Sidney Eisenshtat
| Sidney Eisenshtat | |
|---|---|
| Born |
June 6, 1914 New Haven, Connecticut |
| Died | March 1, 2005 (aged 90) Los Angeles, California |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Architect |
| Buildings |
Sinai Temple, Los Angeles, California |
| Projects | Master Plan for the University of Judaism, Los Angeles, California |
Sinai Temple, Los Angeles, California
Temple Mount Sinai, El Paso, Texas
Sidney Eisenshtat (June 6, 1914 – March 1, 2005) was an American architect who was best known for his synagogues and Jewish academic buildings.
Sidney Eisenshtat was born in New Haven, Connecticut, and his family later lived in Detroit, Michigan. The family moved to Los Angeles, California in 1926, reportedly in search of a less anti-Semitic atmosphere than they perceived in Detroit. He graduated from the University of Southern California architecture school in 1935.
Early in his career he designed large projects for the United States Department of Defense, tract houses, and retail stores.
It was not until 1951 that he designed his first major religious structure, Temple Emanuel of Beverly Hills, California. Eight years later he designed the landmark Sinai Temple on Wilshire Boulevard in the Westwood district of Los Angeles, a building that has been compared to the work of Frank Lloyd Wright and which is distinguished by its use of stained glass windows.
Eisenshtat said that his concept of synagogue design was based on his perception that, unlike in some religions, "in Judaism there is no intermediary. Therefore, I see the structure for synagogues not as pyramidal but as horizontal." Influenced by other modernist architects, notably Erich Mendelsohn, Eisenshat was noted for a use of expressive forms in thin shell concrete, white walls, simple materials, and natural light. Two of his most representative and distinguished buildings are set in arid desert environments.
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