Venturi, Robert, 1925–, American architect, b. Philadelphia. In his writings, Venturi inveighed against the banality of modern architecture in the postwar period. He argued instead for a more inclusive, contextual approach to design that heralded the postmodern era in architecture. Among his early large works is Guild House in Philadelphia (1962–66), whose entrance is distinguished by a bold, billboardlike sign. A more restrained historicizing mode has characterized his later public works, such as Gordon Wu Hall at Princeton Univ. (1982–84), the Sainsbury Wing of the National Gallery, London (1991), the somewhat flamboyant but not overwhelming Seattle Art Museum (1991), and the expanded Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego (1996). Venturi is also an important theorist whose writings include the influential Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture (1966); Learning from Las Vegas (1972), written with Stephen Izenour and Denise Scott-Brown (Venturi's wife and architectural partner); and A View from the Campidoglio: Selected Essays, 1953–1984 (1984). He was awarded the Pritzker Prize Pritzker Prize (prĭt`skər)
..... Click the link for more information. in 1991.

Bibliography

See C. Mead, ed., The Architecture of Robert Venturi (1989); S. von Moos, Venturi, Scott Brown & Associates: Buildings and Projects, 1986–1998 (1999).

Venturi, Robert (Charles)

(born June 25, 1925, Philadelphia, Pa., U.S.) U.S. architect. He studied at Princeton University and in Rome at the American Academy. After working with Eero Saarinen and Louis Kahn, he formed a partnership with his wife, Denise Scott Brown, and John Rauch. His philosophy, set forth in the influential books Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture (1966) and Learning from Las Vegas (1972), called for openness to the multiple influences of historical tradition, ordinary commercial architecture, and Pop art. He had such a profound impact on younger architects who were beginning to find similar constraints and limitations in the Modernist architectural aesthetic, that he became the unofficial dean of the postmodern movement in architecture. His buildings often exhibit ironic humour. Important commissions include buildings for Princeton and the University of Pennsylvania, the Seattle Art Museum (1985–91), and the Sainsbury Wing of London's National Gallery (1986–91). He won the 1991 Pritzker Architecture Prize.

Venturi, Robert (1925– ) architect, author; born in Philadelphia. A Princeton graduate, he worked for Louis Kahn before establishing (1958) the Philadelphia firm that became Venturi, Rauch, Scott Brown and Associates. As both architect and theorist, Venturi spearheaded the reaction against modernism by embracing historical and popular architectural styles, most famously the common commercial strip. His seminal Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture (1966) and Learning from Las Vegas (with his wife and partner, Denise Scott Brown, and Steven Izenour, 1972) have been as influential as his buildings, including the recent Sainsbury Wing of the National Gallery, London (1991). He won the Pritzker Prize (1991).