Mies van der Rone

摘要

Mies van der Rohe (whose 125th anniversary is this year) is one of those architects who refuses to go away. In the great wave against Modernism 30 years ago, he was blamed for every banal glass box around the world. Everyone can remember the jingles of course: 'Less is more' and the retort 'Less is a bore'. 'Postmodern classicism' had its revenge in the form of decorated skyscrapers with clumsy cut-out caricatures of keystones and pilasters, but it became obvious that Mies had more of the truly classical in him at the level of idea, proportion and detail. Just when he seemed buried he re-emerged, seen through the lens of a younger generation interested in minimalism and materiality.