Arthur Gould Odell was born in Concord, NC, on November 22, 1913. In 1930, he studied at Duke University, and later, he transferred and graduated in 1935 from Cornell University. After his research, he acquired additional schooling at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris and then went on a grand […]
Richard Buckminster Fuller
“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” – Richard Buckminster Fuller. Richard Buckminster Fuller, born in 1895, was an American architect, designer, inventor, and writer. He was a futuristic person, and his works reflect this. […]
The Larsen House Tour
In 1971, Chapel Hill architect Jon Condoret became tasked with creating the Larsen house in Durham, a wonder that sticks out today. This architectural gem, finished in 1973, has become a hub of vibrant social gatherings for its proprietors, Arthur and Florence Larsen. Among Duke faculty and cherished pals, the […]
AUGUST LEWIS POLIER (1922-2000)
August Lewis Polier was born on March 7, 1922, in Raleigh, Wake, North Carolina, United States. He graduated from Hugh Morson High School in 1939 and NCSU in 1949. During World War II, Polier served in the Army. He initially worked at Cooper, Haskins, and Rice with Richard Rice. In […]
ARCHITECT LOUIS ISADORE KAHN, FAIA (1901-1974)
Born Itze-Leib Schmuilowsky, Louis Isadore Kahn was born into an imperfect Jewish circle of relatives in Parnu. He spent the relaxation of his early youth in Kuressaare on the Estonian island of Saaremaa, then part of the Russian Empire. At age three, he saw coals within the range and was […]
HARWELL HAMILTON HARRIS, FAIA (1903-1990)
Born in Redlands, CA, Harwell Hamilton Harris grew up in the Imperial Valley area and later attended San Bernardino High School. In 1923, he moved to Los Angeles to wait at the Otis Art Institute, and in 1925, he started to have a look at drawing and painting with Stanton […]
Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959)
“There is no architecture without a philosophy. There is no art of any kind without its own philosophy.” – Frank Lloyd Wright, 1959 Frank Lloyd Wright was an American architect and designer born on June 8, 1867, in Richland Center, Wisconsin. He studied mechanical engineering at the University of Wisconsin […]
JAMES WALTER FITZGIBBON (1915-1985)
Fitzgibbon was born in Omaha, NB. Frank’s son’s father was a subcontractor on a construction project. Next year, he graduated from Syracuse Central High School. In 1938, Fitzgibbon earned his bachelor’s degree from Syracuse University School of Architecture. Fitzgibbon obtained a Master’s in Architecture from the University of Pennsylvania in […]
A Prominent Raleigh Architect LEIF VALAND (1915-1985)
Leif Valand, a prominent Raleigh architect, was born in Norway and came to Jersey City, NY, as a boy. He attended the Pratt Institute in New York City and practiced structure in Scarsdale, NY. He moved to Raleigh in the past due 1940s to layout the Cameron Village Shopping Center […]
AMERICAN ARCHITECT RICHARD ALAN MEIER, FAIA (1934-)
Born in Newark, NJ, Richard Alan Meier studied architecture at Cornell University. He tried to sign up for Le Corbusier’s office, but the Swiss-French architect needed to hire Americans, jealous of the many prevailing worldwide layout awards. Meier labored briefly for Skidmore Owings & Merrill and then for Marcel Breuer. […]