Issue 145 April 17th 2019

The Headlines

Tadao Ando Reflects On Experiencing A Wright Space

The Pritzker-winning Japanese architect, Tadao Ando shares his recollections on the Frank Lloyd Wright designed Tokyo hotel that inspired his career.

"I was in my late teens when I first saw the Imperial hotel by Frank Lloyd Wright, at the end of the 50s. I happened upon the building during a trip to Tokyo. It was well before the beginning of my career as an architect, and I had not yet heard of Wright. I was overwhelmed by the immense beauty and richness of the space. My response to the building was a purely emotional one as I had no knowledge of the technical and cultural complexities of architecture. I was shocked yet intrigued to know that architecture could induce a feeling akin to exploring a whole new world. The building itself was exotic in appearance, covered with local Oya stones and ornately designed fixtures, with a labyrinth-like interior unfamiliar to the canon of Japanese architecture. It was an utterly foreign design which inexplicably integrated with the urban and cultural landscape of Tokyo." Read the entire article here.

Generation Z, It's Your Turn!

Archinect has compiled a list of 11 of this year's most exciting Architecture summer camps. There are an increasing number of summer camps and programs that are popping up across the United States that offer introductory and specialized insights into the field of architecture. For Michael Ford, who started the Hip Hop Architecture Camp to introduce underrepresented youth to architecture, urban planning and design, the aim of such ventures is to help provide that initial spark for young people to become architects and start work in their communities. But, architecture camps can also be a great way for kids to pick up general skills like creative problem-solving, teach them how to collaborate, and give them new ways of exploring their cities.

Included on the list is "Building Story Through Design", a weeklong summer camp held at Frank Lloyd Wright's Oak Park Studio that explores ideas of narrative and storytelling through architecture, design, and photography. This particular design camp caters to students grades 3-5 and 6-8, but, the Frank Lloyd Wright Trust offers additional summer programing for High School students as well. Read the entire list here.

Seven Smaller Cities That Are Architectural Gems

Oak Park, Illinois is on the list of Seven Smaller Cities that are architectural gems according to MarketWatch. Here you will find yourself totally immersed in the world of architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

You can poke around the inside of Wright’s home and studio, where he lived and worked for the first 20 years of his career. Oak Park is also home to the recently restored Unity Temple, the last remaining public building showcasing Wright’s famous prairie style. Additionally, there are more than 20 Wright-designed homes along the tree-lined streets of Oak Park — many of which are now private residences — but you can still politely stand in awe from the sidewalk or view them on a number of guided tours offered by the Frank Lloyd Wright Trust. More here.

Come On, Oak Park, Demand Great Architecture!

Speaking of Oak Park, IL: Barbara Gordon, executive director of the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy, has written a challenge to Oak Park to continue the expectation of great architecture for it's future development. Read about her concerns here.

Graycliff Wins State Historic Preservation Award

The Frank Lloyd Wright-designed "Graycliff" near Buffalo, NY has been named one of eight winners of the Preservation League of New York State’s annual “Excellence in Historic Preservation” awards.

The house and Graycliff Conservancy will be honored May 9th at the New York Yacht Club, New York, NY. More about Graycliff here.

Bruce Goff’s Imaginative Teaching Lives On In Oklahoma

Sydney Franklin, Associate Editor of The Architect's Newspaper, features the exhibition, "Renegades: Bruce Goff and the American School of Architecture at Bizzell." Now on view in OU’s Bizzell Memorial Library, it details the widespread influence of Goff’s personal teaching style and the program he built, which attracted students to the American Midwest from as far as China and South America.

Historian and OU Visiting Associate Professor Dr. Luca Guido is the curator behind the exhibit. “Bruce Goff introduced a new architectural pedagogy,” Guido said, “and the School of Architecture at OU endeavored to develop the creative skills of the students as individuals rather than followers of any particular trend. The drawings represent the evidence of an extraordinary and, at the same time, little known page of the history of American contemporary architecture.”

Most architecture students study design precedents or build upon knowledge gained in history courses, but one mid-century educator repeatedly told young minds instead: "Do not try to remember." Bruce Goff instilled this idea in his students at the University of Oklahoma (OU) during his tenure teaching there from 1947 to 1955. Instead of copying the popular Beaux Arts and Bauhaus styles of the recent past, Goff wanted architects in training to express their own creativity and views of the world through designs that avoided architectural stereotypes and instead presented a radical future. This era of educational exploration and disruption became known as the American School of Architecture.

Renegades: Bruce Goff and the American School of Architecture at Bizzell is on view through July 29 and will turn into a comprehensive traveling exhibition this year with stops in Las Vegas this June for the American Institute of Architect’s Conference on Architecture and Texas A&M University in the fall. The OU Libraries also has plans to secure the preservation of the archives by making them part of the school’s Western History Collection and digitizing select images for online research. More here.

Silver Lake Rental By R.M. Schindler

Curbed LA highlights a deal for the architectural aficionado in the rental market, an opportunity to lease a residence by Rudolph Michael Schindler, one of the most influential Modern architects to call Los Angeles home. More accurately, you’d be renting the guest house of Schindler’s McAlmon House, a landmarked home in Silver Lake constructed in 1935.

The 700-square-foot structure has one bedroom and one bathroom, with wood floors throughout and clerestory windows that give the interior spaces an airy glow. The step-down living room has built-in shelving and a fireplace. Per the listing, the bathroom has been renovated and restored to its original tile-clad specifications. The residence opens out to a roomy concrete deck, and there’s a bit of green space in the back. The unit comes with garage and driveway parking.

Asking rent is $4,000 per month. See the photos here.

Exhibit Displays Models Of E. Fay Jones's Unfinished Work

Mississippi State University is now housing a gallery exhibit inside Giles Hall that showcases physical models and 3D virtual reality renderings of architect E. Fay Jones’s unfinished work. The exhibit opened March 29 and will remain open until the School of Architecture's studio classes begin final reviews.

Jones, an apprentice of Frank Lloyd Wright and recipient of the AIA Gold Medal, the highest award given out by the American Institute of Architects, is credited with creating what is called the "Ozark" style of architecture.

"This exhibit is a documentation and display of Fay Jones's vision for the Crosby Arboretum," Jane Kent, an exhibit coordinator, said. Although the original designs for multiple buildings at the arboretum were never finished, the series of buildings clearly had a purpose. Jones's plans for the arboretum were not only aesthetically pleasing, but also designed to fit ecological needs.

Completing this set of architecturally and ecologically significant buildings would not only benefit architecture in Mississippi, but it would also bring something special to Mississippi State University. The exhibit currently displayed in Giles Hall was generously supported by the Criss Trust Award Program, the Office of Research and Economic Development's Undergraduate Research Support Program, Crown Hardware and the MSU School of Architecture. Through the support of these organizations and the hard work of the faculty and students behind the exhibit, the unbuilt arboretum has been very successful and even has the potential to promote support for funding that would allow Jones's unfinished designs to become a reality. More here.

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