Bernard Maybeck

Bernard Ralph Maybeck (February 7, 1862 – October 3, 1957) was a prominent architect in the Arts and Crafts Movement of the early 20th century.

Early life and education

Maybeck was born in New York City, the son of a German immigrant and studied at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris, France [ [http://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/10great/2006-10-05-german-places_x.htm] "Two of San Francisco's best-known landmarks were built by Germans: Joseph Strauss designed the 1937 Golden Gate Bridge, and Bernard Maybeck, son of a German immigrant, designed the Palace of Fine Arts."] . He moved to Berkeley, California in 1892. He became a professor of engineering drawing at University of California, Berkeley and acted as a mentor for an entire generation of other California architects, including Julia Morgan and William Wurster. In 1951 he was awarded the Gold Medal of the American Institute of Architects.

Style

Maybeck was a stylistic chameleon, equally comfortable producing work in Mission style [ See Maybeck's contribution to the Mission Style California Building at the 1893 World’s ColumbianExposition in Chicago and his possible contribution to the first Mission Style chair, designed for the SF Swedenborgian Church in Freudenheim, Leslie. Building with Nature: Inspiration for the Arts & Crafts Home (Gibbs Smith, 2005)163ff and 60-68] , Gothic, and Beaux-Arts classicism, believing that each architectural problem required development of an entirely new solution. Many of his buildings still stand in his long-time home city of Berkeley. The 1910 "First Church of Christ, Scientist" is designated a National Historic Landmark and is considered one of Maybeck's finest works. It is a strange confection of medieval European, Japanese, Nordic, Celtic and shingle style architecture, but the effect is magical. Thankfully, the church has an on-going program of repairs that have kept the building in good shape, which is more than can be said for some of Maybeck's friend Julia Morgan's buildings, some of which have been bowdlerized into oblivion.

Maybeck also designed the domed "Palace of Fine Arts" in San Francisco as part of the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition. One of his most interesting office buildings is the home of the Family Service Agency of San Francisco, offices at 1010 Gough Street. This building, constructed in 1928, is on the city's Historic Building Register and still serves as Family Service headquarters. Some of his larger residential projects, most notably a few in the hills of Berkeley, California (see esp. La Loma Park), have been compared to the ultimate bungalows of the architects Greene and Greene [See comparision of Maybeck and Greene and Greene bungalows in Freudenheim, Leslie.ibid.,186 and 154ff] .

He also developed a comprehensive town plan for the company town of Brookings, Oregon, the chalet at the Bohemian Grove, and many of the buildings on the campus of Principia College in Elsah, Illinois.

A lifetime fascination with drama and the theatre can be seen in much of Maybeck's work. In his spare time, he was known to create costumes, and also designed sets for the amateur productions at Berkeley's Hillside Club.

Death

Maybeck is buried in Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, California.

References

Maybeck's early work and his influence are covered extensively in Building with Nature: Inspiration for the Arts & Crafts Home (Gibbs Smith,Nov. 2005)

External links

* [http://www.maybeck.org/ Maybeck Foundation - a non-profit preservation and education foundation]
* [http://www.oregoncoast.net/maybeck.html Maybeck's Work at Principia College]
* [http://www.prin.edu/maybeck/intro/index1.htm Maybeck at Principia College]
* [http://www.maybeckhs.org/history.html A High School named after Bernard Maybeck in Berkeley]
* [http://www.friendsoffirstchurch.org/allHTML/theBuilding.html Pictures of the First Church of Christ, Scientist in Berkeley]
* [http://www.fsasf.org/includes/downloads/buildingphotos.pdf?PHPSESSID=a831e185f55b0f5fd9a5c433a774e499 Pictures of Family Service Agency headquarters in San Francisco]
* [http://www.noehill.com/sf/landmarks/sf111.asp FSA Building on list of SF Landmarks]
* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=3257 Bernard Maybeck's Photo & Gravesite]
* Maybeck's Work in San Francisco - British Motors Car Dist., LTD. on Van Ness Avenue