Between Silence and Light
John Lobell
Shambhala Publications, 1979
Paperback | 9-1/4 x 10 inches | 120 pages | English | ISBN: 978-1590306048 | $24.95 (Second Edition, 2008)
PUBLISHER'S DESCRIPTION:
In the development of contemporary architecture, no one has had a greater influence than Louis I. Kahn, whose many buildings include the Salk Institute, the Yale Study Center, and the Exeter Library. He is remembered, however, not only as a master builder, but also as one of the most important and creative thinkers of the twentieth century.
For Kahn, the study of architecture was the study of human beings, their highest aspirations and most profound truths. He searched for forms and materials to express the subtlety and grandeur of life. In his buildings we see the realization of his vision: luminous surfaces that evoke a fundamental awe, silent courtyards that speak of the expansiveness and the sanctity of the spirit, monumental columns and graceful arches that embody dignity and strength.
Updated with a new preface, this classic work is a major statement on human creativity, showing us Louis Kahn as architect, visionary, and poet.
John Lobell is an architect and a professor in the School of Architecture at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York. He has written numerous articles and reviews for art and architecture magazines including Artforum and Progressive Architecture.
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dDAB COMMENTARY:
A couple days ago, in my review of John Lobell's new Louis Kahn: Architecture as Philosophy, I described his earlier book, Between Silence and Light, as "one of the most popular books on the architecture of Louis I. Kahn." Written in 1979, and most recently updated in 2008, the book predated the 1991 exhibition and catalog In the Realm of Architecture and the subsequent onslaught of books presenting Kahn's works. In the 1980s, one's only option was tracking down the hard-to-find Complete Works, so I'm guessing Between Silence and Light was at that time a welcome addition to the dearth of books on Kahn. Yet by focusing on Kahn's philosophical words alongside a presentation of his most important buildings, Lobell's first book also amplified the understanding of Kahn as something of a sage, which makes the book important as well as popular.
Lobell emphasizes Kahn's often enigmatic words by quoting them across the first half of the book. Statements on "the Unmeasurable and Measurable," "Order," "Silence and Light," "the Garden and the Room," and other things both abstract and physical are placed on the left page, sitting opposite images, be they Kahn's buildings, ancient buildings, or even nature. It's more like spiritual self-help than a monograph, so no wonder the publisher is Shambhala rather than Rizzoli or another publisher one might associate with architecture books. The fifty pages of Kahn's words paired with images are followed by Lobell's essay, "Architecture as Spirit," and then a presentation of eight Kahn buildings, including the Salk, the Kimbell, and Exeter (these three are in my 100 Years, 100 Buildings). This order — from intangible to physical via an explication of Kahn's philosophical statements — is a logical one, allowing readers to absorb those statements then see how they were transformed into architecture. Few architects practice today with such ambiguous pronouncements (e.g., "[Man] is the seat of the unmeasurable...." "Lightless; darkless. Desire to be, to express," or "Order is."), but that doesn't reduce the influence Kahn's words and buildings continue to have on architects today.
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