Violeta Autumn facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Violeta Autumn
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Violeta Autumn, Sausalito, CA, 1973
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| Born | May 20, 1930 |
| Died | February 5, 2012 Sausalito, California
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| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | University of Oklahoma |
| Occupation | Architect |
| Awards | American Institute of Architects, Bay Area Honor Awards 1974, Design Excellence, Souverain Winery, with John Davis & Schaaf-Jacobs-Vinson, Engineers |
| Practice | Autumn & Associates Architects Planners Davis-Autumn & Associates Architects-Planners |
| Buildings | 521 Sausalito Blvd., Sausalito, California 6 Unit Apartment Building for Fred R. Winn, Mill Valley, California Caletti Jungsten (Office) Building With John Marsh Davis wineries in the Napa Valley AVA including Souverain Winery, Joseph Phelps Vineyards, Rutherford Hill Winery, Sullivan Vineyards |
| Projects | As Planner and City Councilmember: Schoonmaker Project, Deak Office Park(aka Harbor Drive Executive Office Park), Whiskey Springs: a Condominium Subdivision, all of Sausalito, California. As Muralist and Artist with other architects: First National Bank of Nevada on the south shore of Lake Tahoe in California and in Reno Nevada |
Violeta Autumn (born May 20, 1930, died February 5, 2012) was a famous architect and artist. She was born in Peru but became an American citizen. She lived and worked in the San Francisco Bay Area in California.
Violeta was known for her unique style called Organic Architecture. She designed her own home and many beautiful wineries with her partner, John Marsh Davis. Besides her work as an architect, Violeta also served on the Planning Commission and City Council for Sausalito, California. She even wrote cookbooks and created amazing murals!
Contents
Early Life and Education
Violeta Eidelman was born in Chiclayo, Peru on May 20, 1930. Her parents were Russian Jewish immigrants. Her father, Alberto Eidelman, was an artist.
Violeta lived in Peru until she was 14 years old. Then, she and her brother moved to the United States. She finished elementary school in Lima and started high school in Panama. She completed her high school education at Norman High School in the U.S. Her parents stayed in Panama to earn money for their children's schooling.
Violeta studied architecture at the University of Oklahoma. She learned from a famous architect named Bruce Goff. In 1953, she earned her Bachelor of Architecture degree. She was only the third woman to graduate from that program. She also studied engineering for two years.
After graduating, Violeta traveled in Europe. On her way back, she met her future husband, Sanford Autumn. They married in 1954. She then moved to the San Francisco Bay Area. In 1957, she received her California architect's license.
Violeta's Career and Designs
Violeta Autumn's first job in architecture was drawing plans for Harold Dow. He was an architect in Palo Alto, California. She also drew pictures for other architects and authors. She even designed large wall paintings called murals.
In 1959, Violeta designed and built her own home and office. It was on a narrow, winding street in Sausalito. The building was special because it was built on a steep "cliff" site. It had a unique structure designed with engineer Haluk Akol.
Her home showed off her Organic Architecture style. This style was taught by her teachers, Bruce Goff and Frank Lloyd Wright. It means buildings should blend with nature and use natural materials. Her home had a two-story copper chimney and exposed concrete walls. It also used unpainted redwood, showing the natural beauty of the wood. This project was featured in Progressive Architecture and Look magazines.
Public Service in Sausalito
Violeta became a U.S. citizen in 1963. Two years later, she started helping her local government. In 1965, she joined the Community Appearances Advisory Board. She then became a member of the Planning Commission.
In 1974, she was elected as a Sausalito City Councilwoman. She was known for protecting the environment. She also spoke out against council members who might benefit financially from projects they approved.
Violeta served on the City Council from 1974 to 1978. During this time, a large shipyard called Marinship was being rebuilt. It was over 100 acres and had been sold by the U.S. Government. Violeta played a big part in planning how this area would be redeveloped. She worked with other architects to stop too many buildings from being built along the beautiful San Francisco Bay shoreline.
She helped stop a large project called the Schoonmaker Project. She also helped reduce the size of the Deak Office Park project. Violeta was very important in updating Sausalito's General Plan from 1963. She helped create rules for the waterfront. These rules helped artists and small maritime businesses. She worked alongside Sally Stanford, who later became Mayor. After her term on the City Council ended in 1978, she returned to the Planning Commission until 1980.
Architectural Partnerships and Awards
Violeta Autumn also worked with John Lautner, who was a student of Frank Lloyd Wright. Her architectural style was strongly influenced by her former teacher, Bruce Goff.
In the 1970s, she had an architectural company called Davis-Autumn & Associates. Her partner was John Marsh Davis, who also studied at the University of Oklahoma. Their company won awards for designing wineries.
In 1974, they won the American Institute of Architects Bay Area Honor Award. This was for their excellent design of the Souverain Winery in the Napa Valley AVA. This winery combined French country style with Organic Architecture.
Other notable buildings they designed include:
- Joseph Phelps Vineyards
- Rutherford Hill Winery
- Sullivan Vineyards
These are all in the Sonoma Valley and Napa Valley areas of California. They also designed the Caletti Jungsten building in Mill Valley, California in 1986. Violeta also created many handcrafted murals for the 1st National Bank of Nevada. These murals were in places like Lake Tahoe, Las Vegas, and Reno. They showed pioneering figures from the American West.
Artist and Author
Violeta Autumn was also a talented artist. She held art shows to display her work. She drew pictures for a book of poems by San Francisco writer Alice Paula.
She also published two cookbooks. The first was called A Russian Jew Cooks in Peru. It was based on her mother's recipes, and Violeta drew the pictures for it. Later, she published a second cookbook called Flavors of Northern Italy, which she also illustrated.
Legacy
Violeta Autumn passed away on February 5, 2012. The University of Oklahoma planned an exhibition in 2019 called The American School of Architecture. Her works were included in this exhibition. They were chosen to show important examples of her unique architectural style.
Images for kids
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Bay Area Honor Awards 1974, Design Excellence, Davis-Autumn & Associates, Architects - Planners, M. Seuferer, J. Fitzgerald, Assoc. in joint venture with Schaaf-Jacobs-Vinson, Engineers, Souverain Winery
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Cliff House. Autumn Organic Architecture
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Caletti Jungsten building, Mill Valley, California
