Bertrand Goldberg: Architecture of Invention

by Zoe Ryan (Contributor), Alison Fisher (Contributor), Elizabeth Smith (Contributor)

Bertrand Goldberg (1913-1997) was a visionary Chicago architect whose designs for housing, urban planning, and industrial design made a distinctive mark in the modern era. This handsome publication, the first to focus in-depth on the entirety of Goldberg's life and work, traces his development from his early Bauhaus training to his notable architectural achievements. Featuring previously unpublished material, it also includes Goldberg's plans for unrealized projects as well as his collaborations with other prominent modern architects, such as Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Buckminster Fuller.  Goldberg's interest in the social dimension of architecture was reflected in many of his cutting-edge designs. In 1959, he conceived the plan for his most iconic structure, the sixty-story Marina City residential towers, in the heart of downtown Chicago. He created a number of hospitals that offered a new paradigm for how patients and staff interacted within the space. Goldberg's progressive designs also extended to schools, prefabricated structures, and furniture.

Distributed for the Art Institute of Chicago

Exhibition The Art Institute of Chicago
(09/10/11-01/15/12)

Genres: Nonfiction, Art

192 pages, Hardcover

First published October 25, 2011

Reviews

[Topaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the only book covering the complete work of Bertrand Goldberg, yet overall it is lacking in many respects. First of all, this is a book published in conjunction with a museum exhibit. These types of books are always lacking in detail and substance and usually just gloss over the subject. It is mostly a catalogue of the exhibit with the text consisting of 5 essays describing different categories of his work.

There is some new information I learned, but almost al the photos are from existing archives. It does not appear that any site visits were taken in researching this book, nor any new photos taken. It would have been nice to see how the buildings look today, rather than recycle old photos we have seen many times before. In addition, most of the building photos included are just the exterior.

In many cases, attempts to describe a building or design is lacking any illustration or photo and makes you wonder why even mention it if you don't have any visual to go along with it. This happens many times throughout the book. It is obvious this is not intended to be a thorough monograph or academic review of Goldberg but it is more along the lines of a coffee table book and is a major missed opportunity.

Regarding the design/quality of the actual book, the pages are thick, but the page design/layout is horrible. The font is a bold Helvetica in different colors, and there are headers and footers on every page. It just looks so amateur and poorly designed. The text rarely is on the same page as the photo being discussed which is also annoying.

The list of projects at the end is nice, but again, most do not include any photos which just seems lazy.

I'm a big fan of Bertrand Goldberg's work, and despite all the shortcomings of this book, it is the closest thing to a monograph. Otherwise I would give this a solid 3 stars, but since there's nothing better, I'll make it 4. You should be able to get a decent copy of this book for $30-40.

[Bill · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent book about a great architect. Could have used more illustrations and less redundancy in the essays.