Modernism In Scandinavia And Italy Cultural Studies Essay

Modernism In Scandinavia And Italy Cultural Studies EssayModernism was not just a new carriage of thinking it correspond a new manner of thinking, new suppositions and a new ideology which was a bring up from the contemporary ways of invention, literature and computer architecture. Modernism, when defined roughly, refers to the contemporary ideas, notions, spirit and way of life. A more accurate definition would describe it as the turn in the cultural values which originated in the form of cultural reasons, and left their impact on the Western society in the late 19th and early twentieth century. Some believe that modernness was an uprising against realism which was two conventional and conformist in its way of thinking. Some of the major political and societal changes which brought about(predicate) the modernism were the post land wars situation. The huge developments and transformations in industry and technology coupled with the cultural exchanges, transportation and communication developments and influences from the West.The period of modernism in Scandinavia and Italy was both progressive and optimistic. It stems from the renaissance for the historians and was a cultural movement which impacted the Scandinavian and Italian art, architecture, music and literature. The breaking away from the conventional styles to newer representations in the period, where there was a shift from the traditional values. The period also marked growth and innovations in science, ethics, philosophy and psychology besides the previously mentioned art, architecture, music and literature.Different countries have had their percent of influencing modernism. Modernism was reflected in art and styles and the runnel pinpointed more countries, with each nation contri stilling uniquely and overall adding to the progression. This period saw a change in the style and ideology of art during this era. The philosophy of art was transformed during this period in terms of the th emes and subject matter, and also the use of colours, shapes and seams.The intellectual underpinnings of modernism emerge during the Renaissance period when, through the study of the art, poetry, philosophy, and science of ancient Greece and Rome, humanists revived the notion that man, rather than God, is the measure of all things, and promoted through education ideas of citizenship and civic consciousness. The period also gave rise to utopian visions of a more perfect society.1Every nuances of design, architecture or art captures the political and cultural aura of the cartridge clip and place, and the modern art in Scandinavia and Italy reflected their countries situations in the modern art.Below is a modernism timeline which shows the significant events between 1920- 1970.Modernism in ScandinaviaScandinavia had a mixed dynamics of cultures, language and political sympathies. This gave birth to a versatile and multi dimensional philosophy of art and design which became more ass ertive. The movement from Europe enveloped Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland and Finland within its fold. The Scandinavian countries had their own unique, nonetheless impactful role in the move towards modernism. The response to the stimuli from the modern world was distinctive. The countries were experiencing the same changes in the modern life- social equality, industrialization and urbanization. Nonetheless, the outcomes and impact showed the unique natures of art and skills that evolved, which gave identity element and characteristic art and design to each of the countries. Yet the distinctiveness was combined with features which were common to all the Scandinavian countries which include a unify touch in terms of humanism, tradition, moderation, handcrafted perfectionism, modesty, quietude and purposefulness2which came to know as the style of the Scandinavian modern art.Among the European countries, the Scandinavian were able to portray the modern artistic touch in their trad itional and conventional craft most expressively. Countries such as Denmark, Sweden and Finland which had internal dynamics and re obtains which led to an increased inclination towards the craft industries were most evident in communicating the modern aesthetic in their art and craft.With the breakdown of the craft guild system in the mid- nineteenth century, they established a reckon of institutions to protect them from an influx of inferior, foreign mass-produced goods.3The Swedish Society of Craft and Industrial Design was formed to cultivate and maintain high standards in crafts.In the pre-1900 times, the Scandinavian countries derived their inspiration from the national traditions and folklore. The early exploits, which imparted and impacted the most to the modernism, included the Viking-revival imagery of Norway, arts and crafts movement of Nordic and the Swedish porcelain works which envisioned the phytology and fauna to their utmost beauty on vessels.Harmony in visual arts such as architecture, decorative arts, graphics and craft came through the maneuver Nouveau movement which gave a unifying touch to the art. The driving motivation behind the flourishing of modern art during the Art Nouveau was the dissatisfaction with historicism, and the mutual feeling that a newer and unspoiled design should be adopted in the new century.Gregor Paulssons book Vackrare Vardagsvara was the starting point towards the unifying of Swedish design. The Swedish design was directed towards achieving ideals of humanism and democracy, depicted through beauty and simplicity.National romanticism found initial grounds in Sweden and Finland however there was a failure to translate this style into architecture as a unifying feature. Works of architects ilk Gustaf Ferinand is of particular importance. The Scandinavian countries followed a same trajectory, like the Copenhagen town hall in Denmark failed to integrate Richardsons example. romanticism is Finland had become p rominent in the late 1800s. The inspiration behind the Finnish modern art was their folk epic kalevala. Sonck was a prominent figure who make a granite church and used materials such as steel and concrete for Engels university library. Other major buildings include Tampere Cathedral and telephone building with characteristic masonry syntax. Finland had been an purplish colony of Sweden and Russia, and therefore Denmark was where the revival of Romantic Classicism originated. Tinges of classism were seen in Sweden quite some time later in works such as Carl Westmans capital of Sweden Courts. The architecture saw a shift from national romantic and classical to neo classical. In Sweden the Romantic classical revival could not witness its axenic form and was diluted by inflection of plan and iconography.Tampere Landmarks and Monuments Tampere Cathedral (Tampereen Tuomiokirkko)tampere_cathedral_view.jpgAlvar Aaltos had Asplund as the driving force. Both Aaltos and Asplunds work had se veral directions to them, and depict different levels of cultural development. The work saw varying contrasts of classical and vernacular architecture. Major works of Aalto, such as the apartments, clubs, churches and renovations were inspired by Asplund, and had a Doricist touch to them with an amalgamation of vernacular, Hoffmanns austerity of line and Italian. Aaltos Paimio sanatorium instilled the Functional style in the 1927-34 periods. Aaltos later works were inspired by Erik Bryggman, who was a Finnish architect, in which classicism was combined with the Soviet-Agit-Prop lead in architecture expression. The designs of Aalto derived inspirations from both Dutch and Russian Constructivism, and included the use of concrete, geometrical schemes and serial landscapes. Aalto was influenced by different peoples and philosophies in his works. His later career saw a shift from rational and technical ideas to human imagination, and the use of materials shifted from concrete to wood. Th is was the radical begin to style and design. Special consideration was given to the ambiance and environment of the architecture, with filtration of heat, effectual and light. Hence, the designs incorporated the physical and psychological needs of the people. Efforts were made to ensure the control of environment, meet the peoples needs of privacy, suitable exposure to light and heat, design of ceilings and non noisy slipstream basins. The designs and features of the buildings were tailor made for each, so that the varying needs such as those of a library and hospitals could be met effectively. Aalto describes his anti mechanistic and more humanistic approach to architecture in the words, To make architecture more human means better architecture and it means functionalism much larger than the merely technical ones. This finis can be accomplished only by architectural methods- by the creation and combination of different technical things in such a way that they will provide fo r the human being the most harmonious life4. Neo empirical times in Scandinavia(1930s) saw the anti urban streak in them with an inclination towards the humanistic and traditional inspired styles. Some remarkable architectures in this period include the power family unit designed by Osvald Almqvist, Sven Markeliuss Swedish pavilion, the house of Gunnar Asplund and other similar styles of buildings. The basic features of architecture in both Scandinavia and Italy can be described in the words, the entire inventive effort of these architects consist fundamentally of devising flexible urban modules whose geometrical character permits articulations that fit well into natural site, leaving the color, simplicity, and traditionalism of the details to provide the more immediate directions5.The Scandinavian styles, which emerged after the post world war period, were the works of many talented Scandinavian architects and designers. The works of the architects was highly successful and impact ed o only the Scandinavian countries but also the rest of the world as described in the following words, Self-confidence grew with the successes. The American Lunning Award, reserved for Scandinavian designers, provided a number of newborn talents with their American breakthrough. In 1954 Design in Scandinavia embarked on a three-and-a half year long tour of the US and Canada. It was not just beautifully crafted objects, but A Scandinavian Way of Living that was promoted. Danish teak furniture, Swedish crystal and textiles, Norwegian enamel, Finnish furniture and glass merged into a imagination generally perceived as Scandinavian blond, cool, distinct and refined. Its careful craftsmanship, perfection, harmony and natural feeling were seen as the dream of a better world in a Europe which had risen from the inferno of World War II.Remarkably, there are few countries today if any which continue to produce as many vintage designs as the Scandinavian countries, testimony to their t imelessness, practicality and to the well-deserved argument they transcend the vagaries of fashion6.Modernism in ItalyModernism in Italy is closely linked to the social forces and is portrayed through the artistic strategies. Artists as individuals, or in groups, sought to demonstrate the change of the century and the change in the social environment (with culture and politics being the main drivers) through painting, design, music, literature and architecture.Two architects, Giuseppe SommarugaandErnesto Basile, were the major contributors to the Art Nouveau in Italy. Art Noveau also known as the new art was a movement of changing styles of art, applied art and architecture in terms of style.Italy was affected, better, influenced by Modernism such that the era brought forward architectural masterpieces that were at times both influenced by the works of foreign modernist architects or by older architectural designs.The 1925 renovation of Rome brought about changes in the Roman map a s streets were re-built to relate ancient monuments with the monuments that were to be built by the Mussolini with the inspection and repair of Marcello Piacentini. While declaring the plan for the re conception of Rome, Mussolini declared In five years time, Rome must beat the peoples of the world. It must appear vast, orderly and powerful as it was in the days of Augustus.Affinity of tradition was so strong during the modernist era that it was almost impossible to construct and design buildings that did not draw influence from ancient Roman architecture. They were, therefore, bound to retain a typical national character. The act of taking inspiration from the past tense was best settled by the argument that the traditions are not erased from the memories of citizens but only evolve into variations of themselves.However, the avant-garde architecture and modernism was viewed fearfully by those who had witnessed the devastations of the world war and regarded modernism in the tech nological spheres and other advances as the root cause of the war. The new slogan raised was therefore that of humanism, which incorporated that which was left in the pre war period. Special emphasis was laid on the psychological and physical typefaces of the architecture of the people, the expressive use of materials, integration with the environment and incorporation of the traditions and societal factors. The art and architecture sought to remove the anti-technology and neo-humanistic approach and produce work which the people could identify with by having a relationship with them and incorporating traditions. This is referred to as the neo-empirical movement in Scandinavia and the organic movement in Italy. The urban areas began to have a domestic tinge to them, with an anti urban attitude emerging in both Scandinavia and Italy. The themes of nature and pseudo-psychologism flourished in the Scandinavian architecture in the 1930s.The Italian architects drew their inspiration fro m the Scandinavian architecture and therefore the architecture in Italy showed the visible signs of being inspired from the Scandinavians. The social-democratic styles were especially attractive for the Italian architects. However, Italian modernism was more richer than the following of Scandinavian styles only.The flair of Italian furniture design for expressing exclusivity and esprit was much better suited to the golden economy than the sparse aesthetics and good-natured folksiness of Scandinavian design, which was beginning to feel tame and stagnant. A decade earlier, Nordic coolness and order had been needed to help heal the spiritual wounds in a Europe that was still in ruins and chaos. But now young Nordic designers could no longer walk in the old footsteps. Scandinavian design became unfashionable, also in Scandinavia itself7.However, the Italian architecture had more depth to it in the Neo-Realism, rather than just being inspired by Scandinavian styles. The central concern was on the insistence on defining a common language that would be directly communicative for the poorer classes who were viewed as the protagonists of the postwar reconstruction8. Informal ground plans were laid out to pay reverence to impulsive forms of architecture and materials such as wrought iron and Roman style bricks were used with an emphasis on local dialect. This combination clearly referred to the peasant world adorned for its naturalism. Certainly the rediscovery of rural purity was simply one aspect of the cultural populism that was so in vogue in the post war Italian culture. It was a regressive utopia with nostalgic accents. But, as far as the architecture was concerned, it created a true proper ideology that was adequate to the particular role that the building industry was called to fulfill in the period of reconstruction9. The architects gave monumental forms to their creations, with features of structural expressionism to build an emotive contact with the masses. The Italian architecture should also be viewed from the perspective of the polemics for and against the Organic architecture.In the Renaissance, architecture was seen as the supreme artit also represented the highest artistic achievement a human being could attain. The Italian renaissance architecture had significant impact on the world at that time, displaced only by the advent of modernist architecture in the twentieth century.10 But even the modern architect Richard Meier notes that the quality of light, expression of structure, as expressed in an interior like Sant Ivo Sapienza, remains influential in the way buildings are designed today. Therefore, the ideas and philosophies that emerged with regard to the architectural design still find a place I todays world. The idea of buildings that reach into the heavens or the principle that an interior should welcome the light into the interior rooms can be traced to this period.11Much of domestic architecture end-to-end Europe and Am erica still resists modernism, and you can still drive down the street in Palo Alto and see columned exteriors on the houses of the wealthy mimicking humankind buildings and communicating civic power. The focus of Italian architecture was on the creation of open, well-lit, and above all public spaces that welcomed both light and was a reflection of humanistic ideas with special emphasis on the physical and psychological comforts for the people. The developments in Roman architecture with their innovative designs and use of styles such as arches and vaults are the source of inspiration for many architectural masterpieces even today. The modernism period brought changes that have changed the world of architecture forever. These impacts of modernism can be seen not only in the Roman empire but have also spread far and wide during the travels and conquests of the Romans.ConclusionThe Scandinavian and Italian art and architecture, and the economic, technological, demographic and cultura l changes evolved in tandem. The architectural designs depict the periods and their relative influence with different architects and artists gaining influence in different periods, and their works marked by their characteristic styles, yet having a unifying national touch to them. The styles which were adopted were the neo classism, Romanticism, historicism and vernacular architecture. These trends in architecture coincide with the societal and political changes in these countries during 1920-1970s. The use of wood and concrete and architectural styles like the arches, piers and others are the characteristic features of the times, and a reflection of political and societal evolution. The architecture in Scandinavia and Italy is intermittent with a variety of prevailing conditions, such as those of the society, but also reflect the architects innovation and style. The Scandinavian and Italian architecture hold onto their uniqueness even today. A visit to these countries show how the architecture has a touch of individuality to it ranging from the buildings, shops, hotels, restaurants and other architectural creations. The modern and contemporary styles have left their mark so prominent, that it can be seen even today. To conclude, it may be said that identity is very important. During the modernism, people found validation and expression in the objects with which they surrounded themselves and therefore their ideologies were reflected in their art and architecture.