Peter Eisenman

Peter Eisenman is an American architect, theorist, writer and a lecturer. He showed the interest in architecture at a very young age when he started sketching with his father and tried to build models of buildings and cities by using wood blocks. Once Eisenman quoted that “The “real architecture” only exists in the drawings. The “real building” exists outside the drawings. The difference here is that “architecture” and “building” are not the same".

Before Peter Eisenman started his own architectural firm, he was a lecturer and a theorist. In 1967 Peter founded the IAUS ( Institute Of Architecture and Urban Studies) which he was the director of until 1982.

During an exhibition which was held in the Museum of Modern Art he met a group of young architects which he associated himself with which later were known as "The Whites". Eisenman was generally called as the leader of the group. The other members included Charles Gwathmey, Michael Graves, Richard Meier '56, and the late John Hejduk.

In 1980 Peter Eisenman founded his own architectural firm in New York. He embarked the journey in his career whit a number of projects which contradicted work of other architects as his work was characterized by dis-concerning forms, angles and materials which normally were not used. His work is considered as Deconstructive. It is known as a movement which contraindicated the work of Modernist Movement. The difference is that in the Modernist Movement the majority of the characteristics of the buildings were that buildings were made up of geometrical shapes and in uniform shapes. In work such as Peter Eisenman's work the architects 'tempered' with the shape of the buildings to create something different which contrasted the work of the previous architects. Their work was like a 'fight' against the normality of the modern design and they came out with a contrasting answer. This was one of the starting point of some of the contemporary architecture that we know today. Some other architects with the same idea of architectural design are Rem Koothass and Frank Gehry.

Although the Deconstructivists such as Peter Eisenman changed all the characteristics of aesthetics of the building, some principals remained the same such as the used of unnecessary structure which normally are used for supporting structures, The same method used even in Roman architecture is used in some of modern and deconstructive architecture. Some other characteristics are the materials and how materials are used such as the steel frames used especially when the building have odd shapes which are not normally used. In cases like this the same techniques are used such as those which were mainly introduced in the international style which consists of steel support which then will be covered to support the exterior shell of the building. When this techniques are used the amount of concrete construction is reduced as are not much needed as support as the steel frame makes the majority of the building structure.

Another architect which is dominating the architectural scene is Zaha Hadid. She is a clear example of the progress done during times such as from modernism to Deconstructivism. She design buildings with characteristics similar to Peter Eisanman buildings which make every building a unique piece to be admired.

Reference:

Deconstructive architecture. 2013. Deconstructive architecture. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.slideshare.net/4kks/deconstructivepdf. [Accessed 28 December 2013].

ArchDaily | Broadcasting Architecture Worldwide. 2013. ArchDaily | Broadcasting Architecture Worldwide. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.archdaily.com/. [Accessed 28 December 2013].

Peter Eisenman Biography. 2013. Peter Eisenman Biography. [ONLINE] Available at: http://rhodesprofessors.cornell.edu/RhodesProfsEisenman.html. [Accessed 28 December 2013].