Why Is Contemporary Design So Fascinating? Vail Valley Architects Offer Some Insights

07-tower-detail

It seems that just about every architecture magazine cover you see these days is highlighting contemporary architecture styles. There’s a prevailing fascination with contemporary architectural design, and with good reason. Vail Valley architects gravitate toward this style due to some key stylistic factors. The following may offer some insights as to why contemporary design continues to be so fascinating:

Sleek Lines and Edges

The smooth transitions in contemporary design are pleasing to the eye and soothing to the soul. Inside and out, sleek lines and smooth edges make this style extremely inviting.

Symmetry and Balance

Contemporary architectural design is also harmonious in terms of color and design elements. Even if the structure isn’t literally symmetrical, there is an implied symmetry and balance in all of the elements used in contemporary architectural designs.

A Homage to Technology

The world around us keeps evolving and advancing in terms of technology. It isn’t surprising that modern architecture designs are now reflecting this. The use of high-sheen materials, brushed metals and high-tech accents reflect the world around us as it continues to expand and evolve.

Appealing Hybrids Are Emerging

Contemporary design also isn’t limited to just high-tech styles. Many new designs in effect offer a hybrid of new designs, as well as what has worked in past decades. The result is a compelling balance of classic and contemporary elements that can take architecture to new places.

TAB Associates is an architectural firm in Vail Valley that prides itself on finding balance in all areas of architectural design. The structure, program, construction, and cost of every project are all orchestrated to be in harmony.

Just like the rest of the modern world, architecture keeps evolving in highly compelling ways. Consult TAB Associates when you’re ready to make your design visions a reality. Your Vail Valley architects bring contemporary design and architectural balance together for you.

3 Timeless Architectural Designs

What is ‘timeless architecture’? There are many homes and buildings in Vail Valley that exhibit architectural balance, certainly one of the requirements of a design being considered timeless. But there’s more to it than that. Many architects and admirers would say a structure is timeless if it fits well with its environment, melds function and form gracefully and effortlessly, and above all, speaks to people over long periods of time, that has the ability to enrich lives across ages, in  defiance of fashion and fads.

Here are three amazing and influential designs that can truly be called timeless.

Timeless Buildings

Fallingwater – Frank Lloyd Wright’s masterpiece in the rural loveliness of southwestern Pennsylvania was built in 1935. It was named the “best all-time work of American architecture” by the American Institute of Architects and one of the 28 places a person should visit before they die by Smithsonian Magazine. It’s integration of the natural and the manmade, inspired by Japanese design, is its strength.

The Salk Institute – Architect Louis Kahn was commissioned to create the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in 1959 by Dr. Jonas Salk, who gifted the world with the vaccine for polio. Kahn studied the ascetic and austere designs of ancient monasteries to develop his vision of a space for intellectual pursuits. He used sparse concrete walls, glass, and natural lighting to create one of the world’s most unique building complexes.

St. Paul’s Cathedral – Designed in two stages during the 17th century by legendary English architect Christopher Wren as part of the massive rebuilding project after the Great Fire of London, St. Paul’s Cathedral is one of the world’s great buildings, and has been inspiring architects for many generations.

But when it comes to timeless residential design, I believe that the Old World style is truly timeless.  Because if you cannot tell if it was built 100 years ago or yesterday, then it can be deemed timeless.  I also believe many log homes fall into this same category for the same reasons.

If you’re in need of a Vail Valley architectural firm to add the element of timelessness into your home, contact TAB Associates for a consultation.