flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

You can watch over 50 architectural documentaries on YouTube for free

Architects

You can watch over 50 architectural documentaries on YouTube for free

The Arts & Culture Bureau YouTube channel offers architectural documentaries about structures and works that span thousands of years and dozens of locations


By David Malone, Associate Editor | April 14, 2016

One of the documentaries offered by ACB focuses on the Pyramid of Pharaoh Djoser at Saqqara (pictured), the oldest pyramid in Egypt. Photo Credit: Olaf Tausch, Wikimedia Commons

For anyone who is a fan of architecture and is looking for something to scratch that nagging architectural knowledge itch, a YouTube channel recently brought into the light of day by ArchDaily may just be your perfect backscratcher.

The YouTube channel ACB (Art and Culture Bureau) has over 50 documentaries (currently 53, to be exact) exploring and celebrating great architectural achievements around the world and throughout history. Each 26-minute documentary centers on a culturally or architecturally significant building’s creation and how its creation has impacted architecture as a whole.

Each documentary is narrated in English and is of good quality and surprisingly high production value. They present plenty of footage of the featured structure along with pictures, models to help visualize certain aspects of the structures, and interviews with some of the architects (provided the buildings are recent enough).

The films were produced by some of the most renowned European cultural institutions including ARTE France, Les Films d’Ici, and the Louvre and feature buildings such as The Vienna Savings Bank, The Paris Fine Arts School, The House of Sugimoto, and the Pyramid of Pharaoh Djoser at Saqqara. As is made readily apparent by the buildings featured, there is no common theme among the documentaries in regards to time period or architectural style.

You can watch all of the documentaries here.

Tags

Related Stories

| Jun 10, 2014

Gaudi’s famed cathedral on ice: Dutch students to construct 132-foot ice replica of Sagrada Familia

"Sagrada Familia in Ice" will be built with a mixture of wooden fibers and plain ice that is three times stronger than ice. 

| Jun 10, 2014

Built-in balcony: New skylight windows can fold out to create a patio

Roof window manufacturer Fakro offers a skylight window system that quickly converts into an open-air balcony.

| Jun 10, 2014

New York's first-ever public housing for visually-impaired begins upgrade

Selis Manor is the first government-funded residence for the vision-impaired and disabled in New York City. MAP’s design eases crowding, increases security, and separates residents and visitors. 

| Jun 9, 2014

6 design strategies for integrating living and learning on campus

Higher education is rapidly evolving. As we use planning and design to help our clients navigate major shifts in culture, technology, and funding, it is essential to focus on strategies that help foster an education that is relevant after graduation. One way to promote relevance is to strengthen the bond between academic disciplines and the campus residential life experience. 

| Jun 9, 2014

Green Building Initiative launches Green Globes for Sustainable Interiors program

The new program focuses exclusively on the sustainable design and construction of interior spaces in nonresidential buildings and can be pursued by both building owners and individual lessees of commercial spaces.

| Jun 9, 2014

10 projects named 2014 AIA Small Project Award winners

Yale's funky new Ground café and a pavilion made from 53,780 recycled plastic bottles are among the nation's best new small projects. 

| Jun 9, 2014

Eli Broad museum files $19.8 million lawsuit over delays

The museum, meant to hold Eli and Edythe Borad's collection of contemporary art, is suing the German company Seele for what the museum describes as delays in the creation of building blocks for its façade.

| Jun 8, 2014

What’s the word of the day? It’s all about ‘resiliency’

Just for the sake of argument, let’s put aside the rhetoric about climate change—whether it’s actually happening, whether it’s a result of manmade activity—and agree that we are experiencing some pretty dramatic weather events that are having huge impacts on populations here in the U.S. and worldwide.

Smart Buildings | Jun 8, 2014

Big Data: How one city took control of its facility assets with data

Over the past few years, Buffalo has developed a cutting-edge facility management program to ensure it's utilizing its facilities and operations as efficiently, effectively, and sustainably as possible. 

| Jun 6, 2014

Must see: Can a floating city offset urban population growth in China?

AT Design Office has proposed a design for a floating city to offset increasing urban populations in China. To create the new city, a 10-square kilometer island would be made out of prefab blocks. 

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category


Urban Planning

Bridging the gap: How early architect involvement can revolutionize a city’s capital improvement plans

Capital Improvement Plans (CIPs) typically span three to five years and outline future city projects and their costs. While they set the stage, the design and construction of these projects often extend beyond the CIP window, leading to a disconnect between the initial budget and evolving project scope. This can result in financial shortfalls, forcing cities to cut back on critical project features.



Libraries

Reasons to reinvent the Midcentury academic library

DLR Group's Interior Design Leader Gretchen Holy, Assoc. IIDA, shares the idea that a designer's responsibility to embrace a library’s history, respect its past, and create an environment that will serve student populations for the next 100 years.

halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021