Thursday, March 29, 2012

In praise of Mies van der Rohe

Google Doodle for Mies van der Rohe
I'm a big fan of modern architecture and it doesn't get much better than Mies van der Rohe who was born on March 27 1886. Isn't that remarkable; the icon of modern architecture was born 126 years ago! His modern buildings are now historic. The Google doodle appropriately honored him yesterday.
    I'm always surprised by people who say "I don't like modern architecture." It seems to me a bit like saying "I don't like bread." Sure you might not like one particular building, but there's so much variety; like bread, try a different flavor and you might find something you like. I don't want to live in a world where all the buildings look the same, I like being surprised, sometime horrified, but I don't want to be bored. I love the simplicity and lightness of Mies van der Rohe's buildings - he famously said "less is more," which clearly shows in his architecture.
Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth House

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