Julius Shulman

American photographer Julius Shulman's images of Californian architecture have burned themselves into the retina of the 20th century. A book on modern architecture without Shulman is inconceivable. Some of his architectural photographs, like the iconic shots of Frank Lloyd Wright's or Pierre Koenig's remarkable structures, have been published countless times. The brilliance of buildings like those by Charles Eames, as well as those of his close Friend, Richard Neutra, was first brought to light by Shulman's photography. The clarity of his work demanded that architectural photography had to be considered as an independent art form. Each Schulman image unites perception and understanding for the buildings and their place in the landscape. The precise compositions reveal not just the architectural ideas behind a building's surface, but also the visions and hopes of an entire age. A sense of humanity is always present in his work, even when the human figure is absent from the actual photographs. Today, a great many of the buildings documented by Shulman have disappeared or been crudely converted, but the thirst for his pioneering images is stronger than ever before. This is a vivid journey across six decades of great architecture and classic photography through the famously incomparable eyes of Julius Shulman.

Through Julius Shulman’s lens, the architecture of Southern California became iconic images of modernism. His photographs heralded the glamor and casual elegance of a lifestyle and architecture that has become revered worldwide. Focusing on the desert paradise of Palm Springs, which was his seminal crucible, this book presents his masterpieces. Images range from Richard Neutra’s Kaufmann House and Albert Frey’s Raymond Loewy House, to Paul R. Williams’ house for Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, Frank Sinatra’s house, John Lautner’s house for Bob Hope, as well as other famous landmarks. The book features more than sixty buildings by fifteen of the most notable mid-twentieth-century architects. With new photography and images culled from his personal collection as well as the Getty Center, this book includes many images never before seen.

Julius Shulman, one of the great master of architectural photography, is the preeminent recoreder of early California modernism. By 1927, when he was sixteen, Shulman was already using the family Brownie box camera to document his Southern Californis surroundings and experiences; in 1936, his professional career was launched when he sent Richard Neutra some uncommissioned photographs of the architect's Kun House. Shulman went on to document the famous Case Study House Program (architects included Charles and Ray Eames, Pierre Koenig, and Eero Saarinen) and also the architecure of the 1930s through the 1980s, especially that of Southern California, but also country and worldwide. His subjects included the buildings of R.M. Schindler, John Lautner, Raphael Soriano, Frank Lloyd Wright, Mies van der Rohe, Oscar Niemeyer, among many others. Through his work, Shulman defined the image of Los Angeles and framed the architecture of the time for a global audience. In addition to an overview of Shulman's career and photographic oevre, this book emphasizes Shulman's method of "constructing" photographic views. These contructions, which complemented his innate ability to compose striking photographs, often transcends reality to capture the spirit, time and place of a work of architecture. An analysis of architecture's visual presentation examines not only the media of the era--John Entenza's "Arts & Architecture," for instance--but also the work of Shulman's photographic contemporaries. Joseph Rosa is chief curator of the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., and the author of numerous essays and books, including Rizzoli's "Albert Frey, Architect." He received his architecturedegree from Columbia University and is currently a doctoral candidate in the university's Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. Ester McCoy was the formost architectural historian of Southern California. Her books include "Modern California Houses, Five California Architects, "and "Vienna to Los Angeles: Two Journeys."

A new appreciation for the genius of architectural photographer Julius Shulman has opened the way for hundreds of abandoned masterworks to be rediscovered. The images burned in our memories, which to us represent the spirit of fifties and sixties design, were those widely published in magazines and books; but what about those that were not? The abandoned files of Julius Shulman show us another side of Modernism that has stayed quiet for many years. The exchange of visual information is crucial to the development, evolution, and promotion of architectural movements. If a building is not widely seen, its photograph rarely or never published, it simply does not enter into architectural discourse. Many buildings photographed by Shulman suffered this fate, their images falling into oblivion. With this new book, Taschen brings them to light, paying homage to California Modernism in all its forms. It's like sneaking into a private history, into homes that have rarely been seen and hardly appreciated as of yet. Bringing together nearly 300 forgotten masterpieces, Modernism Rediscovered breathes eternal life into these outstanding contributions to the modern architectural movement.

Julius Shulman's long career photographing great architectural works with depth, passion, drama, and an instinct for the architect's intentions has ensured his present status as one of the world's preeminent architectural photographers. His eloquent photos interpreting the structures of Richard Neutra and other early modernists helped the viewing public to understand these revolutionary buildings, and brought prominence to modernist practitioners who might otherwise have been considered eccentric. Frank Lloyd Wright once said that no better photos had ever been taken of Taliesin West than those by Shulman. Photographing Architecture and Interiors, published in 1962, is Shulman's first book, and he still considers it to be his most genuine reflection on the profession and on his own artistic philosophy. This title is an exact reprint of that now-classic publication. All of Shulman's famous photographs have here been reproduced from original prints, giving the images a crispness and luminosity not seen even in the 1962 edition. The introduction by Richard Neutra, perhaps Shulman's most important client and avid supporter, has been preserved; also included is a new foreword by Shulman himself.

"A selection of 60 photographs of Los Angeles by the photographer Julius Shulman (American, 1910-2009)."--Provided by publisher.

Facsimile of Shulman's master prints documenting the construction of his Laurel Canyon home and studio designed in 1949 by Raphael Soriano.--