Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email
Answers.com

Pietro Belluschi

 
Art Encyclopedia: Pietro Belluschi
Home > Library > Entertainment & Arts > Art Encyclopedia

(b Ancona, 18 Aug 1899). American architect of Italian birth. He graduated in civil engineering from the University of Rome (1922) and went to Cornell University, Ithaca, NY (1924), and remained in the USA, moving to Portland, OR. His career falls into four distinct phases. He joined the firm of A. E. Doyle Associates as a draughtsman in 1925 and upon Doyle's death in 1928 became chief designer, remaining an associate of the firm until 1942. His first major commission was for extensions to the Portland Art Museum (1929), which brought him national acclaim. Completed in 1932, the design was remarkably modern in its crisp, unornamented brick and innovative use of natural daylighting. Belluschi was invited to design additions to the museum over a period of more than 40 years. In 1936 Belluschi designed his own house, the first of a series of private residences demonstrating his commitment to the Modern Movement, and bearing the influence of Frank Lloyd Wright and the influence of Japanese architecture. Eschewing the fashionable historicizing trends in favour of simple, unpainted wooden buildings with gently pitched roofs, integrated with their natural sites, he drew inspiration from the simple vernacular.

See the Abbreviations for further details.


Search unanswered questions...

Enter a question here...
Search: All sources Community Q&A Reference topics

Architecture and Landscaping: Pietro Belluschi
Top
Home > Library > Home & Garden > Architecture and Landscaping

(1899–1994)

Italian-born architect and engineer, he settled in the USA in the 1920s, and joined the Portland, OR, office of the architect Albert Ernest Doyle (1877–1928) in 1925, which he reorganized under his own name in 1943. In the 1930s Belluschi established his architectural reputation with several commercial, domestic, and religious buildings, among which the Art Museum (1931–8), Finley Mortuary (1936–7), Sutor House (1937–8), and Church of St Thomas More (1939–41), all in Portland, should be mentioned. With his US National Bank of Oregon, Salem (1940–1), he showed an inclination to International Modernism, a tendency reinforced with his Equitable Life Assurance Building, Portland (1944–8), one of the first examples of an aluminium-and-glass curtainwall enclosing a concrete-framed tower, a building-type that became very common thereafter. From 1951 he was appointed Dean of the School of Architecture and Planning at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and his practice was absorbed by Skidmore, Owings, & Merrill (SOM). Fond of the phrase ‘eliminate, refine, and integrate’, he had built up a huge commercial practice, and collaborated with others while involved at MIT, notably with Eduardo Catalano (1917– ) and Helge Westermann for the Juilliard School of Music and Alice Tully Hall at the Lincoln Center, New York (1955–70), with a travertine marble façade masking the buildings behind it. On relinquishing his position at MIT in 1965 he again established an architectural practice in Portland, often working with other architects. Among the laterworks are numerous churches, the San Francisco Symphony Hall, CA (with SOM–1980), and the Baltimore Symphony Hall, MD (with Jung, Brannen, Associates–1982).

Bibliography

  • Clausen (1992, 1994)
  • Gubotosi & Izzo (ed.) (1974)
  • Heyer (1978)
  • Stubblebine (1953)

The full bibliography for this book is available to download as a pdf file.
Download the bibliography for A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (PDF: 1.2MB)

 
Columbia Encyclopedia: Pietro Belluschi
Top
Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Columbia Encyclopedia - People
Belluschi, Pietro (pyĕ'trō bəlū'skē), 1899-1994, Italian-American civil engineer, designer, and architect. Belluschi served as dean and professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's school of architecture and planning (1951-65). He designed numerous residential and office buildings, including the Equitable Building in Portland, Oreg. (1948) and the Juilliard School of Music, part of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. The latter reveals an interesting use of dark glass.
Wikipedia: Pietro Belluschi
Top
Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Pietro Belluschi
Personal information
Name Pietro Belluschi
Nationality Italian
American
Birth date August 18, 1899(1899-08-18)
Birth place Ancona, Italy
Date of death February 14, 1994 (aged 94)
Place of death Portland, Oregon, U.S.A.
Work
Significant buildings Equitable Building
Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption
Awards and prizes AIA Gold Medal

Pietro Belluschi (August 18, 1899 – February 14, 1994) was an American architect, a leader of the Modern Movement in architecture, and was responsible for the design of over one thousand buildings.[1]

Born in Italy, Belluschi's architectural career began as a draftsman in a Portland, Oregon firm. He achieved a national reputation within about twenty years, largely for his 1947 aluminum-clad Equitable Building. In 1951 he was named the dean of the MIT School of Architecture and Planning, where he served until 1965, also working as collaborator and design consultant for many high-profile commissions, most famously the 1963 Pan Am Building. He won the 1972 AIA Gold Medal.

Contents

Early life

Pietro Belluschi was born in Ancona, Italy in 1899.[2] He grew up in Italy and served in the Italian armed forces during World War I when Italy was allied with Great Britain, France, and later the United States.[2] Serving in the army he fought against the Austrians at the battles of Caporetto and Vittorio Veneto.[2] After the war, Belluschi studied at the University of Rome, earning a degree in civil engineering in 1922.[1]

He moved to the United States in 1923, despite speaking no English, and finished his education—as an exchange student on a scholarship—at Cornell University with a second degree in civil engineering.[1][2][3] Instead of returning to Italy, he worked briefly as a mining engineer in Idaho earning $5 per day, but he then joined the architectural office of A. E. Doyle in Portland.[2] He remained in the U.S., as friends in Italy had cautioned him to not return home because of the rise to power of Benito Mussolini and the Fascist government.[2]

Career

Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption in San Francisco

At Doyle's office, Belluschi rose rapidly, soon becoming chief designer. After Doyle died in 1928, the firm took him into partnership in 1933. By 1943, Belluschi had assumed control of the firm by buying out all the other partners and was practicing under his own name.

In 1951, Belluschi became Dean of the architecture and planning school at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a position he held until 1965.[1] When he accepted the position of dean and moved to Massachusetts, he transferred his office in Portland to the architecture firm Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. The move reduced his annual income from $150,000 to a salary of $15,000, but was prompted by health concerns attributable to the long hours of managing his office while still designing buildings.[2]

Belluschi emerged as a leader in the development of American Modern architecture, with the design of several buildings reflecting the influence of the International Style and his awareness of the technological opportunities of new materials. Most important was the Equitable Building (1944–47) in Portland, Oregon: a concrete frame office block clad in aluminum, and considered the first office building with a completely sealed air-conditioned environment.

Belluschi's churches and residences differed from his commercial works. Although of Modern design, they fit within the development of the Pacific Northwest regional Modern idiom as they frequently used regional materials (particularly wood) and were often integrated with their suburban or rural sites.

Awards

Belluschi was a Fellow in the American Institute of Architects (AIA), and was awarded the AIA Gold Medal, the highest award given by the institute, in 1972.[1] He was awarded the National Medal of Arts by the National Endowment for the Arts in 1991 for his lifetime achievements.[4] Belluschi was on the jury that selected the winning design for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.[5]

Later life

The Portland Art Museum.

After leaving MIT in 1965, he continued to work. Belluschi would design and consult on both buildings and issues surrounding urban planning.[2] Pietro married Marjorie, and they had two sons: Peter and Anthony.[2] Pietro Belluschi died in Portland on February 14, 1994.[2]

Works

Commonwealth Building in Portland.
Rohm and Haas

Belluschi's designs include:

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Belluschi, Pietro. (2007). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved September 22, 2007, from: Encyclopædia Britannica Online
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Gragg, Randy. "Belluschi revered as creative, 'spiritual' architect". The Oregonian, February 15, 1994.
  3. ^ Birkland, Dave (February 161994). "Pietro Belluschi, 94, Helped Design Seattle Convention Center". Seattle Times. http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=19940216&slug=1895440. Retrieved 2008-07-01. 
  4. ^ National Medal of Arts: Medalists. National Endowment for the Arts, accessed September 22, 2007.
  5. ^ Clausen, Meredith L., Pietro Belluschi: Modern American Architect, MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts and London 1994, ISBN 0262032201
  6. ^ a b c d Architects Associated with Oregon State Hospital
  7. ^ a b Gregg, Robert D. 1970. Chronicles of Willamette, volume II: Those eventful years of the President Smith era. Salem, Or: Willamette University.
  8. ^ http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Peter_Kerr_House.html
  9. ^ Central Lutheran Church: Building History
  10. ^ Salem Online History, The YWCA: Celebrating 90 Years in Salem
  11. ^ Marion County Circuit Court:The Marion County Courthouse: A Historical Perspective
  12. ^ University of Oregon News release: "UO Gallery Shows Drawings by Pietro Belluschi
  13. ^ George Fox University: Centennial Clock Tower
  14. ^ George Fox University Athletic Facilities, Newberg, Ore.
  15. ^ University of Portland: Campus Ministry: Prayer Schedule

External links

Search Wikimedia Commons Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Pietro Belluschi
v • d • e
Notable architecture in Portland, Oregon
Topics:
Architects and firms:
A. E. Doyle • Pietro Belluschi • Francis Marion Stokes • John Yeon
Tallest buildings:
Other modern buildings:
Historic buildings:
Government buildings:
Hotels:
Transportation:
Museums and Entertainment venues:

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 

 

Copyrights:

Art Encyclopedia. The Concise Grove Dictionary of Art. Copyright © 2002 by Oxford University Press, Inc.. All rights reserved.  Read more
Architecture and Landscaping. A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. Copyright © 1999, 2006 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.  Read more
Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Pietro Belluschi".  Read more