Architecture Dictionary


marble
Term
a medium-hard metamorphic rock of crystallized limestone
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masonry
Term
unit blocks of stone, brick, or concrete used for construction
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massing
Term
the arrangement of forms of a building
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Mid-Century Modernism
Style
By the middle of the 20th century, architects trained in the tenets of Modernism began to experiment…
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Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
Architect/Firm
It’s difficult to imagine what the skyline of Chicago might look like without architect Ludwig Mies van…
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nave
Term
the middle part of a church, typically where the congregation gathers
Term Details

Frederick Law Olmsted
Architect/Firm
Landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted designed some of the Chicago area’s most picturesque green…
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pediment
Term
a large triangular form on top of a series of columns
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pier
Term
a vertical section of the wall, between two window openings
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pinnacle
Term
a small vertical structure that is on top of a Gothic buttress or pier
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Postmodern
Style
A reaction to Modernism Postmodernism began as a critique. By the late 1960s and early 1970s, Modernism…
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Prairie Style
Style
The Prairie style emerged in Chicago around 1900 from the work of a group of young architects, including…
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