brief architecture history

for dummies like me

This is the overly simplified version of architecture history that you don’t want your art history professor to read or your architect friend to see. It is just to create a framework in your head so you have a simple reference point to explore the rich architectural landscape around you.

I’m no architecture or art history major so I think of architectural “styles” simply in 3 main themes - the ancient classical, the “in betweens” and modern. 

So here we go, architecture history for dummies - timeline, key features and examples:

Ancient classical

Ancient Greek (Circa 900 BCE to 100 CE)

• Tall columns, post-and-lintel construction

• Proportions, symmetry and harmony

• Doric, Ionic and Corinthian orders

• Classic example: Parthenon (Athens, Greece built 447-432 BCE)

Ancient Rome (753 BCE to 476 CE)

• Arches, vaults and domes

• Advanced materials of limestone, marble, concrete, fired bricks

• Tuscan and Composite orders

• Classic example: Pantheon/Basilica di Santa Maria (Rome, Italy built 113-125 CE)4eeee

• Revival example: Panthéon (Paris, France built 1758-90)

The “In-betweens”

Romanesque (1000s-1200s)

• Thick walls, heavy piers and columns

• Round and semicircular arches

• Towers and symmetrical layout

• Classic example: Modena Cathedral (Modena, Italy build 1099-1184)

• Revival example: 484 Broome St (New York, US, built 1890 by Alfred Zucker)

Gothic (1100s-1500s); Gothic Revival (1700s-1900s)

• Pointed arches, pinnacles and thin spires

• Flying buttresses and rib vaults

• Stained-glass windows and rich decoration

• Italian example: Milan Cathedral (Milan, Italy built 1387-1965)

• Revival example: Woolworth Building (New York, US built 1910-12)

Renaissance (1400s-1600s)

• Classical references 

• Proportions and regularity 

• Soaring buildings to define a city’s skyline

• Italian example: Florence Cathedral Dome (Florence, Italy built 1436)

Baroque & Rococo (1600s-1700s)

• Exaggerated grandeur

• Bold ornaments

• Gilding (gold paint)

• French example: Palace of Versailles (Versailles, France built 1661-1715)

Beaux Arts (1800s-1900s)

• Layered facades with classical references 

• Sculptures along roof lines

• Iron material 

• French example: Musee d’Orsay (Paris, France 1898-1900)

Art Nouveau (1800s-1900s)

• Asymmetry and smooth lines

• Organic elements and curves

• Cast iron and glass

• Spanish example: Palau de la Música Catalana (Barcelona, Spain built 1905-8)

Modern

Art Deco (1900s)

• Geometric shapes and repeating patterns

• Curved buildings 

• Glamour and detailed craftsmanship

• New York example: Chrysler Building (New York, US built 1928-30)

Modernism (1900s-present)

• Simple shapes with focus on functionality

• Smooth surfaces with minimal decor

• Glass, steel and concrete 

• New York example: One World Trade Center (New York, US built 2006-2014)

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References:

Architectural styles a visual guide by Margaret Fletcher (2020)

The Architecture Book Big Ideas Simply Explained by DK Publishing (2023)

AIA Guide to New York City (2010)

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