Bernard Maybeck: Architect of Elegance
Hardcover – August 1, 2011

by Mark Anthony Wilson
Photographer Joel Puliatti 

 

Celebrating one of San Francisco/Berkeley’s most iconic architects.

 

The work of Bernard Maybeck has influenced generations of architects. His landmark buildings include the Palace of Fine Arts and First Church of Christ, Scientist. His emphasis on an open use of natural materials marks him as a pioneer in sustainable architecture, or “green design.” Maybeck's work achieves that delicate balance between historicism and modernism, and his buildings are still in use throughout several states on the West Coast and the Midwest. This book includes more than two dozen Maybeck buildings that have never been photographed in color in any other book, as well as several of his buildings that were never documented before.

 

Architect of Elegance not only encompasses his most memorable works but also includes letters and drawings from the family archives never before seen by the general public. The foreword is written by Maybeck's granddaugther, Cherry Maybeck Nittler. Author Mark Wilson's 22-year friendship with Bernard Maybeck's daughter-in-law, Jacomena Maybeck, gave him unique insights into the life and work of one of America's most important architects.

 

Mark Anthony Wilson has a BA in history and an MA in history and media. He teaches art and architecture at UC–Berkeley Extension and Santa Rosa Junior College. His articles have appeared in U.S. newspapers, and he has authored Julia Morgan: Architect of Beauty (Gibbs Smith, 2007). He has been writing and teaching about Bernard Maybeck for 35 years.