Fred Bassetti facts for kids
Fred Bassetti (born January 31, 1917, in Seattle – died December 5, 2013, in Oregon) was a famous Pacific Northwest architect and teacher. He designed many well-known buildings and spaces in the Seattle area. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) said he greatly helped shape Seattle and the Northwest, and also the architecture profession itself.
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Early Life and Education
Fred Bassetti was born in Seattle. His parents were immigrants from Norway and Italy. He grew up south of Seattle and spent a year in Turin, Italy, with his father's family.
After finishing Garfield High School in Seattle, he first studied engineering. But after a year, he switched to architecture. He earned his first architecture degree from the University of Washington in 1942.
During World War II, he worked as a draftsman, drawing building plans. After the war, he continued his studies at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. He learned from famous architects like Walter Gropius and Marcel Breuer. He even studied in the same class as I. M. Pei, another very famous architect. Fred Bassetti earned his master's degree in architecture in 1946.
Starting His Own Firm
After Harvard, Bassetti worked for a short time in Boston. Then he came back to Seattle. In 1947, he started his own architecture firm with his friend Jack Morse. Their firm was called Bassetti & Morse, Architects. Later, the firm changed names a few times as new partners joined. Eventually, Fred Bassetti retired in 1994. The firm still exists today as Bassetti Architects.
Besides designing buildings, Fred Bassetti also taught. He was a guest teacher at many universities, including Columbia University, MIT, and the Universities of Washington and Oregon.
His Architectural Style
Fred Bassetti is part of a group of architects sometimes called the "Northwest School." Their designs after 1945 were said to capture the feeling of the Pacific Northwest.
These architects often used natural materials like wood in their early projects. You can see wood framing, wood siding, and wood shingles in many of Bassetti's first homes. Later, many of his designs featured softened edges. For example, the corners of the Jackson Federal Building and the Seattle Municipal Tower are gently angled or rounded. Bassetti felt these rounded corners felt "good to the human hand."
When asked in 2009 which projects he was most proud of, Bassetti mentioned the Forrest and Martin Homes. He also loved the U.S. Embassy in Lisbon, Portugal, because it blended Portuguese and American styles using local materials. Another favorite was the East Pine Receiving Station for Seattle City Light.
Key Projects
Here are some of the important buildings and projects Fred Bassetti and his firms worked on:
- Seattle Aquarium
- Henry M. Jackson Federal Building, Seattle
- Seattle Municipal Tower (once called Key Tower), Seattle
- U.S. Embassy, Lisbon, Portugal
- Inglemoor High School, Kenmore, WA
- Children's Zoo at Woodland Park, Seattle
- Lakeside School, Seattle
- University of Washington Engineering Library and Loew Hall, Seattle
- Dormitories at Central Washington University, Ellensburg, WA
- Library and dormitories at Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA
- Franklin High School renovation, Seattle, WA
- East Shore Unitarian Church, Bellevue WA
- Island Park School, Mercer Island WA
- KIRO-TV Broadcast House, Seattle
- Sanitary Public Market Building, Seattle
He also designed many homes, including:
- Marshall Forrest Residence
- Walter F. Isaacs Residence
- Gerald Martin Residence
- John O'Brien Residence
- Doris and Jack Robertson Residence
Awards and Recognition
Before he retired, Fred Bassetti and his firms received almost 100 awards! Some of these include:
- Being named a Fellow of the AIA (1968)
- Receiving the AIA Seattle Medallist award (1988)
- Being called "Best Local Architect" by readers of Seattle Weekly (1988)
- Being nominated for the Pritzker Architecture Prize (1989), which is one of the highest honors in architecture.
- Being added to the University of Washington's College of Architecture and Urban Planning Roll of Honor (2007).
Community Involvement
Fred Bassetti also played a big role in improving Seattle. He started and led a group called Action: Better City (ABC). This group began after the 1962 World's Fair. It aimed to discuss and improve the design of Seattle's downtown area.
Bassetti believed that architects should help their hometowns. He was a great example of how an architect can support and guide their community throughout their life.
