Mid-century modern architecture has been incredibly popular since the style first developed in the middle of the 20th century. This new and innovative architectural style has left a permanent impression on the way we build houses today.
Mid-century modern designers left behind a stunning portfolio of homes. Some of the most beautiful — and famous — houses across the country are designed in mid-century style. Learning more about mid-century architecture can help you understand where many of the most popular architectural trends today began.
What is Mid-Century Modern Architecture?
Mid-century modern architecture developed in the U.S. between the 1940s and 1960s. The style’s aesthetic was minimal and it incorporated specific architectural features such as outdoor integrations and angular forms. It’s a clean design that embraces the building materials in their natural states rather than embellished with decorations or artificial finishes.
Four Key Features of Mid-Century Modern Homes
According to the experts, mid-century modern architecture contains four distinct characteristics:
Minimalism
For mid-century modern designers, less is always more. Mid-century homes are sleek, clean, and simple. Colors are typically variations of basic whites and blacks and there is no over-embellishment of decor. The home’s architectural features and furniture choices establish its strong aesthetic appeal.
Highlighting the Outdoors
Mid-century living incorporates outdoor elements into interior living spaces. Working with the environment was the most important aspect of the architectural process so the homes became part of the natural landscape. For example, homes might include an outdoor eating area or breezeway. Instead of bare walls, mid-century modern architecture uses large floor-to-ceiling windows to help blur the barriers of the home.
Industrial Designs
Before mid-century modern architecture, it was common to cover the building materials with paint and finishes. Mid-century modern popularized the industrial style, which used the honest application of bare building materials, like stone, wood, glass, and metals. In mid-century designs, a wooden wall would be left bare or metal ceiling beams may be left exposed. This gives the home a more muted palette compared to earlier designs.
Working with Angles
Mid-century modern homes make a statement with sharp angles. Unexpected diagonals, edges, and clean turns map out the experience of the home. In mid-century modern architecture, there may be a spiraling staircase that culminates with a window at the ceilings. Hallways may include sudden turns that create a seating area in the corner. Walls may be sculptural to accentuate the surrounding features of the home. These strong angles guide residents, cast beautiful shadows, and set the tone of the home.
Mid-Century Modern Origins with Bauhaus
Mid-century modern architecture in America was influenced by European building trends, primarily the Bauhaus movement led by Le Corbusier and Walter Gropius. The Bauhaus was a famous academy for the building arts in Germany. After the war in the 1930s and 1940s, artists in Europe began rejecting the traditional standards of art and architecture, which created a radical drive for innovation.
Before the war, homes were typically highly decorative with interiors separated into distinct rooms. There were few windows and the outdoors did not merge with the indoors. At this time, ideas of abstract art, in which the subject is distorted, and non-representational, which lacked a formal subject altogether, were translated into the Bauhaus architecture. Bauhaus designs emphasized large open spaces by knocking down walls and adding windows. Decor and embellishment were minimized, while the key features of the home, such as the walls and floor plans, were accentuated.
The artists believed that homes should be functional, establishing the famous mid-century tenant of “form follows function,” meaning the home’s basic design should follow its intended use.
Mid-Century Modern in America
These sentiments were picked up in America in the mid-1940s. The main pioneer of mid-century modern architecture in the U.S. was Frank Lloyd Wright.
Lloyd Wright’s famous house, Fallingwater, located in the Pennsylvania forest, exemplifies America’s mid-century modern architecture style. The home has multiple floors and is characterized by strong horizontal angles, built on the site of a waterfall overlooked by multiple mezzanine levels. The primary building materials are stone, cement, and glass. The home is embedded into the natural landscape with little distinction between the outdoors and indoors.
In America, mid-century modern architecture was also inspired by post-war sentiments. The entire idea of “home” was reconsidered as creatives defined a new era of lifestyle aesthetics — one that highlighted inclusion. Mid-century is sleek and comfortable. The design culture sought to make luxurious and functional modern living spaces that were affordable, allowing the aesthetic style to integrate into people’s daily lives.
Mid-Century Modern Architecture Today
Besides the new developments coming out that emulate mid-century modernism, classic works of mid-century architecture, like The Glass House and The Eames House, are visited by flocks of design-lovers every year.
Mid-century modern architecture has made an immense impact on the ways that people today shop for homes. Today’s buyers often want a clean-cut, creative, and cozy home that blends with the outdoors. As a result, mid-century modern architecture is popular with new construction developments. People also use this style as inspiration for remodeling existing homes, converting outdated properties into modern living spaces.
If you’re shopping for mid-century modern architecture, explore what’s available on our listing portal.
