L o n d o n

The New VS

The Old

Architecture

Architectural AssociationSchool Of Architecture

Blending In New FeaturesTo The Old

The blend of old and new London architecture is ever-present in cities and villages, as older buildings are torn down and newer ones built at ever faster rates. Hence one of the most hotly contested battlegrounds in the debate between avant-gar-de modernists and new tradition-alists concerns new construction in historic settings, whether ad-ditions to protected buildings or infill projects in historic districts.

Traditionalist wants to preserve the old fashioned way of how architec-ture is been built in London while modernist thinks that as technology and architecture developed at a rap-id speed, it is a great idea to blend in new elements and materials within the old-fashioned architecture in London. So far,, some of the plac-es in London still has a restriction in building heights. But I am sure as various projects are undergoing in London everyday, architecture in London will change gradually.

A booming economy, govern-ment housing initiatives, infra-structure programs, and private real estate speculation have all driven construction to record lev-els. New apartment, office, and government buildings regularly rise up over older neighborhoods, and thousands have relocated to modern housing complexes.

Creating A

Better Environment

In reality, the Earth is running out of resources and room. At least in the places where many of us want to live, meaning the cities. In large cities, this means that people who can afford it often pay big bucks for small spaces, while people who live in the suburbs and work in the cities spend time, money and gasoline commuting to their jobs.

Buildings are already being designed with this ideal in mind. The iceberg-shaped London edifice known as The Shard has 72 floors that include office space, res-idences, shopping and more. Its build-ers also boast that it will be more en-ergy-efficient and have indoor gardens.

Sustainable thinking must be a natural reflex for the architect of the future. The architect works on the basis of a new order where the building as a whole meets the requirements and challenges of a sustainable future. Sustainable architecture incorporates envir-onmentally sound measures and new ‘intelligent’ materials in an aesthetic and social programme.

Architecture is facing what is perhaps the greatest new tech-nological and aesthetic departure since modernism. But how is this manifested in down-to-earth as well as more sophisticated pro-jects which together fulfil soci-ety’s human and technological visions? And has there been an architectural and artistic response?

Today’s contemporary eco-re-sponsible homes have an elegant usability that combines the best of the old with the technologies of the new. The future architectural trends are likely to unfold, height, sustainability, and bio-inspired de-signs and likely to remain so for at some time, especially sustainabili-ty as it’s environmentally friendly.

One efficient way save space but canyet fufil people’s needs is to build the super-tall building -- not just a skyscraper, or high-rise as we think of them, but 30 stories high or even more. It’s truly vertical living. We’ve already seen a trend toward more mixed-use communities, meaning living, playing, shopping and work-ing all in one area, with promising results. The super-tall building trend takes this to the next level, since the sky is literally the limit.

InThe Future

The future of architecture seems to have two main prongs: sustainable design and the sleek, high-tech look. At first glance, these two dir-ections may seem to be mutually exclusive. For some people, green living conjures up visions of exist-ing close to the Earth -- houses built out of straw by their owners, with rain barrels to water organic gardens and turbines to harness wind power. Crunchy, hippie, gran-ola-eating stuff, and very low-tech. The truth is that the future of archi-tecture incorporates both types of elements -- the minimalist, mod-ern, sleek aesthetic and the envir-onmentally friendly, money-saving practicality. And while homes will probably always have the same basic features (a roof, windows, a kitchen, a bathroom, a room with a sofa and TV in it), the future of ar-chitecture has the power to change the way that we live -- for the better.

To me, the phrase “future of ar-chitecture” meant some of those wild-looking concept designs that I enjoyed checking out via slideshows and interactive images online. They can be beautiful and impressive, but I would also want to preserve the beauty of magni-ficant traditional architecture. So I’ve been pleasantly surprised to find out about architecture of the future that takes practicality into consideration, and I fully expect the basic tenets of these types of designs to become a reality. And also I would love to see more designs of new modern architec-ture blends in with the surround-ings of traditional architecture.

No End.No Limit.