  We overview the basic concepts, models, and methods related to the
multi-field continuum theory of solids with complex structures. The multi-field
theory is formulated for structural solids by introducing a macrocell
consisting of several primitive cells and, accordingly, by increasing the
number of vector fields describing the response of the body to external
factors. Using this approach, we obtain several continuum models and explore
their essential properties by comparison with the original structural models.
Static and dynamical problems as well as the stability problems for structural
solids are considered. We demonstrate that the multi-field approach gives a way
to obtain families of models that generalize classical ones and are valid not
only for long-, but also for short-wavelength deformations of the structural
solid. Some examples of application of the multi-field theory and directions
for its further development are also discussed.
