名人轶事:Louis Khan Helped Define Modern Architecture

Louis Khan Helped Define¹ Modern Architecture

Written by Dana Demange

VOICE ONE:

I’m Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Barbara Klein with the VOA Special English program, People in

America. Today, we tell about Louis Kahn. He is considered one of the most

important American building designers of the twentieth century.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Louis Kahn helped define modern architecture. Architecture is the art and

science of designing and building structures such as houses, museums, and

office buildings. Kahn’s architecture has several defining² qualities.

For example, Kahn was very interested in the look and feel of the materials he

used. He used brick³ and concrete in new and special ways. Kahn also paid

careful attention to the use of sunlight. He liked natural light to enter his

buildings through interesting kinds of windows and openings. Kahn’s work can

also be identified by his creative use of geometric shapes. Many of his

buildings use squares, circles and three sided shapes called triangles. 

VOICE TWO:

Louis Kahn was born in Estonia in nineteen-oh-one. When he was five years old

his family moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Even as a child, Louis Kahn

showed excellence⁴ as an artist. When he was in school his pictures won several

competitions organized by the city. In high school, Kahn studied architecture

briefly⁵. He later went to the University of Pennsylvania and studied

architecture full time. He graduated in nineteen twenty-four.   

Louis Kahn’s buildings have many influences. Some experts say his trip to

Rome, Italy in nineteen fifty-one influenced him the most. Kahn spent a few

months as an architect with the American Academy⁶ in Rome. He also traveled

through other parts of Italy, Greece and Egypt. There, he saw the ancient

Greek and Roman ruins that also would influence his works⁷. He was very

affected⁸ by the size and design of these ruins. They helped influence him to

develop an architecture that combines both modern and ancient designs.

Other experts believe Kahn was also influenced by the part of Philadelphia

where he grew up. There were many factory buildings with large windows. These

brick structures were very solid. This industrial design is apparent⁹ in

several of Kahn’s early works.

VOICE ONE:

Kahn’s first projects involved building housing¹⁰ in Philadelphia. He later

received government jobs to design housing during World War Two. In nineteen

forty-two, he became a head architect of the Public Building Administration¹².

Kahn’s first important project was the Yale Art Gallery in New Haven¹³,

Connecticut in the early nineteen fifties. The outside of the building is very

simple. The surface is made of brick and limestone¹⁴.

The inside of the gallery shows Kahn’s great artistic¹⁵ sense. For example, he

created a triangle-shaped walkway of steps that sits inside a rounded concrete

shell. This building was very popular. Its completion represented an important

step in Kahn’s professional life. He was now a famous architect.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

The Salk Institute in La Jolla, California   

One of Kahn’s other important buildings is the Salk Institute, a research

center in La Jolla, California. It was built in the nineteen sixties. This

structure further shows how Kahn was able to unite form and function. This

means his buildings were beautiful and also useful.

The Salk Institute has two structures that surround a marble garden area or

courtyard. This outdoor marble area is almost completely bare. The only detail

is a small stream of water running through the middle of the square towards

the Pacific Ocean. This simple design is very striking¹⁶. Inside the building

are many rooms for laboratories¹⁷. Kahn was very careful to make sure they all

received natural light and a view of the ocean. He linked the indoor and

outdoor spaces in a very beautiful way.

VOICE ONE:

Kimbell Art Museum in Fort¹¹ Worth, Texas 

The Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas is another famous building by

Louis Kahn. Some say it is his best. Kahn built this museum in the early

nineteen seventies. This large museum has long rooms with curved¹⁸ or vaulted¹⁹

ceilings. Inside, all of the walls can be moved to best fit the art

collection. Kahn was able to make the concrete material of the building look

both solid and airy. He used sunlight and bodies of water to create a truly

special building.

Kahn once said this about the Kimbell Art Museum: “The building feels…that I

had nothing to do with it…that some other hand did it.”  The architect seems

to say that he was helped by some higher influence. Many people feel that his

architecture has a very spiritual and timeless quality.
Kahn mostly created public buildings such as museums and libraries. However,

he also designed a few houses. His most famous home is the Fisher house near

Philadelphia. It is made of several box- shaped buildings. The house is made

out of glass, wood and stone. Many windows provide a view of the nearby trees.

1 define   

vt.解释，下定义，阐述，限定，规定

参考例句：

• Please define the words.请解释这些字的意义。
• It's hard to define exactly what has changed.很难解释清楚到底发生了什么变化。

2 defining   

规定( define的现在分词 )； 使明确； 精确地解释； 画出…的线条

参考例句：

• You can customise the behavior of the Asynchronous Server and hence re-brand it by defining your own command set for invoking services. 通过定义自己调用服务的命令集，您可以定制自定义异步服务器的行为，通过为调用服务定义自己的命令集从而对它重新标记。
• This point can be put another way in defining poverty. 这一点还能从另一方面来加以说明以佐证贫困的涵义。 来自英汉非文学 - 新闻报道

3 brick   

n.砖；vt.用砖砌，用砖堵住

参考例句：

• She stared blankly at the brick wall in front of her.她面无表情地瞪着面前的砖墙。
• I bought a brick of ice cream for my daughter.我给女儿买了块冰砖。

4 excellence   

n.优秀，杰出，(pl.)优点，美德

参考例句：

• His art has reached a high degree of excellence.他的艺术已达到炉火纯青的地步。
• My performance is far below excellence.我的表演离优秀还差得远呢。

5 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

6 academy   

n.(高等)专科院校；学术社团，协会，研究院

参考例句：

• This is an academy of music.这是一所音乐专科学院。
• I visited Chinese Academy of Sciences yesterday.我昨天去访问了中国科学院。

7 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

8 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

9 apparent   

adj.表面上的，貌似真实的，显然的，明明白白的

参考例句：

• The apparent truth was really a lie.表面上看似实话，实际上是个谎言。
• His guilt is apparent to all.他的罪恶尽人皆知。

10 housing   

n.房屋，住宅；住房建筑；外壳，外罩

参考例句：

• Do you think our housing sales will turn around during this year?你认为今年我们的住宅销路会好转吗？
• The housing sales have been turning down since the summer.入夏以来，房屋的销售量日趋减少。

11 fort   

n.要塞，堡垒，碉堡

参考例句：

• The fort can not be defended against an air attack.这座要塞遭到空袭时无法防御。
• No one can get into the fort without a pass.没有通行证，任何人不得进入要塞。

12 administration   

n.经营，管理；行政，行政机关，管理部门

参考例句：

• Who is in charge of the administration of your company?你们公司的行政工作由谁负责？
• The teachers are responsible to the school administration.教师向学校行政负责。

13 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

14 limestone   

n.石灰石

参考例句：

• Limestone is often used in building construction.石灰岩常用于建筑。
• Cement is made from limestone.水泥是由石灰石制成的。

15 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

16 striking   

adj.显著的，惹人注目的，容貌出众的

参考例句：

• There is a striking difference between Jane and Mary.简和玛丽之间有显著的差异。
• What is immediately striking is how resourceful the children are.最令人注目的是孩子们的机智聪明。

17 laboratories   

n.实验室( laboratory的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• For, eight years, Marie Curie worked in cold laboratories with poor equipment. 整整八年，居里夫人在设备简陋、冰冷的实验室里做着实验。 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史
• Some commercial laboratories use periodic nitrate tests as guides. 许多商业性的试验室已应用定期的硝态氮分析作为指导。 来自辞典例句

18 curved   

a.弯曲的

参考例句：

• His lips curved in a barely perceptible smile. 他的嘴角弯了弯，露出一丝几乎察觉不到的笑容。
• The missile curved gracefully towards its target. 导弹呈优美的曲线状飞向目标。

19 vaulted   

adj.拱状的

参考例句：

• She vaulted over the gate and ran up the path. 她用手一撑跃过栅栏门沿着小路跑去。
• The formal living room has a fireplace and vaulted ceilings. 正式的客厅有一个壁炉和拱形天花板。

20 assembly   

n.集会(不可数)；会议(可数)，装配(不可数)

参考例句：

• He took his seat in an unobserved corner of the assembly room.他在会议室一个不为人注意的犄角坐下来。
• It was very quiet in the assembly hall.会场里静悄悄的。

21 Parliament   

n.议会，国会

参考例句：

• She won a seat in Parliament at the election.她在选举中赢得了议会中的席位。
• The drug was banned by an act of parliament.议会的法案明令禁止该药品。

22 compromise   

n.妥协；妥协方案；vt.损害；vi.妥协，让步

参考例句：

• The spokesman made it clear that no compromise was yet in sight.发言人表明，目前还不会妥协。
• The probable outcome of the talks is a compromise.会谈的结果很可能是妥协。

23 mister   

n.(略作Mr.全称很少用于书面)先生

参考例句：

• Mister Smith is my good friend.史密斯先生是我的好朋友。
• He styled himself " Mister Clean ".他自称是“清廉先生”。

24 teaching   

n.教学，执教，任教，讲授；(复数)教诲

参考例句：

• We all agree in adopting the new teaching method. 我们一致同意采取新的教学方法。
• He created a new system of teaching foreign languages.他创造了一种新的外语教学体系。