Biographical Note
Scope and Content
Arrangement
Conditions Governing Access
Conditions Governing Use
Custodial History Note
Preferred Citation
Processing Information
Contributing Institution:
USC Libraries Special Collections
Title: Sidney Eisenshtat papers
Creator:
Eisenshtat, Sidney
Identifier/Call Number: 4000
Identifier/Call Number: /repositories/3/resources/1535
Physical Description:
26 Boxes
(32 linear feet) of project files, project-related materials,
and memorabilia; and 54 drawers of architectural drawings and renderings.
Date: 1935-1984
Abstract: USC alumnus Sidney
Eisenshtat was a prolific Los Angeles architect best known for his innovative modern
synagogues and Jewish educational buildings, although he also designed many noteworthy
commercial structures and schools, as well as residential projects, during his long career
spanning from the late 1930s to the early 1980s. In May 1999, USC received his collection of
office and personal materials that includes project-related documents, correspondence,
drawings, photographs, and ephemera.
Language of Material:
English .
Biographical Note
Sidney Eisenshat (1914-2005) enjoyed a long and distinguished career as an architect whose
practice was based in Los Angeles. Born in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1914, Eisenshtat
settled in Los Angeles in 1926 and graduated from the University of Southern California
School of Architecture in 1935. In his early career, Eisenshtat worked on large projects for
the United States Department of Defense and designed tract houses and retail stores in Los
Angeles and surrounding Southern California communities.
After he established his own firm, Eisenshtat, an observant Orthodox Jew, devoted much of
his practice to religious architecture, becoming an influential architect of modern
synagogues, as well as Jewish academic buildings and community centers. In 1951, he designed
his first major religious work, Temple Emanuel in Beverly Hills, which has often been
compared to the work of Frank Lloyd Wright. He later built many other synagogues and centers
for Jewish study, such as the Sinai Temple in Los Angeles (1953), the Brandeis-Bardin House
of the Book in Simi Valley (1954), the Mount Sinai Temple in El Paso, Texas (1956), Hillel
House at USC (1969), and the University of Judaism in Bel-Air (1977). For Eisenshtat, these
commissions expressed his devotion to Jewish traditions and values and he therefore
performed much of his work for religious communities gratis. Each of his projects was unique
in form, yet all displayed a minimalist sensibility that is characteristic of modernism and
a sculptural robustness that recalls the work of Expressionist architects such as Eric
Mendelsohn, whose innovative synagogues Eisenshtat greatly admired. Like Mendelsohn,
Eisenshtat designed buildings with walls of thin-slab concrete or brick that were virtually
devoid of decoration, but that were highly expressive through the use of simple materials
and plentiful natural light. Sculpture, mosaics, and stained glass were often incorporated
into Eisenshtat's work, but these elements remained subservient to the overall architectural
design.
Although his synagogues were among his most personal creations, Eisenshtat also applied his
formidable talents as a designer to his many commercial projects. Until his retirement in
the 1980s, Eisenshtat designed many noteworthy modern office buildings and other structures
near the Wilshire Corridor in Beverly Hills, including the Friars Club (1959), which was a
gathering place for many of the city's comedians and entertainers, and the Union Bank
building (1960), which has become an unofficial neighborhood landmark.
Scope and Content
The collection housed in twenty-six boxes and fifty-four drawers documents the professional
career and life of Los Angeles architect Sidney Eisenshtat. The bulk of the collection
consists of papers comprising correspondence with clients, engineering specifications,
invoices, and cost calculations, among other kinds of records. The collection also contains
a large number of drawings, renderings, and photographs relating to Eisenshtat's
architectural projects, which range from his major religious and commercial works to his
less well-known residential buildings.
Series 1. Religious Buildings encompasses all of Eisenshtat's religious architecture,
including his designs for synagogues and mortuary buildings, as well as community centers
and educational institutions having a religious focus. Forty-two works dating from 1949-1984
are included, along with a group of miscellaneous projects that went unrealized. The
projects are arranged chronologically, and extensive documentation exists for such major
commissions as Central (Westside) Jewish Community Center (1950), Temple Emanuel (1952),
Sinai Temple (1953), University of Judaism (1953), Brandeis-Bardin House of the Book (1954),
and Hillel House USC (1969). Papers, photographs, and drawings are contained in fourteen
boxes and thirty-one drawers.
Series 2. Commercial and Residential Buildings covers all of Eisenshtat's commercial and
residential work, including unbuilt projects, spanning from his earliest house design in
1936 to his last commercial construction in 1981. Arranged chronologically in eleven boxes
and twenty-two drawers, the series contains papers and drawings for one hundred thirty-five
projects, with extensive documentation for major works that include the Union Bank Building
(1960) and the Sven Lokrantz School for Handicapped Children (1959-1977).
Series 3. Professional and Personal Memorabilia is devoted to ephemera and memorabilia
relating to Eisenshtat's professional career as an architect, his involvement with various
religious and civic communities, his activities as a student at USC, and his family history.
In addition, the series includes interview tapes and general administrative records from
Eisenshtat's office. These materials are housed in eight boxes.
Arrangement
The collection is organized into three series: Series 1. Religious Buildings; Series 2.
Commercial and Residential Buildings; and Series 3. Personal and Professional
Memorabilia.
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research use. Advance notice required for access.
Conditions Governing Use
The collection contains published materials; researchers are reminded of the copyright
restrictions imposed by publishers on reusing their articles and parts of books. It is the
responsibility of researchers to acquire permission from publishers when reusing such
materials. The copyright to unpublished materials belongs to the heirs of the writers.
Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the
copyright holder.
Custodial History Note
In April 1985, a portion of the collection was loaned to the Skirball Museum, largely
consisting of his Jewish related projects (previously identified as SE1-SE50). In May 1999,
the entire collection was relocated to the USC Helen Topping Architecture and Fine Arts
Library, including all available commercial and residential projects (identified as
SE51-SE200).
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Sidney Eisenshtat papers, Collection no. 4000, Special
Collections, USC Libraries, University of Southern California.
Processing Information
The USC Libraries Architecture & Fine Arts Library transferred custody of the Sidney
Eisenshtat papers to the USC Libraries Special Collections unit on April 15, 2024. The
collection's box labels still list the Architecture & Fine Arts Library as the holding
repository.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Architecture -- California -- Los Angeles -- History -- Archival
resources
Synagogue architecture -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival
resources
Architecture, Modern -- 20th century -- Archival resources
Architectural drawings (visual works)
Renderings (drawings)
Jewish architecture -- California -- Los Angeles -- Archival
resources
Specifications
Presentation drawings (proposals)
Eisenshtat, Sidney -- Archives