- Lapidus, Morris
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born Nov. 25, 1902, Odessa, Russiadied Jan. 18, 2001, Miami Beach, Fla., U.S.Ukrainian-born U.S. architect.He came to the U.S. as a child and grew up in New York City. After earning an architectural degree, he worked in New York architectural firms from 1928 to 1942. In 1942 Lapidus moved to Miami Beach, where he ran his own firm until 1986. He designed numerous buildings there in the Art Deco style, including the Fontainebleau and Eden Roc hotels. He designed over 200 hotels worldwide as well as numerous office buildings, shopping centres, and hospitals.
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▪ 2002Russian-born American architect (b. Nov. 25, 1902, Odessa, Russia [now Ukraine]—d. Jan. 18, 2001, Miami Beach, Fla.), designed some 1,200 buildings, including 250 hotels; his flamboyant style was long scorned by critics but gained a measure of respect late in his career. Lapidus, who graduated from Columbia University, New York City, with a degree in architecture in 1927, designed retail spaces for 20 years before turning his attention to buildings. He was best known for his glitzy Miami Beach hotels, such as the Fontainebleau (1954), the Eden Roc (1955), and the Americana (1956; now the Sheraton Bal Harbour). His designs were always popular with the general public, but it was not until the 1980s and '90s that critics began to appreciate his work. In 2000 Lapidus received a National Design Award from the Smithsonian Institution's Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum. His autobiography, Too Much Is Never Enough, appeared in 1996.* * *
Universalium. 2010.
