Written by Doug Hayward Published: Friday, 22 August 2008
Opening the pages of Alameda architect-author Richard Knight's new book, Saarinen's Quest, is akin to opening a treasure chest. The jewels with which it brims are never-before-published photos and warm personal memories of fabled Finnish-born U.S. architect Eero Saarinen.
Knight took the rare photos when he was de-facto "house photographer" during the last four years of Saarinen's life before he was died of cancer in 1961. Photos and intimate anecdotes are a fresh perspective not only on the architect-genius, but also on the all-important ethos of his organization, Eero Saarinen & Associates (ESA).
It is this exclusive insider's view that gives Knight's new 167-page work its special appeal in recalling the man whose vision made so many visionary triumphs possible, such as the lofty "St. Louis Arch," the cutting-edge John Foster Dulles Airport and TWA's futuristic terminal at Idlewild Airport.
But for all Alamedans, whether or not they read Saarinen's Quest, the photos in it and many more are now on display at the Alameda Museum Art Gallery at 2324 Alameda Avenue (near Park Street). Culled from thousands of Knight's collected images, many are candid, although most are carefully arranged, innovative "eye-level" views of scale models and works-in-progress. All were originally taken for record-keeping and client presentations.
This same show will also travel to St. Louis, Wisconsin and Yale University as part of a Saarinen exhibit sponsored by the government of Finland.
Next Thursday, Knight and fellow-architect Pierluigi Serraino, also of Alameda, will offer their combined thoughts on Saarinen in an Alameda Museum Lecture Series 2008 presentation entitled, "Musing on Modernism," at 7 p.m. at the museum. (See box.)
Another gem in Knight's book is an illustrated timeline of 15 of Saarinen's more memorable projects. It's a handy reference that is cross-indexed to the text and special sections.
Knight says he carefully designed his book for both novices and advanced devotees of modernist architecture — but without compromising quality. There is a "commonality" for all readers, he feels, based on his personal conviction that "architecture leaves a trail for later generations."
Those rare photos, he says, might never have found their way into public view at all were it not for the "keen eye" of his wife Judith Lynch. Long before they married, she happened one day upon stored boxes from his years at ESA. They were destined, he felt, for an archive, somewhere, eventually. But she recognized them as a new look at "a great man and the remarkable way he worked," and so the book was born.
Richard Knight's first degree was in mechanical engineering, but "it was a wild goose chase and I figured I gotta get a new plan." After earning his architectural degree, he joined Eero Saarinen and Associates in 1957 as a junior designer-architect "in mechanical realms," and his four years there were "like my internship." When Eero died of cancer in 1961, Knight opened his own successful architectural practice, also teaching design architecture, "and loved it."
During that period he worked for Minoru Yamasaki and Associates of Michigan, assisting in the design of the "Twin Towers" lobbies of the New York World Trade Center. After moving to San Francisco in 1981, he maintained his license for some eight years. His favorite architect is Eero Saarinen, "hands down." Knight notes that "Eero also was an outstanding furniture designer, with much of his work still in production." (including the famous "tulip chair.")
Knight also has a high regard for Eero's father, Eliel Saarinen. Beyond them, he is appreciative of Swiss architects Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron, known locally for the newly rebuilt San Francisco de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park. He is enthusiastic about the new Contemporary Jewish Museum across from Yerba Buena Center in San Francisco, calling it "a delightful, cock-eyed thing that pokes its nose out." He relishes the work of Frank O. Gehry and Partners, responsible for the "fanciful" Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles and the "marvelous" Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain. Other favorites include Kevin Roche, an Irish-born American architect who joined Saarinen and Associates in 1954 and is known in the Bay Area for the California Museum of Oakland.
Does he like anything other than modernist architecture? Yes. He is ardent about Victorians — and especially the "painted ladies" of San Francisco. "They take 'Victorian' and make it goofy!"
More About Saarinen
"Musing on Modernism," featuring local author Richard Knight with images from his book, Saarinen's Quest, Thursday, Aug. 28, 7 p.m. at the Alameda Museum, 2324 Alameda Ave. (near Park Street). With fellow architect-author Pierluigi Serraino. Also see companion photo exhibit in Museum Art Gallery. Public admission $5. No reserved seats — come early. For information leave message at 748-0796. See www.alamedamuseum.org.
Saarinen's Quest — A Memoir
by Richard Knight, 167 pages
William Stout Publishers, 530 Greenwich St., San Francisco, CA 94133
(Publication made possible by funding from the Graham Foundation for the Advanced Studies in Fine Arts, and The LEF Foundation.)
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