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As a young sculptor, Harwell Hamilton Harris longed for a means of expression to liberate his emotions, an artistic voice in which to communicate his feelings and connect them to the lives and sensibilities of others. This longing was answered when he visited Frank Lloyd Wright's Hollyhock House in Los Angeles and realized the power of architecture for the first time. He saw that Wright's creation functioned both as a home and as shapes that moved into and out of nature, creating sculpture on a monumental scale. This revelation inspired Harris to become an architect and to create homes that would speak to people as Wright's creation had spoken to him. Harwell Hamilton Harris is a biography of this important American architect. Lisa Germany traces the development of Harris' life (1903-1990) and career, assessing his place in American Modernism, in the development of regionalist architecture, and in the interpretation of a modern California lifestyle that would have admirers throughout the world. This discussion opens a window into the complexities of Modernism in America during the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. Harris, his regionalism, and his emphasis on the democratic single family home, are seen against the backdrop of dispute and dissension among modern architects in this country. Germany explores Harris' career in its entirety, from the dawning of an artistic spirit through the heady days of world recognition and celebrity to leaner years when, first in Texas and later in North Carolina, he taught and practiced, forgotten by the fashionable magazines but still revered by those who had seen and felt his architecture. Throughout his life, Harris remained true to his vision of architecture, a vision still relevant today, as this biography amply demonstrates.

Tabla de contenidos provista por Syndetics

• Acknowledgments(p. vii)
• Foreword(p. xi)
• Introduction(p. xiii)
• 1. Forsaking the Formula, 1903-1921(p. 1)
• 2. Form in Clay and Color, 1922-1925(p. 15)
• 3. Of Organisms, Machines, and the Illusion of Architecture, 1926-1931(p. 21)
• 4. Rubbing Aladdin's Lamp, 1932-1934(p. 41)
• 5. Jean Murray Bangs and a Career Takes Shape, 1934-1937(p. 51)
• 6. Houses with Good Manners, 1938-1942(p. 71)
• 7. New York: Glamour and Dissension, 1943-1944(p. 97)
• 8. Back West: A Regrouping in Patterns, 1944-1948(p. 107)
• 9. The Schism Intensified: Regionalism Becomes an Issue, 1948-1949(p. 119)
• 10. Decline of the West, 1950(p. 127)
• 11. "We're Not Canning Tomatoes": The University of Texas at Austin, 1951-1955(p. 139)
• 12. The Ten-Fingered Grasp of Reality in the Split Cultures of Fort Worth and Dallas, 1955-1962(p. 157)
• 13. The River Flows On: North Carolina, 1962-1975(p. 189)
• 14. Retirement(p. 201)
• Notes(p. 205)
• Chronological Harris Bibliography(p. 221)
• Index(p. 247)

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Library Journal Review

It is appropriate that this study was published in association with the Center for the Study of American Architecture in Texas. Harris's architecture is entirely American, drawing on the concepts of Frank Lloyd Wright, but it is also his own: very regional, at peace with the environment. Harris's buildings seem to be the land enclosed by expansive rooftops, structures that wander then bring the outside into a welcoming, understated interior. This comprehensive study shows both Harris's life and his work. The layout seemingly reflects the harmony of concept and purpose that marked Harris's work, particularly his later buildings. From drawings to floorplans to color photographs of finished buildings, the visuals balance against Germany's strong, scholarly, and appreciative text. Recommended for larger academic and public libraries, and for all libraries in regions where Harris worked, i.e., the southwestern and southeastern United States.-- David Bryant, Belleville P.L., N.J. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

CHOICE Review

A California architect and his personal variations on modern architecture are the subject of this monograph. Harris was trained by Richard Neutra and Richard Schindler in Los Angeles and inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright's organic forms, European Modernism, California nature, and Japanese architecture, and his organic structures embodied much of the modern movement. Lisa Germany offers insights into the genesis of modern architecture in California and into the issues raised by this architect. She explores his relationship to the International Style and the importance of his regional variations. Buildings in California, Texas and North Carolina are described, along with photographs and plans, as Harris's career is followed chronologically. There is much praise, but little critical distance in the very anecdotal approach after the lengthy interviews with Harris just before he died in 1990. Despite extraneous material, Harris's place in American architecture is well defined. There are long explanatory footnotes; a "Chronological Harris Bibliography" lists exhibitions, publications about and by the architect, buildings, designs, and awards. Unfortunately dark black-and-white and color pictures. Nonetheless, a welcome reappraisal of this architect and a good addition to modern architecture studies.-W. L. Whitwell, Hollins College

Notas de autor provistas por Syndetics

Lisa Germany has written widely on American architecture for Architectural Record, New York Times, Harvard Design Magazine, Landscape Architecture, House and Garden, and other journals