One of California’s greatest architects, Julia Morgan has few equals. Her work is being celebrated statewide in the “Julia Morgan 2012 Festival - Landmarks California." Architect/author Jerri Holan gives an overview of her life & work.
Bay area architect and perservation specialist Jerri Holan writes about the pioneer California architect, Julia Morgan, during a celebration of her work through Dec. 17th.
"Julia Morgan (1872-1957) was a trail blazer on many fronts. One of the first women to graduate from UC Berkeley’s Civil Engineering school in 1894, Miss Morgan was the first woman to graduate from Paris’ esteemed Ecole de Beaux Artsin 1902. She was one of the first women to be licensed in the State of California and one of the first to join the American Institute of Architects. . . .Completing over 800 commissions over the span of her career (an average of one building every six weeks!), she is arguably the most prolific of California native architects. Her work spans the simplest of residences to some of the largest institutional buildings on the University of California campuses.
Many of her significant works came through the Hearst family. First with Phoebe Apperson Hearst on the University Of California Berkeley campus, then on Mills College in Oakland. With William R. Hearst, Phoebe’s son, she built California’s largest residence, the castle at San Simeon. . . .
A cursory survey of this architect’s work illustrates that Julia Morgan was a great role model for all architects and for all women. As for the buildings, their quiet exuberance is always apparent. They speak for themselves."
