Richard Meier Architect [Paperback]

Richard Meier (Author), Stan Allen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2000

Accompanying a major exhibition organized by the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (and traveling throughout the world), this exquisitely designed and produced catalog explores the formal aspects of Richard Meier's architecture. Over his thirty-five-year career, Meier has produced a body of work that is recognized for its unceasing pursuit of the ideals of modernism and its sensitive handling of urban contexts.

This volume, illustrated with exceptional duotone photographs and Meier's own drawings, is the first to cover his entire career. Included are twenty-four of the architect's masterworks, including the Smith House in Darien, Connecticut; the Douglas House, on the shores of Lake Michigan; the Museum for Decorative Arts in Frankfurt; the Canal+ Headquarters in Paris; the Museum of Contemporary Art in Barcelona; and the Getty Center in Los Angeles. Current projects -- the Federal Courthouse in Phoenix, Arizona, and the Church of the Year 2000 in Rome -- are also presented.

Dozens of Meier's original sketches -- most never before published -- illustrate all of the designs. Essays by noted historians and scholars offer readings of the work focused on themes of abstraction, light, and space, and a fully illustrated chronology completes the comprehensive presentation of Meier's buildings and projects.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

While architectural styles keep changing, Richard Meier is a rock of constancy, holding fast to the forms and principles of classic 20th-century modernism. His pristine white buildings, precise and articulated, proclaim that rationality and clarity still have the power to impress us in an age of unfettered stylistic experimentation. Others may seize the role of Dionysus, but he is content to be Apollo.

This is the third installment of a series of monographs on Meier's architecture; the first volume was published in 1985. It records 23 works designed or completed between 1992 and 1999. The best known of these is the legendary Getty Center in Los Angeles, but that billion-dollar Wagnerian extravaganza has not distracted Meier from turning out many other impressive structures of large and small scale, including the Hague City Hall and Central Library, the Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art, and the Rachovsky House in Dallas. Two-thirds of the projects are in Europe or Asia, suggesting that America may not be taking full advantage of this native son's abilities.

This large-format, square book is handsomely assembled, with 444 pages and more than 650 well-reproduced color and black-and-white photos and finely honed line drawings. Essays by architectural historians Kenneth Frampton and Joseph Rykwert and a postscript by architect Arata Isozaki--all major figures in their fields--provide valuable analysis that completes this impressive volume. --John Pastier --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

About the Author

Richard Koshalek is president of the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena and former director of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. He was co-organizer of the exhibit "Richard Meier: Architect" and other major exhibitions, such as "Arata Isozaki 1960-1990 Architecture," "Louis I. Kahn: In the Realm of Architecture," "Richard Serra," and "At the End of the Century: One Hundred Years of Architecture."

Dana Hutt is the director of architectural documentation and special projects at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena and a former research associate at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. She was co-organizer of the exhibit "Richard Meier: Architect."

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: The Monacelli Press (June 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580930611
• ISBN-13: 978-1580930611
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 1 x 12 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,335,597 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Same as the Last One!, February 11, 2000

By 

Todd Evans - See all my reviews

This review is from: Richard Meier Architect, Vol. 3 (1992-1998) (Hardcover)

To those very few of us who are in architectural circles, Richard Meier is a common name. I know that I quickly bought the first two volumes of his books upon entering Architecture School, and put my name on a waiting list for 3 months to get the third volume. When the book arived, I was a little disappointed at the haste in which the book was put together. It seemed to me that they were in such a rush to put out another volume of his work, that the quality of it suffered. Many of the projects shown in this book, are just completed versions of what was in the planning phases in his second book. Another disappointing feature of this book is that almost one quarter of it is dedicated to the Getty Center. I guess the reason that it seemed so spurious to me is that I had volume two AND a book on the Getty Center before purchasing this third volume, so there wasn't much new information to sink my teeth into. My recomendation is this: If you have the first two volumes- Don't be in any hurry to buy this book. It's already familiar to you, and you'll be let down.

If you don't have the first two volumes, or are new to architecture: Go and buy this book immedeately! This is a great book for you to become familiar with one of the masters of modern architecture. You'll like what you see

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Must-have for Meier fans, August 4, 2000

By 

"bricole" (Atlanta, GA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Richard Meier Architect, Vol. 3 (1992-1998) (Hardcover)

This 3rd in a series monograph by Rizzoli is a must-have addition to any serious architectural book library or to fans of Richard Meiers work. The numerous color photos are top rate, and together with a large number of drawings give a thorough overview of one of the top designers of today. The many photos in particular attest as to the successful completion of previously anticipated projects which have been in the pipeline, while new drawings herald new masterpieces to come.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 25 selected projects from 1965 to 2000 in B&W, November 10, 2005

By 

Eugene Tenenbaum "reluctant reader" (Bronx, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Richard Meier, Architect (Hardcover)

Only ISBN: 1580930611 or ISBN: 1580930441 published by the Monacelli Press on 304 pages as an exhibition catalog with beautiful only B&W photos and drawings (many 3D) and minimal text.
FROM FRONT FLAP:
Over his thirty-five-year career Richard Meier has produced an internationally recognized body of work that reinterprets and recovers the ideals of modernism. With the completion of the landmark Getty Center in Los Angeles, Meier's distinct vision has emerged as architecture that is truly for our time. This catalog, accompanying a major exhibition organized by The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (and traveling throughout the world), beautifully documents Meier's career with exquisite duotone photographs and the architect's own drawings, most of which have never been published.
Twenty-five of Meier's masterworks are featured, including the Smith House in Darien, Connecticut; the Douglas House, on the shores of Lake Michigan; the Museum for Decorative Arts in Frankfurt; the Canal+ Headquarters in Paris; the Museum of Contemporary Art in Barcelona; and the Getty Center. Current projects, including federal courthouses in Islip, New York, and Phoenix, Arizona, and the Church of the Year 2000 in Rome, are also presented.
A collection of insightful essays and commentaries by, among others, noted scholars Kenneth Frampton and Jean-Louis Cohen and architect Stan Allen illuminates various formal, theoretical, and practical issues at work in Meier's ever-evolving approach to the art of architecture. An extensively illustrated chronology of built and unbuilt work completes this first volume to document the entirety of Meier's extraordinary oeuvre.
CONTENTS:
Richard Koshalek and Dana Hutt 6
Introduction: Richard Meier, Light + Space Architect
Dana Hutt 8
Richard Meier's Working Space: The Uses of Abstraction
Stan Allen 12
Figures in an Urban Landscape: Meier at the Millennium
Kenneth Framp ton 28
Creative Repetition Jean-Louis Cohen 34
Smith House 40
Bronx Developmental Center 48
Douglas House 56
Olivetti Branch Office Prototype 66
The Atheneum 72
The Hartford Seminary 84
Frankfurt Museum for the Decorative Arts 94
High Museum of Art 108
Siemens Corporate Headquarters 118
The Getty Center 128
Westchester House 152
Ackerberg House 162
Grotta House 170
The Hague City Hall and Central Library 180
Ulm Exhibition and Assembly Building 190
Weishaupt Forum 200
Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art 208
Royal Dutch Paper Mills Headquarters 216
Madison Square Garden Site Redevelopment 224
Canal+ Headquarters 232
Rachofsky House 240
Islip Courthouse 248
Neugebauer House 254
Phoenix Courthouse 262
Church of the Year 2000 268
The Richard Meier Archive Lisa J. Green 276
Buildings and Projects 1960-1999 282
Selected Bibliography 302