Medieval Modern: 5 Projects that Blend Contemporary and Gothic Architecture - Architizer Journal (2024)

FAQs

How did Gothic architecture influence modern architecture? ›

The Gothic style has influenced architecture for over 700 years. With its trademark pointed arches it continues to influence modern architecture. Stained glass windows; high, arched ceilings; and gargoyles are used in a variety of ways today.

Gothic architecture did away with the thick, heavy walls, and rounded arches associated with Romanesque architecture by using flying buttresses and ribbed vaulting to relieve the thrust of the building outward, allowing thinner and taller walls to be constructed.

The differences in detailing of elements led to differences in the visual appeal of the structures. While the Gothic era cathedrals were extravagant, grand and awe-inspiring visual treats for the eye, the Modern era churches are relatively simpler, linear and have stunning spatial orientations.

Chartres Cathedral (1194-1420), Amiens Cathedral (1220-1269), and Notre Dame de Paris (1163-1345) were all notable examples of High Gothic.

The impact that this form of architecture has on the modern-day building is far more significant than many imagine. Modern-day churches are still being constructed in the original Gothic architectural style, and residential homes have quite a lot of influence on them.

Influences on Gothic Architecture

It evolved out of Romanesque style, which included many arches, vaulted ceilings and small stained-glass windows. Gothic architecture exaggerated these, making arches much larger and stained-glass windows more ornate, even adding detailed storylines.

Some of the more well-known and notable Gothic buildings and Gothic style house include the Notre-Dame De Paris (1345 CE), Westminster Abbey (1245 CE), Chartres Cathedral (12-13th century), Milan Cathedral (1386-1865 CE), Notre-Dame de Reims or Reims Cathedral (13th century) and Leuven Town Hall, Belgium (1469) among ...

However, the first buildings to be considered fully Gothic are the royal funerary abbey of the French kings, the Abbey of Saint-Denis (1135–1144), and the archiepiscopal cathedral at Sens (1135–1164). They were the first buildings to systematically combine rib vaulting, buttresses, and pointed arches.

What country has the most Gothic architecture? Definitely France. The style originated in France in the Ile de France region around Paris and spread across Western Europe from there.

What is the difference between Gothic architecture and Romanesque architecture? Romanesque architecture is characterized by heavy masonry walls, rounded arches supported by piers, and barrel vaults. Gothic architecture has much thinner walls supported by flying buttresses, pointed arches, and stained glass windows.

What did Gothic architecture replace? ›

Romanesque tradition

Gothic architecture grew out of the previous architectural genre, Romanesque. For the most part, there was not a clean break, as there was to be later in Renaissance Florence with the revival of the Classical style in the early 15th century.

There is no “opposite” to Gothic architecture. It is a style, like Romanesque or Palladian or Deco or Baroque or Brutalist or minimalist. Styles contrast; they do not have opposites.

Gothic art was a style of medieval art that developed in Northern France out of Romanesque art in the 12th century AD, led by the concurrent development of Gothic architecture. It spread to all of Western Europe, and much of Northern, Southern and Central Europe, never quite effacing more classical styles in Italy.

One of the best and most celebrated Gothic buildings in the world is the Cologne Cathedral. The Gothic architectural style has captured the imaginations of many travelers to Europe.

The Gothic style churches had pointed arches and larger windows. They added pointed arches. it made literature as a whole more accessible to the general public and led to the development of new art and literature forms.

Forget the association of the word “Gothic” to dark, haunted houses, Wuthering Heights, or ghostly pale people wearing black nail polish and ripped fishnets. The original Gothic style was actually developed to bring sunshine into people's lives, and especially into their churches.

Another key feature of Gothic architecture was the extensive use of stained glass, and a revival of the medieval rose window, which brought light and colour to the interior. Innovations in tracery – the stone framework that supports the glass – also meant windows could be larger and of increasingly complex patterns.

While Romanesque architecture featured thick, solid walls, and small, open windows, the Gothic style introduced techniques that allowed for thinner walls and larger windows, opening the door for the development of stained glass.

Pointed arches

The defining characteristic of the Gothic style is the pointed arch, which was widely used in both structure and decoration.