MArch Master of Architecture Architectural History & Theory 2

Question 1

The term 'firmitas, utilitas, venustas' from Vitruvius's De Architectura translates respectively to which three architectural qualities?

Accepted Answer

Strength, function, beauty

Answer

Vitruvius's triad — firmitas (strength/durability), utilitas (usefulness), and venustas (beauty) — remains a foundational framework in architectural theory.

Question 2

Which Japanese architectural movement of the 1960s proposed massive, adaptable megastructures that could respond to population growth and urban change?

Accepted Answer

Metabolism

Answer

The Japanese Metabolism movement, led by architects like Kenzo Tange and Kisho Kurokawa, envisioned cities as living organisms with replaceable parts.

Question 3

Robert Venturi's concept of 'the decorated shed' in 'Learning from Las Vegas' refers to what architectural type?

Accepted Answer

A building whose decoration is applied independently of its structure

Answer

The decorated shed describes a building where the structure and spatial organization are separate from the applied symbolic decoration on its surface.

Question 4

The concept of 'critical regionalism,' coined by Kenneth Frampton, advocates for architecture that does which of the following?

Accepted Answer

Responds to place and culture while engaging with universal modern technology

Answer

Critical regionalism seeks a balance between universal modernism and local cultural/geographic specificity, avoiding both pastiche and placeless internationalism.

Question 5

In the history of American architecture, which style dominated civic and institutional buildings in the US from roughly the 1870s–1930s, drawing from ancient Greek and Roman precedents?

Accepted Answer

Beaux-Arts

Answer

The Beaux-Arts style, derived from training at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, influenced major US institutions including Grand Central Terminal and the New York Public Library.

MArch Master of Architecture Practice Test

MArch Master of Architecture Practice Test

MArch Master of Architecture Architectural History & Theory 2