Photo: John King John King, the San Francisco Chronicle’s urban design critic, and a Berkeley dweller, writes a weekly column for the paper called Cityscapes in which, in words and photographs, he highlights an architectural slice of San Francisco life. The columns have been collected into a second book, “Cityscapes 2: Reading the Architecture of San Francisco,” published by […]
John King
Posted inHousing & Development
John King: Keeping downtown Berkeley’s design distinctive is a tall order
The newly emerging BAM/PFA building in downtown Berkeley. Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle By John King / San Francisco Chronicle A walk through downtown Berkeley reveals a treasure of pre-World War II architecture, different styles and materials blending together in comfortable structures that were built for their time but seem to grow in stature with […]
Posted inHousing & Development, Schools
Cityscape: A Berkeley theater that’s a show unto itself
The Berkeley Community Theater as seen from inside the campus of Berkeley High School. Inside are the 575-seat Florence Schwimley Little Theater and the 3,500 seat main hall. Photo: John King By John King Strict planning dogma says this pair of theaters serving Berkeley High School should be deadly, since they turn their back to […]
Posted inCity
Cityscape: Indigenous architecture of the Berkeley kind
20 or so buildings in West Berkeley share an unusual trait: they were build with Crete-Glass, diamond-like patterns of block glass devised by the long-gone Berkeley Concrete Form Company. Photo: John King By John King Like many older cities, Berkeley has architectural facets that set it apart — not only the shingled landmarks of Julia […]
Posted inArts
John King to sign books and chat, a little, at William Stout
San Francisco Chronicle urban design writer and Berkeleyan John King is a fan of architectural bookstore William Stout — and he loves its Berkeley outpost which opened in September last year. (The other two stores are in San Francisco.) “It’s a terrific bookstore… it’s strong in used architecture, design and art; in other words, not […]
Posted inCity
Sustainable, stylish, affirming: Berkeley’s Teen Center
“This isn’t a building for long-time Berkeleyans to reminisce about the Free Speech Movement or the history of Chez Panisse. It’s for a segment of the population that too often is viewed as a nuisance and threat — and in a location that by its visibility affirms that teenagers belong to our society as a whole.” So […]
Posted inArts
John King talks cityscapes, including his Berkeley picks
John King: when it comes to buildings Berkeleyans are even more conservative than San Franciscans, he says. Photo: Laura Morton John King, staff writer at the San Francisco Chronicle, is a skilled observer of the urban terrain. His new book, “Cityscapes: San Francisco and Its Buildings” (Heyday; $14.95), is drawn from his “Cityscapes” column in […]
Posted inHousing & Development
A lukewarm review for new Berkeley building
New Californian building on Trader Joe's opening day. The building which houses Berkeley’s newly opened Trader Joe’s was given a lukewarm review by the Chronicle’s urban design writer John King this weekend. While King welcomed the five story mixed-use building as an example of the sort of smart growth cities like Berkeley need, he was less […]
Posted inArts
Berkeley Art Museum seeks architect, again
Following its decision to move into the former University of California printing plant at Center and Oxford streets in downtown Berkeley (pictured top right), the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive is looking for an architecture firm to revamp the space for them. According to John King in today’s Chronicle, ten architectural firms have submitted […]
Posted inArts, Berkeleyside, Community
Berkeley tweeters part 2: They’re out there
Earlier this month we took a look at well-known Berkeley tweeters. We identified those who do — among them Dave Winer and Markos Moulitsas — those who sort of do, such as Michael Pollan, and then we compiled a wish-list of noted Berkeley people who we hope will take to the Twitter-waves. Of course, our readers […]
Posted inCommunity
To tweet or not to tweet, that is the question
Blogger extraordinaire Dave Winer does it many times a day and nearly 30,000 people follow his every word. Sustainable food guru Michael Pollan thought he was going to do it, but probably found he was too busy and has only graced us with his 140-character apercus 15 times since he launched himself into micro-blogging. Few […]
