Polyhedra in architecture. Architectural forms and styles

Urban space is the world of geometric bodies. Look around. Everywhere towering stately prisms. Sometimes powerful pyramids appear before the eyes. Here and there the fascinating platonic Platonov and Archimedian bodies flash through the imagination. Architectural buildings are mostly polyhedra, as well as their simple and complex combinations. And this is not a trend of modernity. So it was from time immemorial. Geometry and human needs dictate their rules in comfort, beauty and self-expression.

Geometry in architecture

Science and art have been going hand in hand for a long time to the present. Geometry and architecture together were born, developed and improved: from simple residential structures and unspoken rules to carefully designed masterpieces and clear laws. The strength, beauty and harmony of buildings at all times provided geometry. In the architecture of cities, its rules were combined with the needs and imagination of man.

Rectangular structures are stable and multifunctional, so there are more of them on the streets than others. Pyramids are inferior to them in practicality, but they look more impressive. They are erected in exceptional cases. Platonic and Archimedean bodies people dilute the usual architectural forms. Designing buildings that take the form of these polyhedra - in most cases, a difficult task. But art is more important. Therefore, the architects make a lot of efforts to cope with it. And as a result, create world masterpieces. So, let's analyze each case on a separate example.

Direct Prism

Direct prisms are the most common polyhedra in the architecture of any city. These are small "Khrushchev", multi-storey buildings, as well as massive skyscrapers. A typical example of a direct prism can be the world-famous hexagonal tower of Pirelli, erected in Milan in 1960. The skyscraper was remarkable for those times with a height of 127 meters. And it could hold 32 floors. The reinforced concrete giant surpassed even the Milan cathedral, which was crowned with the statue of the Madonna, which caused a huge outrage of the public. After all, the building was above the shrine. To alleviate the discontent that projected the skyscraper PL Nerva and J. Ponti had to place her copy on the roof of her creation.

The tower was built by the order of the famous company "Pirelli", producing automobile tires, in the very place where its first plant was located. Elegant building with a facade of aluminum and glass became a symbol of the revival of the Italian economy after the war and was awarded the title of the most elegant skyscraper in the world.

Inclined prism

In Madrid there is another not less remarkable architectural object. The towers "Gateway to Europe", shaped like inclined prisms, gather around themselves no less tourists than the Pirelli building. Skyscrapers 114 meters high tilt to each other at an angle of 15 °.

It is this architectural feature that they owe their name. American engineers and architects F. Johnson and J. Berdzhi broke the stereotype of the usual appearance of high-rise buildings, and the "Gateway to Europe" towers were the first inclined reinforced concrete giants in the world and one of Madrid's most popular attractions.

The Right Pyramid

Prism buildings are represented by architectural objects in the form of regular pyramids, though not in quantity, but in popularity. If the architect is planning to create a structure of this form, then it certainly becomes a real masterpiece. Maybe it's all about the magic of the ancient Egyptian pyramids, built more than 4 thousand years ago for the burial of the pharaohs? Who knows, however, the "Palace of Peace and Harmony" in Astana, the capital of the Republic of Kazakhstan, is an outstanding example.

The architectural creation of aluminum, glass and steel was created according to the principles of the "Golden Fibonacci Section". It reaches a height of 61.8 meters and has the same width of the base. The pyramid is known for its elevators, which do not move vertically, but diagonally to the top of the structure. The palace serves as a meeting point for leaders of world religions and is considered a symbol of friendship between different faiths and nations. Any person can visit him: get acquainted with the culture of Kazakhstan and the world as a whole.

Truncated pyramid

Architectural buildings can take the form of not only regular pyramids, but also truncated ones. The buildings look more massive at the expense of their seemingly cut vertices. Truncated is the pyramid of Kukulkan, built by the Maya Indians in the ancient city of Chichen Itza in Mexico. In height it reaches 30 meters, and in width - 55. It consists of 9 square blocks, and on its top there is a temple. Four ladders lead to it: one from each side of the world. In the days of the spring and autumn equinox , a mysterious visual effect appears on the pyramid: the deity wrought from the sun's rays, the feathered Serpent, in honor of which the pyramid was erected, slides along its steps. In the spring, it creeps up, and in the autumn - down.

Such polyhedra in the architecture of the present time are considered a rarity. An example is the building of the Slovak radio. It is an inverted truncated pyramid. The building looks impressive and, despite the external gloom, attracts tourists.

A regular polyhedron

Platonic bodies or regular polyhedra in architecture in pure form are also extremely rare. And this is mainly hexahedra. So, in China the original complex Cube Tube is constructed, the main element of which is an office building in the form of a cube. The architects of the Sako Architects office filled his facade with an incredible number of square windows that alternate with terraces. Due to this, the structure looks impressive and seems weightless.

The original project of a mountain hotel cubic form Cuboidal Mountain Hut was proposed by a team of Czech architects Atelier. The huge hexahedron according to it will be built of wood, and on top are paneled in aluminum. Solar panels on the roof and walls, the system of accumulation and purification of rainwater, as well as electric generators will give the opportunity to live in it regardless of the surrounding world. The cube is like a giant ice floe that fell from high mountains. One of its tops is directed to the sky, the other as if gone under the snow. If the project is implemented, it will become a real sensation.

Semi-regular polyhedron

To create non-standard objects, archimedean bodies are used (or semi-regular polyhedrons in another way). In the architecture of different cities such buildings become real magnets for tourists. Pay attention to the National Library of Belarus. It rightly deserved the status of one of the most original buildings of the world because of its shape of the rhombocuboctahedron. This archimedean body consists of 18 squares and 8 triangles. Because of this form, the library is often compared to a diamond or a diamond. The building becomes particularly similar to these gems, when it lights up the night illumination. The project of the "Belarusian diamond" appeared in the 1980s and even became the winner of the All-Union competition. But it was possible to realize it only at the beginning of the XXI century. The library has 23 floors and reaches a height of 75 meters. In addition to the huge book stock and reading rooms, the building has an observation deck with a magnificent view of Minsk, a children's room, and a restaurant.

A nonconvex polyhedron

The urban landscape requires constant changes, so the use of polyhedra in architecture has recently acquired a slightly different character. Truly human fantasy has no boundaries. Innovative architects break the stereotype of the beauty of buildings, using in their projects now non-convex geometric bodies. All their points lie on opposite sides of each face, which allows to achieve a stunning effect.

A typical example is the Seattle Public Library. Architect R. Kulhaas tried to make the building as futuristic as possible. Broken asymmetric architectural forms of the eleven-story building made of glass and steel mesh did not appeal to all the residents of the city, and many simply caused indignation. The library even received the nickname: "a huge ventilation shaft". But she has a lot of admirers. The architecture of the building attracts an unprecedented number of visitors, many come to see it from other cities and countries.

Polyhedra and architectural styles

Each architectural style has its own bright features. And polyhedra advantageously emphasize them. Massive pyramids distinguished the power of ancient Egypt. Now the buildings made in the form of this polyhedron are known all over the world, so the appeal of style is so strong. The shape of the prism that skyscrapers have is characteristic of modernism. They embody the ideas of internationality and functionality. Compare the Pirelli tower in Italy and the Metlife Building in America. Correct and semi-regular polyhedra in architecture are typical for postmodernism, because they oppose the ordinary city structures.

Non-convex polyhedra are used in deconstructionism to create fractures and destructive forms that bring a pleasant dissonance to the everyday life of rectangular buildings. Architects and engineers put the usual upside down, changing the styles. But our space is still filled with immutable and eternal geometric bodies, be they pyramids or prisms.