as in the case of Finsterlin’s abstract masses, and colorful emotional allusions by architects such as
Poelzig and Bruno Taut.
Nuove Tendenze(heavily influenced by Austrian Secession) and futurism were primarily Italian
movements that looked to industry and technology with an anti-historicist view. Visions of the
machine age, with its electricity and new building materials, spurred an exploration of the city as a
monumental and efficient social mechanism. The architectural sketches by Sant’Elia described a
streamlined future of often molded forms, focusing less on specific materials and more on seamless
elasticity. He was, in fact, visualizing prestressed concrete, and saw it as the material of the future (da
Costa Meyer, 1995 ; Conrads, 1970 ). His architecture, with its flowing lines, expressed the speed of the
machine metaphorically, but he also concentrated on architecture for machines, such as railway stations,
power plants, and dams. These sketches used exaggerated and undefined scale to reinforce the monu-
mentality of the speculative architecture. His stepped-back structures anticipate modernist skyscrapers
and engage the observer’s imagination (da Costa Meyer, 1995 ). Repetitive lines suggest buildings in
motion and further the ideology of futurist architecture.
Two movements that evolved in a somewhat parallel fashion, and in close proximity to each other,
were De Stijl and the Amsterdam School. Philosophically quite different, the architects of the
Amsterdam School rejected classicism, concentrating instead on relationships between ‘functionalism
and beauty’ (Bock, Johannisse and Stissi, 1997 , p. 9 ). Beginning in the early 1900 s, this movement
stemmed from the common belief system of architects such as H. P. Berlage, J. M. van der May, M.
de Klerk, and Piet Kramer. Fueled by political policy governing city expansion and mandates for
workers’ housing, these architects searched for sculptural forms that could be economically efficient
and, thus, respond to social needs (Bock, Johannisse and Stissi, 1997 ; Casciato, 1996 ). Concerned
with materials and construction methods, the architects of the Amsterdam School used sketches and
drawings to envision building systems and massing. Not stylistically cohesive, the drawings and
sketches by these architects were substantially diverse.
Many drawings (plans and elevations) of apartment buildings designed by de Klerk remain in
archives. His sketches are characterized by combinations of selected ornament contrasted by building
austerity. Drawn with a controlled hand, his sketches explore material intersections and the articula-
tion of openings. His plans follow a trend in architectural drawing conventions by using symbols with
legends and diagram techniques. The thickness of the walls was particularly important, considering
he built almost exclusively with masonry. The De Stijl architects also built with masonry and
explored massive geometric forms made from concrete. In contrast to the Amsterdam School, how-
ever, they eliminated decoration and most color, and assembled rectangular forms (de Wit, 1983 ).
Naturally, their drawings and sketches had a minimal, abstract expression.
In nearby Germany, Gropius was transforming the former art school Staatliches Bauhaus in
Weimar. (It is important to note that Gropius has been included in the modern chapter because of
his significant influence on the style.) Based on the theory of the ‘artist as exalted craftsman,’ the
Bauhaus attempted to unify the building and a whole, integrating its various elements (Conrads,
1970 , p. 49 ). Gropius advocated bringing together sculpture, painting, and crafts into the design of
the built environment. The masters of the Bauhaus were concerned with teaching craftsmanship in a
workshop setting; besides craft, science, and theory, the school also provided instruction in drawing,
painting, life drawing, composition, technical and perspective drawing, and ornament and industrial
design (Conrads, 1970 ). These studios taught the techniques of sketching from memory and imagin-
ation (Conrads, 1970 ). Possibly stemming from a need to consider objects for domestic use, they
also employed axonometric drawings. These two-dimensional projections showed three sides of the
object or building equally, and were comprised of parallel lines which could be constructed with
straight edges. They suggested the preciseness of the machine and reveled in the abstraction (Naylor,
1968 ).
First organized in Moscow in 1921 , constructivism reconsidered the concept of creative activity.
Its artists and architects promoted a post-revolutionary society of the working class, using modern
construction materials instead of traditional modes of craft (Perloff and Reed, 2003 ). With this ideaH5719-Ch06.qxd 7/18/05 10:20 AM Page 142