READY TO ROLL: A Celebration of the Classic American Travel Trailer
From the highly acclaimed team of Arrol Gellner and Douglas Keister comes a stunning, visual celebration of the classic American travel trailer. The authors take the reader on an unforgettable journey through the decidedly retro world of the "rolling bungalow" - a uniquely American icon that has, since its inception, been an enduring symbol of our love of the open road, and of freedom.Packed with the kind of stellar historical information and photography that has become synonymous with the Gellner/Keister team, Ready to Roll focuses on the vintage travel trailers of the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, their historical and stylistic implications, their often luxurious and sometimes whimsical quirkiness, and their broad, nearly century-long appeal to everyone from the extremely wealthy to everyman and beyond. Here, they include an insightful tour of great nomadic neighborhoods throughout America, while also providing a complete introduction to the history of the American Travel Trailer itself; its derivation, development, and evolution from both design and an historical perspectives.
Filled with more than 300 magnificent color images, Ready to Roll hearkens back a time when taking to the open road was a inimitably American dream; it will delight all fans of retro Americana, antique car collectors, and lovers of classically American architecture.
For additional information, contact Amity Murray, Publicity, Viking Penguin 2I2.366.2227, email: amity.murray@u s.penguingroup.com. Please visit us on the worldwide web: www.penguinputnam. com
AMERICAN ART DECO: ARCHITECTURE & REGIONALISM
by Carla Breeze
A lavishly illustrated survey of American art deco architecture, the book features outstanding examples in all regions of the US. Art deco flourished in cities and small towns throughout America during the 1920s and 1930s. Extremely popular as a statement of modernity and technological progress, art deco movie palaces, dime stores, department stores, courthouses, and schools were ubiquitous in the American landscape; numerous examples of the style continue to be viable spaces. Consequently, art deco is one of the few styles of architecture which the majority of Americans can identify.
American art deco was unique. Unlike their European counterparts, architects in the United States had "exotic" indigenous cultures for inspiration. Arts such as Navajo chiefs' blankets, Hopi pottery, and Sioux beadwork, characterized by geometric ornament, were easily assimilated into the art deco style. Regionalism - a good example of which is the Prairie style, advocated by Frank Lloyd Wright and other progressive architects - also influenced American art deco. America's pioneering and westward migration provided powerful themes and motifs, producing an art deco with authentic national and regional characteristics.
The buildings featured in American Art Deco represent those which have maximum architectural integrity: exterior features such as windows, doors, light fixtures, ornament, and interior ceilings, elevator doors, stairways, and ornament have not been drastically altered or removed. Buildings in the art deco style, which have not been modified, are rare. A majority of these spaces were commercial, and have been prey to considerations of profit and convenience.
National Shrine of the Little Flower
Interior spaces are especially vulnerable to modification due to upgraded building codes, maintenance issues, and even aesthetics.
The survey which I have conducted over the past 10 years indicates that buildings which are owned by one person or a small group of private owners tend to be scrupulously maintained, compared to those owned by larger real estate entities, although many corporations do recognize the historic value of their properties. Private owners are essentially collectors of a large and expensive medium, who understand the significance of maintaining their interiors and the building's integrity. Maintenance and preservation are costly, but without such collectors, the unique characteristics of numerous buildings would be eroded. The Stock Exchange Lunch Club (now the City Club) in San Francisco, owned by The Empire Group, Naniboujou Lodge in Minnesota, the Paramount Theatre in Oakland, and the Edgar Miller complexes in Chicago, are particularly significant because even original furniture remains intact in these notable buildings.
Corporate entities are certainly capable of maintaining historic interiors (in general, primarily lobbies) as exemplified by AIG's Cities Service Building in New York City and Union Trust Building in Detroit. Theaters have fared better since many have been managed by nonprofit agencies or civic organization. The Paramount Theatre in Oakland was acquired by the Oakland Symphony in 1972, and contains original furniture and fixtures, which have been meticulously maintained. Due to the devoted efforts of local preservationists, the Egyptian Theater in Atlanta was saved with virtually every piece of furniture intact when it was scheduled to be demolished. Art deco societies and other preservation organizations in the major cities and various regions of the United States have contributed to public education and preservation of buildings from this period.
Art deco's emphasis on industrial production and schematized, exotic motifs was easily adapted to regionalism in America, and exoticism was supplied by indigenous cultures. Art deco has been modified in each region of America to reflect the unique history and environment of these regions which shaped the vision of early twentieth century architects and designers.
Carla Breeze is an architectural photographer living in New York City. Breeze marks as a photographer for architects in the United States and Europe. Her work is in various museum collections, including the National Gallery in Washington, D. G.
"ART DECO IN DETROIT"
By Rebecca Savage & Greg Kowalski`Art Deco in Detroit" a new book by Rebecca Binno Savage and Greg Kowalski to be published in March, 2004, by Arcadia Press.
"Art Deco in Detroit" is a comprehensive collection of the Metropolitan Detroit Area's art deco architecture. From the skyscrapers downtown to the roadside architecture in the suburbs, this book will discover some of the hidden art deco architecture in the Detroit area. Bet you didn't know we have very unique examples of art deco in Detroit, such as the Livingstone Lighthouse on Belle Isle, the National Shrine of the Little Flower Church in Royal Oak, and the WJR transmitter.
Initially developed by the Detroit Area Art Deco Society, the survey of Detroit's art deco architecture began as a slide presentation that was assembled by volunteers. Now, Detroit's art deco buildings are gathered in a book for the first time.
Look for it in March 2004 at your local Borders Books, Antiques on Main, and Pure Detroit.
Livingstone Lighthouse on Belle Isle
WJR transmitter
