Mies van der Rohe

“Less is more.” - Mies

IIT, campus (Because Mies had the opportunity to plan the entire campus layout, it has a clear unity and geometrical organization. Buildings are

arranged about a central axis and are based on a 24' x 24' x 24' module. A reincarnation of Bauhaus principles, the design is efficient and

functional--and anonymous.

CROWN HALL (the Architecture Building), 1952-56

A one-story glass box (120' x 220' x 18') with four large steel girders from which the roof is hung; thus no interior supports are necessary. A grand flight of stairs at the entrance.

Crown Hall, Chicago 1952

Early photograph, before trees

plan

Interior

Because no interior supports are necessary, one large and flexible "universal space" was possible. Temporary walls or partitions can be changed as needed. More private spaces (like faculty offices) are in the basement level.

Crown Hall

Crown Hall with ivy

“The end of style.” - Mies

FARNSWORTH HOUSE, Plano, Illinois, 1945-50

precast concrete floor and roof slabs supported by a steel skeleton frame. The facade is single panes of glass spanning from floor to ceiling, fastened to the structural system by steel mullions. Heated by radiant coils set in the concrete floor; natural cross ventilation and the shade of nearby trees provide cooling.

Farnsworth House, Plano, IL 1945

aerial

side

entrance

back

“My work is almost nothing.” -Mies

Exterior, dusk

Stair detail

Plan

interior

SEAGRAM BUILDING (Philip Johnson did interiors, 1957)

This logical and elegant 38-story skyscraper (525' H) has alternating horizontal bands of bronze plating and bronze-tinted glass and decorative bronze I-beams which emphasize its verticality. Placed to the rear of its site and set back from Park Avenue, it incorporates a large plaza in the front as part of the design--thus avoiding the need for set-backs. It uses granite pillars at the base and has a two-story glass-enclosed lobby.

Seagram Building

New York City

1957

Seagram

Seagram

Plan ground floor

CNA building (Red)

United Nations Building, 1947-53 Le Corbusier et. al.

Miesian buildings as far as the eye can see