Bernard Rudofsky: From Images to Architecture Bernhard Rudofsky: Vom Bild zur Architektur

The work of Bernard Rudofsky (1905-1988) is closely related to vernacular architecture mainly due to the important exhibition Architecture without Architects which he organized at the MoMA in New York in 1964 and to the same-title book catalogue, and also thanks to his numerous texts and articles on the subject. Within the Vernacular, the Mediterranean area will remain Rudofsky main reference, following the important experience of living in southern Italy in the 1930s and his study travels to Greece and Asia Minor. The specific way of understanding and interpreting Mediterranean architecture by Rudofsky is the subject of this paper, which aims at highlighting the instrumental use of the vernacular in the creative architectural process. The topic is developed across the whole work of the architect, that is in his theoretical texts, architectural design projects, and archive images, specifically his travel photographs and watercolours, kept at the Getty Centre (Los Angeles).