Overview

Few people in the history of art and architecture have planted a seed of inspiration that grew to become a towering oak of lasting influence. There are those, particularly colleagues and students of Louis I. Kahn, who would say that he was one of these people. Certainly Kahn was one of the foremost architects of the twentieth century, designing such famous landmarks as the National Assembly Building in Dhaka, Bangladesh; the Salk Institute in La Jolla, California; and the Kimbell Museum in Fort Worth, Texas. In this commemorative volume, Charles E. Dagit, Jr. shows the power and influence that Kahn displayed at the University of Pennsylvania department of architecture in the 1960s. Since Dagit knew Kahn personally, this is a factual history as well as a glimpse into Kahn's personal wisdom and humanity. Beginning with a prelude that starts with the author's undergraduate years at the University of Pennsylvania, Dagit launches readers on an intellectual journey of how he first met Kahn. From there he details his experiences with Kahn and explores Kahn's interactions with Penn faculty members, including Mario Romanach, Robert Le Ricolet and Aldo Giurgola. This first-hand account sheds fascinating new light on one of the most prominent architects of the twentieth century.

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9781412851794

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Reviews

<p> Dagit gives us a personal and enlightening view of Kahn through compelling stories from his life, especially at the University of Pennsylvania. We see a whole new side of this wonderfully complex man who so powerfully influenced architecture in the twentieth century. <p>--Rebecca Bushnell, Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania<p> Charles Dagit gives us a vivid, first-person account of one of the greatest chapters in architectural history, when, in the 1960s, Louis I Kahn was building a new kind of modern architecture around the world and teaching his distinctive design philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania. Dagit was an undergraduate at Penn, a member of Kahn's famous one-year master's studio, and an architect in the office of Aldo Giurgola, and he displays great skill as a storyteller in pulling together his memories from all those experiences. He has much to say about Kahn's way of making and teaching architecture, and this is woven into a larger story that includes fascinating portraits of the other strong personalities who taught at Penn. <p>--David B. Brownlee, Chair of the Graduate Group in the History of Art, University of Pennsylvania

-Arts collections strong in architectural history will welcome this first-person survey of Louis I. Kahn who built a new breed of modern architecture and taught about his designs at the University of Pennsylvania. Author Dagit was an undergraduate there and a member of Kahn's one-year master's studio, so was in a great position to absorb firsthand Kahn's perspective. This covers Kahn's methods of teaching architecture, his building philosophy, and accounts of those he influenced in the field. Any college-level collection strong in architectural history will find this a fine addition.- --The Bookwatch -Dagit gives us a personal and enlightening view of Kahn. . . . We see a whole new side of this wonderfully complex man who so powerfully influenced architecture in the twentieth century.- --Rebecca Bushnell, Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania Arts collections strong in architectural history will welcome this first-person survey of Louis I. Kahn who built a new breed of modern architecture and taught about his designs at the University of Pennsylvania. Author Dagit was an undergraduate there and a member of Kahn's one-year master's studio, so was in a great position to absorb firsthand Kahn's perspective. This covers Kahn's methods of teaching architecture, his building philosophy, and accounts of those he influenced in the field. Any college-level collection strong in architectural history will find this a fine addition. --The Bookwatch Dagit gives us a personal and enlightening view of Kahn. . . . We see a whole new side of this wonderfully complex man who so powerfully influenced architecture in the twentieth century. --Rebecca Bushnell, Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania Arts collections strong in architectural history will welcome this first-person survey of Louis I. Kahn, who built a new breed of modern architecture and taught about his designs at the University of Pennsylvania. Author Dagit was an undergraduate there and a member of Kahn's one-year master's studio, so was in a great position to absorb firsthand Kahn's perspective. This covers Kahn's methods of teaching architecture, his building philosophy, and accounts of those he influenced in the field. Any college-level collection strong in architectural history will find this a fine addition. --The Bookwatch Dagit gives us a personal and enlightening view of Kahn through compelling stories from his life, especially at the University of Pennsylvania. We see a whole new side of this wonderfully complex man who so powerfully influenced architecture in the twentieth century. --Rebecca Bushnell, Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania Charles Dagit gives us a vivid, first-person account of one of the greatest chapters in architectural history, when, in the 1960s, Louis I Kahn was building a new kind of modern architecture around the world and teaching his distinctive design philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania. Dagit was an undergraduate at Penn, a member of Kahn's famous one-year master's studio, and an architect in the office of Aldo Giurgola, and he displays great skill as a storyteller in pulling together his memories from all those experiences. He has much to say about Kahn's way of making and teaching architecture, and this is woven into a larger story that includes fascinating portraits of the other strong personalities who taught at Penn. --David B. Brownlee, Chair of the Graduate Group in the History of Art, University of Pennsylvania Dagit gives us a personal and enlightening view of Kahn through compelling stories from his life, especially at the University of Pennsylvania. We see a whole new side of this wonderfully complex man who so powerfully influenced architecture in the twentieth century. --Rebecca Bushnell, Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania Charles Dagit gives us a vivid, first-person account of one of the greatest chapters in architectural history, when, in the 1960s, Louis I Kahn was building a new kind of modern architecture around the world and teaching his distinctive design philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania. Dagit was an undergraduate at Penn, a member of Kahn's famous one-year master's studio, and an architect in the office of Aldo Giurgola, and he displays great skill as a storyteller in pulling together his memories from all those experiences. He has much to say about Kahn's way of making and teaching architecture, and this is woven into a larger story that includes fascinating portraits of the other strong personalities who taught at Penn. --David B. Brownlee, Chair of the Graduate Group in the History of Art, University of Pennsylvania

Arts collections strong in architectural history will welcome this first-person survey of Louis I. Kahn, who built a new breed of modern architecture and taught about his designs at the University of Pennsylvania. Author Dagit was an undergraduate there and a member of Kahn's one-year master's studio, so was in a great position to absorb firsthand Kahn's perspective. This covers Kahn's methods of teaching architecture, his building philosophy, and accounts of those he influenced in the field. Any college-level collection strong in architectural history will find this a fine addition. --Midwest Book Review Dagit gives us a personal and enlightening view of Kahn through compelling stories from his life, especially at the University of Pennsylvania. We see a whole new side of this wonderfully complex man who so powerfully influenced architecture in the twentieth century. --Rebecca Bushnell, Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania Charles Dagit gives us a vivid, first-person account of one of the greatest chapters in architectural history, when, in the 1960s, Louis I Kahn was building a new kind of modern architecture around the world and teaching his distinctive design philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania. Dagit was an undergraduate at Penn, a member of Kahn's famous one-year master's studio, and an architect in the office of Aldo Giurgola, and he displays great skill as a storyteller in pulling together his memories from all those experiences. He has much to say about Kahn's way of making and teaching architecture, and this is woven into a larger story that includes fascinating portraits of the other strong personalities who taught at Penn. --David B. Brownlee, Chair of the Graduate Group in the History of Art, University of Pennsylvania

Author Information

Charles E. Dagit, Jr. taught at Temple University, the University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University, where he is now a thesis advisor as well as conductor of a seminar on American Architectural History. Awarded the American Institute of Architects Pennsylvania's Medal of Distinction, his work has been published in Progressive Architect, Interiors Magazine and Yale Perspecta.

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