The Iconic Building

by Charles Jencks

A new type of architecture has emerged in the last 10 the iconic landmark building. Driven by social and commercial forces and the demand for instant fame, it has to be both an amazing piece of surreal sculpture and an understated insertion into the urban fabric. Following in the wake of Frank Gehry's New Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, architects such as Norman Foster, Peter Eisenman, Enric Miralles, Zaha Hadid, Coop Himmelblau, Daniel Libeskind, Renzo Piano, Will Alsop and Rem Koolhaas have created a series of lively architectural icons that have courted publicity and controversy in equal measure. Some are successful creations that fulfil their contradictory requirements; others are Malapropistic metaphors that make the public wince. With a mixture of wit, irreverance and sympathy, leading architecture critic Charles Jencks surveys the recent history of the iconic building and then focuses on ten key examples. These include Norman Foster's Swiss Re. building in London (known as 'The Gherkin'), Frank Gehry's Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles and Daniel Libeskind's project for Ground Zero in New York. Short interviews with some of the major architects are included, and a series of imaginative analytical drawings by Madelon Vriesendorp reveal some of the provocative associations that bring the buildings to life.

Genres: Architecture

223 pages, Hardcover

First published April 24, 2005

About the author

Charles Alexander Jencks (born 21 June 1939) is an American architecture theorist and critic, landscape architect and designer. His books on the history and criticism of modernism and postmodernism are widely read in architectural circles. He studied under the influential architectural historians Sigfried Giedion and Reyner Banham. Jencks now lives in Scotland where he designs landscape sculpture.

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Photos better than text

[Boman · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting background on major buildings in the 20th century.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jencks, as usual, tries to discern patterns within our current era of post-Bilbao outrageousness. So-so job, fun cover (and Andrei cringes yet again...)

[Oleg Puzyreff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting book