Big names in architecture with one of their projects: the one that best represents them or for which they are most known. The result is an essential compendium of the best architecture of the 20th and 21st centuries, to which, like toppings , one could add names such as Philip Johnson, Louis Kahn, Frank Gehry, Renzo Piano, Richard Rogers, Jean Nouvel, Shigeru Ban, Amanda Levete, or Carme Pigem, to name just a few.
German Pavilion (1929), by Mies van der Rohe and Lilly Reich. Photo: Pepo Segura.
Mies van der Rohe | German Pavilion, Barcelona
The German Pavilion by Mies van der Rohe (and Lilly Reich) for the 1929 Barcelona International Exposition is a seminal work in the history of architecture . An ideal of modernity, it is a simple and practical project in steel, concrete, stone, and marble, where the connection between interior and exterior and the treatment of space and light are fundamental aspects. Mies designed specifically for the project Barcelona chair is a notable example
Villa Savoye, in Poissy, a project by Le Corbusier. Photo: Wikimedia Commons | Valueyou | CC BY-SA 3.0.
Le Corbusier Villa Savoye, Poissy
The Villa Savoye in Poissy, France, is one of Le Corbusier's most outstanding works. UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2016 .
The Kaufmann Residence in Pennsylvania, better known as Fallingwater (1939), by Frank Lloyd Wright. Daderot, CC0 | Photo: Wikimedia Commons.
Fallingwater is an architectural classic: a brilliant project, designed in 1935 by the American architect for the Kaufmann family, that blends seamlessly into the natural landscape on a waterfall overlooking Bear Run. Wood, stone, glass, and concrete define a project in which Lloyd Wright considered every detail, even the sound of the water inside. Today, it can be visited and is preserved exactly as it was, including the original artwork and furniture designed by Wright himself.
SESC Pompeia cultural center in Sao Paulo. Photo: CC A-SA 4.0.
Lina Bo Bardi | SESC Pompeia, Sao Paulo
Born in Rome and emigrating to Brazil as an adult, Lina Bo Bardi (1914-1992) is the most important 20th-century architect in Brazil . Respect for heritage and preservation (not conversion) are the defining characteristics of Bo Bardi's architecture. She demonstrated this in the Museu de Arte Moderno da Bahia (MAMB), one of her first projects in Brazil. It also exemplified what can be considered her most emblematic work: the SESC Pompeia cultural center, built in 1982 in São Paulo. This former factory, slated for demolition, was redesigned by Bo Bardi, who opened up large interior spaces for the enjoyment of the local community, who use it for social and sporting activities, and constructed two new concrete towers connected by walkways.
Vitra Fire Station (1994), by Zaha Hadid. Photo: Calips – CC BY-SA 3.0
Zaha Hadid | Vitra Fire Station, Weil am Rhein
Nearly 25 years passed between the creation of the Pritzker Prize and its first recipient: Zaha Hadid. Since then, five other women have received it. Hadid, of Anglo-Iraqi heritage, is undoubtedly the most famous and media-savvy architect on this list. Outspoken, controversial, and innovative, the woman some dubbed 'the queen of curves' or the 'Lady Gaga of architecture' transcended the starchitect to become a pioneer. Her studio, now headed by Patrik Schumacher (her former partner), employs around fifty people. From her vast legacy, we highlight her first completed project: the fire station at the Vitra Campus (1994) in Weil am Rhein, Germany, commissioned by Rolf Fehlbaum, notable for its angles and evocative geometric form.
30 St Mary Ax, London, a project by Norman Foster. Photo: Jim Linwood from London, CC BY 2.0 | Wikimedia Commons.
Norman Foster / 30 St Mary Axe, London
Popularly known as the Gherkin, the headquarters of the insurance company Swiss Re is one of London's iconic skyline . Opened in 2004, Norman Foster designed a 40-story eco-friendly building for which he received the Stirling Prize that same year. The Gherkin, which uses half the energy of a similarly sized building, is one of the best examples of what has come to be known as high-tech architecture .
Kursaal Congress Centre and Auditorium (2001), by Rafael Moneo. Photo: Kursaal Elkargunea Centre.
Rafael Moneo / Kursaal Auditorium, San Sebastián
The Prado Museum extension; the O'Donnell maternity hospital; the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels; the National Museum of Roman Art in Mérida…: after reviewing Rafael Moneo's outstanding projects, we have chosen the Kursaal: an icon of San Sebastián whose geometry is inspired by the breakwater of the coastal wall and with which he won the Mies van der Rohe Award in 2001. The two volumes, which look like two enormous rocks, have a double skin of translucent glass and the large lobbies open up to views of the beach, thus incorporating the landscape into the interior.
Luigi Bocconi University in Milan, a project by Grafton Architects. Photo: CC A-SA 4.0.
Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara | Luigi Bocconi University, Milan
Winners of the 2020 Pritzker Prize , Irish architects Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara founded Grafton Architects in 1978. As architects, they have tackled all building typologies, designing houses and public buildings. Their most outstanding project is the Luigi Bocconi University in Milan (2008), which won the 'World Building of the Year' award at the first edition of the World Architecture Festival, held in Barcelona, and was their first project outside of Ireland.
The New Museum in New York from Prince Street. Photo: CC A-SA 3.0.
Kazujo Sejima | New Museum, New York
Japanese architect Kazuyo Sejima (68 years old) is a partner, along with Ryue Nishizawa, in the architecture firm SANAA . Director of the Venice International Architecture Biennale in 2010, her work is distinguished by its innovative forms and its exploration of how we relate to the world through buildings and the knowledge that arises from that experience. Winner of the Pritzker Prize in 2010, her most notable project from her extensive career is the New Museum in New York (2007). Dedicated exclusively to contemporary art, its structure of stacked boxes is both elegant and striking.
eue Nationalgalerie Berlin©. Photo: Staatliche Museen zu Berlin / David von Becker.
David Chipperfield | Renovation of the Neue Nationalgalerie, Berlin
How difficult it is to choose just one project from the more than 100 designed by the British architect, winner of the Pritzker Prize in 2023. The Jumex Museum (2013) in Mexico City; the Turner Contemporary Museum (2011) in Margate and the River and Rowing Museum (1997) in Henley-on-Thames, both in the United Kingdom, are among our favorites.
For its importance, we would choose the renovation of the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin (2021): an architectural icon designed by Mies van der Rohe in the 1960s that Chipperfield repaired with a craftsman's spirit over several years.
Source: https://www.arquitecturaydiseno.es/
