Lionel H. Pries, Architect, Artist, Educator

"Anyone familiar with the University of Washington, Seattle and the Pacific Northwest, and the history of architecture will find this book to be an information explication of a significant teacher and subject . . . . this is a beautifully produced book that makes excellent use of the attractive visual source material at hand . . . . Drawing on interviews and reminiscences of former students, clients, and friends of Pries, Ochsner enriches his well-researched text to offer an engaging portrait of Pries and creates a welcome contribution to the history of architecture and architectural education in the United States."

"The scholarship, critical judgment, and production values behind this book are exceptionally high."

"Lavish is an overused word, but I cannot think of a better description for this volume. There are gorgeous color reproductions of watercolors, paintings and architecture on nearly every page, printed at a large enough size to feel their emotive strength, while excellent photographs and crisp re-drawn floor plans allow a good understanding of the architectural work. . . . For anyone with an interest in the truly influential people of the Northwest, so often caught between the cultural noise of number one and the obscurity of zero, this book is essential. Ochsner has done a great service in bringing Lionel Pries to life again."

"[This] big volume is beautifully written and reads almost like a mystery novel as Ochsner delves into Pries' past with respect, compassion, and drive to tell the truth. . . . A must-read."

"A meticulously researched and captivating portrait of Pries' own life and work. . . . It is challenging to juggle all the components of such a book, which examines Pries as educator, architect, artist, and collector. It places him and his work in a broader context of the arts community in Seattle and the changing approaches to teaching architecture at the UW. . . . Jeffrey Ochsner is up to the task."

"A lucid, scholarly and lovingly illustrated study of [Pries]. . . .Ochsner proves adept at capturing the import of the artist and the spirit of the man. . . .making this overdue tribute as much a pleasure to browse as it is to read."

"The book is surprisingly juicy. Lionel Pries is packaged as a coffee-table book—- with loads of illustrations showing Pries' houses and artwork—- but at times it reads more like a thriller. You immediately care about Pries and his work, and want to know what happened to him. . . . Architect James Chiarelli reportedly . . . said: 'The minute you stepped into the courtyard of the house he designed, you could feel his genius at work.' Now, with the publication of Ochsner's book, the rest of us can get a sense of it, too."

"In the late 1920s, an unusual sort of contemporary design, inspired but not stifled by tradition, was being created by a young and talented architect from California, Lionel H. Pries. He soon joined the faculty at the University of Washington, where he remained the most influential and inspirational member of the architecture department for more than thirty years. His concept of architectural design has a special romantic quality which combined a love of the best of the past with the ability to culturally and technically relate to the present. . . . He is easily the most talented architect in this region I have known, and I hope that a worthy architectural historian will someday record his contribution to architecture both in this region and nationally."

"This account of a fascinating and tragic figure in architecture provides significant context for the long transition from an American architectural modernism emerging in the 1920s to its repudiation and transformation by the early 1950s. The author has achieved a fine work of scholarship and turned scholarship into a highly readable and informative book."