Synopses & Reviews
The Seagram building rises over New Yorkandrsquo;s Park Avenue, seeming to float above the street with perfect lines of bronze and glass. Considered one of the greatest icons of twentieth-century architecture, the building was commissioned by Samuel Bronfman, founder of the Canadian distillery dynasty Seagram. Bronfmanandrsquo;s daughter Phyllis Lambert was twenty-seven years old when she took over the search for an architect and chose Mies van der Rohe (1886andndash;1969), a pioneering modern master of what he termed andldquo;skin and bonesandrdquo; architecture. Mies, who designed the elegant, deceptively simple thirty-eight-story tower along with Philip Johnson (1906andndash;2005), emphasized the beauty of structure and fine materials, and set the building back from the avenue, creating an urban oasis with the buildingandrsquo;s plaza. Through her choice, Lambert established her role as a leading architectural patron and singlehandedly changed the face of American urban architecture.and#160;and#160;and#160;Building Seagram is a comprehensive personal and scholarly history of a major building and its architectural, cultural, and urban legacies. Lambert makes use of previously unpublished personal archives, company correspondence, and photographs to tell an insiderandrsquo;s view of the debates, resolutions, and unknown dramas of the buildingandrsquo;s construction, as well as its crucial role in the history ofand#160;modern art and architectural culture.
Review
'\'“Paul Goldberger is Americas foremost interpreter of public architecture. . . \\\"Tracy Kidder
-- Jon Lackman - Art History Newsletter\''
Review
' \"Why Architecture Matters reminds us that in a democratic capitalist society, the only sure guarantee that we will get good architecture is if we shake off our ignorance and start to take a personal interest in the design of our neighborhoods. Here is a succinct, lyrical and heartfelt book that celebrates the best works of architecture and points the way to being able to build more of it in the world today. There are so many guides to the world of art, so few to the world of architecture. This is among the very best.\"Alain de Botton, author of The Architecture of Happiness -- Tracy Kidder'
Review
' \"A beautifully written and generous meditation on the art of building that every aspiring architect should read.\"--Witold Rybczynski, author of The Perfect House -- Alain de Botton'
Review
'“Placing on display the most public of all the arts can be astonishing. Paul Goldberger, collecting his thoughts on architecture over 40 years, does this. His book,
Why Architecture Matters, could be said to be a portable architectural museum that, by turns, astonishes, intrigues, explains and entrances.”--
Architecture Bulletin -- Witold Rybczynski'
Review
'“The strength of populist writing like Goldbergers is that it is accessible and engaging.”--Penny Lewis,
Blueprint Magazine -- Architecture Bulletin'
Review
'“Best of all, Goldberger combines forensic analysis of the architectural art with a sense of wonder.”--Jonathan Wright,
Scottish Sunday Herald -- Penny Lewis - Blueprint Magazine'
Review
and#8220;[Building Seagram] should be required reading for everyone who plans to build in the public realmand#8230;and#8221; and#8212;Form Magazine
Review
and#8220;Building Seagramand#8230;is something of a joint biography: a history of this stately Park Avenue landmark that many consider the pinnacle of postwar architecture in New York, rendered through the lens of her vivid memories of its invention and of her privileged early years as the daughter of the liquor baron Samuel Bronfman, who founded the Seagram distilling empire. The book reveals many new details about a building that remains among the most studied of the modern era.and#8221;andnbsp; and#8212;Mark Lamster, New York Times
Review
[Lambert;s] handsomely illustrated book, Building Seagram (Yale University Press), chronicles a golden moment in architectural historyand#8230;and#8221; and#8212;Robert Fulford, National Post
Review
and#8220;With detailed recollections, snippets of personal letters, poignant anecdotes, and sharp analyses, Lambertand#8217;s tome delivers a fascinating insiderand#8217;s report of the events leading up to Seagramand#8217;s construction as well as the legacy that has followedand#8230; Arguably one of the most critical contributions of and#8220;Building Seagram,and#8221; however, is the way it illuminates the history of not just the monument itself but also the social climate in which Seagramand#8217;s extraordinary effects were felt.and#8221; and#8212;Artinfo
Review
“a fascinating account” —Metropolis Artinfo
Review
and#8220;Even if your coffee table isnand#8217;t as clean-lined and elegant as the Seagram Building, youand#8217;re going to want this book on there.and#8221; and#8212;Ted Loos,and#160;Inside Sothebyand#8217;s
Review
and#8220;The history of the New York building that many, including this writer, consider the masterpiece of the 20th-century architecture is related here by the person who knows the story best and was largely responsible for its genesisand#8230;" and#8212;Stanley Abercrombie,andnbsp;andnbsp;Interior Design
Review
“Lamberts book is an exquisitely detailed … chronicle of how the skyscraper came to be.”—Christopher Hawthorne, Architect Magazine Stanley Abercrombie - Interior Design
Review
“Lambert writes with precision and great passion, and largely alters the conventional wisdom about the building” —
Designers and Books
Christopher Hawthorne - Architect Magazine
Review
and#8220;Lambertand#8217;s tour of the genesis and life of the building is an engrossing one, offering a superb account of both the unglamorous planning issues and the specific design choices involved in the project.and#8221;and#8212;Anthony Paletta, Architectural Record
Review
and#8220;A fascinating story about New Yorkand#8217;s built environment and those who have made it a livable space.and#8221;and#8212;Jewish Daily Forward
Review
and#8220;Sumptuous. . . . No one could tell the history of the most seminal office building of the 20th century as well as Lambert. . . . An exemplary architectural monograph.and#8221;and#8212;Dietrich Neumann, Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians
Review
and#8220;In its own modest way, this monograph on modernism's most acclaimed tower is as elegant and refined as Mies van der Rohe's glass temple on New York's Park Avenue. The author is the daughter of one-time Seagram chairman Samuel Bronfman, who asked her to find the best architect for the job. The period photographs are exquisite; the tales of Mies at work are a primer on how discipline can translate toand#160;beauty.and#8221;and#8212;John King, San Francisco Chronicle
Review
“Juicy while retaining a scholarly rigor.”—Architizer John King - San Francisco Chronicle
Review
and#8220;Her account captures some of the excitement one feels when one approaches the slender tower for the first time.and#8221;and#8212;Christopher Turner, London Review of Books
Review
Winner of the 2013 American Publishers Awards for Professional and Scholarly Excellence (PROSE), in the Architecture and Urban Planning category.
Review
Winner of the 2013 New York City Book Awards given by the New York Society Library. PROSE Awards - American Publishers Awards for Professional and Scholarly Excellence
Review
“Lambert paints a meticulous portrait of Manhattan in the optimistic years that followed World War II, two brilliant architects at the heights of their careers, and the golden age of the American high rise.”—Elle Décor New York City Book Award - New York Society Library
Review
and#8220;a fascinating accountand#8221; and#8212;Metropolis
Review
and#8220;Lambertand#8217;s book is an exquisitely detailed and#8230; chronicle of how the skyscraper came to be.and#8221;and#8212;Christopher Hawthorne,andnbsp;Architect Magazine
Review
and#8220;Lambert writes with precision and great passion, and largely alters the conventional wisdom about the buildingand#8221; and#8212;
Designers and Booksandnbsp;
Review
and#8220;Juicy while retaining a scholarly rigor.and#8221;and#8212;Architizer
Synopsis
A personal, authoritative history of one of the 20th century's most influential buildings
The Seagram building rises over New York's Park Avenue, seeming to float above the street with perfect lines of bronze and glass. Considered one of the greatest icons of twentieth-century architecture, the building was commissioned by Samuel Bronfman, founder of the Canadian distillery dynasty Seagram. Bronfman's daughter Phyllis Lambert was twenty-seven years old when she took over the search for an architect and chose Mies van der Rohe (1886-1969), a pioneering modern master of what he termed "skin and bones" architecture. Mies, who designed the elegant, deceptively simple thirty-eight-story tower along with Philip Johnson (1906-2005), emphasized the beauty of structure and fine materials, and set the building back from the avenue, creating an urban oasis with the building's plaza. Through her choice, Lambert established her role as a leading architectural patron and singlehandedly changed the face of American urban architecture. Building Seagram is a comprehensive personal and scholarly history of a major building and its architectural, cultural, and urban legacies. Lambert makes use of previously unpublished personal archives, company correspondence, and photographs to tell an insider's view of the debates, resolutions, and unknown dramas of the building's construction, as well as its crucial role in the history of modern art and architectural culture.
Synopsis
'
Why Architecture Matters is not a work of architectural history or a guide to the styles or an architectural dictionary, though it contains elements of all three. The purpose of Why Architecture Matters is to come to grips with how things feel to us when we stand before them, with how architecture affects us emotionally as well as intellectually”with its impact on our lives. Architecture begins to matter,” writes Paul Goldberger, when it brings delight and sadness and perplexity and awe along with a roof over our heads.” He shows us how that works in examples ranging from a small Cape Cod cottage to the vast, flowing” Prairie houses of Frank Lloyd Wright, from the Lincoln Memorial to the highly sculptural Guggenheim Bilbao and the Church of SantIvo in Rome, where simple geometries . . . create a work of architecture that embraces the deepest complexities of human imagination.”
Based on decades of looking at buildings and thinking about how we experience them, the distinguished critic raises our awareness of fundamental things like proportion, scale, space, texture, materials, shapes, light, and memory. Upon completing this remarkable architectural journey, readers will enjoy a wonderfully rewarding new way of seeing and experiencing every aspect of the built world.'
Synopsis
A personal,and#160;authoritative history of one of theand#160;20th centuryand#8217;s most influential buildings
Synopsis
A comprehensive personal and scholarly history of one of the 20th centuryandrsquo;s most influential buildings, as told by the woman whose involvement and vision helped change the face of American urban architecture.
About the Author
Phyllis Lambert is founding director of the Canadian Centre for Architecture in Montreal. A licensed architect, she has contributed essays to numerous books and is the subject of the 2007 documentary film Citizen Lambert: Joan of Architecture. Barry Bergdoll is professor of architectural history in the department of art history and archaeology at Columbia University and the Philip Johnson Chief Curator of Architecture and Design at the Museum of Modern Art, New York.