Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Response to "My Architect" movie

Louis Isadore Kahn was born February 20th, 1901 in Kuressaare, Esonia but he soon immigrated to the United States with his Jewish family. One of the very distinct features that Louis possessed was a few scars on his face that he attained by putting some hot coals into an apron he was wearing and caught himself on fire. His father was not so sure Louis would (or should) make it, although his mother convinced him other wise. Louis grew up in a very poor family, they couldn't even afford pencils. They were able to improvise and created charcoal sticks that were just as effective in drawing and writing. As it turned out Kahn got a scholarship to go to the University of Pennsylvania, where he focused on drawing and eventually moving on to attain a Bachelor's in Architecture. After college, Kahn had sort of a tough time trying to get his career of the ground but, with the help of his first wife, he was able to get a little place where he could focus and do his work. The only trouble was that, for Kahn, he couldn't really find his own unique style of Architecture.
That all changed when he took a trip to the Ancient Ruins where he finally (at the age of Fifty) discovered a form of architecture that really touched him and meant something to him. He took sketches of the ruins he saw and incorporated them into his drawings. His form of architecture became so huge and breathtaking that the University in which he had attended asked him to design some of the building on campus. He also designed a building that is here in La Jolla.
He definitely had a unique way of constructing that was incredible and fun to look at. He really knew how to appeal to his audiences and incorporate old ideas into the new world. I truly respect his audacity by bringing in this new form of architectural design (that a few people were opposed to) that was completely different than what most Americans were used to, and making it successful.
It is unfortunate the way he died. He was found dead in a bathroom located in the Penn Station in New York. It is said that he died of a heart attack. What was strange though was that the address in his passport was scratched out, which led to the three days of which he was unidentified.

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