Paul Lester Wiener (1895–1967) was an American
architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
and
urban planner
An urban planner (also known as town planner) is a professional who practices in the field of town planning, urban planning or city planning.
An urban planner may focus on a specific area of practice and have a title such as city planner, town ...
.
Education
He was educated in the
Royal Academy of Berlin with post graduate study in Vienna and Paris. He came to the United States in 1913 and became a citizen in 1919. He returned to Europe for further study and work until 1927. In 1934, he designed the
Contempora House and it was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 2009.
Notable projects
Paul Lester Wiener collaborated with
Le Corbusier. Wiener and
Sert originated a master plan for the city of
Havana
Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. ,
Bogota and several other city units in
Colombia which were based on the principles of planning for expected population and organizing the growth of the city in an efficient manner, as well as reorganizing existing features to provide planned living and recreational space for residents with an eye to preventing the undesirable effects of random growth such as slum housing and inequitable distribution of land, etc.
In 1958, Wiener accepted his most significant commission in the United States: to plan a neighborhood development in the
Washington Square area of
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
, providing several thousand housing units within a six-block area. Combining his concepts of clean basic lines a functional form with bold color, he designed a series of high rise apartments which incorporated outdoor patio style living with the convenience of a central urban location and exciting visual environment.
Personal life
In 1935, he married Alma Morgenthau Wertheim, former wife of
Maurice Wertheim and daughter of
Henry Morgenthau Sr.
References
Further biographical information
1895 births
1967 deaths
Morgenthau family
German emigrants to the United States
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