Louis Isadore Kahn

biography.
1
A personality whom people want to experience through his Dsigns.
1901 :
born on feb 20th at Estonia
near Russia
father: Leopold - glass painter
& sergeant in Russian army
mother: Bertha Kahn - worker
in textile industry
siblings: Sarah (sister),
Oscar(brother)
1906:
migrated to Philadelphia (due to Russo-
Japanese war) at the age of 5
his name was changed from Itze Leib
Schmuilowsky to Louis Isadore Kahn.
in childhood days itself, he was known
as an artist & he played piano very well.
kahn attended public schools and
supplemented his education with art
classes.( a mode of income from his
paintings)
1912:
kahn starts high school & got
introduced into architecture through
the study of world history.
1920:
wins a scholarship to study
architecture under Paul Philippe
Cret at the school of fine arts,
University of Pennsylvania.
trained in rigorous Beaux-Arts
tradition.
1924:
graduated from the university with
numerous awards and is employed
as a draftsman by architect John
Molitor
by that time Beaux-Arts was fading &
modern architecture was rising.
1928:
to find inspiration, he travelled through
Europe. (2 years)
1930:
kahn married Esther Israeli, but had difficulty
finding works during economic depression.
during this period, he got interested in modern
architecture (as a tool for social change)
got inspired by Le Corbusier, Walter Gropious,
Along with many other unemployed architects,
he started experimenting with the design of
public housing ( Architectural Research Group)
1935:
established an independent
architectural practice in Philadelphia.
associated with George Howe & Oskar
Stonorov.
1941:
designed 7 communities for war time
factory workers.(after World War - II)
against the funtionalistic & materialistic
theme of government, he proposed
humane-client oriented approach to post
war planning & approach.
1947:
he became a design critic at Yale
school of Architecture.
as s teacher, he felt as often learned
than he taught.
always concerned about the emotional
expression of ideas.
he was particularly interested in the
power of single tangible idea and the
more the student simplified, the better.
1950:
won a fellowship to the american academy
in Rome and travelled to Greece & Italy
where he was inspired by the ancient ruins.
got inspired by the monumentality &
spiritual qualities of ancient buildings.
after returning, he adapted a back-to-the-
basics approach.
wanted younger generation to make an
everlasting impact on society like Greeks &
Egyptians - seeking perfection & pursuing
excellence.
buildings should be built to last.
his buildings from here on had a very spiritual &
timeless quality.
1951:
on returning back, Kahn put his ideas
into practice.
first important project of his career:
Yale Art Gallery
opportunity to build at a
monumental scale.
intelligent use of space & light.
1957:
Richard Medical Research Building- a
turning point in Contemporary
Architecture.
application of Servant & Served Spaces
his own distinctive style.
1962:
starts work on a twelve year programme to
build IIM, Ahemdabad & construction of
Capital Complex in Dhaka.
two different archetypes :
individual activity
congregant activity
many important projects came in during
1960s
1971:
awarded AIA gold medal
1972:
awarded RIBA gold medal
1974:
march 17nth, he died of heart attack at pennsylvania
station,New York while returning back from India
he was not a good businessman, so he couldnt make
many buildings because he never compromised his
design ideas to satisfy a buyers wish.
and when he died, he was in great debt.
yet continues to influence lives on