Customer Reviews

Why Architecture Matters: Lessons from Chicago

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4 star:		(3)
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At the heart of this book, a collection of Kamin's Chicago Tribune articles spanning nearly a decade, is the author's adherence to his "consistent but flexible principles" of Activist Criticism. His critiques are not mere assessments of buildings as works of art; they are convincing arguments that as a whole show us the significant role architecture plays in a city. Far too many urban-dwellers blindly take whatever buildings go up around them and fail to realize how architecture shapes their lives, for better or worse, but Kamin implores us and our civic leaders to be more discerning, demanding worthy projects that will strengthen our cities.

Blair Kamin is not just a great critic with sharp insight: he's a terrific writer whose articles are seasoned with wit and a highly readable eloquence. Upon reading his work, it is no surprise that he won a Pulitzer Prize for criticism. It helps to be familiar with Chicago's landmark buildings, but that is not a prerequisite to learning some important lessons. This book is not just pleasure reading for architecture students, but for anyone who cares deeply about the architectural decisions being made in his or her city. By frequently reviewing proposed projects, Kamin goes on the offensive, raising some keen questions that go alarmingly unasked by the developers and politicians involved. This approach, with the resulting influence he wields, has altered the course of events in Chicago many a time (though, sadly, not always). One wishes he had the final approval on all the city's projects before groundbreaking. Architecture, as he says, is the "inescapable art" we all have to live with on a daily basis, and Kamin's activist criticism encourages us to learn from past mistakes in order to form a more livable city.

Okay, first, why mistitled?
This book is a compilation of columns and articles Blair Kamin wrote for the Chicago Tribune. He writes passionately (and well) about architecture, and the book is definitely worth reading. But the title is all wrong. If you want to know "Why Architecture Matters," don't buy this book. It won't tell you. If Kamin has a thesis about why architecture matters, he never comes out and says what it is.
What you will get, if you buy this book, is excellent commentary on the state of contemporary design, particularly as it relates to that most architectural of cities, Chicago. Kamin covers his beat well, and has opinions which are, as Michael Feldman would say, "well reasoned and insightful." Particularly powerful is his extended analysis of how architecture does and does not impact the social pathology of public housing in Chicago. This is great stuff--well researched, well reasoned and well written. Kamin looks past the conventional wisdom about the evils of high-rise public housing to what's really going on there--and whether what's going on has anything to do with the architecture or not. As I said, great stuff.
If he'd just called the book "Architecture Matters," I'd have given him 5 stars. The "Why" in the title begs for a thematic core that, unfortunately, is just not there.

He makes clear the difference between a building as a structure and a building as part of a living city. While the examples are mainly from Chicago, this book is a must-read for anyone who loves cities.

THIS IS A GIFT FOR CHRISTMAS BUT I AM SURE HE WILL LOVE IT

This is essentially a collection of updated columns from Blair Kamin's 1990s-era reports on the state of architecture in Chicago. In many instances, there are "postscripts" updating the information to the new millenium.

These are pretty good items, but suffer from the architecture critic's foremost risk: the "ain't it awful" trap that can detract from the pure enjoyment of excellent design. "This is a great, beautiful building, but right across the street is a Kwik-E-Mart." Equivocation is an inevitable part of human experience, but it can also sometimes induce a killjoy effect.

Leadership means creating a vision of a preferred future state and then sharing that vision with others. Enthusiam matters. And so do results.

In Chicago architecture today, there is a whole lot more to celebrate than to decry. Let's celebrate more!

Mr. Kamin's obvious lack of experience in actually constructing anything other than useless "Architect-talk" is all over this book. Slanted for those who cannot find their own voice - Kamin reveals nothing but garbled particles of writing, framed within his false exhalted position as critic-extraordinaire.

Why buildings matter should be re-released and re-titled "why do we need architecture critics?" I have walked down the streets of NYC and learned more about why architecture matters. Buildings are inert without the culture surrounding them. Critics are inert without practical experience to draw from.

pass on the book, grab a coffee and stroll the streets of your hometown instead.

Pass of Kamin and his pretentious thesaurus of architectural "criticism".