The romance of the West is nowhere so compelling as in its irreplaceable architecture: a silvery log cabin perched at 12,000 feet; a steeple-topped chalet beside an alpine lake. The culmination of a decade of research, Landmarks in the Landscape unveils this oft overlooked national treasure, visiting each of the Western national parks. Amidst majestic settings we discover the history of great dreams in the early West, including the struggles and triumphs of John Muir, Stephen Mather of the National Park Service, and architects Underwood and Colter. From the rain forests of the Olympic Peninsula to the sienna walls of the Grand Canyon, this comprehensive, extravagantly illustrated survey will thrill all who admire the rugged beauty of the West.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
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From: New York Times Book Review
Between the two world wars, while East Coast architects, fixated on historical forms, tried to make sense of modernism or struggled for economic survival, a small, lucky band of their colleagues out West were having the time of their lives dreaming up a distinctive new American style. After the National Park Service was created in 1916, the question arose as to how new structures for those preserves ought to be designed. As the Secretary of the Interior wrote to Stephen Mather, the new agency's first director, "Particular attention must be devoted always to the harmonizing of these improvements in the landscape."
Pursuing that mission, the high-minded but pragmatic Mather and his imaginative team of architects devised the appealingly rugged look now known as National Park Service Rustic, a vigorous mix of log-cabin construction, the twiggy Adirondack camp style and the boulder-girt architecture of H.H. Richardson (though oddly he is not cited in this otherwise comprehensive study). Often financed by commercial concessionaires, the service's buildings were of uniformly high quality but varied appropriately in scale and materials from site to site.
Such majestic wood-and-stone piles as the Ahwahnee Hotel at Yosemite, timberline Lodge in Mount Hood National Forest and Old Faithful Inn, the pride of Yellowstone National park, are all more than able to hold their own against the humbling grandeur of the scenery around them. Those beloved but heretofore insufficiently honored treasures at last receive their historical due from Harvey H. Kaiser, an expert on rustic architecture who is equally up to his subject.
By Craig Wilson
Got an outdoorsman on your gift list? Maybe an architecture buff? Or both? Pick up Landmarks in the Landscape: Historic Architecture in the National Parks of the West.
Harvey Kaiser, author of Great Camps of the Adirondacks, is back again singing the praises of the rich architecture within the United States national parks. It's a fascinating story of the visions, struggles and triumphs of early pioneers and architects who left their marks deep in the American wilderness. With more than 450 photos and images, it's more than just another coffee-table book.
About the Author
Harvey H. Kaiser PHD, author of Great Camps of the Adirondacks, lives in Syracuse, New York.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Poor Quality of Photo Process mars an otherwise great book,
By mrb1114@aol.com (Denver) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Landmarks in the Landscape: Historic Architecture in the National Parks of the West (Hardcover)
I would have to agree with the positives highlighted by other reviewers, however the process that they used to print the photos left them looking like something from a first generation inkjet printer....very grainy and hard to look at without eyestrain. I was rather surprised at the publishers decision to economize in this way and wondered at first if the book was a pirate production. So sorry!
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
excellent resource,
By A Customer
This review is from: Landmarks in the Landscape: Historic Architecture in the National Parks of the West (Hardcover)
This well done book serves as an excellent resource for the architecture of our national parks. It is an excellent combination of both nature and structures which complement nature. It will be a favorite of all lovers of the outdoors.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Discvered!,
By A Customer
This review is from: Landmarks in the Landscape: Historic Architecture in the National Parks of the West (Hardcover)
Just came across this book while planning a driving tour of national parks. Impressed by the author's weaving scholarship with excellently reproduced photos for a feel of the architecture and the landscape. It manages to tell fascinating history and be very readable. Can't wait to follow along with the author even though our pictures won't look as good. It is a great trip planner and wish that it fit in the glove compartment!
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