News
July 14, 2010
Musings on Mies and Modernism
We’re screening Regular or Super tonight at the Center. It’s an interesting documentary on Mies van der Rohe centered around an ESSO gas station he designed and featuring interviews with Rem Koolhaas and others. It gives us the opportunity to link to a couple of articles on Mies and his work in context.
This commentary from The New York Times put Mies (and his towers on Chicago’s Lakeshore Drive featured in the film) into the context of post-war America. How did his “less is more” ethos impact middle-class housing in the decades to come?
Roger Ebert is a well-known Chicagoan, living in a city that Mies had much impact on. However, it pretty clear he’s not a fan of Modernism. In this article (which kicks off with the line “Much modern architecture has grown tiresome to me.”), Ebert explains his evolving opinion of Mies and goes on to celebrate Louis Sullivan and the Gothic grandeur of the University of Chicago campus.
And Ebert has started (restarted?) the debate. The architecture blogosphere is abuzz. Here’s mention in The Los Angeles Times online. It includes a poll so you can chime in with your own opinion.