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Be ready to discuss on a example of a glass and metal building (train station, exhibit hall) that served London or Paris? Why was a "high-tech" construction system used in this building, and how would this building have been evaluated by architects of the period?

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Final answer:

The Crystal Palace in London is a notable example of the use of new materials like iron and glass, representative of the high-tech construction system used during the Industrial Revolution. It was designed for the Great Exhibition of 1851 and evaluated by architects as both innovative and a departure from traditional architecture norms.

Step-by-step explanation:

The Crystal Palace in London is an exemplary case of a glass and metal building very much associated with the dawn of Modern Architecture. Erected for the Great Exhibition of 1851, it used materials that were products of the Industrial Revolution, such as iron, steel, and sheet glass. These materials allowed for new architectural techniques and opened the door for modernist architecture that valued structural honesty, function over form, and the rejection of unnecessary ornamentation.

The use of such a "high-tech" construction system was essential for creating a large, open space that could house the thousands of exhibits of the Great Exhibition. Form followed function, a principle famously associated with architect Louis Sullivan, and this approach exemplified how the style and construction of the Crystal Palace directly responded to its context and requirements as a temporary exhibition hall.

During the period it was built, the architectural community might have evaluated the building's innovative design and use of new materials in varied ways. While some celebrated the technological advancements and the possibilities they opened for the future of architecture, others might have critiqued it for lacking the historical detailing and traditional craftsmanship of earlier styles.

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