Glossary
Page of Architecture Terms:
Ringstrasse:
The
large boulevard that replaced the fortifications surrounding the city of Vienna
in 1857. It represented a change,
both aesthetic and political, in the city's view of its urban landscape.
Altstadt:
The
old city of Vienna
Historicism: The deliberate use or revival
of historical styles in contemporary works.
Eclecticism:
A system of selecting individual elements from a variety of sources, systems,
or styles.
Baroque:
Characteristic of a style in
architecture developed in Europe from the early 17th to mid-18th century,
emphasizing the dramatic and typified by bold, curving forms, and elaborate
ornamentation.
Jugendstil:
The equivalent
in Germany and Austria of art nouveau
Art Nouveau: An international, late 19th- and early 20th-century decorative
style characterized by organic leaf forms, winding, indirect lines, and non-geometric
curves. Art Nouveau originated
in Europe in the 1880s, and reached the peak of its popularity around 1900.
Classical:
The architecture of ancient
Greece and Rome. More specifically, Classical refers to the style of Greek
art that flourished during the fifth century B.C. 2. Architecute based on
a clear, rational, and regular structure, emphasizing horizontal and vertical
directions, and organizing its parts with special emphasis on balance and
proportion.
Romantic: Relating to the movement in
late 18th and early 19th-centurty architecture that
departed from classicism and emphasized sensibility, the free expression of
feelings and nature.
Baroque:
A highly ornamental style of
European architecture that lasted from the mid-16th to early 18th
century, characterized by grandeur and the use of curved structures.
Gothic:
A style of architecture developed
in northern France that spread throughout Europe between the 12th and 16th
centuries, and characterized by its detailed ornamentation- most noticeably
the pointed arches, ribbed vaults, and flying buttresses.