or aluminium screens, very asymmetric facades, and cantilevered sections which hang over the street."
"In China, Russia, Latin America, and particularly in Arab states of the Persian Gulf."
"The Burj Khalifa in Dubai was the tallest building in the world in 2019, and the Shanghai Tower in China was the second-tallest."
"In the late 20th century, New Classical Architecture, a traditionalist response to modernist architecture, emerged, continuing into the 21st century."
"Examples include the International Network for Traditional Building, Architecture & Urbanism (INTBAU), the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art (ICAA), the Driehaus Architecture Prize, and the Complementary architecture movement."
"Michael Graves, Léon Krier, Yasmeen Lari, Robert Stern, and Abdel-Wahed El-Wakil."
"Mario Botta, Frank Gehry, Jean Nouvel, Norman Foster, Ieoh Ming Pei, and Renzo Piano."
"Zaha Hadid, Santiago Calatrava, Daniel Libeskind, Jacques Herzog, Pierre de Meuron, Rem Koolhaas, and Shigeru Ban."
"UNStudio and SANAA, or large multinational agencies such as Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, with thirty associate architects and large teams of engineers and designers, and Gensler, with 5,000 employees in 16 countries."
"Constructed with more precision and speed."
"The use of natural and ecological materials like stone, wood, and lime."
"Contemporary buildings and styles vary greatly."
"Skyscrapers twist or break into crystal-like facets."
"Some of these styles and approaches make use of very advanced technology."
"Mostly concentrated in the United States and western Europe."