Albert Frey, Architekt

by Joseph Rosa

Albert Frey, Architect, a heavily illustrated study of his life and practice, was compiled by author Joseph Rosa after extensive archival research and interviews with Frey and many of his colleagues. In addition to providing biographical detail and descriptive analysis of his work, this volume also contains an annotated list of structures designed by Frey, a bibliography of writings on and by Frey, and reprints of letters between Frey and Le Corbusier. Featured projects include the Raymond Loewy House, Palm Springs City Hall, North Shore Yacht Club, and Frey's own Houses I and II. Numerous duotone photographs, many taken by Julius Shulman, as well as plans and sketches are also included. An introduction by David Gebhard discusses Frey's relevance within the modern movement and the connection to nature and to historical precedent in his designs.

Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

Reviews

[Topaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very small book originally published in 1990 that covers all of Albert Frey’s work, both built and unbuilt. It is not a coffee table book but also has many photos and limited text.

All the photos are black and white and many are very small, including drawings and floor plans. It would be nice if the book was overall larger or if there photos were much larger so you can see more details.

The text follows chronologically and gives some insight and description of Frey’s works. Often the text describes something that is not accompanied by a photo or drawing which is somewhat frustrating. The text itself is easy to read, even though it appears to be a more of a textbook-style book. It’s nice how the photos always accompany the corresponding text on the same page.

If a more thorough monograph is published, it would be nice to see larger photos, historic as well as current photos, and more analysis, insight, and critique.

This book is out of print but you should be able to find it for about $20, not really worth more than that.

[jw468 · Rating 4 out of 5]

1999 edition

At first glance, this appears to be the most complete monograph of Frey’s work; however, that’s not entirely true. This book does cover more of Frey’s projects than Koenig’s brief book, Albert Frey, but both books contain coverage that is not included in the other volume. In some cases, the coverage in Koenig’s book is better, or at least provides detail that isn’t included in Rosa’s book. Several photographs in Koenig’s book are printed in color, which, considering the importance of color in Frey’s work, is most informative. The photos in this book are all duotone (which is the reason I gave this book four, instead of five stars). One notable difference is the way Frey’s output is discussed: Rosa discusses Frey’s work as the evolution of an approach; whereas Koenig covers the work chronologically, but doesn’t consider any overall evolution.