Reyner Banham examined the built environment of Los Angeles in a way no architectural historian before him had done; looking with fresh eyes at its manifestations of popular taste and industrial ingenuity; as well as its more traditional modes of residential and commercial building. His construct of "four ecologies" examined the ways Angelenos relate to the beach; the freeways; the flatlands; and the foothills. Banham delighted in this mobile city and identified it as an exemplar of the posturban future. In a spectacular new foreword; architect and scholar Joe Day explores how the structure of Los Angeles; the concept of "ecology;" and the relevance of Banham's ideas have changed over the past thirty-five years.
#375924 in Books 2007-09-24Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.50 x 1.61 x 8.00l; 3.33 #File Name: 0520249615411 pages
Review
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful. Kirshenblatt recreates a shtetl in full colorBy B. V. FettermanHaving recently returned from a trip to the Polish town of my mother's childhood; I was eager to see Mayer Kirshenblatt's paintings of Jewish life in prewar Poland on exhibit at the Jewish Museum in New York. I immediately recognized buildings and landscapes I had seen on the trip--the small; square houses surrounding the town square; ruins of once impressive; multi-tiered synagogues--but the exhibition instantly filled me with joy because Mayer Kirshenblatt's paintings put the people back in a panoramic view of life before the Holocaust.At once naive and sophisticated; Kirshenblatt's art captures the energy and diversity of life as it was lived in prewar Apt (Opatów in Polish); a shtetl in southern Poland. Shunning nostalgia for accuracy; the paintings are rich in ethnographic detail and show every area of activity; some with the artist as a blue-clad schoolboy looking on. The 93-year-old Toronto artist; who started painting in his seventies; is becoming internationally known; his work was recently exhibited at the Galician Jewish Museum in Kraków.The text of this book; which includes 200 full color reproductions; represents another kind of achievement. Each painting tells a story; evoking memories of people; trades; and events. Mayer Kirshenblatt collaborated with his daughter; Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett; a scholar of Eastern European Jewish culture and folklore; on a captivating text recording his almost encyclopedic range of memories of the town up to 1934; the year he departed for Canada.Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett; who co-authored Image Before My Eyes: A Photographic History of Jewish Life in Poland with Lucjan Dobroszychi; a book based on the photographic collection of the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research; comments on her father's art: "Until Mayer's paintings; all my images of Jewish life in Poland were black and white because all of them were from photographs;" she writes. "That world; thanks to Mayer's paintings; was now emerging in vibrant color." Kirshenblatt's extraordinary visual memory; humor; and love can revivify this world for us all.5 of 5 people found the following review helpful. Journey through a Lost World - through a Young Boy's EyesBy Astros Fan in ExileThis wonderful book matches up primitive paintings with an engaging narrative to take you through a journey to a lost world - a largely Jewish town in pre-WWII Poland. Mayer Kirshenblatt; the artist who created these paintings (starting in his 70s!); had an incredible visual memory for the world of his youth. The text; crafted by his daughter (a well-known anthropologist/folklorist); is a first-person narrative; largely told in his smart-ass adolescent voice; then coming back every now and then to his adult voice to provide updates on "where are they now?" Or --given the time and place -- how did they die at the hands of the Nazis? However; this is NOT a Holocaust book; it's a visual journal of youth in a Polish town; in a largely Jewish community. The paintings are primitives; from his youthful viewpoint - the rooms have improbably high ceilings; more a reflection of a child's shortness; always looking up at everything.The paintings provide a tableau of pre-war Jewish life; including celebration of life events; Sabbath and holidays. However; this is not an overly sentimental memoir of the Old Country. The painter wasn't always good little boy who minded his parents and teachers - he skipped school to check out all parts of his town; including many of the grimier aspects. The painter's sly graphical sense of humor is well matched by the text; where his daughter (after spending years hearing her father's stories) did a lovely job of echoing his youthful voice. There are; of course; some pretty terrible events that are depicted - some of them based on the painter's imaginings of events that happened after he left Poland as a teenager. But overall; there is more to laugh about than cry - many of the stories are very funny.I saw the exhibition of this art work at the Jewish Museum in NY. It was a wonderful show; and made me run back to read the book again. By the way; Mayer Kirshenblatt (z"l) passed away last month.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Amazing story and fun to readBy M. S. FentonThis book is like listening to a beloved grandfather or uncle tell about his life. Only; it is so much more interesting than my relatives and not nearly as judgmental. The illustrations are amazing; the story is really interesting to me; because I am sort of a student of shtetl life and an artist; as well. This is one of the best books I've read in years but for reasons not usually cited. I liked the man for what he said and how he said it. I formed pictures of his family; his home; his life in my head that stay with me forever. I've recommended this book to many people. I'm only sorry I missed his last exhibition in New York before he died. If you have any feeling for the subject and if you want to get in touch with your eastern european soul; this might help you get there.
