Serge Chermayeff
Encyclopedia
Serge Ivan Chermayeff was a Russian
born, British
architect
, industrial designer, writer, and co-founder of several architectural societies, including the American Society of Planners and Architects.
He was born into a rich Jewish family in Grozny
, Russian Empire
(currently Chechen Republic), but moved to England
at an early age where he received his education. He first started working as an interior designer for a firm in London
. By 1930, he and the German
architect Erich Mendelsohn
briefly partnered to form their own architectural firm. They created some very important works in the British modernist movement
, notably the De La Warr Pavilion
and Cohen House and was a member of the MARS Group
.
During the 1930s, Chermayeff designed a number of bakelite radio cabinets for the British company EKCO
.
In 1940, Chermayeff emigrated to the United States
where he joined Clarence W. W. Mayhew
as associate architect, helping Mayhew design his own residence. Chermayeff taught in 1940-1941 at the California School of Fine Arts
. In 1946, he was recommended by Walter Gropius
to become the director of the Institute of Design
in Chicago
. He stepped down in 1951 when the institute merged with the Illinois Institute of Technology
. Between 1952 and 1970 he would continue to teach at several universities including Harvard
, Yale
, and MIT
. He retired in 1970.
He wrote several books, including Community and Privacy with Christopher Alexander
in 1964 and The Shape of Community with Alexander Tzonis
in 1971. He died in 1996 in Wellfleet, Massachusetts
. Chermayeff's architectural drawing
s, project records, photographs, correspondence, teaching and writing papers, and research files are held by the Dept. of Drawings & Archives at Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library
at Columbia University
.
His son Ivan Chermayeff is a prominent graphic designer and a founding partner of New York-based design studio Chermayeff & Geismar
.
His son Peter Chermayeff is a prominent architect best known for his design of aquariums, with colleagues, while a founding partner at Cambridge Seven Associates, from 1962 to 1998, at Chermayeff, Sollogub and Poole, 1998–2005, at Chermayeff & Poole, 2005–2009 and currently at Peter Chermayeff LLC.
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
born, British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
, industrial designer, writer, and co-founder of several architectural societies, including the American Society of Planners and Architects.
Grozny
Grozny is the capital city of the Chechen Republic, Russia. The city lies on the Sunzha River. According to the preliminary results of the 2010 Census, the city had a population of 271,596; up from 210,720 recorded in the 2002 Census. but still only about two-thirds of 399,688 recorded in the 1989...
, Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
(currently Chechen Republic), but moved to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
at an early age where he received his education. He first started working as an interior designer for a firm in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. By 1930, he and the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
architect Erich Mendelsohn
Erich Mendelsohn
Erich Mendelsohn was a Jewish German architect, known for his expressionist architecture in the 1920s, as well as for developing a dynamic functionalism in his projects for department stores and cinemas.-Early life:...
briefly partnered to form their own architectural firm. They created some very important works in the British modernist movement
International style (architecture)
The International style is a major architectural style that emerged in the 1920s and 1930s, the formative decades of Modern architecture. The term originated from the name of a book by Henry-Russell Hitchcock and Philip Johnson, The International Style...
, notably the De La Warr Pavilion
The De La Warr Pavilion
The De La Warr Pavilion is an International Style building constructed in 1935 and designed by the architects Erich Mendelsohn and Serge Chermayeff; considered by some to be in an Art Deco style. Some claim it to be the first major Modernist public building in Britain, although in fact it was...
and Cohen House and was a member of the MARS Group
MARS Group
The Modern Architectural Research Group, or MARS Group, was a British architectural think tank founded in 1933 by several prominent architects and architectural critics of the time involved in the British modernist movement...
.
During the 1930s, Chermayeff designed a number of bakelite radio cabinets for the British company EKCO
EKCO
EKCO from Eric Kirkham Cole Limited was a British electronics company producing radio and television sets from 1924.Expanding into plastic production for its own use, Ekco Plastics produced both radio cases and later domestic plastic products; the plastics company became Lin Pac Mouldings...
.
In 1940, Chermayeff emigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
where he joined Clarence W. W. Mayhew
Clarence W. W. Mayhew
Clarence William Whitehead Mayhew was an American architect best known as a designer of contemporary residential structures in the San Francisco Bay Area...
as associate architect, helping Mayhew design his own residence. Chermayeff taught in 1940-1941 at the California School of Fine Arts
San Francisco Art Institute
San Francisco Art Institute is a school of higher education in contemporary art with the main campus in the Russian Hill district of San Francisco, California. Its graduate center is in the Dogpatch neighborhood. The private, non-profit institution is accredited by WASC and is a member of the...
. In 1946, he was recommended by Walter Gropius
Walter Gropius
Walter Adolph Georg Gropius was a German architect and founder of the Bauhaus School who, along with Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Le Corbusier, is widely regarded as one of the pioneering masters of modern architecture....
to become the director of the Institute of Design
IIT Institute of Design
Institute of Design at Illinois Institute of Technology , originally founded as the New Bauhaus, is a graduate school teaching systemic, human-centered design.- History :...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. He stepped down in 1951 when the institute merged with the Illinois Institute of Technology
Illinois Institute of Technology
Illinois Institute of Technology, commonly called Illinois Tech or IIT, is a private Ph.D.-granting university located in Chicago, Illinois, with programs in engineering, science, psychology, architecture, business, communications, industrial technology, information technology, design, and law...
. Between 1952 and 1970 he would continue to teach at several universities including Harvard
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, Yale
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, and MIT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
. He retired in 1970.
He wrote several books, including Community and Privacy with Christopher Alexander
Christopher Alexander
Christopher Wolfgang Alexander is a registered architect noted for his theories about design, and for more than 200 building projects in California, Japan, Mexico and around the world...
in 1964 and The Shape of Community with Alexander Tzonis
Alexander Tzonis
Alexander Tzonis is a Greek architect, researcher and author.He has made contributions to architectural theory, history, and design cognition bringing together scientific and humanistic approaches in a rare synthesis. Since 1975 he has been collaborating in most projects with Liane Lefaivre...
in 1971. He died in 1996 in Wellfleet, Massachusetts
Wellfleet, Massachusetts
Wellfleet is a New England town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. Located halfway between the "tip" and "elbow" of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, the town had a population of 2,749 at the 2000 census, which swells nearly sixfold during the summer...
. Chermayeff's architectural drawing
Architectural drawing
An architectural drawing or architect's drawing is a technical drawing of a building that falls within the definition of architecture...
s, project records, photographs, correspondence, teaching and writing papers, and research files are held by the Dept. of Drawings & Archives at Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library
Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library
The Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library is one of twenty-five libraries in the Columbia University Library System and is located in Avery Hall on the Morningside Heights campus of Columbia University in the City of New York. It is the largest architecture library in the world...
at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
.
His son Ivan Chermayeff is a prominent graphic designer and a founding partner of New York-based design studio Chermayeff & Geismar
Chermayeff & Geismar
Chermayeff & Geismar is a prominent New York-based branding and graphic design firm. It was founded in 1957 by Yale graduates Ivan Chermayeff and Tom Geismar...
.
His son Peter Chermayeff is a prominent architect best known for his design of aquariums, with colleagues, while a founding partner at Cambridge Seven Associates, from 1962 to 1998, at Chermayeff, Sollogub and Poole, 1998–2005, at Chermayeff & Poole, 2005–2009 and currently at Peter Chermayeff LLC.
External links
- Chicago Architects Oral History Project, The Art Institute of Chicago. Serge Chermayeff oral history
- Serge Chermayeff architectural records and papers, 1909-1980. Held in the Department of Drawings & Archives, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University.
- Master builders: Serge Chermayeff (1900–1996)