Product Description

This work sets out to describe the aesthetic qualities intrinsic to the work of such architects as Le Corbusier, Oud, Gropius and Mies van der Rohe. The authors observed the distinguishing features that made possible a definition of a new "style": emphasis on volume as opposed to mass; regularity as opposed to symmetry; and dependence on the intrinsic elegance of materials as opposed to applied decoration. First published in 1932 to coincide with an architectural exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art, this reissue contains a new foreword by Philip Johnson reflecting on the impact of these principles over 60 years after they were first set forth.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1750679 in Books
• Published on: 1995-06
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 269 pages

Customer Reviews

An interesting period piece
The most interesting aspect of the new edition is the recent forward by Philip Johnson (1995). In it he humorously describes his relationship with "The International Style," and how dated the book now appears. He also notes that it was Alfred Barr who introduced Hitchcock and him to this new world of architecture. It was Barr who had written extensively on the subject and dubbed it an "International Style."

Not surprisingly, nearly all the buildings included in this catalog for the 1932 MoMA exhibit date from 1927. This was a pivotal year in the Modern Movement. Le Corbusier's "Toward a New Architecture" first appeared in English. The new improved Bauhaus opened its doors in Dessau, in Gropius' newly constructed complex. The International Competition for the League of Nations building was held with Le Corbusier losing out on a technicality. A building exhibition, laid out by Mies van der Rohe, was sponsored by the Deutscher Werkbund in Stuttgart. Modern Architecture had come of age.

The selections are interesting for their range of architects but have several notable omissions. Among them Rudolf Schindler, who dismissed the idea of an "International Style," in a letter to Johnson. Modern architects then and now hate the idea of a "style," believing their works to be based on a set of constructive and compositional principles which transcend the notion of style.

Nevertheless, the name stuck. Hitchcock and Johnson are widely credited for bringing the International Style to America, even though some early works by Neutra, Hood, Howe and Lescaze were included in the exhibition. Most importantly, Johnson lured Mies to America, where he would achieve his most lofty aspirations. The book makes for an interesting read but has long been superceded by more insightful and penetrating books on the subject.

going back to where it all started
This book is a living proof that architecture is an evolving being. It never stays stagnant. What is deemed to be modern then has now become a foundation for new styles & new materials to be developed to serve the functions & purposes of the occupants. Whilst the book defined the 3 principles that formed the backbone of the International Style, it's doing so as a mean of helping people to understand the 'style'better. Architects know better that there aren't any form of '-ism' but just good architecture when all the criterions of their clients are met. Half of the book is devoted to photos of buildings applying the so-called International Style but after you've seen one, you've seen it all. They all look distinctively indifferent to one another.