American Modern Home: Jacobsen Architecture + Interiors

I purchased this book with great expectations and I wasn’t disappointed. I have been following Jacobsen’s work since I saw an article about his work in Architectural Digest in 2017. Through the years I have found his astute attention to detail more and more appealing. Clean lines, amazing light, simplicity defined.I don’t know how he does it. The man is a wizard. After all the buzz about it, I decided I wanted a second one so I could have one to display and one to keep in the library.

Bravo! The Jacobsen Vernacular is alive and well. I read the two star review below and wondered if the author has any clue of HNJs work. The ability to understand architecture in nature has been passed down to his son Simon. The perfect 45 degree roof, many structures becoming one. And the perfect placement of fenstration to frame the outside. This book is joining the likes of Grosvenor Atterbury, Stanford Wight (yes, naming the student first was deliberate) and Frank Lloyd Wright on my office coffee table.

I have over 200 books on architecture and design and this immediately became one of my favorites. Jacobsen’s designs are a masterful blend of modern and traditional that truly personify the modern American home. The book has many great images that capture the details and nuances of the designs. If you like Hugh Newell Jacobsen’s work, you’ll love how his son Simon has elevated the designs to the next level.

A visual feast just in time for Thanksgiving! The book is deliciously gorgeous, filled with classic Jacobsen lines and style, showcasing the iconic excellence of father & son’s talent. Brilliant exteriors, sublime interiors, whether you’re an ardent admirer or enthusiastic newcomer, this beautiful book does not disappoint, loved every page.

If you are expecting another volume in the fine series of monographs on the work of the acclaimed and esteemed architect Hugh Newell Jacobsen you will be disappointed by this book. The writing is downright bizarre, with folksy asides and poor attempts at humor.The work, sadly, is no longer at the level it was when Mr. Jacobsen was alive and at the helm of his firm. If one were to encounter most of these projects in person it would be a reasonable assumption that a follower of Jabobsen was responsible who does not quite understand the proportions, layout and detailing that distinguished his work.Floor plans and furniture arrangements are odd (and poorly documented in the book.) Glass railings and shadow gaps are taken to distracting levels of visibility. In all this book is a sad and avoidable coda that adds nothing to the understanding of Jacobsen’s work.

This book documents the work of Simon Jacobsen, whose architecture extends the principles of Hugh Newell Jacobsen through the use of contemporary materials and techniques while retaining a firm grounding in the traditional American vernacular.