Historicism architecture

Author: Yan Li
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features: Architectural historicism emerged in the late 18th century with profound social background. It was nurtured under the impetus of scientific thought and the Enlightenment spirit, during the process of social transformation. Advances in science and technology propelled the development of social productivity, delivering a powerful blow to theology and metaphysics, and fundamentally transforming people's consciousness. New knowledge categories and a historicist reflection on human existence emerged, as societal changes led to the birth of a new cultural structure, reflecting the decline of the aristocratic lifestyle and the rise of the bourgeoisie. This book focuses on historicism as a theme, analyzing the historicist tendency in architecture from the late 18th to the late 20th century. Dividing historicist architecture into two phases—"historicism before modern architecture" and "historicism after modern architecture"—with "modern architecture" as the dividing line, the article systematically elaborates on the "classical revival," "radical historicism," and "conservative historicism" that emerged in these phases. Finally, it explores the relationship between the current "European-style" phenomenon in Chinese architecture and historicism, analyzing its fundamental causes from multiple perspectives and classifying them for summary.