One of an emerging group of important young architects from Southern California, Steven Ehrlich explores the vitality of vernacular forms and spaces, the richness of texture and materials, and the generosity of spatial arrangements. Having studied and worked in Africa and Asia, Ehrlich fuses an anthropologist's understanding of culture with the principles of classical modern architecture. The result is a subtle reinterpretation of classical modernism that is socially responsive. In addition to residential projects, Ehrlich has designed artists' studios, film and animation production studios, libraries, a municipal gymnasium, and a wide variety of civic and commercial structures.The work of Steven Ehrlich Architects is distinctly modern, yet informed by the simplicity and directness of vernacular forms and a vigorous sensitivity to the urban conditions of the "Pacific Century." Their designs represent the intersection of cultural influences as diverse as traditional African mud construction, the ancient Chinese discipline of feng shui, and California's Latino community.This monograph features twenty-eight projects and two essays, illustrated with photographs, plans, and Ehrlich's dynamic sketches. Among the projects included in this volume are the DreamWorks SKG Animation Studios in Glendale, California; the orange Coast College Art Center in Costa Mesa; the Sony Music West Coast headquarters in Santa Monica; the Biblioteca Latinamericana and Washington Area Youth Center in San Jose; the Shatto Recreation Center in Los Angeles; the Ahmadu Bello University Theater in Zaria, Nigeria; and the Taichung Civic Center in Taichung, Taiwan.

Steven Ehrlich Architects

History

Ehrlich, Steven

Americas

Rizzoli

One of an emerging group of important young architects from Southern California, Steven Ehrlich explores the vitality of vernacular forms and spaces, the richness of texture and materials, and the generosity of spatial arrangements. Having studied and worked in Africa and Asia, Ehrlich fuses an anthropologist's understanding of culture with the principles of classical modern architecture. The result is a subtle reinterpretation of classical modernism that is socially responsive. In addition to residential projects, Ehrlich has designed artists' studios, film and animation production studios, libraries, a municipal gymnasium, and a wide variety of civic and commercial structures. The work of Steven Ehrlich Architects is distinctly modern, yet informed by the simplicity and directness of vernacular forms and a vigorous sensitivity to the urban conditions of the "Pacific Century." Their designs represent the intersection of cultural influences as diverse as traditional African mud construction, the ancient Chinese discipline of feng shui, and California's Latino community. This monograph features twenty-eight projects and two essays, illustrated with photographs, plans, and Ehrlich's dynamic sketches. Among the projects included in this volume are the DreamWorks SKG Animation Studios in Glendale, California; the orange Coast College Art Center in Costa Mesa; the Sony Music West Coast headquarters in Santa Monica; the Biblioteca Latinamericana and Washington Area Youth Center in San Jose; the Shatto Recreation Center in Los Angeles; the Ahmadu Bello University Theater in Zaria, Nigeria; and the Taichung Civic Center in Taichung, Taiwan.

Steven Ehrlich, Architects

Arts & Photography

Giovannini, Joseph

Architecture

Residential design forms the core of Steven Ehrlich's award-winning architectural practice. Sixteen houses are presented here, designs characterized by the fusion of powerful modernist forms with the cultural, climatic, and contextual particulars of place. Ehrlich spent six years living, teaching, traveling, and studying indigenous vernacular architecture in North and West Africa. During that time he was immersed in the visceral power and raw beauty of “Architecture Without Architects” and dazzled by settings like the luminous Zaria Mosque in Nigeria, the textured hill towns of Tunisia, the maze-like souks of Fez, the protected and intimate courtyard houses of Marrakesh, the gravity-defying raised forts of Ghana, and the interconnected desert cities of Algeria. At the same time Ehrlich had a deep commitment to modernism, with its focus on minimalism, honesty in materials, and rooted connection to the land. Over a thirty-year career he has brought these two strands together in the houses he has designed in the desert landscape of Southern California and the Southwest. There are commonalities in these houses—generous volumes, visual clarity, large windows, interlocking rooms, protected courtyards, structural honesty, richly textured materials, and a connection to nature—but each home is a new beginning, a chance to learn and to create a spatial experience.

Steven Ehrlich Houses

The Monacelli Press

A survey of houses designed by Steven Ehrlich and Takashi Yanai of EYRC Architects, an award-winning firm whose modernist approach is infused with deep engagement with the vernacular. Recipient of the 2015 Firm Award from the American Institute of Architects, EYRC Architects is internationally recognized for elegant design in a modernist spirit. Residential designs are at the heart of the practice, which now encompasses commercial and institutional projects. Sixteen houses are presented in the book, the majority in Southern California and others near San Francisco and Houston. These designs are characterized by the fusion of powerful, simple forms, with the cultural, climatic, and contextual particulars of place. Accompanying the drawings and luxurious color photography are sketches and source material that reveal the genesis of the design as well as the completed project. As Ehrlich says, "Blurring the boundaries between the built and natural environment, our designs merge California modernism with vernacular design elements. Through details and materials, we maximize the home owner's connection with the site and natural surroundings."

Ehrlich Yanai Outside-In: New California Modernism

Yanai, Takashi

Humor & Entertainment

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Books by Ehrlich, Steven