Superimposed Volume

Architectural composition of two superimposed volumes in a building became one of the most popular volumetric-compositional methods practiced by modernist Armenian architects. When stone stopped being the only construction material, the interplay of two different materials (i.e., primarily stone and glass or concrete and glass) was deployed in creating diversity in architectural compositions. In contrast to classical principle where the visually heavier part of a composition is placed on the bottom while the lighter on the top, modernist architects preferred placing the glazing volume on the ground, itself topped by a heavier, stone or concrete volume. In numerous buildings, the top volume was larger than the bottom and protruded over it in a form of a cantilever. In this latter case, it was not the glazing, but the shadow cast from the top volume on the ground volume that created the contrasting interplay.

 



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