Harry Weese | |
---|---|
Born |
Evanston, Illinois, US |
June 30, 1915
Died | October 29, 1998 Manteno, Illinois |
(aged 83)
Nationality | American |
Alma mater | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1938) |
Occupation | Architect |
Buildings |
Arena Stage Time-Life Building The United States embassy in Accra, Ghana |
Projects | Washington Metro |
Harry Mohr Weese (June 30, 1915 – October 29, 1998) was an American architect, born in Evanston, Illinois in the Chicago suburbs, who had an important role in 20th century modernism and historic preservation. His brother, Ben Weese, is also a renowned architect.
Harry Mohr Weese was born on June 30, 1915 in Evanston, Illinois as the first son of Harry E. and Marjorie Weese. His father was an Episcopalian, and his mother was a Presbyterian. In 1919, the family moved to a house in Kenilworth, Illinois, where Harry would be raised. Weese was enrolled in the progressive Joseph Sears School in 1919. By 1925, Weese decided that he wanted to be either an artist or an architect.
After graduating from New Trier High School, Weese enrolled at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1933 to pursue a Bachelor in Architecture. Weese also took architecture classes at Yale University starting in 1936. Weese studied under Alvar Aalto at MIT and fraternized with classmates I.M. Pei and Eero Saarinen. As his schooling was at the height of the Great Depression, Weese eschewed studying the expensive historical revivals in favor of more affordable modern styles. In the summer of 1937, Weese toured northern Europe on a bicycle, fostering his appreciation for the modernist movement.
Upon his return to the United States, Weese was offered a fellowship at the Cranbrook Academy of Art (sometimes called the "Scandinavian Bauhaus") through Eero Saarinen, whose father Eliel oversaw the school. There, he studied city planning, potter, and textiles while learning more about Modernist principles. He worked alongside other emerging Modernist designers such as Ralph Rapson, Florence Knoll, and Charles Eames.