In contemporary architecture, monumentality remains a
sensitive subject, which only a few architects have dared to
address. Hans Kollhoff, for instance, overtly seeks buildings
that can structure the city and connect to a specifi c monumen-
tal tradition. This monumentality, in Kollhoff’s view, is neces-
sary for the city to be liveable and recognizable. A few
other contemporary designers demonstrate, however, that
monumentality does not necessarily coincide with a classical
architectural idiom. The work of Jean Nouvel, for example, is
intensely monumental: buildings that dominate their surround-
ings in a prominent way and have a very signifi cant impact
on the experience of visitors. An architect such as Peter
Eisenman, on the contrary, seeks a less explicit formal idiom.
If public space is an expression of the people, Eisenman ar-
gues, contemporary architectural practice must take into account a society who is no longer monolithic. A monumental
architecture, according to Eisenman, is an architecture that
represents mutability and diversity.


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