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| The interior of Crystal Palace is open and filled with light, quite contrasting to the typical enclosed Victorian house. |
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| Made entirely from steel and glass, The Crystal Palace uses the newest materials and technology of that time. |
At last, we’ve made a full u-turn backed to where we began.
The 19th Century plays an important part in our venture into
architecture, as it was really, the birth of many technologies and discoveries,
which would course the development of architecture into the way that it is
nowadays. It would be unacceptable to not mention the industrial revolution
when talking about the 19th century, where the discovery of
steam-engine would lead to the rapid growth in machinery, which them results in
the fascination of mass-producing idea. People would change their lifestyles
from working on the farms out in the country and move into the city to work in
factories in urban setting. This is where our idea of the urban city really
began.
During this time, the society also undergo some changes as
well, the higher class were loosing power, not only in their social statuses
but also their taste and design. Thus as a reaction, they gave labels to the
middle class such as “tasteless”, “taggy” and “uncultivated”, that’s how we associate with these words
nowadays. Architecturally, the discoveries of the 19th century also not only
changes to the new materials and building technology but it also introduce new typology
of buildings which mainly focuses around the idea of urbanism and mass
production.
Steel and glass were considered “new” materials thus, the
sudden change from the convectional masonry to steel and class open up not only
to the new looks but also the new structures (higher but at the same time, more
refine and sleek). Such clear example would be the “Crystal Palace” where the
first world expo was held. The interior of the inside is light and open with no
solid walls. The main materials used in the construction were glass and steel.
Due to its lightness, new forms of architecture were born, which lead to the
modern, glass and steel high-rise buildings that we all know today.
Thus, the 19th century was crucial period to
understand as architecturally, due to the development and discoveries of new
materials and technologies. It allows for new possibilities and forms to house
and answer the newer needs of people who are now all cramped into the urban
space. Hence, the start of capitalism.
