Architect · United States · 1918-1997
Paul Rudolph Biography, Buildings and Best Books
American architect (1918-1997) whose sculptural, corrugated concrete buildings defined American Brutalism, from the Yale Art and Architecture Building to his late towers in Asia.
Biography
Paul Rudolph (1918-1997) was an American architect and educator whose complex, sculptural buildings made him one of the leading figures of postwar modernism. Best known for the Yale Art and Architecture Building and its ribbed, bush-hammered concrete, he moved from light Florida houses to monumental Brutalist works and, late in his career, to towers in Southeast Asia.
Training with Gropius
Born in Elkton, Kentucky, the son of a Methodist minister, Rudolph studied architecture at the Alabama Polytechnic Institute, now Auburn University, graduating in 1940. He began graduate studies under Walter Gropius at Harvard in 1941, interrupted them for naval service in the Brooklyn Navy Yard during the Second World War, and completed his master’s degree in 1947.
The Sarasota School
In partnership with Ralph Twitchell, and later on his own, Rudolph designed a series of lightweight, experimental houses in Sarasota, Florida. Works such as the Healy Guest House, with its sagging “cocoon” roof, and the Umbrella House made him a leading figure of the Sarasota School of Architecture.
Yale and Brutalism
As chair of the architecture department at Yale from 1958 to 1965, Rudolph built the Yale Art and Architecture Building, a dense composition of more than thirty levels in corrugated, bush-hammered concrete. Its success and later controversy mirrored the fortunes of American Brutalism, which Rudolph extended in the Temple Street Parking Garage, Crawford Manor and the Orange County Government Center.
Asia and Late Work
As commissions in the United States declined, Rudolph found new clients in Southeast Asia, designing The Colonnade condominiums in Singapore, the Wisma Dharmala Tower in Jakarta and the Lippo Centre in Hong Kong. Their layered, sun-shaded forms adapted his sculptural language to the tropics. Rudolph died in New York in 1997.
The Architecture of Paul Rudolph
Timothy M. Rohan’s monograph is the definitive account of Rudolph’s career, from the Sarasota houses to Yale and the late Asian towers, drawing on extensive archival research and illustrated with drawings and photographs.
View on AmazonLooking for a shorter introduction? Materialized Space: The Architecture of Paul Rudolph (128 pages).
Timeline
- 1918Born on 23 October in Elkton, Kentucky.
- 1940Graduates in architecture from the Alabama Polytechnic Institute, now Auburn University.
- 1941Begins graduate studies under Walter Gropius at Harvard.
- 1947Completes his master’s degree after naval service and joins Ralph Twitchell in Sarasota, Florida.
- 1950Completes the Healy Guest House, known as the Cocoon House, on Siesta Key.
- 1953Completes the Umbrella House in Sarasota.
- 1958Becomes chair of the Department of Architecture at Yale University.
- 1963Completes the Yale Art and Architecture Building and the Temple Street Parking Garage in New Haven.
- 1966Completes Crawford Manor in New Haven.
- 1967Completes the Orange County Government Center in Goshen, New York.
- 1972Completes Tracey Towers in the Bronx.
- 1987Completes The Colonnade condominiums in Singapore.
- 1988Completes the Wisma Dharmala Tower in Jakarta and the Lippo Centre in Hong Kong.
- 1997Dies on 8 August in New York.
Best Books on Paul Rudolph
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is Paul Rudolph known for?
Paul Rudolph is known for sculptural, highly complex modern buildings, especially the Yale Art and Architecture Building with its ribbed, bush-hammered concrete, which made him a central figure of American Brutalism. He also led the Sarasota School of Architecture and chaired the Yale architecture department.
What are Paul Rudolph’s most famous buildings?
His most celebrated works include the Umbrella House in Sarasota (1953), the Yale Art and Architecture Building (1958-1963), the Temple Street Parking Garage (1959-1963), Crawford Manor (1962-1966), the Orange County Government Center (1963-1967), Tracey Towers (1967-1972) and the Wisma Dharmala Tower in Jakarta (1982-1988).
What is the best book about Paul Rudolph?
For the definitive study we recommend The Architecture of Paul Rudolph by Timothy M. Rohan (Yale University Press). For a short introduction, choose Materialized Space, published by the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
What architectural style is Paul Rudolph?
His early Florida houses belong to the Sarasota School, a regional modernism of light structures. From the late 1950s his work became monumental and sculptural, making him one of the key architects of Brutalism.
Where can you visit Paul Rudolph’s buildings?
The Yale Art and Architecture Building (now Paul Rudolph Hall) and the Temple Street Parking Garage are in New Haven. Several of his Sarasota works, including the Umbrella House and the Healy Guest House, survive in Florida, and his late towers stand in Singapore, Jakarta and Hong Kong.
