Craftsman Style [Hardcover]

Robert Winter (Author), Alexander Vertikoff (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2004

The Arts and Crafts movement arose in England in the late nineteenth century as an impassioned cry against the evils of the Industrial Revolution. Proponents such as William Morris urged an outright revolt against mass-produced, shoddy goods and a return to the honest handcraftsmanship of earlier ages. His American disciple, a furniture maker named Gustav Stickley, spread these ideals across the country through his magazine, The Craftsman (1901-16). This publication lent its name to the American movement and the building style it spawned - more rugged than its British counterparts, in keeping with the lingering American frontier ethos. Long identified with California, today Craftsman-style structures can be found as far east as New York State and Rhode Island. Intricate woodwork gives them the look of timeless handcraftsmanship, and rustic materials tie them to the earth. Exposed beams, rafter tails, and braces turn construction details into built-in ornament. Broad sloping roofs with shady overhangs signify the very idea of shelter. Stone-covered foundations and posts announce their link to nature. Generous porches blur the lines between indoors and out. Behind each element lies a hint of a craftsman plying his art. As Robert Winter notes in the book, a range of American Craftsman styles evolved from the Arts and Crafts movement and the Shingle Style popular in New England. Although the rambling Shingle Style was adopted for the mansions of the rich, Craftsman became the term of choice for more modest homes: bungalows as well as larger rustic houses. Craftsman Style explores the many permutations of the Craftsman style in houses and other building types, including recent examples of work that continues the principles espoused by Morris, Stickley, and the Greene brothers. Each of the approximately twenty-five to thirty profiles is illustrated by a half dozen or more rich full-color photographs (outside and in) specially commissioned for the book.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The American Craftsman movement, inspired by Englishmen John Ruskin and William Morris, encompassed not only architecture and the decorative arts, but also a nostalgically romantic philosophy, proposing that modernity (starting with the Renaissance) has lead to "materialism and social decay," and that craftsmanship is an antidote to the woes of industrialization. The Craftsman aesthetic flourished in America around the turn of the 20th century and birthed utopian communities as well as architecture and handicrafts. In this opulent book, architectural historian Winter, with the aid of American Bungalow photographer Vertikoff's gorgeous images, presents a comprehensive survey of this quirky movement and its 1960s revival. Winter's interpretation of the Craftsman style is broad, encompassing Bernard Maybeck's gaudy, Tudor/Gothic/Medievalesque Roos House; the dramatic desert- and Native American–inspired structures Mary Elizabeth Jane Colter built in the Grand Canyon; and even Ray Kappe's "soft modernist" house as well as the more familiar California Swiss/Japanese bungalows, quasi-Tudor mansions and charming artists' communities in Pennsylvania and upstate New York. The book ends with a grand finale: the new Disney Grand California Hotel, in itself a kind of Craftsman museum, with a different Craftsman style interpreted in each suite. An erudite introduction provides novices with enough background to enjoy the book, and an extensive bibliography gives enough information for readers to further pursue the Craftsman aesthetic. 255 illus.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Robert Winter is a leading architectural historians and an expert on the Arts and Crafts movement. Alexander Vertikoff, chief photographer for American Bungalow magazine, has photographed Arts and Crafts buildings nationwide for such books as Robert Winter's American Bungalow Style, Bungalow Nation, Greene and Greene: Masterworks, Stickley Style, and Arts and Crafts Design in America: A State-by-State Guide.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams; 1ST edition (June 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0810943360
• ISBN-13: 978-0810943360
• Product Dimensions: 11.4 x 9.6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #933,078 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

60 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Arts and Crafts Style, strictly speaking, January 3, 2005

By 

Greg Emel (PORTLAND, OR USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Craftsman Style (Hardcover)

I'm in the middle of converting my house into a neo-Craftsman style house (http://hillsdalehouse.blogspot.com). I'm trying really hard to recreate all those wonderful details that you can seemingly only find in the circa 1914 originals. So, whenever a new book with Craftsman in the title (especially picture books) comes out, I'm quick to sneak a peek. So, I jumped all over this book (actually, I got it from the library). Here are my thoughts:

If you are looking for a nice coffee table book with very pretty pictures of turn-of-the-century Arts & Craft houses, then look no further. This book has some wonderful stuff from houses featured in other similar books, plus many many houses I have never seen before. But, if you are looking for a book about Craftsman Style houses, you have found the wrong book.

Yes, there are some houses that are what most people would call Craftsman. These include the usual Craftsman Farms house, some Green and Green, and the obligatory Bungalows of Pasadena. But, most of the houses in the book are not Craftsman at all, that is if you subscribe the notion that Craftsman houses are houses that were either featured in Gustav Stickley's original Craftsman magazine, or were obviously inspired by one of them. Instead, you'll find some beautiful pictures with a more William Morris type definition of Arts and Crafts. First off, you'll actually find pictures of William Morris' own house (never seen that before!). You will also find wonderful pictures of very gothic looking houses. You'll see marvelous neo-medieval houses. You'll find terrific Tudor revivals. But, you won't find many Craftsman Style houses, which is fine, except for the title of this book. Yes, Stickley and his followers were very much inspired by Morris, and it is fair to say that all things Craftsman are part of the Arts and Crafts movement. But, it is incorrect to say that all things Arts and Craft are Craftsman.

The pictures are wonderful, the text is insightful, but the title is wrong. Oops.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful Blend of History and Photography, September 20, 2005

By 

B. Weinstein (La Crescenta, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Craftsman Style (Hardcover)

This book is perfect for the person who wants to know more about the Arts and Crafts Movement from a historical perspective and who also wants to see wonderful examples of this architectural style. It is also particularly helpful in training the eye to select accessories for your own home that follow the Craftsman tradition. The photography is just beautiful.

Billie Weinstein

La Crescenta, California

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Craftsman style stole his heart..., March 24, 2009

By 

Sheri Ann Johnson "paperback_princess" (Tampa Bay, FL, United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Craftsman Style (Hardcover)

I purchased this book, along with 5 others, as a Christmas gift for the hubs who has a new found love of Craftsman architecture. It is an okay source for details on the period, but if you're looking for the most informative book, pictures and all, purchase Stickley's Craftsman Homes. I get lost in it.