Born 1872 – San Francisco, CA Died 1957 – San Francisco, CA
Architect of the North Star House
Julia Morgan is America’s most decorated woman architect. Among her achievements, Morgan was one of the first women to graduate with a degree in Civil Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley (1894); the first woman to be accepted to and earn a degree in architecture at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris (1902), then the most prestigious architecture program in the world; the first licensed woman architect in the state of California (1904); and the first woman to be awarded the AIA Gold Medal (2014), the most prestigious honor of the American Institute of Architects. She is probably best known for Hearst Castle and Asilomar Conference Grounds.
In 1904, Julia Morgan secured her first commission to design a multi-use building. Although exactly how Morgan received the commission to design North Star House remains unclear, her directive was not: D. Hague, principal owner of the North Star gold mine in Grass Valley, wanted to build a mansion of architectural distinction that served two purposes: an impressive space to host social and business events for wealthy investors and a residence for the family of his Superintendent Arthur De Wint Foote. Morgan had a meager budget of under $23,000.
Morgan was unique in that she included clients — both men and women — in the design process. At that time, architects seldom if ever included men, much less women, in any designs. Morgan was also unique in situating buildings as though they were one with nature and part of the landscape. She typically utilized local materials that added to the organic effect. While Morgan was known for her First Bay Tradition Arts and Crafts designs, she was comfortable with all different styles of buildings.
Morgan used understated design elements that deviated from handcrafted embellishments of other architects in Arts and Crafts movement. She utilized large windows to frame the outside vistas which became even more dramatic with the absence of ornamentation. The focus instead became outward through the large windows to the views beyond.
Well into the 20th century, most buildings were designed with support beams hidden by plaster ceilings. Not so with Morgan. Her designs included exposing the beams or trusses, usually built with local hardwoods, and then encased in a simple decorative casing. The same was true of wall paneling and wainscots, with each element adding to the room’s ambiance.
Morgan’s exceptional ability to integrate two opposing design elements – large groups vs. small — is evident in her seamless design. These are spatial attributes that few architects develop even with years of experience. Morgan’s design began with the room proportions that would work for both large group and family usage. Then she had to integrate traffic patterns with seating patterns for both large and small groups in the same room. The seating patterns included inglenooks for intimate conversations integrated with the free flow of group conversations.
Morgan designed with meaning and with purpose; her designs were often catalysts for change. Biographer and historian Karen McNeill states, “Julia Morgan and her clients literally built their way out of the Victorian notion of separate spheres to create a landscape for modern womanhood.” (Building the California Woman’s Movement: Architecture, Space and Gender in the Life and Work of Julia Morgan.)
Click here to view a wonderful 7-1/2 minute video of Julia Morgan and her work.
This video was created to support the effort to have Miss Morgan awarded the annual Gold Medal from AIA (American Institute of Architects) in 2014 (awarded posthumously).