Goff, Bruce Alonzo

Goff, Bruce Alonzo (1904–82). One of the most idiosyncratic architects the USA has ever produced, he was originally influenced by F. L. Wright, but gradually evolved a free style of his own, using materials such as coal, ropes, objects retrieved from rubbish-dumps, and bits of aircraft in his buildings. At the Bavinger House, Norman, OK (1950–5), he created a spiral rubble stone wall enclosing a volume illuminated from above, while subsidiary volumes were hung from a central mast. Other works include the Ford House, Aurora, IL (1948–50), the Price House, Bartlesville, OK (1956–8), the Glen Harder House, near Mountain Lake, Minn. (1970–2), the Barby House, Tucson, AZ (1974–6), and many other projects, all of which are treated with great individuality and verve. He was identified by Peter Cook as an exponent of Experimental architecture.

Bibliography

J. Cook (1978);
P. Cook (1970);
Futagawa (ed.) (1975);
Long (1977, 1988);
Mead (ed.) (1989a, 1991a);
Mohri (1970);
Murphy & and Muller (1970);
Saliga & and Woolever (1995)