FORT 137
Daniel Joseph Chenin
9781946226655
240 pages
Oscar Riera Ojeda Publishers Llc
Overview
This installment of the Oscar Riera Ojeda Masterpiece Series focuses on Fort 137 by Daniel Joseph Chenin. Set in a remote location to the west of Las Vegas, Nevada, the brief was for a residence that established a direct connection to its surroundings in a sustainable, environmentally-friendly manner using locally-sourced materials as much as possible.
In response, Chenin produced an open structure divided into three different levels with each volume carefully placed to be read as a series of rock masses and also to protect against the harsh sun and wind while also offering uninterrupted views of the surrounding landscape. This book provides a privileged glimpse into the conception and execution of this superlative structure with a text by the renowned architectural critic Aaron Betsky, an interview with the architect, sumptuous photography by Stetson Ybarra, XXXX and XXXX,
illuminating drawings, diagrams and layouts.
An homage to the forts built when the area was first being settled, the building sits resplendently alone in the tranquility of the landscape: truly a modern masterpiece.
Author Bio
James McCown is a Boston-based architectural journalist who writes for numerous design publications including Metropolis, Architect’s Newspaper and AD PRO Architectural Digest. He has collaborated with Oscar Riera Ojeda on several books including the Architecture in Detail series which comprised four volumes: Elements, Materials, Colors and Spaces. McCown studied journalism at Loyola University New Orleans and holds an ALM (Master’s Degree) in the history of art and architecture from Harvard University, where his thesis on modern Brazilian architecture received an Honorable Mention, Dean’s Award, Best ALM Thesis (2007). He lives in Newton, Massachusetts.
Aaron Betsky is Director of the School of Architecture and Design at Virginia Tech. Previously, he was President of the School of Architecture at Taliesin. A critic of art, architecture, and design, Mr. Betsky is the author of over twenty books on those subjects. He writes a twice-weekly blog for architectmagazine.com, Beyond Buildings. Trained as an architect and in the humanities at Yale University, Mr. Betsky has served as the Director of the Cincinnati Art Museum (2006-2014) and the Netherlands Architecture Institute (2001-2006), as well as Curator of Architecture and Design at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (1995-2001). In 2008, he also directed the 11th Venice International Biennale of Architecture. His latest books are Fifty Lessons from Frank Lloyd Wright (2021), Making It Modern (2019) and Architecture Matters (2019). His Anarchitecture: The Monster Leviathan will be published by The MIT Press in 2022.
Oscar Riera Ojeda is an editor and designer based in the US, China, and Argentina. Born in 1966, in Buenos Aires, he moved to the United States in 1990. Since then he has published over two hundred books, assembling a remarkable body of work notable for its thoroughness of content, timeless character, and sophisticated and innovative craftsmanship. Oscar Riera Ojeda’s books have been published by many prestigious publishing houses across the world, including Birkh user, Byggf rlaget, The Monacelli Press, Gustavo Gili, Thames & Hudson, Rizzoli, Damiani, Page One, ORO editions, Whitney Library of Design, and Taschen.
Oscar Riera Ojeda is also the creator of numerous architectural book series, including Ten Houses, Contemporary World Architects, The New American House and The New American Apartment, Architecture in Detail, and Single Building. His work has received many international awards, in-depth reviews, and citations. He is a regular contributor and consultant for several publications in the field.
