Galia Solomonoff
Galia Solomonoff’s Book List
In 1975, my parents burned a significant and dear part of our library as Isabel Perón signed a number of decrees empowering the military to “annihilate” the Argentine left. It was a Sunday morning in winter. We were at our suburban house on the Paraná River and I was seven. I passed books to my father in silence; we did a barbecue to cover up the burning of the books. I passed an annotated volume of Charles Fourier—I don’t remember the title, but I remember it was red, leather-bound, and about 4 x 7 inches.
The respect for books has been with me ever since. The sense that books can change the world, unite people and make us better. The sense that knowledge is power and that somewhere in the world right now someone is being attacked for what they read or think.
The list of books below is eclectic. Some of these books have marked my thinking, and others have taken me to another time and place.
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This is a methodical and complete account of a moment that happened once and then quickly disappeared. When I look at this book, I smile thinking about how much fun Ant Farm’s approach was and wondering where utopia and play find their places in architecture right now.
This book offers a concise history of money and economic structures, from ancient Mesopotamia to the subprime mortgage crisis, and links all nations and narratives with a balanced amount of detailed financial information and history.
A must read for anyone considering a life in architecture or wondering what they mean by “the boys’ club.” In about 200 pages one gets a lightly edited version of a juicy closed-doors two-day crit with Philip Johnson, Léon Krier, Robert Stern, Toyo Ito, Rafael Moneo, Paul Rudolph, Frank Gehry, Rem Koolhaas, Richard Meier, and Peter Eisenman among others. In this 27-men-only caucus, they take turns freely discussing their work, using words such as “postmodernism,” “pastiche,” “schizophrenic,” and bitch.” It is a fun reminder of how much things have changed and how much good there still is to do.
This book offers an idiosyncratic account of disparate events that connect the city of New York. What amazes me is that it is such an easy read and still feels fresh as I review it now so many years after my first time reading it.
The sense of the beginning of the 20th century and the American shift from east to west, the bond between men, father, sons, servants, friends, and principally brothers. I love how intricate the dialogues among these male characters are, especially between Samuel Hamilton and Lee, knowledgeable immigrants who unite beyond class or race through books and dignified speech.
A painful and lovingly written story about young creative talent struggling to survive in New York and making it! It makes me pause every time I see a twenty-something counting change to pay for anything. Most of the narrative happens in Chelsea in the 1980s. Where was the drug-ridden Alberton Hotel? I must find out…
Before embracing digital architecture, Tschumi developed an intense relationship with film, and throughout this book, frame by frame, drawing by drawing, an obscure narrative emerges. This book has so much personality; it is so austere and yet so beautiful.
I don’t have my copy of Pamphlet Architecture 7 (“Bridge of Houses”), but any time I can browse through a library, I go to it. I love the drawings, the clear sense of the High Line as envisioned by Steven in the 1980s before it was anyone’s dream! I love the modesty of this book, how true it is!
From Iraq to tsunamis to Katrina, Naomi Klein explains the predatory advance of entities such as Blackwater and Halliburton and how infrastructure disaster relief has shifted from humanitarian and national efforts to private and for-profit groups. She traces the ascent of Milton Friedman and the Chicago School of Economics free market team and how this progressively leads to an extreme form of capitalism.
Fabian, my husband, bought this book in 1988, on a trip back to Argentina. I remember reading Anti-Oedipus (volume 1 of Capitalism and Schizophrenia, 1972) numerous times together—and this is the book that I envision fighting over if we ever consider divorce!
Announcements
Louis Kahn: Architecture as Philosophy by John Lobell
Louis Kahn: Architecture as Philosophy
By John Lobell
Publisher: The Monacelli Press
Published: June 2020
Noted Louis I.Kahn expert John Lobell explores how Kahn’s focus on structure, respect for materials, clarity of program, and reverence for details come together to manifest an overall philosophy.
Our Days Are Like Full Years: A Memoir with Letters from Louis Kahn by Harriet Pattison
Our Days Are Like Full Years: A Memoir with Letters from Louis Kahn
By Harriet Pattison
Publisher: Yale University Press
Forthcoming: October 2020
An intimate glimpse into the professional and romantic relationship between Harriet Pattison and the renowned architect Louis Kahn. Harriet Pattison, FASLA, is a distinguished landscape architect. She was Louis Kahn’s romantic partner from 1959 to 1974, and his collaborator on the landscapes of the Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, and the F.D.R. Memorial/Four Freedoms Park, New York. She is the mother of their son, Oscar-nominated filmmaker Nathaniel Kahn.
Louis I. Kahn: The Nordic Latitudes
Louis I. Kahn: The Nordic Latitudes
By Per Olaf Fjeld and Emily Randall Fjeld
Publisher: University of Arkansas Press
Published: October 4, 2019
A new and personal reading of the architecture, teachings, and legacy of Louis I. Kahn from Per Olaf Fjeld’s perspective as a former student. The book explores Kahn’s life and work, offering a unique take on one of the twentieth century’s most important architects. Kahn’s Nordic and European ties are emphasized in this study that also covers his early childhood in Estonia, his travels, and his relationships with other architects, including the Norwegian architect Arne Korsmo.
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Ballpark: Baseball in the American City by Paul Goldberger
Ballpark: Baseball in the American City
By Paul Goldberger
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
Published: May 2019
An illustrated, entirely new look at the history of baseball: told through the stories of the vibrant and ever-changing ballparks where the game was and is staged, by the Pulitzer Prize-winning architectural critic.
Charleston Fancy by Witold Rybczynski
Charleston Fancy: Little Houses and Big Dreams in the Holy City
By Witold Rybczynski
Publisher: Yale University Press
Published: May 2019
Charleston, South Carolina, which boasts America’s first historic district, is known for its palmetto-lined streets and picturesque houses. The Holy City, named for its profusion of churches, exudes an irresistible charm. Award-winning author and cultural critic Witold Rybczynski unfolds a series of stories about a group of youthful architects, builders, and developers based in Charleston: a self-taught home builder, an Air Force pilot, a fledgling architect, and a bluegrass mandolin player.
Teaching Graphic Design History by Steven Heller
Teaching Graphic Design History
By Steven Heller
Publisher: Allworth Press
Published: June 2019
An examination of the concerted efforts, happy accidents, and key influences of the practice throughout the years, Teaching Graphic Design History is an illuminating resource for students, practitioners, and future teachers of the subject.
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