From the Taschen bio of Shulman:
American photographer Julius Shulman’s images of Californian architecture have burned themselves into the retina of the 20th century. A book on modern architecture without Shulman is inconceivable. Some of his architectural photographs, like the iconic shots of Frank Lloyd Wright’s or Pierre Koenig’s remarkable structures, have been published countless times. The brilliance of buildings like those by Charles Eames, as well as those of his close friend, Richard Neutra, was first brought to light by Shulman’s photography.
The clarity of his work demanded that architectural photography had to be considered as an independent art form. Each Shulman image unites perception and understanding for the buildings and their place in the landscape. The precise compositions reveal not just the architectural ideas behind a building’s surface, but also the visions and hopes of an entire age. A sense of humanity is always present in his work, even when the human figure is absent from the actual photographs.
Today, a great many of the buildings documented by Shulman have disappeared or been crudely converted, but the thirst for his pioneering images is stronger than ever before.
All of these images are in Shulman’s indispensable 3-book series Modernism Rediscovered
and are also sold as prints by Taschen. See also our last post on Shulman here and here. Please note that these photos are of the prints, so they are imperfect. Please buy the books! There’s also a good abridged paperback version of Modernism Rediscovered
. Thanks to lushpad for indirectly inspiring this post.
thanks for putting such a great collection of images and writings.
all the best!
david john
los angeles
There is something about these mid-century interiors and exteriors that are seductive, they hint at a luxurious international lifestyle that, in our cruder times, has passed us by.
Having said that, many of us would probably jump at the chance to live in these homes and then regret it. Many of them were on the cutting edge of the available technology of the day, and frankly don’t work as practical domestic living spaces. They do look grand though!
I know this is an old post but I just noticed it. I just wanted to say a few words in defense of this architecture. I live in one of these types of houses, and haven’t had an ounce of regret. I also have many friends who feel the same way about their mid-century modern homes.
On the contrary, I love how connected it is to the outdoors, with its window walls and abundant natural light. Also, the deep overhangs keep the house naturally cool in the summer (we don’t have air conditioning and don’t need it), while the glass keeps the house naturally warm in the winter (we almost never turn on our heater, either). They are not suited for every climate, of course, but they are perfectly suited for the environment in which they were built – Southern California.