Architect · United States · 1906-2005
Philip Johnson Biography, Buildings and Best Books
American architect and curator (1906-2005) who introduced the International Style to the United States, built the Glass House and became the first winner of the Pritzker Prize.
Photo: Bernard Gotfryd, Library of Congress, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Biography
Philip Johnson (1906-2005) was an American architect, curator and critic who helped bring European modernism to the United States and later became one of the leading figures of postmodernism. Best known for the Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut, and for his collaboration with Mies van der Rohe on the Seagram Building, he received the first Pritzker Architecture Prize in 1979.
Harvard, MoMA and the International Style
Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Johnson studied classics and philosophy at Harvard, graduating in 1930. In 1932 he became the first director of the Department of Architecture at the Museum of Modern Art, where he and the historian Henry-Russell Hitchcock organised the exhibition Modern Architecture: International Exhibition and wrote the book The International Style, which named and defined the new architecture for an American audience.
A late start in architecture
After a period in the 1930s marked by political activity and fascist sympathies, which he later repudiated, Johnson enrolled at the Harvard Graduate School of Design and graduated in 1943. His first house, the Booth House in Bedford, New York (1946), was followed in 1949 by the Glass House in New Canaan, a steel and glass pavilion in a landscape that he continued to shape with new buildings for the rest of his life.
Mies, Seagram and the modernist decades
Johnson worked closely with Mies van der Rohe, writing the first monograph on him in 1947 and joining him on the Seagram Building in New York (1958), where he also designed the Four Seasons restaurant. He returned to MoMA as director of architecture, designed its sculpture garden and additions, and in the 1960s and 1970s built the New York State Theater at Lincoln Center, the John F. Kennedy Memorial in Dallas (1970) and Pennzoil Place in Houston.
Postmodernism and the Pritzker Prize
In partnership with John Burgee from 1967, Johnson moved away from orthodox modernism. The AT&T Building in New York (1984), with its broken pediment, became a symbol of postmodern architecture, and the Crystal Cathedral in California (1980) showed his continuing interest in glass. In 1979 he became the first laureate of the Pritzker Architecture Prize. He died at the Glass House in 2005, leaving the estate to the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
The Man in the Glass House: Philip Johnson, Architect of the Modern Century
Mark Lamster’s 528-page biography, the first full account of Johnson’s life, follows him from MoMA to the Glass House and the AT&T Building, without avoiding the controversies.
View on Amazon
Timeline
- 1906Born on 8 July in Cleveland, Ohio.
- 1930Graduates from Harvard University.
- 1932Co-curates Modern Architecture: International Exhibition at MoMA and publishes The International Style.
- 1943Graduates from the Harvard Graduate School of Design.
- 1946Completes the Booth House in Bedford, New York.
- 1947Publishes the first monograph on Mies van der Rohe.
- 1949Completes the Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut.
- 1953Completes the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Sculpture Garden at MoMA.
- 1958Completes the Seagram Building with Mies van der Rohe.
- 1964Completes the New York State Theater at Lincoln Center.
- 1967Begins his partnership with John Burgee.
- 1970Completes the John F. Kennedy Memorial in Dallas.
- 1979Receives the first Pritzker Architecture Prize.
- 1984Completes the AT&T Building in New York.
- 2005Dies on 25 January at the Glass House in New Canaan.
Best Books on Philip Johnson
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is Philip Johnson known for?
Philip Johnson is known for introducing the International Style to the United States as a curator at MoMA, for the Glass House in New Canaan, for his work with Mies van der Rohe on the Seagram Building and for the postmodern AT&T Building. He received the first Pritzker Architecture Prize in 1979.
What are Philip Johnson’s most famous buildings?
His best-known buildings include the Glass House in New Canaan, the Seagram Building in New York (with Mies van der Rohe), the John F. Kennedy Memorial in Dallas, Pennzoil Place in Houston, the Crystal Cathedral in California and the AT&T Building (now 550 Madison) in New York.
What is the best book on Philip Johnson?
Mark Lamster’s biography The Man in the Glass House is the most complete account of his life and work. For his own ideas, read The International Style, written with Henry-Russell Hitchcock.
What is Philip Johnson’s architectural style?
Johnson’s early work follows the International Style and the example of Mies van der Rohe, with steel, glass and clear geometry. From the late 1960s his work became more eclectic and historicist, and he is widely seen as a leading figure of postmodernism.
Can you visit Philip Johnson’s Glass House?
Yes. The Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut, is owned by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and is open for guided tours from spring to autumn, usually with advance booking.
