Impact of Industrial Revolution on Architectural Design

Admin October 10, 2012 Blog

The Industrial Revolution, which happened in the latter half of the 18th century, brought about a number of changes in the architectural scenario all over the world.

The world turned greatly towards Greek and Roman forms of architectural design. It was considered fashionable, and rightly so, to borrow from various types of architectural designs. The Greek designs were what dominated the architectural designs that were taken up, right till the 19th century.



Because the Industrial Revolution also saw advancement in technology and manufacturing facilities, architecture became popular and it became easier to design the buildings. New architectural designs were incorporated with easeas one adapt one’s own designs on the architectural designs from over the world, giving an edge to almost all works produced after the Industrial Revolution. It was during the Industrial Revolution that the textile industry also boomed. Because of this development, architectural designs introduced fabrics like velvet and silk. This brought about the concept of interiors being incorporated into the architectural designs, making them interestingly different from all the designs known to exist before this era.

Many who have studied architecture would probably agree that because these architectural designs were drawn by the same contributing factors, they seemed to lack imagination and style. However, not a person can deny that these architectural designs were practical, lasting, and only got better with other accompanying advancements.

Advancements in the Industrial Revolution also contributed greatly in the evolution of architectural design as we see them today. At the height of the Industrial Revolution, architecture celebrated both the ornamental and the unadorned and embraced mass production in an almost unbelievable display of goods and resources.

The heavy industry growth brought about a flood of new building materials such as cast iron, steel, and glass, with which architects, with the help of engineers devised structures of or sizes bigger than before, of forms better than before, and fit to perform functions which were not possible before.

Apart from architectural designs flourishing with respect to housing and commercial buildings, architecture also saw a boom with respect to other forms of infrastructure such as canals, tunnels, bridges and the likes.

The Industrial Revolution brought about a number of changes in the way architecture was perceived post 18th century. Architectural design took a huge turn and all for the better. Access to better resources, more material, better techniques; all were contributing factors to architecture becoming a full-blown and still flourishing industry today.