Some have said that it was fre and water which were initially responsible for bringing men together into communities, but we, considering how useful, even indispensable, a roof and walls are for men, are convinced that it was they that drew and kept men together. (Giovanni Battista Alberti, De re On the Art of Building)
Humanity is never acquired in solitude, [ ....] It can be achieved only by one who has thrown his life and his person into the 'venture of the public realm." (Hannah Arendt, Men in Dark Times, 1968)
From Imperial to Republican
For a long time, the privileged, the rich, and the powerful erected grandiose representational structures. Their architectural intention was a mix of intimidation, serenity, and awe, achieved through palaces, but also churches and temples, and later through banks and corporate headquarters. All these were essentially private spaces. Public affairs, the public realm, or the pursuit of happiness for the general public had no part in them.
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Baroque Palace of the 18th century, Stuttgart, Germany
(Photo Philipsen) |
Revolutions returned to the ancient notion of the republic, where power is of and for the people, and the people are the sovereign. The fledgling U.S. republic famously enshrined happiness in the Declaration of Independence.
Architecture followed suit. More of it became architecture for the people, to be used by the masses. Soon, opulent...READ FULL ARTICLE HERE
Archplan Inc. Philipsen Architects