Buildings are as individual and interesting as are

people. Like people, some buildings are small and

delicate, some are tall and thin, and others are

large and heavy-looking. Both people and buildings

have different features—small or large eyes

(windows) and different shaped mouths and noses

(doors and projections). Buildings, like people,

have different colors, shapes, and features

(windows, doors, columns, bases, decoration, etc.).

The way people dress is another clue to

understanding their personalities and

the fashion of the times. Buildings can

be fancy with lots of jewelry

(ornamentation), or plain and neat

looking. Thus, buildings, like people, are

decorated differently, making some

look grand and important and others

plain and ordinary.

Buildings each have a unique history. Like people, buildings age and change with the times. Some buildings are given “surgery” to restore them to their original state; other buildings “die” from neglect, accidents and disease.

A building’s architectural style, like the personality

of an individual, is its special look. A building’s

architectural style is a combination of its shape,

age, building materials and ornamentation. Stylistic

labels, such as Egyptian or Gothic, are a way to

explain a building’s appearance. However, you

don’t have to put a style label on every building.

Over time, some building styles change and evolve

or even become a mixture of several styles.

Other Architecture Terms:

Egyptian – Great Pyramid of Cheops, Giza, 2530 B.C.Stacking technique giving structural strength through compression of building materials (solid).

Greek – Post and lintel, Parthenon, Greece, 447– 432 B.C.Columns are used as support. These are also called lintel beams which help to create interior (inside) space.

Greek – Post and lintel, Parthenon, Greece, 447– 432 B.C.Columns are used as support. These are also called lintel beams which help to create interior (inside) space.

Romanesque – St. Sernin, Toulouse, France, 1080 A.D.

This style supports thick walls with small windows. Posts support round arches.

Romanesque – St. Sernin, Toulouse, France, 1080 A.D.

This style supports thick walls with small windows. Posts support round arches.

Gothic – Reims Cathedral, France, 1210 A.D.The posts are used to support ribbed vaults. These are made by putting several arches together that meet at one common point to provide extra strength and height to the building.

Gothic – Reims Cathedral, France, 1210 A.D.The posts are used to support ribbed vaults. These are made by putting several arches together that meet at one common point to provide extra strength and height to the building.

Crystal Palace by Joseph Paxton, London, 1851Introduction of structural iron creates the first non-load bearing walls. This meant they could use glass and other materials to create walls without letting the building fall down. They were sometimes called curtain walls. Like the skin on your body holds in blood and organs, the metal was used to keep the building together.

Crystal Palace by Joseph Paxton, London, 1851Introduction of structural iron creates the first non-load bearing walls. This meant they could use glass and other materials to create walls without letting the building fall down. They were sometimes called curtain walls. Like the skin on your body holds in blood and organs, the metal was used to keep the building together.

Falling Water House by Frank Lloyd Wright, Bear Run, Pennsylvania, USA, 1936.

This house displays a structural technique called cantilevering which is where a part of the building is only supported at one end. After world war 1 architects began to simplify art. These ideas were called the International Style. It was marked by the absence of decoration and by harmony between the function (use) of a building and its design.

Falling Water House by Frank Lloyd Wright, Bear Run, Pennsylvania, USA, 1936.

This house displays a structural technique called cantilevering which is where a part of the building is only supported at one end. After world war 1 architects began to simplify art. These ideas were called the International Style. It was marked by the absence of decoration and by harmony between the function (use) of a building and its design.

Museum of Civilization, Ottawa, by Douglas Cardinal, 1988

This post modern building uses the culture of First Nation’s People to integrate the natural material of stone into sculptural shapes inspired by the landscape.

Museum of Civilization, Ottawa, by Douglas Cardinal, 1988

This post modern building uses the culture of First Nation’s People to integrate the natural material of stone into sculptural shapes inspired by the landscape.

Guggenheim Museum, by Frank Gehry, Bilbao, Spain, 1998

This building integrates (brings together) a structural steel frame and metal skin-like exterior to create a flowing sculpture and a building.