The historical aspect of the architecture formation at the universities cultural objects

Abstract

The article highlights the genesis and the development stages of the cultural objects typology in the space-planning structure of the universities around the world. The conceptual term “university” dates back to the Middle Ages, when chapels and libraries were the main cultural objects. The Renaissance period introduced the special meeting and lecture halls in the shape of amphitheaters into the structure of universities. The Baroque is characterized by the creation of music halls and theatre buildings at the universities. The next development period is connected with the colonial universities of America. The autonomous multifunctional buildings located in the open landscape became the embodiment of the colonial college. In the late XVIII century, the building project of “academic village” of Virginia University was implemented. It represented the brand new paradigm of designing educational, public and cultural space. The idea of “science city” originated from the XIX century and presupposed an integrated approach to designing university terrains with the neo-Gothic architecture being the stylistic dominant. At the turn of the XIX and XX centuries, English and later on American colleges started designing the first student union buildings. In the middle of the previous century, the idea of building students clubs with a wide range of functions and facilities depending on the socialization and college needs became popular in the USA. In the 90’s, the idea of creating interuniversity cultural center captivated the minds of social activists.