George Howe (architect)
Encyclopedia
George Howe was an American architect and educator, and an early convert to the International style
. With William Lescaze
, he designed Philadelphia's PSFS Building
(1930-32).
in 1886 to James and Helen Howe. He received his Bachelor of Architecture
from Harvard
in 1908, and graduated from the École des Beaux-Arts
in 1912. He worked for the Philadelphia
firm of Furness, Evans & Co.
from 1913 to 1916, and then joined the partnership of Walter Mellor & Arthur I. Meigs. He served in the military from 1917 to 1919, during World War I
. Mellor, Meigs & Howe's commissions were mostly residential and minor commercial buildings, with Bryn Mawr College
's Goodhart Hall (1926-29), a Neo-Gothic auditorium, being their largest commission of the 1920s.
He left in 1928, and in 1929 formed a partnership with William Lescaze
, a younger Swiss
architect who had studied at ETH Zurich
, and had first hand knowledge of the Europe
an avant-garde
. Their collaboration yielded the landmark PSFS Building
in Philadelphia, one of the first International style
skyscrapers built in the United States.
After leaving Howe & Lescaze in 1932, Howe designed several private residences in the Philadelphia area. Throughout the late 1930s, Howe collaborated with Louis Kahn
at the Philadelphia Housing Authority
; and again in 1940, along with Oscar Stonorov
, on the design of housing developments
in other parts of Pennsylvania
.
Howe was a Fellow at the American Academy in Rome
from 1947 to 1949 and Chair of the Architectural Department at Yale
from 1950 to 1954.
International style (architecture)
The International style is a major architectural style that emerged in the 1920s and 1930s, the formative decades of Modern architecture. The term originated from the name of a book by Henry-Russell Hitchcock and Philip Johnson, The International Style...
. With William Lescaze
William Lescaze
William Edmond Lescaze was a Swiss-born American architect, and is one of the pioneers of modernism in American architecture....
, he designed Philadelphia's PSFS Building
Loews Philadelphia Hotel
The Loews Philadelphia Hotel, also known as the Philadelphia Saving Fund Society Building, or PSFS Building, is a skyscraper in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. A National Historic Landmark, the Loews Philadelphia was the first International style skyscraper built in the...
(1930-32).
Biography
He was born in Worcester, MassachusettsWorcester, Massachusetts
Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
in 1886 to James and Helen Howe. He received his Bachelor of Architecture
Bachelor of Architecture
The Bachelor of Architecture is an undergraduate academic degree designed to satisfy the academic component of professional accreditation bodies, to be followed by a period of practical training prior to professional examination and registration. It is awarded for a course of study that lasts up...
from Harvard
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1908, and graduated from the École des Beaux-Arts
École des Beaux-Arts
École des Beaux-Arts refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The most famous is the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, now located on the left bank in Paris, across the Seine from the Louvre, in the 6th arrondissement. The school has a history spanning more than 350 years,...
in 1912. He worked for the Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
firm of Furness, Evans & Co.
Frank Furness
Frank Heyling Furness was an acclaimed American architect of the Victorian era. He designed more than 600 buildings, most in the Philadelphia area, and is remembered for his eclectic, muscular, often idiosyncratically scaled buildings, and for his influence on the Chicago architect Louis Sullivan...
from 1913 to 1916, and then joined the partnership of Walter Mellor & Arthur I. Meigs. He served in the military from 1917 to 1919, during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Mellor, Meigs & Howe's commissions were mostly residential and minor commercial buildings, with Bryn Mawr College
Bryn Mawr College
Bryn Mawr College is a women's liberal arts college located in Bryn Mawr, a community in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania, ten miles west of Philadelphia. The name "Bryn Mawr" means "big hill" in Welsh....
's Goodhart Hall (1926-29), a Neo-Gothic auditorium, being their largest commission of the 1920s.
He left in 1928, and in 1929 formed a partnership with William Lescaze
William Lescaze
William Edmond Lescaze was a Swiss-born American architect, and is one of the pioneers of modernism in American architecture....
, a younger Swiss
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
architect who had studied at ETH Zurich
ETH Zurich
The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich or ETH Zürich is an engineering, science, technology, mathematics and management university in the City of Zurich, Switzerland....
, and had first hand knowledge of the Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
. Their collaboration yielded the landmark PSFS Building
Loews Philadelphia Hotel
The Loews Philadelphia Hotel, also known as the Philadelphia Saving Fund Society Building, or PSFS Building, is a skyscraper in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. A National Historic Landmark, the Loews Philadelphia was the first International style skyscraper built in the...
in Philadelphia, one of the first International style
International style (architecture)
The International style is a major architectural style that emerged in the 1920s and 1930s, the formative decades of Modern architecture. The term originated from the name of a book by Henry-Russell Hitchcock and Philip Johnson, The International Style...
skyscrapers built in the United States.
After leaving Howe & Lescaze in 1932, Howe designed several private residences in the Philadelphia area. Throughout the late 1930s, Howe collaborated with Louis Kahn
Louis Kahn
Louis Isadore Kahn was an American architect, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. After working in various capacities for several firms in Philadelphia, he founded his own atelier in 1935...
at the Philadelphia Housing Authority
Public housing in Philadelphia
Public housing in Philadelphia is a significant portion of the overall housing stock in Philadelphia. Most public housing is operated by the Philadelphia Housing Authority.-List of public housing projects:*Passyunk Homes South Philadelphia...
; and again in 1940, along with Oscar Stonorov
Oscar Stonorov
Oscar Gregory Stonorov , was a modernist architect and architectural writer, historian and archivist who emigrated to the United States from Germany in 1929.His first name is often spelled "Oskar".-Early life:...
, on the design of housing developments
Housing developments
Housing developments are structured building development of residential properties. Popular throughout the US and UK, these are often areas of high density, low impact residences of single family homes....
in other parts of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
.
Howe was a Fellow at the American Academy in Rome
American Academy in Rome
The American Academy in Rome is a research and arts institution located on the Gianicolo in Rome.- History :In 1893, a group of American architects, painters and sculptors met regularly while planning the fine arts section of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition...
from 1947 to 1949 and Chair of the Architectural Department at Yale
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
from 1950 to 1954.