Reading Response: Loos

Description

As an architect, Adolf Loos experimented with new forms that rejected historical conventions.  As a writer and polemicist, he put forward powerful critiques of earlier approaches to architecture.  In this essay, Ornament and Crime, he argues that ornament, once costly and therefore an indication of wealth or power, is unnecessary in an industrial age, even decadent and motivated by primitive impulses.  It was a powerful statement in its time, and remained influential for a generation of modern architects.  What do you think about it? This assignment asks you to read Loos’s article and to respond. Your response should be no longer than a single page.  It could take the form of your earlier response, that is, a quote, a question, and a comment.  Or it can be more free-form.   In either case, try to focus on particular aspects of the argument that you agree or disagree with. Be analytical, critical, synthetic, and/or reflective. Was something missing? Were there contradictions, lost opportunities, inconsistencies, lapses in judgment, and so on? You should summarize the text only to the extent that it is necessary to transmit your meaning. If you are not sure what to say or ask of the reading, consider doing some independent additional reading on a relevant topic, although further research is not required. Keep in mind, though, the context in which he writes, the first years of the 20th century.  What elements of that context might inform your response?