Discusses the politics and culture of architecture - its powerful institutions and personalities, its various schools, and its background of hidden deals. These essays range from the skyscrapers and development scandals of New York to the architectural culture of Los Angeles.
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Sorkin, a practicing architect and Yale professor who for 10 years was the Village Voice 's architecture critic, is a formidable opponent of the banal, the ugly, the stupid and the vapidly posturing which, he argues, are all around us. In these 56 fearless, salubrious essays, reviews, diatribes and encomiums from the Voice , the Nation , Architectural Rec ord and elsewhere, he finds much contemporary architecture preoccupied with empty style and only dimly awakening from its "Reaganoid snooze." Philip Johnson is dismissed as a trendy tastemaker and condemned for his alleged pro-Nazi sympathies and anti-Semitism during the 1930s. He calls Donald Trump "arrogant apostle of the indefensible" and lambastes New York Times architecture critic Paul Goldberger as "embodiment of the aesthetics of yuppification." Sorkin's tastes run to Alvar Aalto, Frank Lloyd Wright, urban visionary Lebbeus Woods and the Italian Carlo Scarpa. Sidetrips to Los Angeles and Las Vegas round out a punchy, provocative collection. Photos.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From Library Journal
Sorkin is one of the most intelligent writers on architecture today. His leftist orientation, Jewish "schtick" style, and New York City locale insure him a small but devoted readership. Now his thoughtful and sometimes acerbic writings are available to a wider audience. In this group of essays, which are republished from The Village Voice and a few other journals, Sorkin addresses most of the important issues, figures, and events in the architectural culture of New York City from the last decade: Philip Johnson, Deconstruction, Donald Trump, Postmodernism, etc. Some of the book is sheer filler (amusing definitions of architectural terms), but most of the writing is impassioned and clever, fulfilling a prescription for architectural criticism that is sorely needed in this country.
- Peter Kaufman, Boston Coll.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
- Peter Kaufman, Boston Coll.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A varied collection of insightful criticism,
By michael (los angeles) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Exquisite Corpse: Writing on Buildings (Paperback)
Exquisite Corpse compiles Michael Sorkin's earlier works of criticism, mostly published during his time as architectural critic for The Village Voice (his latter writings were later compiled in "Some Assembly Required"). Sorkin's writing is entertaining and intelligent, and Sorkin's attacks on Philip Johnson, Donald Trump, and former New York Times Architectural Critic Paul Goldberger are particularly amusing. The book is an overall enjoyable read, if one is able to jump between the varied subject matter.
0 of 40 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
The Exquisite Corpse : Writing on Buildings,
By A Customer
This review is from: Exquisite Corpse: Writing on Buildings (Haymarket) (Hardcover)
The Exquisite Corpse : Writing on Buildings by Michael Sorkin
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