--- New Buildings Built in Traditional Architecture Style ---

[CF221]

And now that cathedral is a symbol of the city... Clearly we see that beauty has its advantages over functionalism.

[CF221]

Originally Posted by Helem

Saint Petersburg .Year of construction 2012

A most beautiful building! I'm sure the architects enjoyed designing such a jewel.

[WalPaulista]

The color of the façade gives a special touch.

[WalPaulista]

Clearly we see that beauty has its advantages over functionalism.
[2]

Moreover, I´d say utilitarian architecture is strictly functional only if we think that being beautiful is not a building´s function.

However, only in the last decades of humanity´s millenial history has it been considered so.

[gdlrar]

Originally Posted by CF221

And now that cathedral is a symbol of the city... Clearly we see that beauty has its advantages over functionalism.

+1 i totally agree !

[gdlrar]

What a beautiful !!

Originally Posted by WalPaulista

Just as the beautiful Italian building above, Catedral da Sé, in São Paulo, was finished in 1967, when utilitarian architecture had long replaced beautiful architecture.

Its among the five biggest neogothic cathedrals in the world.

[BarbaricManchurian]

Tianjin:

[BarbaricManchurian]

Most buildings in these pics are reconstructions:

[CF221]

Originally Posted by WalPaulista

Clearly we see that beauty has its advantages over functionalism.
[2]

Moreover, I´d say utilitarian architecture is strictly functional only if we think that being beautiful is not a building´s function.

However, only in the last decades of humanity´s millenial history has it been considered so.

Exactly, I very much agree with what you have said. Hopefully the trend will reverse sometime in the future as we notice the huge difference between the two.

[erbse]

Originally Posted by BarbaricManchurian

Most buildings in these pics are reconstructions:

I don't think those buildings are "reconstructions" in a sense they ever stood there exactly like that before. They rather look like garish new inventions of pastiche historical styles. I don't appreciate that, as it just looks too cheap there.

[gdlrar]

Mmmm that not reconstructions,are copy

[WalPaulista]

I was saying in another thread that the evidence that beautiful architecture is coming back is:

1 - "Strict utilitarianism" is part of only a negligible period of human history (+-100 years compared to thousands of years).
2 - Those buildings seen here.
3 - The most important, so many people on this thread approving of this new trend, showing it is not an isolated fact.

Thanks for the comments on Catedral da Sé!

[BarbaricManchurian]

More of Tianjin. Some are actually really good:

[WalPaulista]

Most of those Chinese buildings I would really like to have here in São Paulo.

[Simfan34]

I think this is just as pertinent to the world at large, so I'll share it here too

Originally Posted by Simfan34

In some regards, this neotraditionalism is the natural conclusion of postmodernism, indeed many of these buildings, such as those at UMich and Virginia, were designed by Robert Stern, who is often said to be the "father" of postmodernism. It follows a trend that we've seen times throughout the course of history, the first being the original Greco-Roman classicism, which eventually degenerated (that being descriptive as opposed to derogatory) into Romanesque and eventually Gothic architecture. In the Renaissance we saw a snap back to the classical forms, and again we deviated to Baroque and then Rococo architectural, and then back to Regency/Empire neoclassicism (although England by and large missed out on Rococo). Again that deviated into lest purist forms and, eventually into free-form revivalism and eclecticism, until we reverted to Beaux-Arts neoclassicism once more. Then we fell into Art Deco and modernism then post-modernism, and now this... as you can see the timeframes shorten but the trend remains clear.

An interesting concept is that of a so-called "other-modernism" that encompasses a parallel trend of art development from Art Nouveau to Art Deco to the Prairie Style to Lutyensian minimalism to today, a more organic development and approach to architecture than the Bauhaus and its successors.

What traditionalism really stands for is a conservatism, not so much a political conservatism (certainly conservatives could be avant-garde architecturally- see Mussolini) but a cultural and social one. Traditionalism works. People know it, and they can relate to it. Time and time again polls show that people prefer traditionally designed buildings because they know what they're getting, because it isn't new. It isn't innovative. But this isn't a condemnation, I am excited by this trend. Innovation for innovation's sake- to simply be new- is indicative of a decadence where value is placed upon shock value. The Johnson house, for example, may be interesting to look at, but it is inconvenient to live in without destroying its form (I am imagining blinds here).

Traditionalist architecture is so popular because it stands for thing and implies them at the same time- permanence, austerity, solidity, longevity, and so forth. It implies a wisdom, rejecting the needlessly new for something tried and tested. You don't see too many modern houses, because they're uncomfortable. The idea of "home", again, is much of those same values: permanence, austerity, etc., even if most of them take the form of kitsch. Ornamentation provides a much easier derivation of value than expressions of reference that are vague at best and fraudulent at worst. Recall that proposed tower in Indonesia where the crown was meant to be indicative of several national symbols, but was found to be a regurgitation of a cancelled proposal in Nashville. The ornamentation of traditional buildings is more straightforward.

Sumptuous palaces of yesteryear may evoke ideas of elitism, but in the regard to localism they are more understandable in their design. A person could have look upon them and seen the cues which they shared with more familiar, mundane buildings- the guildhall, the church, even their home. In contrast, look at the major buildings being built today- 90% of them would be no less at home in any other major world city. Again, traditionalism is more familiar, more national.

So, in short, traditionalism is a good thing. But the great challenge moving forwards is authenticity. Many buildings here are astoundingly detailed and well-built. Others use minimalism to their advantage- one particular example being Guildford Cathedral in the UK. Many others, however, skimp on ornamentation when it is need, have incorrect proportions, or are otherwise mistaken in the use or non-use of certain elements, and look poor as a result. Hopefully technology combined with the increasing prevalence of this trend will help correct those flaws. Otherwise, I look forwards to a new traditionalism with excitement and anticipation.

[Severiano]

Those Tianjin examples are awesome. I remember some good examples across the river form Guwenhua jie

[WalPaulista]

There is little to add to Simfan´s post.

Agree almost completely.

[el palmesano]

Originally Posted by pablogarlib

Some Chinese cities like Shanghai were colonies of European countries, there are a lot of European style buildings there.

Would you like this buildings in Hong Kong? It was British colony til a few years ago, what about Macao?

Is German style architecture ok in Blumenau, but not in Pelotas?

Brazil a country of European origin? It's true but how that. Remember that for Northern and Eastern Europeans Spaniards, Italian and Portuguese are not Europeans nor white people, they are actually North Africans mixed people.

For a lot of people in this site this buildings in China are as strange as the Universidad de la Republica building in Montevideo.

ok, I understand that in these cities, but in the other cities it have no sense. And one thing is have an heritage of the past and other is build a new thing with a style that don't fits in that place.


The buildings you mean are buildings built by german people, by inmigrants, not by brazilian indians or brazilians with portuguese origens.


What???? that we are not white?? but wtf?? have you ever been in portugal or spain?? haha in both countries there are lot of races, but the bigger one is white, obviously if it weren't there would be any problem, but is the reality, and we are not talking about race, we are talking about culture, so say that portugal or spain are not european is crazy, and if you say that about italy... haha



that building in Montevideo is in a country where more than 90% of the population have european origens, so is less strange than in china, or the usa, and is less strange because that building you says was build when all around the world that style was a trend.

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This building are completly out of their era, and these buildings don't have any cutural sense, so, for both reasons, these buildings are like a joke for the great chinese culture and for the creativity of the chinese architects. Ok, the buildings look nice, but every one knows that the buildings are a fake

[BarbaricManchurian]

The buildings in Tianjin are all in the old district which has tons of existing European architecture. These mostly fit right in and are surprisingly well done by Chinese standards.

[BarbaricManchurian]

Now, other cities I can agree with you somewhat. But keep in mind, it's not like commieblocks are Chinese architecture and they're everywhere. Almost every style of building is an "import.". So why apply a stricter standard to Asia than the rest of the world? There's far more European influence and heritage than you think, real European architecture in tons of random cities all around East Asia.