Fantastic architecture is an

architectural style An architectural style is a set of characteristics and features that make a building or other structure notable or historically identifiable. It is a sub-class of style in the visual arts generally, and most styles in architecture relate closely ...

featuring attention-grabbing buildings. Such buildings can be considered as works of art, and are normally built purely for the amusement of its owner. Architects that employed this style include

Antoni Gaudí Antoni Gaudí i Cornet (; ; 25 June 1852 – 10 June 1926) was a Catalan architect from Spain known as the greatest exponent of Catalan Modernism. Gaudí's works have a highly individualized, ''sui generis'' style. Most are located in Barcel ...

Bruno Taut Bruno Julius Florian Taut (4 May 1880 – 24 December 1938) was a renowned German architect, urban planner and author of Prussian Lithuanian heritage ("taut" means "nation" in Lithuanian). He was active during the Weimar period and is know ...

, and

Hans Poelzig Hans Poelzig (30 April 1869 – 14 June 1936) was a German architect, painter and set designer. Life Poelzig was born in Berlin in 1869 to Countess Clara Henrietta Maria Poelzig while she was married to George Acland Ames, an Englishman. Uncerta ...

.Curl and Wilson, ''Oxford Dictionary of Architecture'', '' s.v.'' "Fantastic architecture," n.p. Fantastic architecture should not be confused with

novelty architecture Novelty architecture, also called programmatic architecture or mimetic architecture, is a type of architecture in which buildings and other structures are given unusual shapes for purposes such as advertising or to copy other famous buildings w ...

. While both styles have unusual, attention-grabbing designs, novelty architecture is meant to be an advertisement for the business inside, such as buildings with a giant donut on the roof. Fantastic architecture, on the other hand, serves no other purpose than the personal amusement of its builder.

Selected fantastic-style structures

* Martin Castle in

Versailles, Kentucky Versailles () is a home rule-class city in Woodford County, Kentucky, United States. It lies by road west of Lexington and is part of the Lexington-Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. Versailles has a population of 9,316 according to 2017 cen ...

* Sauer Buildings Historic District by Frederick C. Sauer, Aspinwall, Pennsylvania *

Watts Towers The Watts Towers, Towers of Simon Rodia, or ''Nuestro Pueblo'' ("our town" in Spanish) are a collection of 17 interconnected sculptural towers, architectural structures, and individual sculptural features and mosaics within the site of the artis ...

Simon Rodia The Watts Towers, Towers of Simon Rodia, or ''Nuestro Pueblo'' ("our town" in Spanish) are a collection of 17 interconnected sculptural towers, architectural structures, and individual sculptural features and mosaics within the site of the artis ...

, Watts district of Los Angeles, California *

Wadham's Oil and Grease Company of Milwaukee Wadham's Oil and Grease Company of Milwaukee was a chain of filling and service stations that operated in the early 20th century and was headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The company's refinery was in Indiana. The company was headed by Harge ...

Notes

References

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External links

* Walker, John
"Fantastic Architecture"
''Glossary of Art, Architecture & Design since 1945'', 3rd. ed.
Wisconsin Fantastic Architecture

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Architectural styles Folly buildings {{Arch-style-stub