Product Description

The Castro Theatre, the Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Headquarters, 450 Sutter Medico-Dental Building â these masterpieces of San Franciscoâs Art Deco heritage are the work of one man: Timothy Pflueger. While his contemporaries looked to beaux arts traditions to rebuild the city, he brought exotic Mayan, Asian, and Egyptian forms to buildings ranging from simple cocktail lounges to the cityâs first skyscrapers. Pflueger was one of the cityâs most prolific architects during his 40-year career. Therese Poletti tells the fascinating story of Pfluegerâs life and work in "Art Deco San Francisco". In lively detail, she relates how Pflueger built extravagant compositions in metal, concrete, and glass.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #252248 in Books
• Published on: 2008-09-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 256 pages

Review
A thoroughly enjoyable monograph... unusually accessible text ... augmented with vivid new photographs from Tom Paiva --San Francisco Chronicle: (8/12/08)

Alley To Be Named For Famed Architect Pflueger, "Timothy Pflueger is the greatest architect in modern San Francisco history, said Supervisor Jake McGoldrick, in seconding the resolution brought by outgoing board President Aaron Peskin. To honor him is a wonderful thing to do. My only regret is I didn't think of it.For the record, the resolution was proposed by Therese Poletti. The author of this year's enjoyable monograph Art Deco San Francisco: The Architecture of Timothy Pflueger, Poletti notes proudly that Pflueger is the first local architect to get his own alleyway. It's an honor reserved, until now, for such artistic characters as Jack Kerouac, William Saroyan and Isadora Duncan." -- John King --San Francisco Chronicle: (December 30, 2008)

Review
Book Tells Story Of East Bay Theater Architect, Oakland Tribune: ""Art Deco San Francisco: The Architecture of Timothy Pflueger," published by Princeton Architectural Press, a new acquisition at the Oakland Main Library History Room, delves into the unique, colorful and ultimately brief career of Pflueger and contains many full-color illustrations of his works, including the Paramount and Alameda theaters.The new biography was written by Therese Poletti. a local journalist who also leads walking tours for San Francisco City Guides.The author worked with Tom Pflueger, the late architect's nephew, who allowed her access to family and business firm archives and provided her with insights into the life and times of the son of humble German-born immigrants who arrived in San Francisco in the 1890s. The book paints a portrait of a young man who came of age in the aftermath of the devastating 1906 earthquake and fire that leveled much of San Francisco, and went on to design some of the most beautiful buildings erected in California during the 1920s and '30s." -- Annalee Allen

About the Author

Therese Poletti has been a journalist for nearly twenty years. She has written for theSan Jose Mercury News, and currently works forMarketWatchas a technology columnist. She lives in San Francisco.

Customer Reviews

A Magnificent Contribution
This is a terrific book. Anyone who has spent even a bit of time considering San Francisco's built environment will have encountered the work of Timothy Pflueger. In Poletti's book Pflueger's masterpieces have at last found a treatment worthy of their dignified exuberance.

Art Deco San Francisco is at once biography, social history, and sensitive architectural appreciation. It is visually stunning and lavishly illustrated with beautifully reproduced vintage photographs and dramatic new appreciations by Tom Paiva. Poletti's volume does an excellent job of placing Pflueger in the context of the emerging architectural trends of the first half of the twnetieth century, and serves as a rejoinder to those who have questioned - with perhaps some justification - San Francisco's architectural legacy. (See e.g. http://www.slate.com/id/2151655/)

The book is meticulously researched, admirably structured, and makes for a lively and fun read. It ranks among the finest single-architect monographs I have ever seen.

Those new to Pflueger and those like me who have long wondered why this great architect has lacked a biographer will be delighted with Art Deco San Francisco.

Beautiful tribute!
This book is not only visually stunning, but extremely informative on the work of San Francisco architect Timothy Plueger. It must have been a labor of love as you can definitely sense the passion the author has for her subject. The dedication and research that went into this book is inspiring for all fans of this genre, and a must have for those that love these beautiful buildings. An interesting read for sure, great information on all that Pflueger designed and inspired, as well as his fascinating associations. Excellent work!

A basic 'must' for both architecture and art libraries and any California history collection
Classic San Francisco buildings reflecting the art deco style are covered in an excellent collection of photos of masterpieces reflecting the work of one man: one Timothy Pflueger, an immigrant's son who began his architectural practice after San Francisco's 1906 earthquake, and who proved one of the city's most prolific architects, producing many unique and classic art deco designs over a 40-year history. His life and works are surveyed in ART DECO SAN FRANCISCO, an oversized pairing of photos and architectural history highly recommended as a basic 'must' for both architecture and art libraries and any California history collection.