Briefly Noted      

Faculty    

ALUMNI/AE     

1944–Kenneth W. Ford and John Archibald Wheeler. Geons, Black Holes, and Quantum Foam: A Life in Physics. (W.W.Norton & Co., 1998).

1944–George Plimpton and Jason Shinder. The Best American Movie Writing, 1998. (St. Martin’s/Griffin, 1998).

–editor. Women Writers at Work: The Paris Review Interviews. (Random, 1998).

1952–Karl Ludvigsen. Jackie Stewart: Triple-Crowned King of Speed. (Haynes Publishing, 1998).

1953–Townsend Ludington. Seeking the Spiritual: The Paintings of Marsden Hartley. (Cornell/Ackland Art Museum/Babcock Galleries, 1998).

1966–George K. Behlmer. Friends of the Family: The English Home and Its Guardians, 1850-1940. (Stanford University Press, 1998).

1967–Jonathan Galassi. Collected Poems, 1920-1954, by Eugenio Montale. Bilingual Edition. Translated and annotated by Jonathan Galassi. (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1997.)

1972–Jeffrey H. Katz. Scattered Leaves: Selected Writings by Lynn Katz, Edited by Jeffrey Katz. (privately printed, 1998).

1973–Ann Mariah (Mahoney) Cook. Running North: A Yukon Adventure. (Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, 1998).

1987–Reena M. Jana. Where To Get Married San Francisco Bay Area: A Photographic Guide to the 100 Best Sites. (Chronicle Books, 1999)

BRIEFLY NOTED     

1987–Charles E. Ehrlich. "Federalism, Regionalism, Nationalism: A Century of Catalan Political Thought and its Implications for Scotland in Europe." In Space & Polity (vol. 1, no. 2, 1997).

–"Early Twentieth-Century Catalan Regionalist Theory: Lluis Duran i Ventosa, His Times, and the Influence of the Austrian Empire." In Nations and Nationalism (vol. 4, no. 2, 1998).

FACULTY

Philip Mallinson. "Proof Without Words: The Length of a Polygonal Arch." In Mathematics Magazine (vol. 71, no. 5, Dec. 1998).

Christopher R. Matlack. "Growing Fern Gametophytes in the Classroom." In The American Biology Teacher (vol. 60, no. 8, Oct. 1998).

n writing “Shaping a Nation: Twentieth- Century American Architecture and Its Makers,” Carter Wiseman ’63 has taken on an admittedly hazardous task–it not only has been done many times before, but any effort to evaluate recent history andcape will, at some future date, seem the contemporary architectural landsoff the mark. Wiseman takes the risk willingly and we are rewarded with a fresh look at our architectural heritage. His point of view is clearly stated: "I believe that serious architecture should be buildable, useful, and beautiful." This is especially welcome to those of us in the profession’s mainstream, removed from the exotic, theoretical, and often impenetrably obscure debate which takes place at its fringes.

The book is at once a comprehensive survey and a contemporary critique, displaying Wiseman’s skill as an architectural historian and his training as a journalist–he was architectural critic for New York Magazine for 14 years before becoming editor of the Yale Alumni Magazine. As a survey, Shaping a Nation reaches back to explore the roots of American architecture, starting in the early 19th century and moving quickly to the major themes at work at the beginning of the 20th century: the historic American dependence on Europe for aesthetic inspiration and validation, and the ongoing tension between America’s search for a stable and lasting aesthetic and its fascination with the new and the unexplored. Much of the work of American architects during the first third of the century is interpreted within this framework, including the excitement surrounding the development of the skyscraper, the early efforts of Frank Lloyd Wright to develop a uniquely American style, and the widespread institutional and domestic work of the great Beaux Arts eclectic architects.

While the early chapters of the book are a helpful reminder of the foundations of our architectural heritage, its most interesting insights begin with the impact of European Modernism and the famous exhibit at New York’s Museum of Modern Art which resulted in the publication of the book, The International Style, in 1932. The work and writing of Le Corbusier, Gropius, and Breuer captured the imagination of architects and students alike, and of course elevated the Harvard Graduate School of Design to the pinnacle of architectural education under Gropius’ leadership.

Starting with the generation of architects who rejected Modernism as the ruling aesthetic–Wright, Kahn, Rudolph, Saarinen, and ultimately Venturi and those who followed–Wiseman displays heightened interest in his subject, going from a stance of scholarly, thoughtful discussion to one of passionate conviction–not surprising, for he is writing about the generation of architects whose work he has known and understood as both historian and journalist. (Interestingly, he clearly thinks Louis Kahn among the greatest 20th-century architects and the Exeter library among his greatest achievements.) He is at his journalistic best assessing the buildings, not to mention the rhetoric of our current architectural heroes. He is generous and eloquent in acknowledging the importance of their work, and its place in our architectural history. At the same time, he warns convincingly, that our con-centration on the notoriety of individual buildings, on design which is purposefully provocative, may threaten the future of the profession.

Shaping a Nation is a carefully crafted book which combines the architectural historian’s broad view with the journalist’s ability to interpret architecture’s current state. Thanks are due Carter Wiseman for telling the story of American architecture which allows all of us to understand our built environment with greater appreciation.

—James G. Rogers III ’63

Jim Rogers is a principal at Butler Rogers Baskett Architects in New York and a trustee of the Academy.