American Architects and Their Books, 1840-1915 (Studies in Print Culture and the History of the Book) Review

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American Architects and Their Books, 1840-1915 (Studies in Print Culture and the History of the Book) ReviewThis volume of the Press's Studies in Print Culture and History of the Book series focuses on architects and their involvement in books. This involvement can be the effects particular books had on an architect or an architect's publication of books. In the era before architecture became a widely established discipline in universities, the books an architect sought out and studied on his own were the foundation of his practice. Such books rather than professors or courses influenced an architect's particular field and style. Many architects had extensive personal libraries; and architecture firms would have large office libraries. Before the days when national and regional associations such as the fledgling American Institute of Architects (founded 1857) set professional standards and educated the public on the role an architect could play in design of homes and public buildings, an ambitious and talented architect would publish his own books to "advertise his wares" with the aim of prompting conversation among his peers, drawing the attention of critics, and attracting clients.
The culture of books playing a central, formative role in educated and professional groups in the nineteenth century and into the early part of the twentieth could influence architects in different ways. In his short essay, the former Wellesley College professor and current chair of the Maine Historic Preservation Commission James O'Gorman shows how Melville's "antiurban" sentiments inhering in his description of a farmhouse in his short story "I and My Chimney" published in 1856 probably affected Frank Lloyd Wright in the development of his Prairie Style. Although O'Gorman cannot verify that Wright ever read Melville's story, the story nonetheless exerted a strong, though loosely-defined influence in that it expressed American culture's deep attachment to nature and enjoyment in one's home which Wright and many other architects sought to address. Elaine Harrington, former curator of the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio in Oak Park, IL, closes her essay on Wright noting that throughout his "long architectural career...Wright made fine large library rooms and intriguing, smaller built-in book spaces" in homes he designed as signs of his recognition of the importance of books in his own life and the world of the clients he was working for.
"Antiquities of Athens" published in England in the mid 1700s was one prime book having a strong influence on American as well as European architects. This seminal work not only inspired a neoclassical architectural movement by reviving the subject, but with its many fine, detailed engravings, served as a model for architectural elements of homes, buildings, and monuments. Throughout the 12 essays with illustrations, other books having a demonstrable influence on American architects in the period covered are cited. Some of these are books done by leading, though not so well known, American architects.
The essays make for a deeper understanding of American architecture of the period by uncovering its sources. The period was for the most part pre-Modernist; when nature and rural life, classicist forms and references, and recognized authorities shaped architecture. Though it wasn't long before bustling life in crowded cities, skyscrapers and other outsized urban buildings, and internationalist styles came to dominate architecture, many of the works of this dying period are now a part of the nation's architectural heritage in historical preservation programs.American Architects and Their Books, 1840-1915 (Studies in Print Culture and the History of the Book) OverviewSince the Renaissance, architects have been authors and architecture has been the subject of publications. Architectural forms and theories are spread not just by buildings, but by the distribution of images and descriptions fed through the printing press. The study of an architect's library is an essential avenue to understanding that architect's intentions and judging his or her achievements.In this well-illustrated volume, a chronological sequel to "American Architects and Their Books to 1848," twelve distinguished historians of architecture discuss from various points of view the books that inspired architects both famous and not-so-famous, and the books the architects themselves produced. They examine the multifaceted relationship of nineteenth- and early twentieth-century architects to print culture—the literary works that architects collected, used, argued over, wrote, illustrated, designed, printed, were inspired by, cribbed from, educated clients with, advertised their services through, designed libraries for, or just plain enjoyed. The result is a volume that presents the intersection of the history of architecture, the history of ideas, and the history of the book. Changes in print culture during this period had a significant impact on the architectural profession, as revealed in these well-informed scholarly essays.In addition to the editors, contributors include Jhennifer A. Amundson, Edward R. Bosley, Ted Cavanagh, Elspeth Cowell, Elaine Harrington, Michael J. Lewis, Anne E. Mallek, Daniel D. Reiff, Earle G. Shettleworth, Jr., and Chris Szczesny-Adams. Among the architects discussed are A. J. Downing, Charles Sumner Greene, James Sims, Samuel Sloan, John Calvin Stevens, Thomas U. Walter, and Frank Lloyd Wright.

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