Venturi believed that architecture did not have to be pure, pretty, or geometrically balanced. It could be awkward, different, surprising, ambiguous, and complex. He believed that fun, humor, surprise, and character adds to a building and that a building should tell a story as it is approached from different views and speeds. Wright believed in reducing the number of parts to make a piece of architecture come together as space for light, air, and view with a sense of unity. He believed that “Light is the beautifier of the building.” Wright saw organic simplicity as the “Gospel of elimination.”
Although Venturi did not believe that a building had to be beautiful, he was in favor of décor and complexity. Whereas Wright felt beauty was necessary from light and the nature of materials. He believed in blending the outside with the inside and eliminating décor. Despite their contrast in theory, Wright and Venturi are both appreciated as great architects of America.
Books by Stacy A. Padula 