More Than A Mass Of Shopping Malls

books:


	• Iconic LA, Stories of LA's Most Memorable Buildings Gloria Koenig, F.O. Gehry Princeton Architectural Press, 2001 - 120 pages average customer review:based on 7 reviews view larger image
	for more information click here

highly recommended

Knowing Los Angeles

KNOWING LOS ANGELES: EXCERPTS FROM CITE ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW: "Iconic LA" is not exactly the book its title and appearance might lead one to expect. It turns out to be more than just a splashy presentation of the cool, the weird and the kinky. What it is instead is a carefully focused look at 13 notable buildings spanning two centuries, well illustrated with pictures both current and historical, and topped off with succcinct text sufficient to whet the appetite of Los Anglophiles and architectural critics alike. Koenig, a former editor and writer at the University of California at Los Angeles, has selected buildings that represent different eras and architectural types. Each project is boradly described and documented, and the photographs - many of them are rare - are sublime. Some surpriese await the readers of this book; for example, how important a fixture on the LA architectural scene Lloyd Wright was, from the time he came to complete his father/s Hollyhock House in 1920, to his seminal designs for the Hollywood Bowl, and on through the 1940's. A readerr can also develop a new appreciation of how much Frank Gehry is a product of LA; it's probably for that reason that he was asked to supply the book's foreward. I have a growing bookshelf dedicated to Southern California, and "Iconic LA" has an important new place on it. It nestles comfortably next to Reyner BAnham's "Los Angeles: The Four Ecologies" and Charles Moore's "Experiencing Los Angeles". Its overview of immediately familiar structures and the insights they offer into the city's culture make "Iconic LA" a good companion to these. In the book Frank Gehry says, "LA is a city of instant recognition." He's right, and "Iconic LA" is where that recognition gets its due.

for more information click here

More Than A Mass Of Shopping Malls

From Los Angeles Magazine, January, 2001. If architecture is a stamp of a city's identity, then Gloria Koenig's "Iconic LA: Stories of LA's Most Memorable Buildings" is proof that Los Angeles is more than a mass of shopping malls. In a city sometimes thought to be lacking in landmarks, it's surprising how recognizable the 13 buildings included here are and how much they have become a part of our collective consciousness. From the art deco Union Station to the futuristic Bradbury Building, these structures suggest the growth and sensibility of the city - and, with a section on the under-construction Walt Disney Concert Hall, the city to come. The selections may be obvious, but Koenig provides the tales behind them: Aline Barnsdall's conflicts with Frank Lloyd Wright during the building of the Hollyhock House; Sid Grauman's obssession with creating an authentic Chinese Theater in Hollywood; and the struggles of Paul Williams, the African American architect of the LAX Theme Building.

for more information click here

From SF Bay Guardian Lit 12/2000

For those with architectural leanings, Gloria Koenig's Iconic LA offers tales and black-and-white pictures pertaining to a baker's dozen of Los Angeles's most memorable buildings, the Hollywood Bowl, Grauman's Chinese Theater, and the Getty Center, among them. Part guidebook, part urban history, Iconic includes compact entries that reveal as much about the architectural details - like the fact that Pierre Koenig's glassed-in modernist masterpiece Case Study House #22 was assembled in a single day - as they do about the people behind them. Who knew that Paul Williams, the architect who designed the space-age Theme Building at LAX, was African American? The book has the breezy quality of a Hollywood bio, with the buildings as stars.

for more information click here

See the real Los Angeles

I just read Iconic LA as a part of my research on Los Angeles landmark, the Watts Towers of Simon Rodia State Historic Park. The book is truly a valuable addition to the field of architectural literature for all of us! I truly enjoyed reading the entire book. Sincerely, Bud Goldstone, conservation engineer co-author The Los Angeles Watts Towers 6719 W 86th Place #2 Los Angeles, CA 90045

Looking at LA Architecture

When you think of cities you often think of some kind of landmark building or structure. Sydney - Opera House, Chicago - Sears Tower, New York - Empire State Building (if not the World Trade Center) and so on. Mention Los Angeles and what comes to mind is endless miles of cars on slow moving freeways.

After looking at this book, I find that I do remember a significant number of what the author has selected as the best of architectural design in Los Angeles. Her selection is varied from her husband's Case Study House #22, a spectacular steel and glass structure on an otherwise unbuildable lot, to the Los Angeles International Airport Theme Building; from Frank Lloyd Wright's rather strange looking Hollyhock House to the Walt Disney Concert Hall, which is almost as dramatic as the Sydney Opera House and has much better acoustics.

This is a dramatic book that will make you look at Los Angeles architecture in an entirely different light.

for more information click here

reviews: page 1, 2

The twelve buildings of Iconic LA, identifiable the world over, demonstrate the personality and power of Los Angeles as a major metropolis. Their stories are the story of a city in progress, an urban biography that tells a century's worth of history. Like a character in a movie, each of these buildings has played a role in an unfolding human drama complete with intrigue, political struggle, tragedy, and triumph.

The architect of the Bradbury Building accepted the commission after consulting a Ouija board and was inspired by a futuristic novel written in the late 1800s; in 1984 the building became a set for the futuristic-noir film Blade Runner. The Jetson style LAX Theme Building provides an indelible image of one of the world's busiest airports; however, few know the poignant story of its designer, Paul Williams, one of Los Angeles's most important African-American architects. Frank Gehry's design for the Disney Concert Hall suffered criticism, public apathy, and political frustration; in 1999 construction officially began on what will arguably be the city's most visible and popular landmark. Other buildings discussed include Griffith Observatory, the Getty Center, Watts Towers, and Case Study House #22.

for more information click here

hot or not? What's your opinion? Write a review and share your thoughts!

recommendations

Books on LA (Non-fiction)

buildings

Building Classroom Discipline (9th Edition)
Mechanical and Electrical Equipment for Buildings, 10th Edition
Quick Team-Building Activities for Busy Managers: 50 Exercises That ...
Fundamentals of Building Construction: Materials and Methods
Team-Building Activities for Every Group

most

1001 Most Useful Spanish Words (Beginners' Guides)
Love & Respect: The Love She Most Desires; The Respect He Desperately ...
The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What ...
The Billionaire's Vinegar: The Mystery of the World's Most Expensive ...
Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss what Matters Most

search for books
iconic la, stories, buildings, iconic, memorable, most, stories

Impressum / about us