Ancient Splendors
In the Archaic period, the temple dominated the city. Initially made mainly of mud brick and wood, temples became rectangular and peripteral (surrounded by a peristyle with a row of columns), and were increasingly built of stone. During this period, temples were very simple in plan, consisting of a single room called a naos or cella. The Classical period represented the golden age of Greek architecture, characterized by a quest for rationality and harmony. Temple layout developed along the following lines: pronaos (entrance or vestibule) - naos (sanctuary containing the statue of the deity, often with 3 naves) - opisthodome (symmetrical rear porch). It was during this period that the Greek orders developed.
The Doric order is distinguished by its simplicity. Massive and squat, the columns play a load-bearing role, have no base and their capitals are devoid of decoration. The Parthenon, symbol of Greece's policy of prestige, abandons the modest materials of previous eras for the majesty of marble, illustrating Doric harmony in all its splendor. The Hephaisteion, in the lower town, is another marble masterpiece. Extensive research carried out as early as the 19th century revealed that this marble was not as white as it is today, but was instead adorned with color, sublimating the imposing statuary!
The Ionic order is characterized by elegance and lightness. The columns are more graceful, now resting on a base, and their capitals are adorned with two volutes. The Temple of Athena Nike and theErechtheion, both on the Acropolis, are perfect examples. The search for ideal proportions was of great importance, and architects, to underline the majesty of the buildings, did not hesitate to make a few optical corrections in the form of curving and bending lines, to avoid the impression of sagging or excessive verticality. The decoration is also more elaborate. The entablatures resting on the columns between the capitals and the roof are adorned with cornices and friezes punctuated by triglyphs, protruding sculpted elements. The treasuries, small votive edifices receiving offerings, allowed architects to give free rein to their imagination, notably through decoration featuring moldings and sculpted friezes. The Hellenistic era was one of monumentality and splendor. Henceforth, temples - whose porticoes grew longer, doubled their spans and gained a storey - were no longer the city's only landmark buildings. Theaters, council chambers and gymnasiums multiplied. Thermal baths even made their appearance. Porticoes, ever more impressive, delimited the space of sanctuaries and public squares, while propylaea (monumental porches) appeared on the Acropolis. This skilful interplay of robustness and lightness is underlined by refined decoration combining the Doric and Ionic orders, with the addition of a third order, the Corinthian, with its acanthus leaves and crenellated columns. Surprisingly, the Corinthian order was mostly used by the Romans, whose desire for grandeur was monumental to say the least, as illustrated by the Temple of Olympian Zeus at the foot of the Acropolis.
This period was also marked by a rise in individualism. Henceforth, the rich and powerful decorated their villas with luxury to show off their success. These houses were built around a central courtyard surrounded by a peristyle. Mosaic decorations were highly refined. At the same time, reasoned urban planning was developing, leading to the construction of new cities such as Piraeus. The town planner Hippodamos of Miletus devised a master plan in the form of a geometrical map, with the city gridded by straight streets intersecting at right angles, forming blocks of the same size comprising 8 houses... a number that owed nothing to chance, as the town planner sought to control the number of inhabitants in the city. He also separated the city's zones and functions (commercial zone, military zone, worship and public zone, residential zone) to make them easier to read. The agora, serving as a link between the different zones, is the city's central point, and its porticoes both circumscribe its position and provide citizens with pleasant shaded areas. A logical, well-thought-out master plan which, as you will have noticed, was not applied to Athens!
Byzantine and Ottoman Athens
From the 4th to the 15th century, Greece was part of the Byzantine Empire. This period, often described as medieval obscurantism in contrast to the enlightened grandeur of Antiquity, nonetheless gave Greece superb examples of an astonishing syncretism in which architecture was the link between pagan cults and Christian traditions. Now an official religion, Christianity needed new buildings to mark its power. The Christians therefore developed new architectural solutions based on existing Greco-Roman structures. Thermal baths served as models for baptisteries, and emperors' mausoleums inspired sanctuaries. Basilicas - which until then had served as covered markets, public squares and courts of justice - became churches. They were intended to allow the congregation to turn towards the altar... and so was born the longitudinal or basilical plan, with its central hall surrounded by colonnades. Later, Greece gradually adopted a cross-shaped central plan. The decoration was extremely refined, as evidenced by the sumptuous mosaics and colorful frescoes. Mosaics were made of cubes of glass paste, colored with metallic oxides and applied to a bed of fresh cement, before being covered with fine gold or silver leaf. The Church of the Virgin Mary in the Parthenon is a perfect illustration of this syncretism between pagan cults and Christian tradition, while the monastery of Daphni, not far from the capital, impresses with its octagonal central-plan church decorated with sumptuous frescoes and mosaics.
From the 16th to the 19th century, Greece was part of the powerful Ottoman Empire. Many Byzantine churches were transformed into mosques, adapting Christian sanctuaries to Islamic rites. For mosques built from scratch, the Ottomans favored modest proportions, often limiting them to a prayer room. Hammams, bazaars and caravanserais dotted the region. In Athens, the remains of the Fethiye mosque and Turkish baths can still be seen.
Neoclassical and modernism
1821, Greece was freed from the Ottoman yoke and celebrated its independence. The young nation sought to restore the authentic Greek character of its cities. It was therefore decided to wipe the slate clean of the Ottoman past. King Otto I, a former prince of Bavaria, brought in a number of foreign architects who imported the neoclassical style. This style, which incorporates all the codes of ancient architecture (columns, pilasters, pediments, monumentality...), enabled the Greeks to close the Ottoman parenthesis by returning to their most glorious past. It is also a way for the country to get a little closer to the other European countries so fond of this style. This is particularly evident in Athens, which became the capital in 1834. A brand-new district was built, reflecting a major urban renewal for the city: the creation of wide, wide arteries, such as Stadiou and Panepistimiou streets, inspired by the grand avenues of European capitals. Under the impetus of Danish architect Theophil Hansen, later assisted by German architect Ernst Zeller, the capital was adorned with hundreds of public buildings resembling classical temples. Hansen was responsible for the Academy (whose Ionic columns were inspired by theErechtheion), the marble National Library (inspired by the Doric style of the Temple of Hephaestus) and the University. The neoclassical style was also highly prized by the wealthy classes, led by shipowners, who built opulent villas with first floors punctuated by Doric columns and pilasters framing monumental projecting porches, while upstairs, elegant Ionic columns and balconies adorned the facades. Pediments and sculpted bas-reliefs were very fashionable at the time. The house of the great archaeologist Schliemann and its tomb decorated with columns, caryatids and a replica of the Temple of Athena Nike are perfect examples.
In 1933, off the coast of Athens, the Athens Charter was signed on the occasion of the4th Congress of the CIAM (Congrès Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne). A manifesto of the modernist movement and a theory of functionalist urban planning, this charter takes up all the points made by Le Corbusier, a key figure in the CIAM at the time. Many buildings in Athens bear the hallmarks of this modernism: use of reinforced concrete, large bay windows, absence of ornamentation... A major program was even initiated by the Ministry of Education to popularize modernism and counter the fierce criticism levelled at it for its austere appearance. This program included the construction of numerous schools. The 1950s, however, were marked by ever-increasing demographic pressure on the city, a phenomenon that prompted developers to raze entire historic districts to the ground in order to build ever faster and cheaper, soulless blocks of flats and houses of questionable quality, in an irrational jumble that gave the city an impression of disorder it would find hard to shake off. This was in stark contrast to the neoclassical style that was still very popular in the post-war period and used for large-scale public projects. The 1960s saw the advent of the international style, of which the glass curtain wall is the leading exponent. The Valsamakis offices on Kapnikareas Square are a good example. An international style that harmoniously blends glass and concrete in buildings with clean, sober lines, as seen in three landmark creations of the period: the US Embassy by Walter Gropius, the Hellenikon East Terminal by Eero Saarinen, and the Hellenic National Foundation by Constantinos Doxiadis, whose smooth marble facade is reminiscent of the works of Oscar Niemeyer, another great figure of this international style. At the same time, the city saw its first skyscrapers, while Xenia, the government's major plan to promote tourism, saw the emergence of numerous hotels of resolutely modern design.
Contemporary architecture
In the early 2000s, Italian architect Mario Botta designed the administrative headquarters of the National Bank of Greece, whose monumental modernity, blending shades of beige stone, black granite and light wood, contrasts strikingly with the classicism of the surrounding buildings. But it was the Athens 2004 Olympic Games that marked a major turning point for the city. The first of these was the Olympic Complex, designed by Santiago Calatrava. One of the highlights is the Olympic Stadium, with its glass and steel roof suspended by cables from a large arch. The Olympic Games are also an opportunity for the city to completely rethink its downtown area. The aim is to make it a more pleasant place to live for visitors and residents alike. A large pedestrian promenade paved in the style of ancient Athens now links all the archaeological sites and, in the evening, is illuminated by sumptuous light displays designed by Pierre Bideau (the brilliant creator of the Eiffel Tower lighting); the metro network is extended; and a newly built bypass now allows part of the city to be bypassed. While the center of Athens regained its village feel, former abandoned industrial sites were rehabilitated, such as the former Gazi gas complex, transformed into a large cultural center called Technopolis, or the former Fix Brewery, which now houses the National Museum of Contemporary Art in a resolutely industrial setting.
After the Olympic Games, the city continued to pursue its cultural policy, creating a host of ultra-modern museums and cultural centers. The city's two most famous are undoubtedly the Acropolis Museum and the Stavros Niarchos Cultural Centre. The former is the work of Bernard Tschumi. Considered by some as the elegant counterpart to the Parthenon and by others as a "postmodern wart" that necessitated the destruction of part of a historic district (the last straw for a museum!), the latter leaves no one indifferent. An ultra-modern building of glass, steel and grey cement, the museum is organized around a cella encircled by steel columns (equal in number to those of the Parthenon) and offers an astonishing view of the archaeological excavations in progress via a glass floor. The Stavros Niarchos Foundation in Palaio Faliro is the work of Renzo Piano. Created on an artificial island, the building slightly overlooks the bay. The architect also designed a vast park linking the building to the sea. The two landmarks are the Opera House and the National Library, both linked by an agora, where an elegant canopy provides protection from the sun... sun that floods the photovoltaic panels placed in large numbers on the buildings. At the same time, many Athenian architects are promoting less grandiloquent, more targeted actions to encourage residents to reinvest in their city's various districts, particularly the center. Pedestrianization and greening are the watchwords. Point Supreme Architects (who are still dreaming up their crazy "Athens by Hills" project, giving each of the city's hills a primary function and transforming the Kallithea district into a vast park linking the Acropolis to the sea!) are multiplying their elegant, sustainable interventions in the city, as with the very popular Six D.O.G.S bar/cultural center, whose earth and wood structures are resolutely sustainable.
