Classic Country Estates of Lake Forest: Architecture and Landscape Design 1856-1940 (Hardcover)

by Kim Coventry (Author), Daniel Meyer (Author), Arthur H. Miller (Author) "To use the words of Josef Albers, it is through "the interaction of colors" that tonal contrasts occur..." (more)
Key Phrases: selective palette, general palette, chromatic palette, South Africa, Free State, San Francisco (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Coventry, Meyer, and Miller have made a significant contribution with this excellent history... [A] highly readable and graceful whole. -- Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Carolyn Torma, June 2005

Product Description
A look at the luxurious homes of Lake Forest, Illinois, from the high period of the country estate.

Lake Forest, Illinois, thirty miles north of Chicago on the western shore of Lake Michigan, has been one of America's elite residential communities for one and a half centuries. Spread across the edge of lakeside bluffs and along deep ravines, hundreds of elegant country estates house the families of Chicago's commercial, professional, and cultural leadership—the greatest concentration of American country estates to be found between the two coasts. Lake Forest architecture and landscaping reflect a significant interplay of leading practitioners and design theories spanning the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This book offers a tour of the houses, landscapes, gardens, gentlemen's farms, and country clubs that have made the community a landmark of architectural and landscape design. Architectural renderings, landscape plans, drawings, and period photographs of architecture and gardens, many of them not previously published, illustrate the work of these masters and the fabulous lifestyles of a bygone era. 290 illustrations, 16 pages of color.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: W.W. Norton & Co.; Presentable Ex-Library edition (July 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393730999
• ISBN-13: 978-0393730999
• Product Dimensions: 12.2 x 9.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #894,471 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Queen of the North Shore, January 14, 2005

By	Shannon Deason "SchylarRex" (Houston) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This is a good book, well put together book on a fabled Chicago suburb. I would have liked to have seen more pictures and better quality in the photos. The research is top notch and I enjoyed reading the text, but I expected more and for some reason that I can't quite put my finger on I was a bit disappointed. I usually go back to my books over and over again to paruse the pictures and scan the text, but I have not found myself doing that with this book and I don't know exactly why, because I normally love these kinds of books. Anyway, it is a fine book and maybe it's just me.

5.0 out of 5 stars LOVE THIS!!!, July 5, 2009

By	colliepuppy - See all my reviews

This book is amazing....it helps that my Grandfather is in it and explains the wonderful person, town, and community that Lake Forest really is!!!