The Glass House

Philip Johnson American architect

Biography An American architect best known for his works of Modern architecture, including the
Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut, and his works of postmodern architecture, particularly
550 Madison Avenue in New York, designed for AT&T, and 190 South La Salle Street in Chicago.
Born: July 8, 1906, Cleveland, Ohio, United States
Died: January 25, 2005, New Canaan, Connecticut, United States
Books: The Glass House, Johnson/Burgee
Education:
Harvard University (1927),
Harvard University Graduate School Of Design, Hackley School
Awards: Pritzker Architecture Prize, AIA Gold Medal, Twenty-five Year Award
Quotes
Architecture is the art of how to waste space.
All architecture is shelter, all great architecture is the design of space
that contains, cuddles, exalts, or stimulates the persons in that space.
I hate vacations. If you can build buildings, why sit on the beach?
Structures
The Glass House
Seagram Building
Rothko Chapel
Chapel of St. Basil
New York State Pavilion
What is Modern Architecture?
Emphasis on architectural volume over mass (planes over solidity)
A rejection of symmetry
A rejection of applied decoration
 THE GLASS HOUSE
BUILT IN 1949 AS JOHNSON’S PRIMARY RESIDENCE.
CONCEPT
SET IN THE LANDSCAPE WITH VIEWS AS ITS REAL “WALLS”
PLANNING METHODOLOGY
THE BUILDING’S SIDES ARE MADE OF GLASS AND CHARCOAL PAINTED STEEL;
FLOOR IS BRINK, NOT FLUSH WITH GROUND BUT SITS 10 INCHES ABOVE
INTERIOR IS OPEN SEPARATED BY LOW WALNUT CABINETS
A BRICK CYLINDER CONTAINS THE BATHROOM AND IS THE ONLY OBJECT THAT
GOES FROM FLOOR TO CEILING.
JOHNSON CONTINUED TO ADD NEW ARCHITECTURAL ESSAYS TO HIS GLASS
HOUSE
1 The Glass House is a one story, 1800 square foot glass and steel building.
A rectangular prism, 32 feet by 56 feet in plan with a height of 10 ½ feet.
2 Walls consist entirely of 18- feet- wide floor-to-ceiling single plate-glass
sheets, secured between black painted steel piers. Stock H-beams anchored the
g lass with angle brackets.
3 An off-center cylindrical mass of brick, which has a fireplace on one side and
the entrance to the bathroom inside the cylinder on the other protrudes though
the flat roof.
4 The foundation is a brick platform with slab for frost footing.
5 Like the floor of the house, which is laid in a herringbone pattern, the cylinder
is constructed of glazed brick in various shades of deep reds and browns with
lighter colored flecks.
6 Otherwise, the interior is completely open, with low cabinets and bookshelves
serving as area dividers.
7 The other major division in the living area, aside from the brick cylinder, is the
long line of 42-inch high cabinets which contain the kitchen, two panels on top
of this unit, when opened and folded back, provide a black linoleum work
surface.
8 The sink, two refrigerators, a stove are all included in the one unit, besides a
MASTER
PLAN
 32
56 FEET feet
E E E
Q Q Q