Description:
A riveting and superbly illustrated account of the enigmatic House Beautiful editor s profound influence on mid-century American taste
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Review Quotes: "Penick has studied Elizabeth Gordon for a decade and a half. Her book Tastemaker . . . is the most comprehensive tome to date on Gordon's life and work."-Daisy Alioto, Curbed
"Gordon will get her moment in the sun, too, with Monica Penick's new book, Tastemaker (Yale University Press), which I can't put down!"-Sophie Donelson, House Beautiful "The hundreds of images are of the highest possible quality, truly representing the time and era they depict. With this unique volume, Penick (design studies, Univ.of Wisconsin, Madison) makes a significant contribution to the literature on 20th-century American design and culture."-Robert Meden, Choice "An important source on the postwar period and an excellent model for architectural biographies. Penick convincingly situates and contextualizes the story of a single individual within a larger historical narrative and, in doing so, highlights the role of magazine editors as propagandists in the history of American and modern architecture and design."-Paula Lupkin, JSAH Finalist for the 2018 Modernist Studies Association Book Prize Winner of the 2019 SESAH Publication Awards, sponsored by the Southeast Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians "This book is extremely important and timely. The intelligence and seriousness with which it frames questions about taste and modernism will move the conversation forward. It is a game changer in both architectural history and design studies."--Alice Friedman, Wellesley College