Mythical Vernacular Monuments / [presented by] Reyner Banham (Architectural Historian).

Format:

Sound recording

Contributor:

Banham, Reyner, narrator.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Grain elevators--Design and construction.

Grain elevators.

Architecture, Modern--20th century.

Architecture, Modern.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (1 video file (22 minutes)): sound, color

Place of Publication:

London, England: Pidgeon Digital, 1982.

Summary:

The late Reyner Banham, architectural historian and "eminence grise", was Professor in Art History at the University of California at Santa Cruz at the time of this talk. He went there from Buffalo, where he had chaired the Department of Design Studies in the School of Architecture after a long reign at London University's Bartlett School of Architecture. His claim to fame came in 1960 with the publication of his doctoral thesis under the title "Theory & Design: The First Machine Age". It was the beginning of a series of best-sellers from his pen, some written while he was still an editor at the Architectural Review in London. These included "Guide To Modern Architecture", "Architecture Of The Well-Tempered Environment", "Los Angeles" and "Megastructure". He also had a devoted following for the articles on all manner of subjects which he contributed over the years to the New Statesman and then to New Society. In his talk, he discusses the grain elevators of North America and how they constitute a kind of monumental vernacular of the early twentieth century around which gathered powerful myths. It was Walter Gropius who first drew attention to them in an article on the development of modern industrial architecture, yet he, along with most of the early modern architects of Europe, had seen the buildings only in photos.

Contents:

Reyner Banham, 1982

Grain Elevator On The Medway, Minneapolis

Gropius Illustration: Buffalo & Buenos Aires

Gropius Illustration: Montreal & Fort William

Gropius Illustration: Washburn Crosby Elevators

Bennett Elevator, Buffalo, Demolished 1912

Great Northern Elevator, Buffalo, 1896. Max Toltz, Engineer

Dakota Elevator Under Construction, Buffalo, 1908. Reidpath & Sons, Architects & Engineers

General Mills Complex, Buffalo (Formerly Washburn Crosby) 1906 Onwards

Gropius Illustration: Washburn Crosby

Washburn Crosby Phase 1, 1906 - 1907. Reidpath & Sons, Architects & Engineers

General Mills, Surviving Tile Bins, 1906

Johnson Record Trade Plate, c. 1905

Peavey's Folly, Minneapolis, 1900. Haglin & Heffelfinger, Engineers

Mendelsohn Illustration: Washburn Crosby (As In 1926)

General Mills, Details Of Concrete Bins

Gropius Illustration: South America

Lake & Rail Elevator, Buffalo. A.E. Baxter, Architectural Consultant

Apartment House Project, 1916. Mario Chiattone

Elevator, Barby An Der Elbe, 1922 - 1924. Wayss & Freytag, Engineers

Government Elevator, Montreal, Demolished 1978 & Marché Bonsecours

Ex-Government Elevator, Calgary, Alberta

Concrete Central, Buffalo, 1915 - 1917. A.E. Baxter, Architectural Consultant

Elevators On The Buffalo River.

Notes:

Title from publisher's website (viewed April 23, 2021).

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license.