All the social and cultural products of a society are affected by the social climates including buildings. The design of a building is influenced by the ideas, values, societal beliefs, how people relate within the community and how all these forms of basic societal interactions are being sustained.The social climate has a major impact the works of architecture. In turn, the buildings also in one way or the other, impact the social climate. Therefore, when understanding the architecture of a building, it is important that the impacts of the social climate during the time of the conception of the idea through the choosing of the site to the time of building. In the 1960s, the idea of futurism was developed due to the impact of the societal pressure on the architectural designs. During this period a lot of changes were taking place in the societal scene sparking radicalism in every sphere of the society including architecture. Rise in radicalism influenced the art scene in the modern and contemporary era.
During the period of radicalism, the society had begun the embracing of technology and industrialization. There were scientific advancements that were slowly shaping how the society interacted with its environment. An example of this is the development in transport for example use of airplanes was becoming popular. Changes in infrastructure meant a change in the preferences of the society to art. there was arise in radicalism during this period of social pressure. For instance, there was an increasing rise in the anti-authoritarian movements that were challenging different governments. Borgonuovo and Franceschini argue that, “It is impossible to give a different definition of creativity without imagining a different social reality,” (158) .Social changes changed the dynamics of emotional representation in art. The Second World War had also created a niche in the world of art that was waiting to be filled. There was also a wave of socio political activism with the spread of civil rights movements. Radicalism meant a change in the preferences of the society to art. Therefore, it was inevitable that the social changes would affect the artistic world
Futurism was an art and social movement that insisted on the importance of speed, technology, role of youth in the society and scientifically developed objects like cars. It began with a publication that was written by Filipino Marinetti, who coined the name futurism. The aim of futurism was to discard the weight6 of the past and to forge forward .MoMa points out, “Tired Italy’s reliance on its classical heritage and disdainful of the present these artists called for a new aesthetic language based on industry, war and the machine.” The concept was first introduced in architecture by Antonio Sant'Elia, an architect. He expressed his modernity ideas in his paintings with his main aim being improving the city and creating it to be like an efficient fast paced machine. All these, were to be achieved by the manipulation of light and shape in order to ensure the sculpture quality of products were revealed. Futurist artists believed in the building of an efficient city with a powerhouse and the different generations would not inherit it but rather, build a new one that was better than the previous one. Futurism was a clear indication of the impact of radicalism on all aspects of life.
Radical architecture developed in the 1960s and 1970s and was used to refer to an out of the ordinary structure that was either of extreme shape, structure or had the leftist position of its creators. The idea of radical architecture was based on the Italian journal, Casabella, that was concerned with of the ordinary architecture. This type of architecture was mostly drawn or a collage of it was done to create a certain effect of the questioning and assault of the project. Borgonuovo and Franceschini point out,.“Architecture broke free of the modernist and rationalist embrace that had proven unable to redesign, as it had intended, either the environment or society itself.”(57). Futurism and radical architecture were related to each other, in that, radical architecture was a depiction of the futuristic thinking of architects. The spirit of playfulness by the artists broke the traditional way of thinking. As it was consistent with futurism, radical architecture was used to show that the future was to be free from war, inequality and selfish material gains and other human problems.
An example of a radical building that was built in Spain in 2016 and is famously known as the Venice Architecture Biennale. The Spanish pavilion that is built in the Venice Biennale, highlights around fifty-five projects. The project is seen as the radical response to the Spanish economic crisis. The project received a lot of praise and fame and even won an award because of its futuristic outlook and architectural design. The design involved a lot of artist each with their own idea that was unique to the other. An example is, Kengo Kuma developed the kitchen with a concept of assorted porcelain kitchenware being balanced precariously over each other. What’s more, another artist Greg Lyn, used the Microsoft Hololens in his design of the Spanish pavilion. An interesting fact about architectural design of the building is that it incorporated the use of an unbreakable glass ceiling. Solano’s Biennale constructed the brick and timber arch to show that cheap materials and labor intensive methods to increase profits. The Trans World Airlines building that is situated at the Kennedy Airport in New York is another example of radical buildings in history. The building has a bird like flamboyance that makes it to stand out. Therefore, radicalism in the art scene did play a vital role in the change in architecture.