Philip johnson architect biography

His mother was the niece of Alfred Atmore Pope and the first cousin of Theodate Pope Riddle, who was among the first female architects. He had an older sister, Jeanette, and a younger sister, Theodate. Johnson was a descendant of the Jansen Family of New Amsterdam. He then went to Havard University for his undergraduate studies. There, he focused on learning philology, Greek, history, and philosophy.

He particularly focused on the work of pre-socratic philosophers. He completed his studies in He designed his first building while still in school, which he submitted as his graduate thesis. Johnson met Jimmie Daniels in Their relationship lasted only one year. But I was naughty. I went to Europe and I would never think of taking Jimmy along.

Johnson died in his sleep at the age of ninety-eight at his Glass House retreat on January 25, He was survived by David Whitney, his partner of 45 years. David Whitney died later that year at the age of After completing his studies in , Philip Johnson made a series of travels to Europe where he visited landmarks of classical and gothic architecture.

In , he met Mies van der Rohe, who played a big role and majorly influenced his architectural career. Barr Jr. The exhibition played a major role in introducing modern architecture to the American public. That same year, he designed his first building, a house that still exists in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The style of his design was greatly influenced by Mies van der Rohe.

In , while working as a curator and writer at the Museum of Modern Art, Philip Johnson began working to establish his architectural practice. The building established itself as a landmark of modern architecture. Philip Johnson got his first international commission in The project was to design the modern art museum in Bielefeld, Germany. In , Philip Johnson founded a partnership with architect John Burgee.

This introduced Philip Johnson to a new phase of his career. While working together, Johnson and Burgee won several commissions for the construction of new skyscrapers. In , Philip Johnson split with John Burgee and opened up his own practice. He worked as a solo practitioner for 4 years. In , he invited Alan Ritchie to join him as a partner.

For ten years Philip Johnson and Alan Ritchie worked closely together exploring new paths in architecture, designing buildings as sculptural objects. This was evident in their designs of the Chapel of St. Basil at the University of St. Thomas, and the Habitable Sculpture in lower Manhattan. The condominium building was an urban expression from his own earlier work, the famous Glass House.

Construction of the building was completed in This was the first building that Philip Johnson designed. He submitted the house in his graduate thesis. He designed it to be his private residence. The Glass House is situated on a acre property which includes 14 structures which were built between and The building was designed to be open to the surrounding landscape.

He lived long enough to become one of the best-known and most prolific Postmodern designers of the s. Throughout his career, Johnson emphasized the formal values of architecture above all others, far more so than adherence to any one style or approach. More paradoxically, he has maintained a posture of permanent avant-gardism, attacking the architectural certainties of the moment—admitting all the while that his aim has been to influence the wielders of power as they choose architectural expressions of that power.

Barr, Jr. However, the mercurial and impetuous Johnson became attracted to the Hitler movement in Germany and in left architecture to serve as an activist and publicist for several fascist and radical-right causes. Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Tools Tools. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects. Wikimedia Commons Wikiquote Wikidata item.

American architect — For other people named similarly, see Phillip Johnson disambiguation. Johnson aged 95, with a model of a privately commissioned sculpture Cleveland , Ohio , U. New Canaan, Connecticut , U. Early life and career [ edit ]. Politics and journalism [ edit ]. Architecture school and Army service [ edit ]. Early Modernist period — [ edit ].

Interior of the Glass House Farnsworth House by Mies designed —7 for comparison.

Philip johnson architect biography

The Four Seasons' restaurant of Seagram Building in its original form Late Modernism — [ edit ]. Monastery building at St. Anselm's Abbey in Washington, DC Pennzoil Place in Houston, Texas — The Fort Worth Water Gardens. Postmodern period — [ edit ]. The Crystal Cathedral finished Top of Madison Avenue. Window of Madison Avenue.

Entrance of Madison Avenue. PPG Place , Pittsburgh , Hines College of Architecture at the University of Houston The elliptical Lipstick Building in Manhattan, The concrete tower and cupola of West Market in Louisville, Kentucky Later career and buildings — [ edit ]. Ally Detroit Center in Detroit, Michigan — Chapel of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas Gate of Europe towers in Madrid, Spain — The Ware Center in Lancaster, Pennsylvania Honors [ edit ].

Personal life [ edit ]. Art collection and archives [ edit ]. Controversy over political activities [ edit ]. Quotations [ edit ]. In popular culture [ edit ]. See also [ edit ]. References [ edit ]. The New York Times. Retrieved May 15, The New Yorker. ISSN X. Retrieved April 23, Johnson was an anti-Semite and a strong proponent of ruling-class power.

Indeed, it is difficult to think of an American as successful as Johnson who indulged a love for Fascism as ardently and as openly. Johnson would later describe Hitler as "a spellbinder"; in , well after he had been forced to abjure his Nazi past, he insisted in letters in the s that Hitler was "better than Roosevelt. Johnson described attending Nazi rallies in Germany as "exhilarating" and attempted to found a fascist political party in the United States.

ISSN He also championed racist and white supremacist viewpoints in his younger years. Johnson's Nazi sympathies, for example, have been well documented New York Magazine. Architectural Digest. December 3, Vanity Fair. April 4, How did Johnson, virtually alone among his Fascist associates, manage to avoid indictment? The answer may lie in the influence of powerful friends.

One man in particular could well have been influential Nelson Rockefeller, who knew Johnson well from his New York days. May 15, Retrieved April 7, Prequel: an American fight against fascism First ed. New York: Crown. ISBN Retrieved August 4, Retrieved December 12, Philip Johnson: Life and Work. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Journal of Architectural Education. Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture, Inc. JSTOR Archived from the original on November 8, From Domus , July Philip Johnson, Pavilion, New Canaan, Philip Johnson, Sculpture gallery, New Canaan, From Domus , September From Domus , July-August From Domus , February Philip Johnson started his career as a designer at a relatively advanced age.