Modernism is the chain of art movements that historians have discovered in the early 1960s. Modernism had been taken as a noble idea of art at the beginning of the 21st century when designing, painting and building any artwork (Misa, 2004). In the desire to change the society, modernist architects had the intention to industrialize the process of construction by developing new building methods and start using new kinds of building materials. The materials which were used included glass, steel, and concrete. These materials were introduced because they could reduce the cost of building and also increase the speed of building many houses. The first building materials presented in the era of modernism was steel to enhance building quality and strength although it was not stable. Its strength was improved by mixing iron and carbon and removing phosphorous.
Modernist architects preferred the use of steel because of its tensile strength, and therefore it could reinforce the building. Concrete was also used as building materials to increase the strength and quality of construction. Most modernist architects liked it due to its resistance and volume, and it was used to construct building walls and slab. It was considered as the primary building material as it enhances building strengths and quality. Finally, glass was also adopted because it has the potential to admit light into the room (Misa, 2004). It was used for constructing windows and other openings to allow light into the building. Although it has been used in more than 5000 years ago, it was considered modern building materials as a result of mass production. In most cases, it was used to build offices, but currently, most houses use glass because it is transparent.
References
Misa, T. (2004). Leonardo to the Internet: technology and culture from the Renaissance to the present. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press.
