Architects

Architecture is described as the imaginative and creative blend of art and science in designing various structures that have different purposes. An individual who practices architecture is called an architect. Architects are licensed professionals who are equipped with specialized skills needed to design buildings and structures, all the while considering the safety, health and welfare of the public as well as the users of the structure or building.

An architect would first ask for the client’s budget, requirements and specifications for the building or structure to be constructed. He or she would then be transforming those into concepts and then develop them into building images which would be used as the blueprints for construction. The projects which are handled by architects can be as small as a walkway and as large as a shopping complex, and sometimes, even bigger.

Throughout the years, there have been a number of architects who have been able to create masterpiece buildings and structures. Here are some of them.

1. Charles-Edouard-Jeanneret-Gris

Also known as Le Corbusier, Charles-Edouard-Jeanneret-Gris was born in October of 1887. He was a Swiss-French architect, urbanist, designer, sculptor, urban planner and painter. He is famous for being among the pioneers of International Style or Modern Architecture. He studied modern high design and dedicated his career to coming up with ways to improve the living conditions for residents of crowded urban areas. He believed in the five points of architecture which included having: a floor plan without any supporters; a roof garden; free standing pillars; vertical façade; and long horizontal sliding windows. He was able to design and construct buildings in many countries mostly in central Europe, but also had several in Russia, India and North and South America. Some of his famous works would include The Secretariat at the United Nations and the Palace for League of Nations in Geneva.

2. Alvar Aalto

Hugo Alvar Henrik Aalto or simply Alvar Aalto was an architect and designer with Finnish roots. He was called the Father of Modernism and the Father or Modern Scandinavian Architecture. Aside from working on architecture, he also designed glassware, textiles and furniture. Some of his most famous works would include Villa Mairea, Paimio Sanitorium and Finlandia Hall. Some art and architecture critics say that his work seemed to have been influenced by the art of Picasso and Georges Braque.

3. Kenzo Tange

One of the most renowned architects from Japan, Kenzo Tange cleverly combined the traditional Japanese style with elements of modernism in his work. He was considered as one of 20th century’s most significant architects, winning the 1987 Pritzker Prize for architecture as well as an Order of Culture and an AIA Gold Medal.. He also supported the structuralism movement and was able to design and construct numerous major buildings located on five continents. Some of his famous works would include the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, Tokyo Cathedral and a Yoyogi National Gymnasium for the 1964 Summer Olympics which was held in Tokyo.

4. Robert A.M. Stern

Robert Arthur Morton Stern is an architect from America and is currently the Yale University School of Architecture Dean. His work is classified to be postmodern but he describes his work to be “modern traditionalist”. Some of his most well-known architectural works include numerous Walt Disney Company projects including the Disney Yacht Club Resort and the Disney Club Beach Club Resort.

To be an architect, an individual must be equipped with creativity, decision-making, interior design and team leadership skills. Some of the jobs that architects can have would include being a designer, a project manager, a consultant, an instructor or a business owner.