Koshino House
Tadao Ando · Ashiya, Japan
1981 - Original house: 1981; later addition discussed in the published account, whose project metadata lists 1984.
80s & 90s architecture
80s and 90s architecture: bold forms, light and new ideas
Explore architecture of the 1980s and 1990s, from postmodern landmarks and sculptural museums to experimental houses and quiet concrete spaces.
8 designs in this collection · How we select and source
Start with these designs.
The 1980s
Portland Building
Michael Graves · Portland, United States
1982 - Original municipal building completed in 1982; later reconstruction reopened in 2020.
Arab World Institute
Jean Nouvel, Architecture-Studio, Pierre Soria and Gilbert Lezenes · Paris, France
1987 - Completed in 1987; a cultural institution with a patterned south-facing screen.
Church of the Light
Tadao Ando · Ibaraki, Japan
1989 - Original church completed in 1989. The publisher's 1999 metadata refers to the later site phase described in its text.
The 1990s
Villa dall'Ava
OMA · Saint-Cloud, France
1991 - Completed in 1991; OMA dates the project from 1984 to 1991.
Vitra Fire Station
Zaha Hadid · Weil am Rhein, Germany
1993 - Completed in 1993 for the Vitra campus.
Guggenheim Museum Bilbao
Frank Gehry / Gehry Partners · Bilbao, Spain
1997 - Opened in October 1997. The original source account contains photographs from multiple contributors.
Maison Bordeaux
OMA · Floirac, France
1998 - Completed in 1998 near Bordeaux, in Floirac.
Photograph credits and the published project account are on each design page.
Reading the collection
The 1980s and 1990s did not share one architectural look. This selection brings together colourful public statements, controlled concrete rooms, new uses of glass and metal, and houses that rethink the ordinary arrangement of floors.
The decades refer to documented building or opening dates, not the publication dates of the articles. Where a project has multiple phases, the individual notes explain which phase places it in the collection.
Use the photographs to compare entrances, structure, daylight and the relationship with the site. A shared decade does not make these buildings examples of the same movement. This is a starting selection across Japan, Europe and the United States, rather than a complete history.
Look beyond a single period style
Compare the Portland Building with the Church of the Light: both belong to the 1980s, but use very different forms of architectural expression. In the 1990s, compare the directional planes of Vitra with the rounded exterior of Bilbao.
What do the houses contribute?
Koshino House, Villa dall'Ava and Maison Bordeaux allow the same period to be read at a domestic scale. Look at the section, the ground and the way rooms are connected rather than treating a house as a smaller public monument.