Reinventing Contemporary Architecture Practice in This Modern Age

Reinventing Contemporary Architecture Practice 1
REINVENTING CONTEMPORARY ARCHITECTURE PRACTICE
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Reinventing Contemporary Architecture Practice 2
Reinventing Contemporary Architecture Practice in This Modern Age
Contemporary architecture basically refers to the styles of building that are diverse and also
assert a wide range of influences. It is commonly known as the architecture of the 21st century.
One common tool for the advancement of contemporary architecture is the use of technology as
well as up-to-date building materials. Just as in the case of art, buildings must also welcome a
critical thought1. This may be in the form of visual experience. The buildings should also fulfill
the needs of the end users. Architecture is therefore a perfect combination of aesthetic and
function. The final outcome of any architectural construction should dissolve into a framework
of experience. Buildings are not viewed in the same way as art. This is because they are
constantly used in order to fulfill our day to day activities as well as our wants all at a go, that is,
in shopping, leisure, education and transportation. Contemporary architecture is a movement
meant to embrace new methods of buildings and forms that are on the basis of mainly
functionality rather than style. It is therefore a responsibility for any architecture to ensure that
all their architectural plans and designs abide by the stated objectives2.
In a bid to determine how urban form can maintain a positive correlation to the social fabric, a
proposal by MOS entitled ‘A Situation Constructed from Loose and Overlapping Social and
Architectural Aggregates.’ This was a proposal for the 2016 Biennale. The proposal tends to
give a solution on how best contemporary architecture can be reinvented by the use of social
1 Brown, G. and Gifford, R., 2001. Architects predict lay evaluations of large contemporary
buildings: whose conceptual properties?. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 21(1), pp.93-99.
2 Szalapaj, P., 2014. Contemporary architecture and the digital design process. Routledge.

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fabric. In a 35-minute video released by MOS in2016, they discuss the fundamental principles
behind their operations. It outlines a way of thinking that makes use of multiple mediums and
scales that cooperates other disciplines. All this is achieved through creativity and playful
creation. The main idea that is being enhanced is on what the contemporary architects are
capable of practicing and producing.
While considering the creations of MOS through their buildings on the basis of stern
architectural terms, they consistently make use of basic forms that tend to exhibit the core
architectural conditions3. Some of the fields that are covered by MOS are those within
architecture, software, product design, films and texts. All these fields play a major role in
reinventing the role of contemporary architecture. The practices that they cover can be expressed
as ‘a tightrope of premise and pretense.’ This seemingly registers just a part of the audience.
MOS also redefines practice as well as the manner in which architects can be involved in
thinking about architecture on different scales. This, to a greater extent, makes them a model for
the next generation of students and architects.
Their proposal on the city greatly champions for the relationship that exists between spaces
rather than the space itself4. The urban fabric interacts and drifts with no concern for street,
zoning or the normal logic on cities. This makes it a fundamental position that MOS wishes to
3 Drettakis, G., Roussou, M., Reche, A. and Tsingos, N., 2007. Design and evaluation of a real-
world virtual environment for architecture and urban planning. Presence: Teleoperators and
Virtual Environments, 16(3), pp.318-332
4 Kottas, D., 2010. Contemporary digital architecture: design and techniques. Links International,
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