Page 66 - Waxahachie, TX Residential Design Guidelines

Pl annin g a Preservation Project

p o s t - m o d e R n ( 19 6 0 – 19 9 0 s )

Postmodern architecture emerged in the 1960s as a reaction
against the perceived shortcomings of modern architecture,
particularly its rigid doctrines, its uniformity, its lack of ornament,
and its habit of ignoring the history and culture of the cities where it
appeared.

The movement was introduced by the architect and urban
planner Denise Scott Brown and architectural theorist Robert
Venturi in their book Learning from Las Vegas. In 1966,
Venturi formalized the movement in his book, Complexity and
Contradiction in Architecture. In place of the functional doctrines
of modernism, Venturi proposed giving primary emphasis to the
façade, incorporating historical elements, a subtle use of unusual
materials and historical allusions, and the use of fragmentation
and modulations to make the building interesting. They urged
architects to take into consideration and to celebrate the existing
architecture in a place, rather than to try to impose a visionary
utopia from their own fantasies. This was in line with Scott
Brown’s belief that buildings should be built for people, and that
architecture should listen to them. Scott Brown and Venturi argued
that ornamental and decorative elements “accommodate existing
needs for variety and communication”. The book was instrumental
in opening readers’ eyes to new ways of thinking about buildings,
as it drew from the entire history of architecture—both high-style
and vernacular, both historic and modern.

801 West Main, an example of the Post-Modern style.

58 Waxahac hie Residential design guidelines