No comments about Josef Hoffmann, 1870-1956: In the Realm of Beauty (Taschen Basic Architecture Series).

4 comments about California Modern: The Architecture of Craig Ellwood.

1. Excellent value for money,hard cover,gloss paper,good graphics and photos.
   Text covers Caig Ellwoods full career and life.



2. Based on Jeff Ellwood's assessment, I'm upgrading my rating for this book by a full star as blood is likely thicker than admiration.



3. This is an excellent and comprehensive book about Craig Ellwood's life, both professional and personal. It is thoroughly researched, well laid out and fascinating in its detail.

   In sharp contrast to Rob Davis' review of this book, I have to say that from my point of view as Craig Ellwood's eldest son, Neil Jackson's book presents a very accurate and honest depiction of my father's work and life. There is no "prejudicial attitude" on Jackson's part. While it is true that the words of my father's former employees should be taken with a grain of salt (obviously!), I can attest that much of what they have to say is correct. Not all of it, but they are not totally off-base. Jackson leaves it up to reader to arrive at his or her own conclusions.

   I also take issue with Davis' assertion that Jackson was "rankled" at Craig Ellwood's lack of a license. To the contrary, Jackson allows the irony of Ellwood's being an "architect" (with quotation marks around the term) to speak for itself: license or no license, his work was significant and important. Jackson's book is far more accurate than Meredith Clausen's "concise" hatchet job. Jackson actually took the time to get his facts straight. Clausen's "exposé" was riddled with gross errors and based on mis- (and dis-)information, with little discernible attempt to do the research to get it right. Her article was self-serving rubbish. It is clearly Clausen who wrote from a prejudiced attitude, not Jackson. Without an axe to grind or some personal agenda, Jackson provides an honest look at Craig Ellwood the person. The book is impressive for its extensive research, for the balanced presentation of Ellwood's life and body of work, for the depth of information provided and for the choice of illustrations included.

   My only disappointment was with the cover photograph, which is not the most representative of Ellwood's work. This was the US publisher's choice, however. The UK publication has a much better, more visually pleasing cover.

   For anyone who wants the most complete and balanced work on Craig Ellwood, this is the book. It is neither a whitewash nor a hatchet job. Rather, it is the best attempt so far to capture and record the spirit of an imperfect, perfectionist designer whose work influenced his associates and American architecture itself for decades.




4. This book is reminiscent of the Paramount Pictures executive that wrote of Fred Astaire "Can't act. Can't sing. Balding. Can dance a little."

   The book is spottily written and makes too much of Ellwood's humble family background, that he changed his name, and is reported not to have been able to draw. It follows University of Washington Professor Meredith Clausen's exposé of a couple years back, which tread on the same subject matter, though more concisely.

   Once much published in the architectural press, Ellwood had until recently been fairly well forgotten, which is a shame in that modern design would have been poorer without his undeniable contribution. The central precept of Neil Jackson's book seems to hinge on whether Ellwood was a designer that communicated via graphic means or an exponent and impresario of modernist design. That he wasn't licensed seems to rankle the writer (and the architectural profession) perhaps mostly in that his office continuously produced award-winning work from its inception to Ellwood's retirement.

   A series of verbatim interviews with several of Ellwood's past associates' paints a generally unflattering picture of both Ellwood and in the process, the interviewees themselves. Much is made of Ellwood's high living style but in the end the reader learns very little of how he lived except for the foibles of his mid-life crisis. While the reader is regaled with carefully researched minutia like Ellwood's business telephone listings in the late 1940's, there are significant gaps in the story.

   Missing entirely is any description of Ellwood's sense of humor, his visual sensibility, his methods of communication within his office or personal details like whether or not he lived in a house of his own design.

   More than his associates and most of the architectural profession, Craig Ellwood knew how to create opportunities for good design and this is the critical distinction between those that rise to prominence and the 98+ percent of practitioners licensed (or unlicensed) that don't. In his pursuit of demeaning Craig's generally enviable career, the author has even stooped to suggest that publisher John Entenza's homosexuality might have been a factor in the consistent publication of Ellwood's work in Arts & Architecture magazine, as Craig was a strikingly handsome fellow.

   A more logical explanation of the Jackson's seemingly prejudicial attitude may come from embarrassment at having devoted the predominately laudatory Chapters 5 & 6 in his previous book (The Modern Steel House. Van Nostrand Reinhold. New York. 1996.) to Ellwood's work as a designer, only to later discover that the technical design of many of the projects could, well after the fact be attributed, in part or whole, to others.

   Typographically this book is hard to read having been set in too light and too grey a typeface. It is poorly illustrated, the pictures being generally too small and lacking in descriptive quality.

   This book is worth reading but should be taken with a grain of salt as the melancholy accounts of Ellwood's former employees, now claiming full responsibility for his genius, come more than 10 years after Ellwood's death.

   Perhaps like Fred Astaire history will be kinder to Craig Ellwood.

5 comments about New England's Covered Bridges: A Complete Guide.

1. This book has been like a bible to me as I set out to photograph covered bridges in New Hampshire and Vermont.
   
   I've used the book in conjunction with my laptop based GPS system to plan my trips and prioritize which bridges to look at. The book is very clearly written, gives interesting historical and structural information, and most importantly, directions for finding the bridges.
   
   The color photos are high quality, so you get a good idea what to expect when you get there. If you're into touring the covered bridges of New England, New England's Covered Bridges: A Complete Guide is a worthwhile investment.



2. This book is very professionally done and is a great bargain at this price. It's a compact size which makes it convienent to carry with you on trips. Another thing I like is the GPS coordinates that they have recorded for each bridge. Anyone who enjoys seeking out old covered bridges should have this book. I highly recommend it! 5 STARS!
   
   Brian McKee, Editor of "The Bridge-Covered Quarterly"



3. This is another book I bought as a Christmas present for my grandson when I learned of his interest in covered bridges. This is a good history of covered bridges in New England. I enjoyed this because of the excellent pictures and know my grandson will enjoy it too.



4. This book was well worth the money. There was only 1 mistake in directions(p.136, Bement Br.,NH, should be west on NH103). We used it for bridges in Mass.,Me.,NH, and VT.



5. I found this book to be very helpful so far... I only visited a couple of the waterfalls in the book so far and the directions seemed to be right on. If you are seeking waterfalls in NE then this may be the book you are looking for.

5 comments about Southern Comfort: The Garden District of New Orleans (The Flora Levy Humanities Series).

1. Beware: This book contains factually incorrect information and incorrectly labeled photographs. These obvious inaccuracies were not corrected in the updated, revised edition.
   What a shame, because it's a missed opportunity to tell the story of this extraordinary and historically important neighborhood.



2. This is a wonderful book on one of the most beautiful neighborhoods in the country. It is a fascinating study of this singular district, the history is extremely interesting and the images are vivid. Visiting the Garden District is like going back in time, it is so well cared for and the residents are very protective of its history. As people mull over the future of New Orleans and wonder what makes this old city so special, and why its worth saving, they need to take a trip down to the Creasent City and walk the streets of the Garden District and see what real beauty is.



3. This book is twice as expensive in New Orleans bookstores. Photos of historical people and places in the Big Easy. This was a nice follow up of my visit to New Orleans, but I'd recommend this for a pre-visit read.



4. When I went to New Orleans, I only had time for a quick driving tour. This book allowed me to see what I missed, and learn more about the architecuaral styles that surround the area. The book has great info on the styles, and tells how they came to be and why. The iron work in the area is to be experienced! The charm of the homes in the Garden District are brilliantly displayed in this book.



5. this republishing of the late 1980's version is a delicious remake made better by the new color photographs. Brantley and Brantley have out done themselves with this edition.

5 comments about An Architectural Guidebook to Portland.

1. This is an outstanding architectural guide, written for architecture enthusiasts and serious cultural travelers. Why did I give it only a 4 (instead of a 5)? Because it is not entirely inclusive of entries from the 2001 edition. The author, for some odd reason, has removed (or condensed) many of the entries from the 2001 edition to make room for mostly modern structures from the past six years. My simple complaint (and recommendation): In any new edition, add, but do not subtract.
   
   Otherwise, it's nearly perfect. The small building selection (about 250 sites) is wonderful, and is a perfect balance between historic and modern landmarks. The author wrote the text with a fun, tongue-in-cheek style that is both insightful and entertaining. It really works well. The photographs are all monochrome, and there are very few, perhaps one per page, or about one for every other entry. There are a few interior shots of important public spaces. I would say that the photography meets minimum standards of a book like this, but that's about all. For those of you familiar with the Dorsey and Dilts guide to Baltimore, this book is similar in feel and format. There's a very brief introductory essay to establish the historical context, and short architect biographies inserted into the text. Mostly the author chooses to let us interpret the history of the city through the buildings.
   
   As for the architecture, I'll leave that for you to discover. Suffice to say that Portland is, without a doubt, one of the most beautiful cities in the country. Surrounding suburbs and towns are not discussed, but that's fine since there's more than enough to keep one interested within the Portland city limit. And if you think Portland is just a smaller version of Seattle, you should take a look at this book and reconsider that conclusion.



2. Now in an updated and expanded second edition reflecting Portland's growth in the twenty-first century, An Architectural Guidebook to Portland is teacher Bart King's guide to the amazing buildings that distinguish Portland, Oregon as a place worthy of sightseeing. From 19th-century cast-iron front buildings to the Old Town and Chinatown to the breathtaking downtown bridges and much more, An Architectural Guidebook to Portland is sure to intrigue architecture enthusiasts, Portland tourists, and armchair travelers alike. Black-and-white photographs illustrate this blend of historic preservation and history vignettes, which features over 250 separate entries.



3. The book contains a brief history of Portland architecture, and a building by building look at the best, and some of the worst, buildings in downtown and surrounding areas. Anyone who has been to Portland and actually looked at the buildings knows that Portland's architecture is pretty special. There are only a few of the original turn of the century cast-iron frame buildings left, unfortunately, because they were torn down to build a freeway in the 1940s. The freeway is now gone (moved 14 blocks west, away from the Willamette waterfront), but only 10% of the buildings near the waterfront survived. The area around Skidmore fountain shows what Portland looked like then.
   
   The book doesn't limit itself to just old buildings, though. There's a description and photo of the Henry building, the condo development completed in 2004 directly behind Powell's books. And the new Park Towers building, occupying the space across the street from the old Hamburger Mary's, is present as well.
   
   This is a really excellent and detailed look at Portland's unique architecture. It would make an excellent guidebook for walking tours in downtown.



4. [Review of the second edition]
   
   When I accepted the offer to receive and review a copy of the book An Architectural Guidebook To Portland, Second Edition by Bart King, I'll admit I wasn't waiting with anticipation for it to show up. In fact, had his request not had the line "No pressure! The book is particularly helpful as a cure for insomnia, however.", I probably would have let it pass. But much to my surprise, this was far more fun to read than I expected, and I'm glad I had the chance to see it.
   
   Contents:
   Introduction; Downtown; Cultural District, Government Center; Yamhill; Old Town - Chinatown; The Pearl; Northwest; Southwest; Southeast; Northeast; Downtown Bridges; Glossary; Photo Credits; Bibliography; Index
   
   Portland has a very rich and colorful history from the early days as "Stumptown" to the present. And going into old historic sites fascinate me, as I can often "feel the past" when I imagine what things must have been like back then. But reading a book where someone waxes eloquent about the finer points of Romanesque versus Richardsonian Romanesque doesn't do a thing for me. Fortunately, this book is *far* from that. King divides up the city into some basic areas, and then covers approximately 20 to 30 buildings of note in each, ranging from the late 1800's to buildings that are due to start in the upcoming year. The first difference I noticed is that his choices are not all "excellent" examples of some style or architect. In fact, a number of his choices were voted "ugliest building in Portland" by various panels. You may not necessarily agree with the opinions, but he's not afraid to point out both thoroughbreds and nags. And he does it with a sharp and cutting sense of humor. Each selection usually has a short inset or sidebar that contains an interesting factoid that brings the building's history to life. Even the glossary is worth reading (yes, I was *that* hooked!). My favorite was probably the definition of portico... "A covered porch. There are many different styles. You do not care." It's not often I laugh out loud when reading. Especially so when architecture is the subject matter. This was a definite exception.
   
   "Serious" students of architecture might feel that King doesn't treat the subject matter with the reverence that it deserves. To that I say, get a life. But for the average person who goes to work in downtown Portland every day without noticing the rich history around them, this book is a true gem.



5. While there is much helpful information in this book, I'm afraid the delivery is awkward and colorless and it was an effort to complete this read. If you're working on a specific project related to architectural issues in Portland, then you'll find some relevant data. Otherwise, don't put yourself through it.

4 comments about Native American Architecture.

1. I recently found this book, a gem, in a used book store.
   The extensive research by the authors is an affirmation of an archetypal architecture or divine blueprint, that all cultures tap into.
   
   The authors without realizing their real accomplishment, have now given us a well researched document, a blueprint with which to compare the architectural archetypes.
   [...]
   
   Wow, 'Native American Architecture' is without a doubt long overdue, it is in fact a document now on record, that helps us remove the veils and see how EAST and WEST are profoundly similar, and without realizing it, this book can be used to build bridges too.
   
   namaste
   
   Rafa



2. This book is well written, and finely illustrated. Historical photos and accurate descriptions of the structures illustrate not only how Native Americans lived, but how they built their homes, shelters and camps. This book is valuable for the historian, survivalist and primitive technologist among others. Well worth the cost!



3. More than a testament to Native American artistic vision and ingenuity, this book is a delightful resource for survivalists as well as historians - and for those who would just like to find ideas for less technological ways of building simple dwellings. Well illustrated with diagrams, photos and how-to drawings for constructing shelters in many different climates and with various resource limitations. Excellent, fun to read and full of eye openning ideas.



4. This book is an excellent bioregional overview of Native American structures. What I appreciate most is the way the authors have actually shown HOW the structures were made, sometimes in actual step-by-step procedures, which would allow someone to actually build in that style and using many of the same natural materials today. Another thing I love about the book is that the authors have sincerely tried to understand my Native American relationships to all the materials and the sacredness of the spaces we created. The authors treat that understanding with respect and honor. In this day when material resources are dwindling at alarming rates and the Earth is being devastated by the mindless rape of resources, it is a reminder to us all that we can choose alternatives to conventional wood-frame homes and return to more sustainable and natural housing for our respective bioregions. This book, though maybe not necessarily intended as such, is a hands-on, how-to book for us all. It reminds us that Native Americans lived in harmony and balance with our lands and our local plant and animal family for tens of thousands of years without destroying the places in which we lived. The photographs are instructive and beautiful and the architectural-type drawings are a delight. They make the actual building of these structures possible. I use parts of this book as required reading for all my students, especially my graduate students, and have taught actual classes using this book as the text, though it is not written in a "textbook" style. It is a very readable book and most useful for these times. I recommend it highly to all.

2 comments about Buckminster Fuller: Designing for Mobility.

1. Michael Gorman is the first of a new generation of Fuller Biographers who were too young to ever have known Buckminster Fuller personally. Yet this allows a fresh and critical overview of the great man's successes and failures. The book is arranged in chronological order giving a concise and vibrant account Fuller's amazing life story. However it is the inventions (realised and unrealised) he produced along the way that is the focus of this book. These inventions (or artefacts as Fuller preferred) are also the authors vehicle to explain Fuller's singular and highly developed personal philosophy.
   
   Gorman's time in Stanford working on Fuller's personal Chronofiles is evident in the book. A very wide range of source material has been consulted including interviews with collaborators. A look at Stanford Humanities website will show you how enthusiastically they have embraced their role as custodians of Fuller's personal archives. This book seems to have been borne out of this time.
   
   This is the ideal first book for someone who wants to learn a lot about Bucky quickly. I would recommend this to Architecture schools especially. It is the most accessible and presentable of my big collection of Fuller books. All his major inventions are appraised. Gorman's skilful synopsis of synergetic and Geodesic geometry will also enlighten the novice.
   
   I would also recommend the book to die-hard Buckminster Fuller fans for beautiful unearthed pictures of the Montreal Expo dome in flames, craftsmen working on the Dymaxion Car and Domes in every guise imaginable. The Author's writing style will also delight new and old Fuller fans. Gorman is capable of citing little known influences on Fuller and makes interesting parallels with other visionaries form the world of art and science. It seems to me Fuller had Forrest Gump like knack of cropping up at historical events - Gorman points out the Kitchen Debate happened in a Geodesic dome.
   
   While the author obviously admired Fullers work he does not hold him in complete reverence as others have. His successes and failures are examined in an attempt to distil what is Bucky's real architectural and philosophical legacy. Fuller believed his discoveries were more important than his own biographical details making this a fitting tribute. The book captures the paradox of Fuller in all his complexities. A non conformist egalitarian, a practical utopian and a successful failure.
   
   Go read, and then try Fullers own Critical path if you really want your head rewired.



2. This book is not a complete biography of Buckminster Fuller. It is not a complete review of Buckminster Fuller's work. I did not expect them to be such.
   
   However, I was expecting a review of work related to mobility, as implied by the title. What Gorman provides is a light biography and work review, with a long narrative of synergetic geometry and other principles (i.e. lots of talk of tetrahedrons, cuboctahedrons, icosahedrons, and axes, when diagrams would have been infinitely more helpful). The book is essentially a biography/career review-lite.
   
   Although he does present a decent amount of information, I found the book to be rather rambling and disconnected from its theme. It seems Gorman became lost at times in Fuller's principles, forgetting that the book was to be centered around Fuller's work from the perspective of mobility. He seems to pop up every now and then to blatantly remind the reader (and perhaps himself) of the theme, but the content sort of betrays it.
   
   Other problems I had are:
   
   1) A significant number of photos had already been presented in previous works (albeit more fuzzy). I wondered if anything new had actually been contributed by this book, visually.
   
   2) Gorman is far too apologetic when it comes to Fuller's view of intellectual property. Fuller claimed students' work as his own without giving them credit, claimed that he was the founder of tensegrity (rather than Snelson; and I'd bet Fuller claimed this at times without the caveat that Snelson was creating art, rather than a functional engineering principle), and claimed that he invented the octet truss when he was 4 years old to dispute a counterclaim that Alexander Graham Bell had actually come up with the structure (somehow, a kindergarten teacher corroborated this story). Somehow, Gorman thinks Fuller's approach was "rational," and actually argues that stealing the credit of his students' work was merely Fuller protecting his own intellectual property (p. 122; see pp. 116, 117, 177, 178).
   
   In short, Gorman loses the theme of his book by its chronological retelling of Fuller's life. Instead, this book should have been an argument of how Fuller designed for mobility without all of the background on Fuller's lifetime evolution.
   
   In his colloquial book Bucky Works, Baldwin provides a decent bibliography that should be consulted for better books and works on Fuller (although Bucky Works itself is more of a discussion of Fuller projects in which Baldwin was involved). I'd consult Baldwin's bibliography before this book.

No comments about Jean Nouvel by Jean Nouvel: Complete Works 1970-2008.

No comments about Contemporary Mexican Design and Architecture.

4 comments about Historic Buildings of the French Quarter.

1. This book is an absolutely astonishing achievement, and is most highly placed among my favorite books of any genre. Most readers will find this to be the finest book on the many historic buildings of the French Quarter, and for many reasons. First, the writing is superbly clear. One need not be an architectural engineer to understand the many fine points covered; believe me, with Mr. Vogt's writing, even we amateurs pick it up easily. One also need not be an historian to comprehend the intricate and detailed timelines involved; these are seamlessly integrated into the writing so that one learns the history naturally, as a matter of course, and a great many historical characters come vividly to life for our reading pleasure. Yes, the buildings described of are built of brick and plaster and colombage and other stuff, but to Mr. Vogt, they are also built from a heady infusion of cultures from many continents converging on a place called New Orleans to create an spicy mix of styles and traditions. In other words, to Mr. Vogt these glorious buildings, some now more than two centuries old, are not inanimate objects, but very, very much alive. Second, the outstanding pen and ink drawings are invitingly warm, showing these appealing buildings in a classic way that blends remarkably well with the written text. I've often found myself pleasantly studying one of the drawings (or perhaps just daydreaming) for several minutes at a time before resuming my reading. When first flipping through the pages of the book, one might be inclined to say that line drawings usually look pretty similar, but I would suggest there is considerable variety in Mr. Vogt's work. Artists should find his approach particularly interesting, with some subjects shown at night rather than in bright daylight, others after a rain, and so on. Take a closer look, and appreciate the artistry unique to each and every drawing.
   
   I have now read this book several times (something I never expected to do when I first bought it), and each time find myself so deeply immersed in pictures and words it's as though I'm living altogether in another time and place. The book is that coherent, that illuminating, that much of a pleasure to enjoy. For anyone who thinks they might even be slightly interested in this subject, this is likely just the volume for you.
   
   Mr. Vogt focused his work on the greatest American city of New Orleans, and that was surely enough to keep him happy for a lifetime. Would that he had had more time to complement this work with another on the early architecture of, for instance, whatever might remain in Biloxi, Martinique, Haiti, Cuba, and other antecedents and contemporaries of New Orleans as it was growing up. In the present volume, he gave us just enough to tease us. Perhaps a bright, enterprising scholar of architecture will be able to follow up some day; that would surely honor Mr. Vogt's lifetime achievements.
   
   "Historic Buildings of the French Quarter" is highly recommended without the slightest hesitation to anyone who enjoys a truly fine book.



2. This book, as other reviewers have said, is about the architecture of the Quarter and the history that drove its trends and changes. It is an excellent book if you are interested in architectural details and some floor plans in historic buildings of the Quarter as well as typical buildings that would have been built there. If you want to learn about types of buildings in the Quarter, why the Quarter developed as it did and see line drawings of specific historic buildings, then this is your book.

   If you want a glitzty photo book showing interior design of said buildings, this is NOT the book for you (thank God, like we need more of that!).

   It is my hope that Lloyd Vogt branches out and produces a similar book in other areas with a distinct architectural heritage as it appears to me that most books that address this topic are of the interior design eye-candy type.




3. The New Orleans' historic French Quarter was founded in 1718 by the French, moved to Spanish control, and was home to generations of occupants who built grand ballrooms, courtyards, and Spanish structures. Historic Buildings Of The French Quarter uses black and white line drawings to blend history with architectural insights, illustrating building types and styles of different eras and profiling some sixty representative buildings. Students of either regional history or architectural history will find it revealing.



4. Founded by the French, developed by the Spanish and the West Indian Creoles, finally acquired by the United States, le Vieux Carre, the French Quarter, is sixty-six square blocks of solid history spread over nearly three centuries. Despite several desvastating fires, a surprising amount of early architectural history remains, and this lush volume of pen-and-ink drawings of buildings and floorplans is notable as both history and art. An introductory section describes the sources and development of vernacular architecture in south Louisiana, the roles of wrought iron, brackets on shotgun houses, and the courtyard plan, and the influence of each succeeding cultural overlay. Then, arranged into chronological chapters, Vogt describes in some detail more than forty structures and locations, both public, like Jackson Square (originally la Place d'Armes) and the U.S. Mint (erected in 1838 on the site of Fort San Carlos), to private dwellings, including the Peyroux House (built c.1780), the Bosque House (1795), and the La Rionda-Correjolles House (c.1810)-- with a full discussion of generic building types and styles for each period. How many visitors to the Quarter are aware that Pat O'Brien?s inhabits what was once the townhouse of planter John Garner, or that Preservation Hall was the home of Madame Fanchon, a free woman of color, from 1817 to 1866, or that the Le Carpentier House on Chartres was not only the home of novelist Frances Parkinson Keyes and the birthplace of Paul Morphy but also the site of a series of murders by the Italian "Black Hand"? A glossary and selected bibliography will also be useful to the student, though an index would have been very handy as well. The author is well known among students of New Orleans architecture; his _New Orleans Houses: A House-Watcher's Guide_, now in its fifth printing, has become the standard reference.