Synopses & Reviews
In the development of contemporary architecture, no one has had a greater influence than Louis I. Kahn, whose many buildings include the Salk Institute, the Yale Study Center, and the Exeter Library. He is remembered, however, not only as a master builder, but also as one of the most important and creative thinkers of the twentieth century.
For Kahn, the study of architecture was the study of human beings, their highest aspirations and most profound truths. He searched for forms and materials to express the subtlety and grandeur of life. In his buildings we see the realization of his vision: luminous surfaces that evoke a fundamental awe, silent courtyards that speak of the expansiveness and the sanctity of the spirit, monumental columns and graceful arches that embody dignity and strength.
Updated with a new preface, this classic work is a major statement on human creativity, showing us Louis Kahn as architect, visionary, and poet.
Synopsis
In the development of contemporary architecture, few have had greater influence than Louis I. Kahn, whose many buildings included the Salk Institute, the Yale Study Center, and the Exeter Library. For Kahn, the study of architecture was the study of human beings, their highest aspirations and most profound truths. John Lobell, who studied under Kahn while in architecture school, sensitively edits Kahn's own words and provides commentary on Kahn's ideas and his major buildings. In his work as an architect, Kahn searched for beginnings: the origin of joy and wonder, of intelligence, and intuition. He sought the basic principles of being, which he called Silence and Light. Kahn spoke of these qualities with tremendous power and grace. Between Silence and Light --one of the few books on Kahn written for a general audience--introduces us to Louis Kahn the architect and visionary.
Synopsis
Louis I. Kahn's influence on American architecture during his life was great, and his influence has only increased in the thirty-three years since his death--with interest in his work lately moving into the realm of popular culture through the successful film about him, My Architect (New Yorker Films, 2004). John Lobell's classic work presents stunning black-and-white photos of some of Kahn's greatest buildings, including the Salk Institute, the Yale Study Center, and the Exeter Library, combining them with excerpts from his writings that reveal him as a remarkable creative thinker. Kahn searched for beginnings: the origin of joy and wonder, of intelligence and intuition. He sought the basic principles of being, which he called Silence and Light. He spoke of these things with a tremendous yet gentle power. Reading his words and looking at his buildings, we experience him as architect, visionary, and poet.
About the Author
John Lobell, an architect and a professor in the School of Architecture at Pratt Institute, studied at the University of Pennsylvania during the years when Louis Kahn was on the faculty there.