JUHA ILMARI LEIVISK? has enjoyed a distinguished career as one of Finland's leading architects. This book provides a perceptive account of his work to date, locating it within both Finnish modernism and that of Dutch De Stijl.
Leivisk?'s profound interest in architectural history has not led him to mere imitation of historic forms: even in his faithful adherence to the principles of De Stijl he succeeds in dissolving its formal vocabulary of abstraction by his uncanny and totally unnerving use of daylight. What is reflected in Professor Quantrill's authoritative account is not only Leivisk?'s sensitivity to the chemistry of built form when immersed in light, but the interaction of physical form and musical structure in his designs.
Born in Helsinki in 1936, Leivisk? studied architecture at Helsinki's celebrated University of Technology in Otaniemi. After graduating in 1959, he began lecturing there on the history of architecture, and continued to do so until 1971. His architectural practice dates from 1964, when he was only 28, and his best known and most admired work - both executed buildings and projects - has centred on the design of religious buildings for the Lutheran Church. The qualities of his architecture, as well as his own uniquely personal talents as a designer, have been widely recognised since the completion of St Thomas's Parish Church and Centre in Oulu (1975).
Leivisk? was made a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts in 1991, and was appointed as an 'Artist Professor' by the Finnish President in 1992. In 1994 he was made an Honorary Fellow of the American Institute of Architects. He was awarded the prestigious Carlsberg Prize in 1995, and in 1997 he followed Alvar Aalto and Reima Pietil? in becoming the architecture Member of the Academy of Finland.
Groundwork, Background and Foreground 8(14) Introduction to Juha Leiviska in the Context of Finnish Modern Architecture REVIEW OF SELECTED WORKS Kouvola Town Hall, Kouvola, Finland 22(6) Villa Nikamaa, Lemi, Finland 28(2) Cemetery and Chapels of Rest, Vaasa, Finland 30(4) Nakkila Parish Hall, Nakkila, Finland 34(6) Town Plan for the Centre of Puolivalinkangas, with St Thomass Church and Parish Centre, Oulu, Finland 40(6) Parish Church and Centre for Myyrmaki, Vantaa, Finland 46(8) Branch Library and Day Nursery for the suburb of Vallila, Helsinki, Finland 54(8) Kajaani Art Museum, Kajaani, Finland 62(6) Embassy for the Federal Republic of Germany, Helsinki, Finland 68(8) Parish Church and Centre for the suburb of Mannisto, Kuopio, Finland 76(8) Newspaper Offices, Vateras, Sweden 84(4) Villa Thoren-Soderstrom, Tammisaari, Finland 88(4) Church and Parish Centre, Pirkkala, Finland 92(4) Museum of Contemporary Art, Helsinki, Finland 96(4) National Museum of Art, Tallinn, Estonia 100(6) Harju Funeral Chapel: Remodelling and Additions, Mikkeli, Finland 106(8) Dar Al-Kalima Academy, Meeting Hall and Restaurant, Bethlehem, Palestine 114(8) Biographical Notes 122(1) Juha Leiviska Catalogue Raisonne 123(2) Bibliography 125
MALCOLM QUANTRILL studied architecture at the universities of Liverpool and Pennsylvania, and received his doctorate in urbanism from the Technical University of Wroclaw. He is a former Director of the Architectural Association, London, and Dean of the School of Environmental Design in the University of North London. Since 1986 he has been the Distinguished Professor of Architecture at Texas A&M University. He began studying modern Finnish architecture in 1959 and Juha Leiviska and the continuity of Finnish modern architecture is his sixth book on this subject.
