Bernie’s Dome About the book Give to the book
Julius Shulman’s print of the geodesic dome half-skinned on its hillside at 2949 Durand Drive, with the city spreading out below
2949 Durand Drive. Julius Shulman, 1962. © J. Paul Getty Trust, Getty Research Institute (2004.R.10).
Patrons of the book

Returning a forgotten icon to the American architectural record.

Bernard Judge’s dome was an experiment in how America might house itself. It worked, it came down in the early 1970s, and architectural history left it out. This book brings it back. The photographs and drawings that tell the story are held by archives that charge to scan and license them. Patrons pay for that, and every patron is named in the book.

$0 raised of $4,000 · be one of the first patrons

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Your credit

Your name, on the patrons’ page.

The book closes with a page listing everyone who helped pay for it. You choose how your name appears when you give, or you can be listed as anonymous. Every patron is listed the same way, whatever the amount.

Inside the dome: a dining table under the triangulated frame, the canyon beyond the glazing
The dining room under the frame. Julius Shulman, 1962. © J. Paul Getty Trust, Getty Research Institute (2004.R.10).
Where the money goes

Scans, licenses, permissions. Nothing else.

The house came down in the early 1970s and its frame is now at the Smithsonian. What survives on paper is spread across archives in California, Washington and Canada.

Scans
High-resolution scans of the original drawings, letters and photographs, ordered from the archives that hold them.
Licenses
Reproduction fees, charged per image by the archives and the photographers’ estates.
Permissions
Clearing the rights to quote family papers and published sources.
Preview

Inside the book

See all 32 spreads
The cover of Bernie’s DomeThe cover Plates showing the frame being raisedRaising the dome The spiral stair inside the dome, opening chapter 7Living in the Future The frame standing again in Flag Hall, 2023Flag Hall, 2023

Berkay Kars is an architectural designer in Los Angeles and co-founder of ZARHA Design. He has spent two years following the dome through archives in California, Washington and Canada.

Questions

Before you give

How much should I give?

Whatever feels right, from $10. Every patron is listed the same way.

Is it tax-deductible?

No. Gifts are received by ZARHA Design LLC, the author’s studio, which is not a charity.

How do I pay?

Card, Apple Pay or Google Pay through Stripe, with a receipt by email. To give by check, contact the author.

Will you keep in touch?

Only if you want me to. Checkout asks for your email so Stripe can send a receipt. I use it to confirm how your name should appear before the book goes to print, and to send patrons an occasional short note on what the archives turn up. Reply to any of those notes to stop them.

When does the book come out?

It is in preparation now. Patrons will hear first when it goes to print.

Can I change how my name appears?

Yes. Contact the author any time before the book goes to print.

I knew the house. Can we talk?

Please write. Photographs, letters and memories of the dome help the book as much as money does.

Know someone who remembers the dome?

Send them this page. Neighbors, former students and friends of the Judges are the people most likely to have a photograph in a drawer.

Give to the book
Give to the book