Handcrafted Modern - by Leslie Williamson (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

An intimate and revealing collection of photographs of astonishingly beautiful, iconic, and undiscovered mid-century interiors. Among significant mid-century interiors, none are more celebrated yet underpublished as the homes created by architects and interior designers for themselves. This collection of newly commissioned photographs presents the most compelling homes by influential mid-century designers, such as Russel Wright, George Nakashima, Harry Bertoia, Charles and Ray Eames, and Eva Zeisel, among others. Intimate as well as revelatory, Williamson's photographs show these creative homes as they were lived in by their designers: Walter Gropius's historic Bauhaus home in Massachusetts; Albert Frey's floating modernist aerie on a Palm Springs rock outcropping; Wharton Esherick's completely handmade Pennsylvania house, from the organic handcarved staircase to the iconic furniture. Personal and breathtaking by turn--these homes are exemplary studies of domestic modernism at its warmest and most creative.

Review Quotes

"Handcrafted Modern gives a fascinating glimpse into the homes that significant architects and designers - Harry Bertoia, Eva Zeisel, and Charles and Ray Eames, to name a few - built for themselves" C

"A revealing photo essay" Elle Decor

"Every now and then, a book arrives which is not just a handsome presentation of information, but also a completely satisfying aesthetic object. This is the case with Handcrafted Modern by Leslie Williamson. Her photographs inside designers' (mostly) midcentury modernist homes capture something of the inhabitant and his or her pattern of living. But they reveal something more--something of the life of the designer of the space." Architects Newspaper

"Bottom line--This book is simply superb! ...this is a must have for any design enthusiast, especially anyone who appreciates the handcrafted... this publication will not disappoint" Design Therapy blog

About the Author

Leslie Williamson is a photographer based in San Francisco. Her work has appeared in Dwell, Surface, and Travel + Leisure magazines.