Architecture

Art and architecture share many similarities. They've influenced one another throughout history. However, trying to liken these two disciplines will inevitably lead to certain contractions.

Perhaps the biggest difference is that Art, in its broadest sense, is defined as a creation meant to trigger an emotional response which is generally related to aesthetic pleasure. It doesn't satisfy any of life's basic needs, but it leads to thoughts, reflections, and often taps into our subconscious and our memory. On the other hand, architecture's primary purpose is to shelter individuals and ensure their safety. Architecture is meant to serve a utilitarian purpose.

Today, architecture has gone far beyond this initial function. Architects have strived to combine engineering and aesthetic research to create buildings that are so out of the ordinary we wonder how they were designed. They want their creations to stand out and favour originality and creativity. Just like in arts, architecture is influenced by the historical, social, and political context of the time and each movement has its own characteristics, from baroque to futurism to Bauhaus. Modern architecture marked a turn in the history of architecture. Architects revolutionised the social scope of their discipline and took an industrialist approach to society and nature — avant-garde architects rubbed shoulders with artists such as Georges Braque, Piet Mondrian, and members of the De Stijl group. Le Corbusier is a pioneer in collective housing, and also took part in ambitious projects which aimed to rebuild entire cities, such as Chandigarh in India. Decorative arts also developed by taking inspiration from the conventions that governed modernist architecture.

Contemporary architecture might not be a specific movement per se, but buildings that fall into this category share certain attributes. Contemporary architecture is characterised by curvy lines and various volumes in a single structure, as seen with the Sydney Opera House. The architect Jørn Utzon explained that he didn't seek to create a building for this project, but an actual sculpture. The building continually renews itself with new meanings and experiences for each passerby. Architectural works often require periods of deep reflection and a long though process in order for the architect to envisage how to give their building a sense of character and soul.

Whether architecture is an art or not is a never ending debate, but it is undeniable that there are strong links between the two disciplines. There are many examples of collaborations between contemporary artists and architects, and today the works of the greatest architects are exhibited in museums along with their fellow artists.

Discover our selections of artworks inspired by art and architecture!

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Architecture

The Tired Facade

The Weekend House by Knut Hjeltnes Architects

Cathédrale d'Ulm

Paysage en devenir

Three Graces (Sagrada Familia, Notre Dame)

La mémoire

Toulouse Dawn

X-Y Building Facade Op.6, No.2

The Night

American Dream

An argument in the bathroom

Double Life

Guggenheim Museum Bilbao 1

Full of colours view - Positano Italy painting

Urbain brutalisme - Photographie digigraphie

Zechenturm Zollverein

Dissonance III

Struttura figurale

Convivencia

5th Street

Silent

Dream house

No New Friends

Walk Through the Park

Quiet country farmhouse - Tuscany landscape painting

Promenade

The Warriors of tradition

Pool House

Nice

Empty Room

Yeni Cami (nouvelle mosquée)

Les murs de Babel II - N°2

The Knox's House

Arborescence

Rem(a)inders (Saint-Nazaire) 2

Le phare

X-Ray London

Flowery vineyard - Tuscany landscape painting

Guglie Celesti, 3/10

Two Days Later

Stairways

Ar the Arc de Triomphe - France Belle Epoque painting + frame

Chiesa Nuova II, Rome, Italy, Churches of Rome

Greenwich Village Shadows

Chez le collectionneur le penseur

Un castillo

Le carré Victoria (Terracotta)

Häuser

Perspectives Infinies

Ronds mécaniques

Untitled Desert Tile 2

Habana inside

New York 5

Meeting Plaza

Au petit matin

Opera house seagull

Marrakech

Zizkov

Corvée d'eau, Tchétchénie

Villa Adriana III

Filar Coi Wood Black oak

Portal 04

Sans Titre

Purple Hour

Les Larmes du Routier I

Life is easy