Customer Reviews

A Harmony of the Arts: The Nebraska State Capitol (Great Plains Photography)

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I had read briefly about the Capitol Building in an architecture course in college. It was years later that I had a chance to visit the actual building. That visit was quite simply incredible. The building itself is a true "Harmony of the Arts" incorporating a unified vision of architecture, ornament, sculpture, landscape, etc. In order to truly understand what went into the creation of such a structure, it's important to have a guidebook of sorts, beyond what is simply given to you as a tourist. Searching for that led me to this book, which is a series of lectures that talk about the background of the Capitol Building, the vision of the legislators that inspired its creation, and the Architect and Artisans that crafted the structure.

Each article was excellently written providing a thorough understanding of each topic and relating that to the reader...with the exception of the second article (one star off) talking about The Architectural Vision of Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue. I have an axe to grind with the author H. Keith Sawyers who's article is littered with broad generalizations which espouse an outdated Modernist ideology that views Art Deco, of which the State Capitol is a landmark building, as "...the quarter-century from 1910-1935 was not a period of great accomplishment in American architectural History." Did he simply overlook the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building, Hoover Dam, among other fantastic works? Add to that florid writing on the architecture itself such as when describing the Memorial Hall, "It encloses a tasteful octagonal space that is appropriate for meditation, not for pompous or overblown speeches to be delivered in some huge chamber..." Overblown and misguided statements like that would normally be classified as simply bad writing, and one that is best to ignore but since this article was critical to understanding the vision of the Architect, I was extremely disappointed.

However, don't let one article deter you from reading this book. It has many highlights, all of which stand in marked contrast to the one described above. Going from the history of the capitol site to the vision of not only the architect, but also the thematic consultant, sculptors, and artisans, the book is extremely thorough in describing how the Capitol Building came into being. One of the best articles would be Dale L. Gibbs on Lee Lawrie, the sculptor. In it he describes the importance of art and it's synthesis with and expression of human experience in relation to the building and its overall themes. Another is Federick C. Luebke's article on the history of the previous buildings and sites that served as State Capitols, which is not commonly described in tour guide literature. All the articles build on one another until a complete picture of the building and it's history appear. Definitely highly recommended whether you've seen the building once or multiple times. And given the opportunity (and now the background of the building) I would gladly visit again to see in person what I missed the first time.