American City: St. Louis Architecture / Robert Sharoff + William Zbaren

By Karen Cilento — Filed under: Publications , American City, Robert Sharoff, St. Louis, USA, William Zbaren

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When architectural journalist Robert Sharoff and photographer William Zbaren created the series American City, the intention was to celebrate some of the States’ most architecturally impressive cities. For their St. Louis publication, the team has produced a beautiful large format book highlighting 50 projects scattered across the city. Organized with incredible photographs and insightful text, the book is the first of its kind, since the 1920s, to document the architecture of St. Louis.

More about the publication after the break.

After exploring the city, Sharoff and Zbaren compiled a list numbering over 100 pieces of architecture; yet, slowly, the pair edited the list to fit their desired mark of 50. The result is a highly varied selection of buildings ranging over the course of three centuries of different scales, functions and architectural styles.

The strength of the book lies in this variety, as the reader is shown images of projects such as an old courthouse, a water tower, residences and corporate buildings supported with well documented text to outline their unique story lines.

“Bill and I think of ourselves as preservationists. More than anything, however, we love that moment when we round a corner in a strange part of town and are stopped dead in our tracks by a masterpiece we had no idea was even there,” explained Sharoff.

The book captures the essence of each project, and together, the projects show the character of the city. It is a great read for any history aficionado or architecture lover.

Cite:
Cilento , Karen . "American City: St. Louis Architecture / Robert Sharoff + William Zbaren" 22 Feb 2011. ArchDaily. Accessed 22 May 2012. <http://www.archdaily.com/113734>