Adolf Loos, 1870-1933: Architect, Cultural Critic, Dandy (Taschen Basic Architecture) [Illustrated] [Paperback]

August Sarnitz (Author), Peter Gossel (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 382282772X | ISBN-13: 978-3822827727 | Publication Date: November 1, 2003

WIDELY REGARDED AS ONE OF THE MOST SIGNIFICANT PROPHETS OF MODERN ARCHITECTURE, ADOLF LOOS (1870-1933) WAS A STAR IN HIS OWN TIME, KNOWN THROUGHOUT VIENNA AS AN OUTSPOKEN, AUDACIOUS DANDY AND MORALIST WHO DEFIED THE ESTABLISHMENT. HIS WORK NOT ONLY REPRESENTED THE BEGINNING OF MODERNISM, WITH ITS STARK, UNORNAMENTED STYLE, BUT ALSO REVOLUTIONIZED ARCHITECTURE BY INTRODUCING THE CONCEPT OF "SPATIAL PLAN" ARCHITECTURE, WHICH ALLOWED FOR ECONOMIZING SPACE BY DESIGNATING ROOMS' SIZES AND HEIGHTS BASED ON THEIR PURPOSES. LOOS ALSO PUBLISHED NUMEROUS ESSAYS DURING HIS LIFETIME, THE MOST NOTABLE OF WHICH IS THE OFT-MISUNDERSTOOD "ORNAMENT AND CRIME."

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: French --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

August Sarnitz is a practicing architect and professor of history and theory of architecture at the Akademie der Künste in Vienna, Austria. Among his many publications include books on R.M. Schindler, Lois Welzenbacher, Ernst Lichtblau, and E. A. Plischke.

Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Taschen (November 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 382282772X
• ISBN-13: 978-3822827727
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #760,979 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Decent Loos reference and .... bonus!, August 2, 2005

By 

A. McDonald (New York) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Adolf Loos, 1870-1933: Architect, Cultural Critic, Dandy (Taschen Basic Architecture) (Paperback)

This little monograph is a nice little introduction / reference on Loos's work -- brief, an inane and badly translated introduction, good for pulling off a shelf when you need to refresh your memory about a certain Loos project. Just what we expect from these Taschen books.

But what makes it really special is a series of photographs of the recently restored Villa Muller in Prague (project built c.1930). These are credited to Pavel Stecha, according to the list in the back. They are simply phenomenal. They give a vivid, spatial sense of the house and are worth the price of the book by far. Very dramatic.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Loos-One of the Fathers of Architectural Modernism, April 5, 2006

By 

Marco Antonio Abarca (Colorado) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Adolf Loos, 1870-1933: Architect, Cultural Critic, Dandy (Taschen Basic Architecture) (Paperback)

By no means is Adolf Loos as well known as his younger contemporaries, Le Corbusier, Gropius or Van de Rohe. Very few of his buildings rise to the level of iconic. Nevertheless, Loos through his buildings and writings was one of the founders of architectural Modernism.

At the turn of the Twentieth Century, he was the principle advocate for removing adornments from building fascades. He was also one of the first architects to design homes with flat roofs and descending terraces. Loos also broke away from symetrical floor plans. He made the building shell conform to his use of shape and volume. These are all innovations that helped reshape architecture during the Twentieth Century.

The German Publishing Company Taschen is producing a whole series of brief high quality monographs on the most important architects of the Twentieth Century. Priced at under ten dollars a volume, you will not be able to find a better introduction to Adolf Loos' work. Although many of his buildings are hard to relate to, Loos nevertheless was a very important figure in shaping the world around us. Highly recommended.