Interviewer: Shunsuke Kurakata (architectural historian)
Modernist architecture saw windows take a major step forward from conventional concepts and shapes. Here, we will examine masterpieces by these two masters, in which "the window itself speaks volumes about the architecture."
"Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House is a residential project in the American style known as the Prairie Style. Its solid yet horizontally expanding form was designed to blend in with nature. The flat eaves are deep, and beneath them are a row of quiet windows that let in light and provide ventilation."
Robie House
Completed in 1909. This is one of the early masterpieces built in Chicago by American architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Its "Prairie Style" architecture, characterized by horizontally extending structures, established a new architectural style that was not simply an imitation of Western European architecture. Photo/Artur Images/AFLO
The intricately crafted and colored windows are a testament to the golden age of stained glass production in America. The windows express the architect's ideas and convey the social context. Photo/Artur Images/AFLO
A distinctive feature of the building is that many of its windows are made of stained glass. The designs feature abstract plant motifs and geometric patterns. Together with the bright light, they create an elegant atmosphere suitable for social gatherings.
"Wright's windows symbolize the beauty of life. This is also connected to the organic architectural philosophy that Wright favored. While possessing necessary functions, the building as a whole should satisfy people's minds and bodies. This architectural aesthetic is expressed in the windows."
On the other hand, it was Mies van der Rohe who built the Farnsworth House, which resembles a transparent box.
"Parts of the glass surrounding it on all four sides can be opened or closed. The box, which could be seen as conceptual art, is given the functionality of a window, making it a work of architecture. The fact that the glass is a window is what makes the box a building. Mies rejected the traditional idea of a 'window' – something you open when it's dark – and by making every detail thoroughly beautiful, he created a resolute presence like a glass temple. The window clearly illustrates the essence of beauty that architects seek in architecture."
Completed in 1951. This weekend home in the suburbs of Chicago was designed by German architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. Its interior space is homogeneous and free, constructed from steel and glass. The transparent glass that serves as both the walls and the windows exudes an overwhelming sense of materiality. By making the sashes and other details as thin as possible and making them invisible from the outside, it creates a temple-like presence. Photo/VIEW Pictures/AFLO
