What to read this semester?

While the work of an architect often stands in for the life of the architect itself, there is much to be learned about the lived experience of history's most notable designers. 

And while monographs that tally up and showcase the work of individual designers and firms are a dime a dozen, biographies and autobiographies, though much more rare among designers, offer a deeper and more nuanced look into the lives and minds of some of the most well-known design personalities.

As the school year gets underway, and students and professors alike embark on an era of new beginnings, it can be useful—and perhaps inspirational—to investigate how other architects and designers have lived their lives. Below, Archinect has gathered a dozen interesting and notable biographies and autobiographies that highlight the lives of designers with the hope that you will find something in their lives that speaks to yours.

Julia Morgan, Architect of Dreams  (1988)

By Ginger Wadsworth

Although written for younger readers, Ginger Wadsworth’s Julia Morgan, Architect of Dreams constitutes one of the few definitive biographies of California architect Julia Morgan. Along with Sara Holmes Boutelle’s 1988 book, Julia Morgan, Architect, it is possible to glean a view into the amazing, beautiful, and remarkable life and works of California’s first licensed female architect. As architecture critic Alexandra Lange writes in a recent The New York Times obituary for Morgan, “Morgan early on was used to skepticism about her abilities. But she came to allay those doubts by building a sterling reputation with projects now known around the world, including the Asilomar conference grounds on the Monterey Peninsula and, most notably, the Hearst Castle at San Simeon. By the time she retired in 1951, at 79, she had designed hundreds of buildings and sites.”

Leonardo da Vinci (2018)

By Walter Isaacson

Described as “a study in creativity: how to define it, how to achieve it…Most important, it is a powerful story of an exhilarating mind and life” by a review of the book in The New Yorker, Walter Isaacson’s 2018 biography on polymath Renaissance man Leonardi da Vinci is a must-read for any aspiring designer.

Powerhouse, The Life and Work of Architect Judith Chafee (2019)

By Christopher Domin, Kathryn McGuire

Part biography, part monograph, Powerhouse, The Life and Work of Architect Judith Chafee is the first book written on the life and career of American Modernist architect Judith Chafee, a designer who worked with some of the 20th Century’s greatest architects before setting out on her own decades-long career. The book, written by Christopher Domin and Kathryn McGuire, will be published later this year and can be pre-ordered here.

You Say to Brick: The Life of Louis Kahn (2017)

By Wendy Lesser

Writing in the New York Times Book Review, Inga Saffron praises Wendy Lesser’s definitive Louis Kahn biography as “easily the most complete narrative of Kahn's life and career, magnificently researched and gracefully written." The book, underpinned by extensive archival research, in-person visits to many of Kahn’s buildings, and lengthy interviews with Kahn’s children, colleagues, and students, aims to present a fresh perspective on one of the 20th Century’s most unique and notable architects.

Ellen Shipman and the American Garden (2018)

By Judith Tankard  

Judith Tankard’s recent biography on landscape architect Ellen Shipman highlights a handful of the designer’s nearly 600 garden designs and also delves into Shipman’s all-female New York City practice. The practice, a training ground and support network for aspiring female designers, was responsible for many wonderful projects and pioneered a hybrid sensibility that combines Colonial Revival, Arts and Crafts, and Impressionist stylings to create intimate and water-filled gardens.

Paul R. Williams, Architect (1993)

By Karen E. Hudson

Karen Hudson, granddaughter of prolific architect Paul R. Williams, survey's the architect's life and work. Williams, the first African American architect admitted into the American Institute of Architects, designed over 3,000 buildings throughout his career, many in Los Angeles. This book is also the first architectural monograph highlighting Williams's work. 

Lina Bo Bardi (2019)

By Zeuler R. M. de A. Lima 

Washington University in St. Louis-based historian and architect Zeuler R. M. de A. Lima’s Lina Bo Bardi is a hefty reference book filled with biographical information on the renowned Brazilian architect, one of the greatest and most expressive minds of the Modernist movement. With a foreword by Barry Bergdoll, the book begins with Bo Bardi’s early years in Rome and follows the architect throughout her career.

The Man in the Glass House: Philip Johnson, Architect of the Modern Century (2018)

By Mark Lamster

Mark Lamster’s recent biography on problematic 20th Century architect Philip Johnson is a must-read, even if only to glean myriad examples of how not to live one’s life. As architecture critic Kate Wagner writes in The Nation, Lamster’s biography “offers an eye-opening glimpse into architecture’s transformation from a staid and upwardly mobile white-collar profession to the deeply unequal and star-studded spectacle it is today.”

Eileen Gray. Architect Designer, a biography (1987)

By Peter Adam

Written by a long-time friend of Irish architect and furniture designer Eileen Gray, Peter Adam’s biography presents an “informative and affectionate” portrait of one of the 20th Century’s most creative designers. Anchored by the Modernist architect’s personal archives, photographs of her work, and site visits to several of Gray’s built projects, the book was published as the first biography on Gray and lives on as a nuanced view into her amazing life.

Thomas Jefferson, Architect: Palladian Models, Democratic Principles, and the Conflict of Ideals (2019)

By Mabel O. Wilson

Written by Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Preservation, and Planning professor Mabel O. Wilson, Thomas Jefferson, Architect: Palladian Models, Democratic Principles, and the Conflict of Ideals presents a much-needed reassessment of Thomas Jefferson’s design ideologies. The book provides a nuanced look at the Founding Father’s career as an architect and interrogates the contradictions between Jefferson’s ideas of liberty and his embrace of slavery, a dissonance which is  “most poignantly reflected in his plan for the academical village at the University of Virginia, which was carefully designed to keep enslaved workers both invisible and accessible,” according to a description of the book.

Beatrix Farrand: Private Gardens, Public Landscapes (2009)

By Judith Tankard 

Historian Judith Tankard illuminates the life and works of landscape designer Beatrix Farrand in this biography. The book traces Farrand’s influences, which include English landscape designer Gertrude Jekyll, while also highlighting the beautiful watercolor renderings Farrand created as she worked to bring her designs to life.

Luis Barragan 1902-1988 (1996)

By José Buendia Julbez, Juan Palomar

With a forward written by Alvaro Siza, José Buendia Julbez and Juan Palomar’s biographical monograph on Mexican architect Luis Barragan presents a deep view into the architect’s colorful and elemental works. Almost every page in the book has a color image of Barragan’s era-defining works taken by photographer Sebastián Saldívar.

Ruth Shellhorn (2016)

By Kelly Comras

The nearly 60-year-long career of Ruth Shellhorn helped shape Southern California’s aesthetic power during the 20th Century. Shellhorn’s designs for Disneyland’s Main Street, for example, still reverberate the world over, while her efforts to maintain long-term control over the maintenance and upkeep of her projects have helped ensure a lasting relevance for the designer’s work. The book, written by Kelly Comras, is published as part of the Masters of Modern Landscape Design series.

Twice in a Lifetime: From Soaps to Skyscrapers (1988)

by Charles Luckman

Charles Luckman’s life was remarkable, to say the least. Raised in rural Kansas, Luckman studied architecture at the University of Illinois before falling into work as a soap salesman during the Great Depression. With a keen eye toward merchandising and business psychology, Luckman was able to rise through the ranks of the Pepsodent company before becoming its president at age 30. From there, Luckman went on to work as an architect, first with William L. Pereira, and then, as the head of Charles Luckman and Associates. Luckman eventually designed some of the 20th Century’s most iconic—and despised— buildings, including New York City’s Madison Square Garden, Boston’s Prudential Tower, and Los Angeles’s Aon Center.