Aline B. Louchheim (1914–1972) was an art critic on assignment for the New York Times in 1953 when she first met the Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen. She would become his wife and the driving force behind his rise to critical prominence. When Eero Met His Match draws on the couple’s personal correspondence to reconstruct the early days of their thrilling courtship and traces Louchheim’s gradual takeover of Saarinen’s public narrative in the 1950s, the decade when his career soared to unprecedented heights.
Drawing on her own experiences as an architecture journalist on the receiving end of press pitches and then as a secret publicist for high-end architects, Eva Hagberg paints an unforgettable portrait of Louchheim while revealing the inner workings of a media world that has always relied on secrecy, friendship, and the exchange of favors. She describes how Louchheim codified the practices of architectural publicity that have become widely adopted today, and shows how, without Louchheim as his wife and publicist, Saarinen’s work would not have been nearly as well known.
Providing a new understanding of postwar architectural history in the United States, When Eero Met His Match is both a poignant love story and a superb biographical study that challenges us to reconsider the relationship between fame and media representation, and the ways the narratives of others can become our own.
Awards and Recognition
- A Fast Company Best Design Book of the Year
"Hagberg’s book is bold and original, both in subject matter and structure. The author’s investment in the entanglement of love and professional drive, of language and form, does not fight for the inclusion of Aline Louchheim Saarinen in the existing canon but rather builds a new category all its own."—Mariana Janowicz, New York Review of Architecture
"Hagberg gives the discreet and specialised world of the architectural publicist an aura of romance and intrigue. Though its task is confined, When Eero Met His Match is an expansive, candid, insightful and oddly sexy book. As a tribute to Louchheim, it is impressive; as a portrait of an overlooked profession, it is revealing, funny and moving."—Will Wiles, Apollo Magazine
"A unique piece of media criticism. . . . [Hagberg] shines a light on the deep connection between words and visuals, media and memory, and how our experiences of the built world are filtered through the stories being told to us."—Jarrett Fuller, Fast Company
"Combining biography, history, personal narrative, and cultural criticism, and sweetened with a dash of epistolary romance, When Eero Met His Match brings Louchheim — and an entire branch of architectural practice and production — out of the shadows."—Sophia Stewart, Hyperallergic
"Hagberg’s exploration of their relationship foregrounds the woman whose powerful mythmaking created the lasting impression of Saarinen’s singular creative genius."—Sarah Holder, City Lab
"[An] important book."—John J. Parman, Arcade Magazine
"When Eero Met His Match dives into the rarely seen lives of those behind the curtain of newspaper clippings and magazine articles. Part historical account, part personal memoir, Eva Hagberg's latest book unpacks the often secret and sometimes omniscient world of architectural publicity."—Kate Mazade, Madame Architect
"[An] unconventional biography. . . . the book’s true intellectual centre is the exploration of how architectural form is translated into — and shaped by — the stories we tell. . . . An accessible, elegant and exquisitely polymathic meditation on a complicated subject."—Stefan Novakovic, Azure Magazine
"When Eero Met His Match is at once a personal journey for its author as it is an impeccably researched reconstruction of two important figures in modern architecture, sure to appeal to architects, students, and architectural historians alike."—Sean Ruthen, Spacing National
"[An] excellent book. . . . Hagberg . . . uses When Eero Met His Match to correct the diminished role attributed to Aline in Eero's career, as portrayed in articles at the time but also in monographs published decades later."—John Hill, A Weekly Dose of Architecture Books
"It is a fascinating behind-the-scenes exposé of the relationship between architectural practice and the media which exploded after the war and continues to form the basis of how architecture works today. It’s also about fame, ambition, insecurity, love and lust (it would make a terrific movie)."—Stephen Parnell, RIBA Journal
"When Eero Met His Match is a good choice for anyone with an interest in architectural media and its inner workings. It offers fresh new biographical perspectives on Saarinen and Louchheim along with a series of insights into the intricate web connecting architecture, art and the media in the United States in the 1950s and 1960s."—The Finnish Architectural Review
"When Eero Met His Match is an extraordinary book . . . about women in architecture and how or why so many remain invisible. . . . [The book] reminds us of the transformative power of love and the complicated legacies of those who dare to challenge convention. Through its pairing of personal narratives and archival analysis, the book not only enriches our understanding of architecture and its practitioners but also inspires us to reconsider the ways in which we perceive and engage with architects past and present."—Annmarie Adams, Panorama
“A hybrid romp through modernism, Eva Hagberg’s When Eero Met His Match is both a paean to Aline Louchheim’s tireless work behind the scenes to promote Eero Saarinen and a compelling personal narrative, encompassing the vital, often invisible work of storytellers in shaping America’s love affair with architecture.”—Emily Maloney, author of Cost of Living
“Eva Hagberg brings a relationship to life and illustrates how critical and promotional language shape the story of architecture, gently melting opinions into accepted history. Quick and brilliant.”—Sasha Frere-Jones, writer and musician
“There is a serious need to question the focus on the ‘master architect’ as a lone genius. When Eero Met His Match examines the crucial role of the media and of mediation between architect and press, shedding light on a hidden part of architectural culture, the role of the publicist.”—Hilde Heynen, University of Leuven, author of Architecture and Modernity: A Critique
“When Eero Met His Match sheds new light on Eero Saarinen, one of architecture’s prominent modernist figures, and claims an equal role for his partner Aline Louchheim Saarinen. A thorough and original investigation of the role of communication, public relations, and the media in shaping the architectural canon, Hagberg’s book powerfully superimposes the author’s own personal contemporary experience with that of her subject.”—Amale Andraos, designer and cofounder of WORKac
