SESSION VII: A Building's Clear Skin

To question what modern design has brought about, is to think of anything regarding the Modernist design movement, as well as it's elegance, simplicity, and the 19th century industrial society. Thanks to the industrialization, the world has become each time more and more modern, revolutionizing what seems to be the relationship between the exterior and interior of a residence. An example of this concept is the Curtain Wall.

It was created as a stand opposed to the ordinary, very common masonry wall, seen for the fist time in the Chicago School movement buildings, and later on in Willis Polk's Hallidie Building. In addition to those, during the late 1940's Charles and Ray Eames designed the Eames House, which we studied earlier in the semester. In it, they incorporated a space enclosed with a steel frame and clear, along with colored glass walls. This is an example of a residence, that took influence upon past works even as it were decades apart. This is why we must always take a step back to learn from past design decisions, because they may affect our own future designs in a positive, more refreshing way. The curtain wall in both cases represented structural versatility, but in a more poetic, aesthetically pleasing manner.

In Chicago, during the late 19th century, after The Great Fire (1871), the city became a landmark deemed of American progress and industrialization; because citizens came together in order to rebuild their home. The more people came in order to help, the more the population grew. As a result of this, the economy grew and all the progress brought about the surge of the first skyscraper "Major William Le Baron Jenney's Home Insurance Building". It was among the first to show as well, visible structural frames, which was important, since after the fire there was a greater need for safety. On the other hand, the use of thicker walls, contrasting large glass panels also improved the work space, by allowing more light in, and improving employee performance.

Even though Jenney's building was among the first to be a skyscraper, along with visual structural frames, The Hallidie Building (1918) was the first to ever have an actual Curtain Wall. It played with Neoclassical-inspired ornaments, as well as with transparency. In the meantime, it also featured fire escapes ( a design decision based upon the Chicago Fire), which were adapted to the building's façade, uniting both aesthetics and functionality.

Another building surfaced following the curtain wall movement, 30 years later. This was the Eames House, created/designed by Charles and Ray Eames. In contrast to the Hallidie Building, which used it regarding safety, in this case the couple utilized it with means to have a deeper connection with nature and expose more contrastingly the honest materials with which they were building. These materials resulted being: steel frame structures and glass panels (with a great variety of finishes), which provided a play with shadows between intimate, and more public spaces.

These types of walls have shown more and more common in modern buildings and cities as time progresses. They are the main characteristic of most of the world's greatest, modern skyscrapers, bringing a lightness to every space, no matter it's scale. The use of this architectural resource has proven great to improve mental, as well as emotional well-being in any space, be it a workspace or residence, and I'm sure it'll keep on being utilized in the future in more daring, distinguished, and innovative ways.

References:

• Barmann, J. (2018, March 07). How the glass curtain wall was born. Retrieved September 28, 2020, from https://sf.curbed.com/2018/3/7/17073432/hallidie-building-glass-curtain-history-san-francisco

• Murray, S. (n.d.). Contemporary Curtain Wall Architecture. Retrieved September 25, W2020, from https://static1.squarespace.com/static/522d0844e4b09d456b0a2ea6/t/5f6c9060df219c1ca9783867/1600950401067/Contemporary+Curtain+Wall+Architecture.pdf

• Williams, K. R. (n.d.). Eames Foundation. Retrieved September 28, 2020, from https://eamesfoundation.org/news/the-materials-of-the-eames-house/