Amercan Architects and Texts: A Computer-Aided Analysis of the Literature [Hardcover]

Juan Pablo Bonta (Author), William J. Mitchell (Preface)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1996 | ISBN-10: 0262024004 | ISBN-13: 978-0262024006

Preface by William J. Mitchell In American Architects and Texts, Juan Pablo Bonta analyzes the indexes of nearly 400 architectural books and articles published over the past century and a half to reveal changing societal preferences in architecture and to literally measure the reputations of individual architects. The result is a provocative study -- part book, part electronic database and analysis software -- that follows the ups an downs of more than 7,000 architects' standing in the literature and, indirectly, their standing in the profession. There is a ranked list of the "100 most famous architects," along with views of evolving architectural careers and the response to them by critics and historians. The complete database and analysis is available in machine-readable form.Bonta dates the appearance on the literary scene of past and present superstars, like Jefferson, Latrobe, Richardson, Sullivan, Wright, Gropius, Mies van der Rohe, Saarinen, Johnson, Venturi, and Meier. From his vast database emerge some surprising observations, for example Maya Ying Lin, the designer of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, reached in just two years a level of visibility in the literature that Frank Lloyd Wright only achieved after thirty years of practice.By analyzing an index and comparing it to other indexes stored in the database, the system designed by Bonta tentatively assesses whether an architecture text delivers what it promises. It can identify areas calling for further coverage, and flag unexpected or unusual names as well as any names that may have been left out deliberately or inadvertently. The system also automatically identifies influential publications like Hitchcock and Johnson's The International Style, Stern's various Forty and Forty collections, or Reagan's American Architecture, which were instrumental in launching yet unknown names destined to brilliant careers.In a chapter devoted to gender equity, Bonta sounds the alarm on an impending sex war in the literature, with authors giving preference in their writing for architects of their own gender. Ada Louise Huxtable and Barbara Lee Diamondstein are credited for being exceptions to the trend.

Editorial Reviews

Review

We can all play the irresistible game of looking for our mentors and heroes, and we can compare our own judgments, rankings and groupings to the tale told by the computer. But beyond this, the panoramic view that Bonta constructs provides a rewarding new way to contextualize both architects and texts—to locate and assess them in relation to general evolutions and transformations of the architectural community's values, tastes, and interests. William J. Mitchell, Dean of the School of Architctureand Planning at MIT

About the Author

Juan Pablo Bonta is an architect, a Professor of Architecture at the University of Maryland, a member of the International Committee of Architectural Critics since 1980, and the author of Architecture and Its Interpretation.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 296 pages
• Publisher: The MIT Press (July 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0262024004
• ISBN-13: 978-0262024006
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 8.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,253,342 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars A thoughtful analysis technique applicable to any field., May 26, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Amercan Architects and Texts: A Computer-Aided Analysis of the Literature (Hardcover)

Analyzing indeces may seem a boring task. However, Bonta has done much of the dirty work already for us. His painstaking analysis draws surprising conclusions about architects, their fame, society, and world history. I particularly enjoyed the way he tied world events to the results his data formulated. Architects, mathematicians, theorists, and many more should enjoy Bonta's masterful manipulation of index data to seek insight into the world of architecture in particular, and our world in general. One can't help but wonder what else Bonta may have been able to uncover if he had had an electronic database of indeces covering a wider spectrum of disciplines with which to work.