Julia Morgan: An Intimate Biography of the Trailblazing Architect

with Victoria Kastner

July 19, 2022

11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

In its 29th year, The Mount’s annual Summer Lecture Series highlights recent works of memoir and biography. Join us for an eclectic mix of stories about historical figures and contemporary underrepresented voices.

Victoria Kastner's new biography—featuring over 150 archival images and full-color photographs printed throughout—introduces Julia Morgan as a pioneering architect and a captivating individual. This compelling biography draws on interviews, letters, and Morgan's diaries, including never-before-seen reflections on faith, art, and her life experiences. Morgan's friendship with Hearst, her passion for California's landscape, her struggles with familial dementia, and her devotion to architecture reveal her to have been a singularly brilliant and determined artist.

"Handsome and comprehensive . . . Victoria Kastner’s words, along with Alexander Vertikoff’s photography, provide a sweeping overview of Julia Morgan's vast, versatile body of work. You'll want to get a hard copy of this book; e-readers don't do justice to the photos or the layout. It's a volume to hold in your hands and savor."
San Francisco Chronicle

The Mount is a Massachusetts Cultural Council UP designated organization welcoming participants of all disabilities. Please contact The Mount at 413-551-5100 or by email, info@edithwharton.org, to discuss accommodations needed to participate fully in this event.

Thanks to our sponsors:

  • $25 Mount Member, $30 General Admission
  • Tickets are available for Mount members on Wednesday, May 11, with sales open to the general public on Friday, May 13.
  • Not a member? Contact Allison at 413-551-5112 to find out why Members Make the Difference.
  • All lectures will take place in an outdoor, open-sided tent. We look forward to seeing you rain or shine!
  • Books are available for purchase through The Mount's Bookstore before and during the event.

Biography

Speaker's Website

Victoria Kastner is the author of the first comprehensive biography about America’s most renowned female architect: Julia Morgan: An Intimate Biography of the Trailblazing Architect, published by Chronicle Books in 2022, Julia Morgan’s sesquicentennial year. Kastner was the official historian at Hearst Castle for more than thirty years, during which time she wrote the definitive trilogy on its history: Hearst Castle: The Biography of a Country HouseHearst’s San Simeon: The Gardens and the Land; and Hearst Ranch: Family, Land, and Legacy. Additional published subjects include the Beverly Hills Hotel, Bernard Maybeck’s Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, and the novels of Charles Dickens.