We lead you back in history when architects didn't feel global crisis. The only limit was their imagination.
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Florence, Italy
Ponte Vecchio (Old Bridge) is a famous bridge that spans over river Arno in Florence, Italy. But it is not an example of modern architecture as you maybe expect. It is a piece of work of Taddeo Gaddi, famous Italian painter and architect who worked in Renaissance. Ponte Vecchio is the oldest bridge in Florence, just a little piece of human history and probably the only bridge in the world with stores on it. It was built in Roman times, but like many things from that period it experienced a lot of changes, even the brutal ones. It was originally built of wood, destroyed many times, flooded in 1117 and swept away again in 1333.
The bridge that stands today was built in 1345, but again it was severely damaged by flood in 1966. This probably the oldest European arch bridge is known by many shops that stretch all over the bridge. A long time ago the stores were occupied by butchers, greengrocers and fishmongers, but by the order of Ferdinando I de' Medici who was Grand Duke of Tuscany, in 16th century the stores are allocated to a goldsmiths and silversmiths and this tradition was retain until today. Ponte Vecchio survived bombing during the World War II and one story tells that it can thank its life to Adolf Hitler who supposedly ordered that the bridge must be saved. Well... pilot missed.
Today goldsmiths' stores peacefully occupy the bridge and if you will look at shop windows or go inside you will be across the bridge in a blink of the eye. If you visit Florence, visit Ponte Vecchio and buy the perfect shiny Christmas's present for someone you like.
Mill Run, Pennsylvania, USA
City Mill Run near Pittsburgh, Pa., hides Fallingwater, one of the best architect's works of famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright.
In early beginnings, the house was a cottage and escape place for Kaufmann's family: Edgar, his wife Lilliane and son Edgar Jr. But, the name cottage is probably too serious for what they owned in the beginning. It was exactly the small cabin without running water and heating, and the Kaufmann family usually slept outside on the porch when they were visiting the cabin. Noisy traffic from road nearby forced Kaufmanns to search for a solution.
Few words with famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright turned their house in the most famous house in the world. His early sketches immediately showed that the new house will to go beyond of all avant-garde styles. The key of designing the house was a nearby six meters high waterfall that family adore. So, the architect decided to build the house literally around the waterfall. What a surprise! The family was overjoyed. Large windows allow magnificent and fascinating view outside. The falls are visible only when you are standing on the balcony on the top floor but it can be heard from the inside. The stairs from the Great Room lead you to the platform in the middle of the stream, a wonderful combination of nature and human's ingenuity.
The American Institute of Architects in 2000 proclaimed Fallingwater the house of the 20th century. Fallingwater is open to public as a museum and currently hosts more than 120,000 visitors every year. ■
