Vol. 1 No. 2 April 2010

Love Triangle Not familiar with George Smart and Triangle Modernist Houses? Well, its time you learn about one of the leading advocates for modernist design.

PROGRESS & PRESERVATION

MICHIGAN MODERN

The Role of a Historical Monument in City Culture

PLUS:

FEATURES

RPPN Bulletin A P R I L

2 0 1 0 Vol. 1 No. 2

SECTIONS

Page 19

Page 13

Page 5

NEWS BRIEFS 3

A recap of some of the biggest stories

from March 2010.

ON THE WEB 24

The latest updates from the RPPN

website’s most popular features.

EVENTS CALENDAR 25

Our listing of upcoming events from

across the country.

contents 5 PROGRESS AND PRESERVATION

Where does the preservation field stand? We hear from

Christine Madrid French, Director of TrustModern.

9 MICHIGAN MODERN

Michigan has a wide range of modernist resources. See

what the Michigan SHPO is doing to spread the word.

13 LOVE TRIANGLE

One of the nation’s most active modernist groups is

located in the state of North Carolina. Meet them.

19 THE ROLE OF A HISTORIC MONUMENT IN CITY

CULTURE

The country of Armenia is facing devastating losses of

architectural and cultural heritage. The latest

threatened site—the Moscow Cinema Summer Hall.

Page 9

Dear RPPN Supporters,

In the mid-1990s, before RPPN was even founded, a group of concerned

historians and preservationists began discussing how to save Richard

Neutra’s Cyclorama Building at Gettysburg National Military Park from

demolition by the National Park Service. When RPPN was founded in 2000,

the Cyclorama was the primary focus of the group. Over the past decade,

while RPPN’s activities have expanded greatly, the Cyclorama has remained

a constant fixture in our advocacy efforts.

After exhausting all other avenues, RPPN, along with Dion Neutra and

Christine Madrid French, filed a lawsuit in 2006 against the National Park

Service to save the building. After a preliminary ruling in our favor by

Magistrate Judge Alan Kay in March 2009, we now have a final ruling by

Judge Thomas F. Hogan: on March 31, 2010, Judge Hogan upheld all of the

relevant portions of Judge Kay’s March 2009 ruling. Put simply, this means

the National Park Service will need to comply with the National

Environmental Policy Act before taking any action to demolish (or otherwise

harm) the Cyclorama Building.

This doesn’t mean our work is done, however, since Judge Hogan’s ruling

only prohibits demolition; it does not compel any specific type of

preservation. The next step, then, is to persuade the National Park Service

to identify and consider appropriate alternatives for preserving the building.

We’ll be working with our partners to identify new uses for the building and

exploring all options for its rehabilitation. If you have ideas, by all means let

us know. This is truly a group effort, and many people have played

important roles in getting us to where we are today. Most importantly, the

Cyclorama Center, once slated for demolition in 2000, remains standing

today, awaiting a new role in the history of Gettysburg National Military

Park.

Sincerely,

Devin A. Colman

PRESIDENT’S NOTE

ON THE COVER: Parker House by F. Carter

Williams, Raleigh, North Carolina (1951).

Renovation by Perry Cox. Photo by Perry Cox.

RPPN Bulletin is a

monthly newsletter

published by the

Recent Past Preservation Network, a

national non-profit organization dedicated to

promoting preservation education and

advocacy to encourage a contextual

understanding of our modern built

environment.

2010 Board of Directors

Devin Colman, President

Aaron Marcavitch, Vice President

Julie Ernstein, Secretary

Rebekah Dobrasko

Jeffery Harris

Alan Higgins

Cindy Olnick

Frampton Tolbert

Mailing Address

Recent Past Preservation Network

P.O. Box 3072

Burlington, VT 05408

On the Web

URL: www.recentpast.org

President: president@recentpast.org

General Info: info@recentpast.org

Website: webmaster@recentpast.org

Newsletter

Designed & edited by: Alan Higgins

All information is from sources believed to be

accurate. RPPN is not responsible for

omissions or errors.

Please send all comments, questions, and

story ideas to us at:

newsletter@recentpast.org

CONNECT WITH RPPN ACROSS THE WEB

RPPN BULLETIN MARCH 2010 3

NEWS BRIEFS

Photo: Pargon

Photo: 1541

Photo: Mickael Masliah

FIRST MIAMI MODERN MOTEL RESTORED

The first of Miami’s Modern motels was restored and had its grand

opening on March 20. Located on Biscayne Boulevard, the owners

did much of the work themselves as they restored the historic

building, re-opening the former Davis Motel as the Motel New

Yorker. Working from photos and documents, the owners

meticulously restored the 1953 work of architect Norman Giller.

Located in the MiMo Biscayne Historic District, which was

designated in 2006, the restored motel stands poised to spur

restorations throughout the district and has a captive market in

those who want an alternative to expensive beachfront hotels.

S.O.S. TONGA

Located in the basement of the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco is

the Tonga Room, which was opened in 1945 with a design by MGM

set designer Mel Melvin. The current interpretation, featuring a

large central lagoon and tropical showers was the outcome of a 1967

re-design. Unfortunately, the Tonga Room has been threatened with

demolition since 2009 when the current owner announced his plans

to demolish the space, as well as the rear portion of the hotel. Now,

S.O.S. Tonga, a group dedicated to advocating for the preservation

of the Tonga Room, is feverishly working to protect and document

the hotel, including submitting an application to San Francisco’s

Historic Preservation Commission to amend the local landmark

status for the Fairmont Hotel to include the Tonga Room as a

protected space.

2010 FALLING BY THE WAYSIDE

The Society for Commercial Archeology

announced their 10 Most Endangered

Roadside Places List. This list is established

to raise awareness of the importance of

preserving roadside places throughout the

United States. The list includes such

roadside elements as a concrete cowboy

statue in Texas, a motel strip in New Mexico,

an interstate rest area in Kentucky, a teapot

dome gas station in Washington, and a

roadside diner in Pennsylvania.

Photo: anafa

www.recentpast.org 4

YAMASAKI ARCHIVES SAVED!

In a dramatic final hour salvage effort, on

March 2, the Archives of Michigan was allowed

to enter the offices of Yamasaki Associates in

Troy—just one hour ahead of the shredders—

and remove any documents of historical

importance. Pauline Saliga, executive director

of the Society of Architectural Historians in

Chicago, alerted the SHPO that Yamasaki CEO

Ted Ayoub had been granted access to the

property for a day. The state archivist, Mark

Harvey, and SHPO staff were allowed to

accompany him.

NEWS BRIEFS

News Briefs continued on page 12

Photo: MI SHPO

Founded by Minoru Yamasaki in 1950, the firm closed in January 2010. Among the items rescued were presentation

drawings for the World Trade Center, Yamasaki’s library, and the firm’s slide and photo collection. A consultant has

been hired to evaluate the collection and its condition.

Photo: qnr Photo: oilerfan07

MEMORIAL COLISEUM

The battle to save Corpus

Christi’s Memorial Coliseum

remains a divisive issue as

Friends of the Coliseum, a local

non-profit continue to hope that

an alternative to demolition will

be accepted by the City. As of

now, a district judge has agreed

to delay demolition, although

this delay expires on April 8.

Demolition was originally to

start March 15.

TULSA CITY HALL

A buyer has come forward

for the former Tulsa City

Hall and Francis Campbell

City Council Chamber. The

principals of Brickhugger

LLC approached City

officials with an offer of $1

million to buy the complex.

Here, they plan to spend

$30 million to renovate the

two buildings that make up

the complex. The City Hall building is planned to be a 200-room hotel while the

council chamber is envisioned as a restaurant. The sell also includes a part of Civic

Center Plaza, as well as surrounding and underground parking. The City vacated the

building in 2008, following the construction of a new building. In addition to aiding in

revitalization efforts in downtown Tulsa, the plans would also preserve one of the

sites listed on Preservation Oklahoma’s 2010 Most Endangered List and one of Tulsa’s

monuments to progressive city planning and civic building. Begun in 1955, the plan

was credited to the Architectural League of Tulsa, with Robert Lawton Jones

overseeing construction. Individual buildings were designed by various Tulsa

architects.

RPPN BULLETIN MARCH 2010 5

& War II? What are the methods for analyzing character defining

features for a structure that is only forty-years old, and

delineating standards for reservation and re-use? Are existing

guidelines adequate to address these issues, or are

widespread changes required? At the 1995 conference, H.

Ward Jandl, a noted preservationist, predicted that we would

be “grappling” with these key issues “for the remainder of this

century and well into the next millennia.” Well, here we are,

Is innovation in preservation an oxymoron? Can any

American movement that traces its roots back to the

Ladies of Mount Vernon Association of the 1850s

remain current with the times?

A major innovation in our field was officially

recognized in 1995, during the Preserving the Recent

Past conference in Chicago (the first of its kind),

followed quickly by part two in Philadelphia a few

years later. The timing seemed perfect for this

discussion. All across the country, significant modern

buildings and landscapes of the recent past were

disappearing before our eyes while plans for the

demolition of others continued to come in. The

momentum of the conferences was followed by a

series of similar events, new public education

strategies, and the founding of a number of grass-

roots organizations, including the Recent Past

Preservation Network. A few major victories were

scored, with notable building “saves,” yet there were

also casualties within the field, marked by

contentious battles and sad losses over the last

decade.

Advocates for modern and recent past issues have

sparred with critics of preservation over a few basic

ideas: When does a building “become historic”? How

do we single out significant structures from the

proliferation of buildings constructed after World

Progress Preservation

By Christine Madrid French, Modernism + Recent Past Program Director,

National Trust for Historic Preservation

Excerpted with permission from The Minnesota Preservationist,

March/April 2010 issue, published by the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota

FEATURE

www.recentpast.org 6

By Christine Madrid French, Modernism + Recent Past Program Director,

National Trust for Historic Preservation

Excerpted with permission from The Minnesota Preservationist,

March/April 2010 issue, published by the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota

FEATURE

still sorting through what makes a building or

landscape worth saving. In the meantime, the

buildings continue to age and a new set of

concerns—Brutalism, Post-Modern, Urban Renewal,

Sustainability—rise up as pertinent issues in

preservation. Perhaps it is our collective best

interest to accept this “new” idea of preserving our

recent history and work together to embrace our

past, however problematic.

There are notable challenges in this pursuit. Federal

policies for listing resources on the National Register

of Historic Places are restrictive to the point that

designation of buildings from the mid-twentieth

century is rare. The “Fifty-Year Rule,” or criteria for

consideration of listing, states that properties that

have achieved significance within the past 50 years

shall not be considered eligible for the National

Register unless they are proven to have “exceptional

importance.” Application of this guideline over the

last half century has skewed the reliability of the

National Register, which at this point does not

accurately reflect the range of architectural

expression in our country. Communities will seek

out local designation, which typically lends the most

oversight and protection for a structure, rather than

entangle themselves within the complexities of

these national criteria. Palm Springs, California, a

mecca for modernists, counts more than sixty

buildings as Class 1 Historic Structures, for example,

yet has not structures listed on the National

Register. Indeed, the entire state of Minnesota has

(top) SAINT JOHN’S ABBEY, Collegeville, Minnesota. Designed by

Marcel Breuer and constructed 1958-1961 as part of Saint John’s

University complex in Minnesota, which features nine Breuer-

designed structures.

(left) RICHARD & DION NEUTRA VDL HOUSE & STUDIO, Silver

Lake, California. TrustModern is working with the Neutra family

and Cal Poly Pomona to secure the structure and remedy material

issues at this landmark modernist building

Photo: Christine Madrid French

Photo: Christine Madrid French

RPPN BULLETIN MARCH 2010 7

fewer than a dozen post-World War II buildings

recognized on the national level. Yet a map of

“Minnesota Modernism” produced by the

Preservation Alliance of Minnesota, the

American Institute of Architects and the

University of Minnesota’s College of Design, lists

more than 90 notable buildings and landscapes

throughout the Twin Cities and Greater

Minnesota.

As advocates, we need to present these

structures as an integral part of our nation’s

own architectural lineage and expand our

definition of significance to include cultural

contexts that matter the most to local and

regional constituencies. A troubled modern

building—abandoned or in disrepair—is easily

portrayed as a misfit that must be removed to

restore community integrity. The structure is

deemed worthy not of praise but of demolition.

Forced to choose sides in this debate, the public

often relies on subjective aesthetic analysis and

unfavorable generalizations.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation’s

Modernism + Recent Past Program, also known

as TrustModern, is actively working to change

how communities view, steward, and preserve

the architectural and cultural heritage of the

recent past before more landmarks are lost.

Funded in large part by a generous grant from

the Henry Luce Foundation, TrustModern is

supporting efforts to save treasures of

modernism and the recent past along America’s

roadsides, in its metropolitan centers, and on

Main Street. With the valuable help of our local,

state, and national partners, we are promoting

preservation of modern-era resources through

advocacy and improved public awareness, while

assisting in efforts to identify, document, and

list important architecture of the twentieth

century. Social media sites are proving to be a

FEATURE

www.recentpast.org 8

valuable new resource as we nurture this nationwide

network, with a large part of our communications occurring

through Twitter (with almost 600 followers of our

TrustModern feed), Facebook, and PreservationNation.org,

the website of the National Trust.

A perusal of the feedback on our internet sites reveals that

we are not alone in this effort. The preservation of modern

buildings and structures of the recent past is an

international movement. Organizations such as ICOMOS

(International Council of Monuments and Sites) have

dedicated resources and established specific committees in

this area. I currently serve on the 20th Century Heritage

Committee for ICOMOS, and we regularly communicate with

people struggling with the same issues in Germany,

Australia, and Britain, just as we do in Portland, Salt Lake

City, and Cleveland. At a time when development pressures,

the vagaries of the economy, and aging infrastructure put

more modern and recent past resources at risk, the National

Trust is recommitting itself to create a strategic agenda and

network that enables citizens and organizations to

successfully advocate for these buildings and landscapes.

We don’t want to end up “so 2000-and-late” as the

Black Eyed Peas intone, but keep ahead of the curve

in preserving architecture and understanding

America’s built history. During a recent dinner

discussion, my young sons calculated what year it

would be when they reached my age. The answer

was 2045. We as a profession are duly inspired by the

belief that we are saving buildings “for the next

generation,” but have we really considered what that

means? In practices, that 1950s main street bank or

1960s library at the center of our current debate will

be nearly a century old by the time my children near

middle age and have their own families. The drive-in,

roadside diner, or bowling alley will be relics from

another era, if any survive at that point. Are we

prepared to tell people that these resources were

not worthy of recognition or deserving of our full

efforts when we had a chance to make difference?

JOHNIE’S BROILER, Downey, California. Nearly demolished, the

building was rebuilt by Bob’s Big Boy and is now re-opened.

Christine Madrid French co-founded the Recent Past

Preservation Network and served as the president for nine years.

She is currently the Director of the Modernism + Recent Past

Initiative with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a new

program launched in March 2009, and also serves on the 20th-

Century Heritage Committee for the International Council of

Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS).

on the web Visit the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s

TrustModern program at:

Web: www.preservationnation.org/trustmodern

Facebook: www.facebook.com/trustmodern

Twitter: www.twitter.com/trustmodern

FEATURE

Photo: Christine Madrid French

RPPN BULLETIN MARCH 2010 9

Michigan

Modern by Amy Arnold, Michigan SHPO

This summer the Michigan State Historic Preservation

Office (SHPO) will embark on a project called

Michigan Modern to document the events, people

and places in Michigan that influenced the Modern

movement (1940-1970). Michigan was instrumental

in the growth of Modernism in America, but its

leadership role has gone virtually unrecognized. We

want to change that.

Some of the state’s outstanding contributions to

Modern design include:

Though long considered a manufacturing pioneer

thanks to Henry Ford and the automobile

assembly line, Michigan is less known for its

considerable role in the evolution of Modern

design. Detroit architect Albert Kahn laid the

foundation with the innovative factory buildings

he designed for Michigan’s fledgling automobile

industry in the early twentieth century. Architect

Alden Dow, trained at Frank Lloyd Wright’s

Taliesin School, designed many Modern buildings

in his hometown of Midland, including his

outstanding home and studio. But it was Finnish

architect Eliel Saarinen and his appointment in

1932 as president of the newly established

Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills that

set Michigan on its leadership path.

The atmosphere at Cranbrook encouraged creative

thinking and attracted Modern designers and architects

such as Charles and Ray Eames, Harry Weese, and

George Matsumoto. Cranbrook was so respected in the

Modernist world that when Le Corbusier embarked on

his first trip to America in 1935 he visited New York City,

Chicago—and Cranbrook. Architect Minoru Yamasaki

left Seattle to take a job with the Detroit architectural

firm of Smith, Hinchman, and Grylls in order to be closer

to Saarinen and the Cranbrook art community.

Yamasaki designed many schools, churches, and office

buildings in Michigan and around the world, but is best

known as the architect of the World Trade Center in

New York City.

RESEARCH

ALDEN B. DOW HOME AND STUDIO, Midland, Michigan. Architect Alden

Dow’s personal residence and studio, built 1934-1941.

Ph

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www.recentpast.org 10

by Amy Arnold, Michigan SHPO

RESEARCH

The Herman Miller Furniture Company of Zeeland,

Michigan, took a chance on a young designer,

Gilbert Rohde, hoping his Modern designs would

make the company stand out and increase sales

during the Great Depression. They did. Rhode’s

success caused Herman Miller’s founder, D. J.

DuPree, to take other design chances. He hired an

architectural critic, George Nelson, to head the

company’s design group, let him hire an untested

designer, Charles Eames, and encouraged Eames’

experimentation with modern materials like molded

plywood and fiberglass. DuPree even had Eames

design a house for him. The DuPree house in

Zeeland is one of three residences designed by

Eames, now lauded as one of the world’s greatest

Modern designers.

The school of architecture at the University of

Michigan put itself at the forefront of Modern

design in 1940 when it held the first in a series of

forums known as the Ann Arbor Conferences.

Attendees at that conference included Walter

Gropius, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, Eliel and Eero

Michigan’s automobile industry was a strong

supporter of Modernism. In 1927 General Motors

hired a custom car designer from Los Angeles,

Harley Earl, to head its first design department. Earl

turned automobile production upside down by

bringing sleek lines, color, and detailing to car

design. Along with other pioneering industrial

designers like Michigan native Norman Bel Geddes

and Walter Dorwin Teague, he brought design into

everyday life. After World War II when Michigan’s

automobile industry was at its peak, Earl pushed for

the construction of a new, inspirational design

center at General Motors and hired Michigan

architect Eero Saarinen (son of Eliel) to design it.

The General Motors Technical Center in Warren,

Michigan, with its Thomas Church designed

landscape is often cited as the world’s best example

of Modern industrial design. Eero Saarinen is

considered a master of Modern architecture. He

defined the look of the 1960s with his curvilinear

buildings, such as the TWA Flight Center at JFK

International Airport in New York and his “tulip”

furniture line for Knoll.

GENERAL MOTORS

TECHNICAL CENTER,

Warren, Michigan.

Designed by Eero Saarinen

with landscapes by Thomas

Church, the GM Technical

Center is among the world’s

premiere examples of

modern industrial design.

The complex was listed on

the National Register of

Historic Places in March

2000 and on the State

Register of Historic Sites in

January 2002.

Photo courtesy of Michigan SHPO

RPPN BULLETIN MARCH 2010 11

Saarinen, Mies van der Rohe, James Marston Fitch,

Albert Kahn, and Alden Dow. In 1950 Modern

architect William Muschenheim was hired as a

faculty member at the school and Gunnar Birkerts

joined the faculty in 1959. The city of Ann Arbor

contains over one hundred Modern residences

designed by architectural professor George

Brigham. The school’s graduates include architects

Edward Charles Bassett, Louis Redstone, and Emiel

Becksy who worked with Los Angeles architects A.

Quincy Jones and Craig Ellwood. Another University

of Michigan graduate, Richard Pollman, and his

partner, Irving Palmquist, did much to popularize

the mid-century modern house style. From the late

1950s to the 1970s they created over twenty-five

hundred mid-century modern house plans, which

were published in a series of popular home plan

books by Home Planners, Inc. of Detroit.

Because of the wealth the automobile brought to

southeast Michigan after World War II there were

hundreds of Modern resources in Flint, Detroit, and

its surrounding suburbs. Among the best is Lafayette

Park, a seventy-eight acre urban renewal project in

Detroit designed by Mies van der Rohe, Ludwig

Hilberseimer, and Alfred Caldwell.

Through Michigan Modern we want to promote

Michigan’s modern resources and create tourist

destinations that will appeal to a new market of young,

creative, and international tourists. A main outcome of

the project will be the development of a Michigan

Modern website that will be geared toward

architectural tourism. The project will document

Michigan-based Modern architects that worked during

the period, develop lists of their work, and collect their

oral histories. It will also document the work of

internationally known Modern architects in Michigan. A

historic context narrative on Modernism in Michigan will

be completed and a historic resource survey of

Michigan’s Modern buildings will be undertaken—one

hundred of the most significant buildings will be

researched in depth. Ten of those will be nominated to

the National Register of Historic Places in order to

qualify property owners for federal historic preservation

tax credits for rehabilitation projects.

Michigan Modern is made possible by a grant from

Preserve America and support from the Michigan State

Housing Development Authority, the Finlandia

Foundation, and the Detroit Area Art Deco Society. Visit

our interim website at www.michiganmodern.org for

more information.

Amy Arnold is the preservation planner with the Michigan State

Historic Preservation Office and serves as the project manager for

Michigan Modern.

MICHIGAN MODERN FOR SALE

The personal residence of noted Detroit architect

William Kessler, located in Grosse Point Park, was

recently placed on the market. You can view the

full-size sales sheet on our website here.

RESEARCH

www.recentpast.org 12

MODERNISM & RECENT

PAST ON THE NATIONAL

REGISTER THIS MONTH

ALEXANDER HOUSE Atlanta, Georgia IBM BUILDING Chicago, Illinois KINGSWAY JEWISH CENTER Brooklyn, New York CITIZENS BANK TOWER Oklahoma City, Oklahoma ALDEN B. DOW OFFICE & LAKE JACKSON CITY HALL Lake Jackson, Texas HOTPOINT LIVING-CONDITIONED HOME Knoxville, Tennessee

NEWS BRIEFS

Photo: donr

Photo: cpbills

OTHER MARCH NEWS

Judge halts deal to sell downtown Seattle’s Federal

Reserve building

Demolition permit issued for first Modern school in

New Orleans

Clearwater officials consider abandoning aging City Hall

Thiry house headed for demolition

S.S. UNITED STATES

The S.S. United States, a Cold War weapon designed as a

luxury liner, is facing pending destruction. The current

owners have been collecting bids from scrappers.

Conducting its maiden voyage in 1952, the ship was a

prominent vessel that carried presidents, diplomatic and

business leaders, as well as celebrities, immigrants and

many others. Now, the S.S. United States Conservancy is

working to establish a public-private partnership that would

save and preserve the ship, which is docked in Philadelphia.

INTERNATIONAL

In Ireland, DoCoMoMo

Ireland has stated that

Liberty Hall (pictured)

should be preserved as a

“heritage structure of

national importance.” Built

between 1961 and 1965,

this was the first high-rise

building in Dublin. This

statement from

DoCoMoMO comes in light

of a proposition to replace

the structure with a taller tower. The organization goes ton

to say that “more than any other building of the modern

era, Liberty Hall has embedded itself in the collective

consciousness of the city, even the nation, and our sense of

identity as a people.”

In Canada, the future of the Public Safety Building in

Winnipeg remains uncertain. The police are scheduled to

move from the building in three years time, and despite a

college’s expressed interest in taking the building, it remains

to be seen whether or not the building will be demolished.

The building was completed in 1966 as part of a complex,

including the City Hall and Manitoba Museum, in the city’s

Exchange District. This brutalist structure is but one of

several modern Winnipeg structures that could be

demolished in the near future. Also included on this list is

the Winnipeg airport terminal.

Photo: NPS

Photo: NPS

RPPN BULLETIN MARCH 2010 13

Love Triangle What happens when one man’s modernist roots catch up with him? He creates the largest educational, historical archive for Modernist residential design in America, of course.

by Jane

Andrews

www.recentpast.org 14

Love Triangle

1958 CARR HOUSE. Kenneth Scott, AIA, architect. Photo by Walter Shackelford. Courtesy of Triangle Modernist Houses.

RPPN BULLETIN MARCH 2010 15

on the web

George Smart spends his working hours in Durham,

North Carolina, speaking and consulting nationally with

senior executives and coaching local business owners.

What does a successful consultant do while waiting at

airports or in the middle of the night? He Googles. The

son of a Raleigh architect, exposed from birth to the

North Carolina State University School of Design (now

the NCSU College of Design) and the surrounding

architecture community, Smart had “no interest in

architecture whatsoever.” But, to paraphrase Emily

Dickinson, you don’t have to be a house to be haunted.

One night in 2007, Smart thought about his Dad, a

Raleigh architect, who passed away in 2003. He typed

“Raleigh Modernism” into Google. Four or five houses

popped up. Suddenly, names of architects his Dad

talked about appeared and Smart was hooked. He

spent the next week finding fifteen more houses.

When Smart’s inventory of mid-century Modernist

houses reached twenty, he made pamphlets and

shared them with local architects who were his dad’s

friends and colleagues. They referred more homes,

and by the time the list of North Carolina Modernist

houses reached sixty, people said, “You should have a

website.” So, he built one -

Triangle Modernist Houses or TMH.

North Carolina is home to an estimated 700 Modernist

houses with more documented than anywhere else

except the Los Angeles and Chicago areas. TMH is an

extensively detailed archive of these houses, the

owners who lived there, and the architects who

designed them. There are countless photographs of

existing and demolished houses.

SPOTLIGHT

According to Smart, Modernist homes are easy to

identify, even by the uninitiated. Under the strong

influences of Frank Lloyd Wright, Mies van der Rohe,

Louis Sullivan, and others, Modernist homes typically

have open floor plans instead of separate living and

dining areas. Large and numerous windows integrate

inside and outside spaces and invite natural light.

Vaulted ceilings rise to flat or low-pitched roofs.

Ideally, the landscaping and furnishings are planned to

connect the outside with the natural elements of the

house itself.

Destruction is a constant threat to mid-century

Modernist architecture, Smart says. Even at their peak

Modernist residences were unconventional and not

embraced by folks accustomed to more traditional

living spaces. In their first heyday, back in the 1950s,

the designs were way ahead of materials science,

therefore maintenance and repair was often costly.

Flat-roofed moderns developed a bad reputation for

leaks, for example. Since then, building materials used

in many Modernist projects are far superior and are

surprisingly more energy-efficient.

GEORGE SMART, lowres.

Visit Triangle Modernist Houses at

www.trianglemodernisthouses.com

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Triangle-Modernist-Houses/97954432790

http://www.twitter.com/georgesmarttmh

www.recentpast.org 16

Through TMH, George Smart found he is not alone.

Thousands across the country share his passion for cool

houses. Architects, designers, historians, and

preservation advocates serve on the TMH Board and

advisory council. The website gets up to twenty-five

thousand hits a month. Be warned: You can lose several

hours of your life there. The award-winning site has

made TMH a unique and thriving organization. The

website is the largest educational, historical archive for

Modernist residential design in America.

Besides its archive, TMH hosts tours of Triangle

Modernist houses. Since 2008, hundreds of modernist

enthusiasts have participated in TMH’s fifteen tours.

TMH also maintains an exclusive, free online listing of

local modernist houses for sale (36 are on the market

currently). “Most MLS systems (multiple listing systems

used by the real estate industry) can’t distinguish

Modernist design,” says Smart, “but we can.”

When Modernist homes fall into disrepair because of

finances, lack of knowledge, or absentee ownership, TMH

connects the owners to appreciative renters and buyers,

also without charge.

“Our mission is three-fold,” says Smart. “Documentation of

existing houses, preservation of what’s endangered and

worth saving, and promotion of new Modernist

construction.”

Regarding preservation, he adds, “The worst time to save a

building is when developers or bulldozers are on the

horizon. That means you’ve waited too long. We intervene

month or years earlier whenever possible, assuring that a

house doesn’t go through the early-warning stages of long

listing times or, even worse, vacancy. By making people

aware earlier, we dramatically improve the chances of new

ownership and, with it, the funds for restoration.”

GEORGE SMART, lowres.

EDUARDO CATALANO HOUSE, 1954. Eduardo Catalano, architect.

Although originally designed for Catalano himself, he lived there

only a few years. Highly publicized as the “House of the Decade” by

House and Home magazine, the house was the most significant

Modernist residence in North Carolina and one of the best in the

country. After a series of owners in the 1960s and 1970s, the house

found a long-term occupant who remained until 1996. Following,

the house set vacant from 1996 to 2001, during which time it

irreversibly deteriorated.. Despite efforts by Preservation NC to

find a buyer that would build a house of the same design on the

lot, the house remained vacant. In 2001, the owner sold the house

to a developer who built two McMansions on the site.

Ph

oto

s cou

rtesy of Trian

gle Mo

dern

ist Ho

uses.

SPOTLIGHT

RPPN BULLETIN MARCH 2010 17

Such education is essential to raise awareness of the

historic, economic, aesthetic value of Modernist

houses. Journalist Mike Welton, who contributes

architecture articles to Dwell magazine and The New

York Times, confirms the danger Modernist houses

face. He reminds us that thirty or forty years ago,

many viewed Victorian architecture as old, fussy, and

overly ornate instead of historic. Since then the value

of Victorian homes has increased by a large margin,

and we lament the many that were destroyed.

Regarding Modernist houses, Welton says, “These

buildings speak the language of our history. It’s

extremely important to preserve them.” Welton’s

blog, Architects+ Artisans, appears daily on the TMH

site.

In agreement is Brian Shawcroft, AIA, a Raleigh

architect who has been designing Modernist houses

since 1960. A former associate professor of

architecture at the NCSU School of Design, he has seen

six of his houses destroyed. Their preservation is

important, he says, not only because they are

historical artifacts, but because he sees them being

replaced “by some very false things: post-Modernism

and *a+ clumsy rehash of the past.” And after fifty years

of designing Modernist architecture, Shawcroft says,

“It’s still fun. Always.”

Smart notes, “Modernist houses are really sculpture

on a larger scale, and people are always surprised to

learn how many livable ‘works of art’ we have in North

Carolina.”

“Modernist architecture changes people’s lives,” Brian

Shawcroft says, “and North Carolina has an ideal

climate for Modernist houses.”

TMH encourages the public to revisit Modernist design

and reconsider the advances in materials and

technology by showcasing these homes and the lives

of the architects who designed them.

Beyond the website, the heart of TMH is local

programming. Besides house tours, TMH held an

Architecture Movie Series this winter which screened

films and documentaries where architecture was the

“star.” In November, TMH hosted its first annual

“ModStock” party with AIA Triangle’s Young Architects

Forum. For TMH’s serious fans, there’s the “Mod

Squad,” supporters donating tax-deductible gifts and

receiving special discounts and invitations to exclusive

events in return.

TMH, which includes up to 40 volunteers now who act

as docents, fundraisers and researchers, also hosted its

first out-of-state architectural tours in January. Twenty

-eight people went on a Richard Meier/Eero Saarinen

tour of New York and Connecticut. There’s a summary

on TMH’s Past Events page.

Reaching out to even younger fans, TMH released an

architecture music video last year that was developed

by Enloe Gifted and Talented Magnet High School in

Raleigh.

SPOTLIGHT

STACK RESIDENCE, 1971. Brian Shawcroft, AIA, architect.

Fayetteville, North Carolina. Destroyed by fire.

Ph

oto

by

Bri

an S

haw

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f TM

H.

www.recentpast.org 18

SPOTLIGHT

More recently, TMH launched “Appetite 4

Architecture,” or A4A, dinners that bring together a

series of experts including designers, builders, and

architects to share fine dining and engage in

discussions with Modernist fans at local restaurants.

These efforts have not gone unnoticed. Preservation

North Carolina has honored George Smart with its

coveted Carraway Award of Merit for “raising

awareness of Modernist architecture.” Smart received

the 2009 City of Raleigh/Sir Walter Raleigh Individual

Award for Community Appearance. The Raleigh

Appearance Commission bestows the award to honor

exceptional achievement in enhancing the appearance

of the city. The award recognized Smart as “a

champion of the local Modernist architectural

movement, raising public awareness through web-

based resources, grants, and public tours.” TMH also

won the Vernacular Architecture Foundation’s Paul E.

Buchanan Award in 2009.

TMH’s most recent preservation

success is the Carr House, a

pristine mid-century modern by

architect Kenneth Scott of

Durham. Small, on a golf course,

and with an empty lot next door,

it was prime developer bait. From

a nationwide alert in fall of 2009,

the house was purchased in early

2010 by two appreciative Duke

University faculty who have split

the empty lot with the adjacent

neighbor.

Smart says the appeal of

Modernist houses is not

immediately apparent.

“Modernist houses are not only

visually different but they also

have a profound effect on people. Over time, they

often experience a very real serenity. We know how

buildings evoke strong feelings from visiting significant

churches and synagogues and mosques. Modernist

houses produce a similarly strong emotion. And let’s

face it, we don’t generally fantasize about having our

own Modernist hospital or office building. It’s all about

the houses. We read DWELL, we collect coffee table

books, and we dream about how profound it would be

to own one.”

Soon Smart will discover this for himself, with his own

brand-new Modernist house due to be completed this

summer in Durham, North Carolina. Will it be on one

of TMH’s tours? “Look for it,” says Smart, “as part of

several special events TMH plans for late 2010 and

2011.”

JOHN AND BINFORD C. CARR RESIDENCE, 1958. Kenneth Scott, AIA, architect. Prime teardown

material because of its location, the house was purchased by appreciative buyers in early 2010

following a national alert initiated by TMH.

Jane Andrews is a freelance writer, teacher, and editor in Raleigh,

North Carolina. She doesn’t live in a Modernist house but wishes

she did.

Ph

oto

by

Bri

an S

haw

cro

ft. C

ou

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H.

Photo by Walter Shackelford. Courtesy of TMH.

RPPN BULLETIN MARCH 2010 19

The center of Yerevan, as in most of the historical cities, is

built up with old traditional buildings from the 19th and

early 20th centuries. This architectural layer represents

different stylistic approaches, including Muslim influenced

simple brick houses, typical Armenian stylizations of

Russian classicism, etc. Those buildings with higher artistic

characteristics and better integrity are included in the list

of historical monuments as national property to be

preserved by the state. Others which were of not high

artistic value or were in semi-ruined condition at the

beginning of the 21st century were either dismantled with

the counterfeit intention to be reassembled in other parts

of the city or were completely destroyed. The official

explanation of this was that the city center should be

rebuilt and renovated with a more representative and

accurate architectural image. Nevertheless, the most

controversial and rarely assumed motivation for

demolishing these historical layers was that these

buildings were of little or even of no architectural and

cultural value and hence are not worth keeping as

historical memory.

This last notion is vaguely present among the

architectural professional community and is even more

threatening in itself than in the practical result it can

have. This is an expression of selective culture which

means segregation of historical monuments as valuable

or not valuable according only to its impressiveness and

representativeness. The value of a monument should be

sought beyond its artistic expression and function of

enriching culture with another bright historical artifact.

Historical monuments are not artifacts or museum

pieces, nor servants of archived historical culture.

Monuments should be perceived as an actual part of our

contemporary life, a part of the culture and history that

we create today, a vibrant part of the image of a city

and its cultural tradition.

Buildings in Yerevan such as the old houses on Buzand

Street and in Kond, buildings of the first print shop or

first photo studio in the city dating to the late 19th

century might not have distinguished architectural

characteristics; but they definitely play an important

The Role of a Historical Monument

in City Culture by Yeva Sargsyan

The country of Armenia finds itself quickly losing its heritage —the latest threat is to the 1966 Moscow cinema summer hall

INTERNATIONAL

Photo by Lilit Sargsyan

www.recentpast.org 20

by Yeva Sargsyan

(opposite page) MOSCOW CINEMA SUMMER HALL. View of the Moscow Cinema Summer Hall in its urban context of Yerevan.

(left) DETERIORATING BUILDINGS. Historic buildings that have been left to further deteriorate and in some cases to be demolished.

INTERNATIONAL

(above) COURTYARD OF A BUILDING ON BUZAND STREET. Located on one of the oldest streets in Yerevan, such buildings remain threatened.

(above, right) THE FIRST PHOTO STUDIO IN YEREVAN. Although the first photography studio and the location were many famous Armenians were photographed, the building was recently demolished.

(right) NINETEENTH CENTURY BUILDINGS. Located in the oldest districts of Yerevan, such buildings sit in various states of disrepair.

(far right) REPRESENTATIVE EXAMPLE OF ARCHITECTURE BEING ERECTED ON SITE OF DEMOLISHED HISTORIC BUILDINGS. Increasingly, the streets of Yerevan are characterized by contemporary high-rise towers that have replaced the architectural heritage of earlier centuries.

RPPN BULLETIN MARCH 2010 21

part in the memory of city dwellers, due to which the

city maintains its unique image and upon which it

continues to further develop its culture and

architectural tradition. Only if such historical buildings

are interpreted beyond “quantitative” characteristics,

which is rather a consumer perspective, it could become

a real and live part of the culture and tradition of the

city.

Surely cities should evolve and new cultural and

architectural layers should be added near but not over

or instead of the old layers. Apparently, each epoch

brings new functional, aesthetic and social demands

which require new urban organization and solutions.

Besides, the central parts of all cities, which are mostly

the core of a historical town built up with the oldest

houses, are the most expensive and desired areas for

investors. Nevertheless, these newly added layers

should not erase the historical ones, otherwise one day

we will be left with only several scattered remnants of a

past which reminds us of rare museum pieces rather

than a live city with a unique culture and vibrant

traditions.

When the question comes to the demolition of a

historical monument with the aim of building something

else in its place it is always the price of this sacrifice that

should be evaluated. Although such decisions are

usually adopted by the state and particular officials,

sometimes with the participation of several specialists,

www.recentpast.org 22

it is still up to society to decide which values and which

monuments are considered to be part of culture; it is up

to the people to decide which traditions will be

inherited from the past.

The problem that the community of Yerevan is facing

these days is the threat of losing another outstanding

historical monument in the city center. A modernistic

one this time.

The building of Moscow Cinema’s Summer Hall in

Yerevan was built in 1966 by architects Spartak

Knteghtsian and Telman Gevorgyan. The Summer Hall is

not only an architectural masterpiece but also a cult

building in the cultural and architectural realm of the

city. The concrete slab accomplishing the architectural

image of the complex was destroyed in the early 1990s.

Once, being on the list of historical monuments

preserved by the state, today this building has been

removed from that list and is probably going to be

destroyed in favor of restoring the St. Paul-Peter

Church, which was demolished by the Soviet

government. Although the church occupied the

neighboring area, it is believed that it would be

historical justice to rebuild a smaller model of the

church on the site of the Summer Hall, which currently

is not completely functioning.

While talking about the architecture of the Summer

Hall, first of all its urban positioning should be

mentioned. The main building of the amphitheater is

harmoniously inserted into a quite narrow area

between the Moscow Cinema on its right and a five-

story residential building on its left. With this position, it

stands in the heart of the city, but at the same time is

neatly secluded in the yard of neighboring buildings.

The most appropriate definition of this architecture is

probably to call it a phenomenological architecture. It

seems that the large volume of the amphitheater

inserted into a comparatively narrow area should have

called for a feeling of disproportion. But, on the

contrary, the scale and proportional dialogue of the

space, neighboring buildings and the amphitheater is so

deliberately elaborated that this proportional

controversy even strengthens the feeling of the space

and perception of the amphitheater as a space

organizing volume. While standing beneath or on the

amphitheater, one can feel the space dispersed around

and cut by its volume almost as a material phenomena.

(opposite page) MOSCOW CINEMA SUMMER HALL, 1968.

General view of the Summer Hall, showing the structure as

originally designed in 1966 by architects Spartak

Knteghtsian and Telman Gevorgyan. Again, the urban

context of the Hall can clearly be seen with its close

proximity to and integration with neighboring buildings.

(right) CONCRETE SLAB, 1960s. View of the concrete slab

situated in front of the Summer Hall. This distinct

architectural element was destroyed in the 1990s. Now,

interested parties are battling to make sure that the entire

structure does not suffer the same needless fate.

Photos from Contemporary Architecture of Armenia,

Grigoryan, A.G. (1983).

INTERNATIONAL

RPPN BULLETIN MARCH 2010 23

The amphitheater used to form an

architectural complex with the

concrete slab covering the front area.

Holes were made in it to give the

trees, which were already there, the

possibility to grow further. This witty

maneuver, which has also become an

artistic part of the architecture, is a

brilliant example demonstrating

modernism’s main idea of solving

functional and aesthetical problems

jointly through the language of

architectural form.

Armenian society, intellectuals and dwellers of

Yerevan are against the demolition of this building

and are actively battling for its survival. The value of

this building is not only in its artistic architecture.

This building has become a symbol of city culture

and its traditions, and a part of society’s collective

memory. It is also a cult building because it is one of

the only modernistic buildings in Yerevan, which

defines a period of liberation in art and culture from

the Soviet totalitarian ideology, which at that time

was spreading over arts as well.

The importance of a historical monument besides

its architectural value is its cultural educational

function. The Summer Hall is a bright model of

transition and development of national

architectural traditions from the early middle ages

into modernism. The spatial and proportional

organization and architectural solutions of this

monument are clearly declaring the typical

Armenian architectural thinking articulated into

modern language. By demolishing this and other

similar monuments another cultural layer will be

erased from the history of the city, depriving

present and future generations of Armenians and

people who live in Yerevan of having an ancient city

with rich architectural tradition, memory, and

culture.

(top) MOSCOW CINEMA SUMMER HALL, 2010. Taken from the human

perspective, the imposing nature of the structure is clearly exposed. The

Summer Hall’s contextual setting is also exposed, showing the structure placed

carefully amidst surrounding buildings.

(bottom} MOSCOW CINEMA SUMMER HALL, 2010. A current view of the

Moscow Cinema Summer Hall seating and stage, as seen from the top of a

nearby building.

Yeva Sargysan is an Armenian architect currently engaged in theory and

criticism of architecture. She also serves as editor-in-chief of the architectural

department of the online journal Armenian Times Architecture and writes

prolifically on local cultural, architectural, and social issues in Armenia.

INTERNATIONAL

Photo by Lilit Sargsyan

Photo by Nvard Erkanian

www.recentpast.org 24

Philadelphia Modernism Context

Princeton Modern: Highlights of Campus

Architecture

Lustron Bibliography

Arapaho Hills Survey Report

Modern Apartment Complexes in Georgia,

1936-1954

AIA Historical Directory of American

Architects

RESEARCH & RESOURCES

SHARE WITH RPPN! RPPN is all about sharing! Have

a news story, research project,

national windshield survey

resource, or other information

you want to share for the benefit of the RPPN community? If so,

please consider submitting directly to our website or contact us!

We’re also looking for a few more submissions for two new pilot

projects:

Case Study Corner: Here, we’ll share other preservationists’

experiences and tales of what practices work and what practices

don’t work.

Student Projects: If you’re a high school or college student

working on a project dealing with modernism or the recent past,

we want to highlight your efforts!

FACEBOOK DISCUSSIONS What got you interested in modernism and the

recent past? Everyone has their own reason for

taking an interest in modernism or the recent past

and its preservation., whether it be a threatened

local resource, childhood memories, an

enthusiastic mentor, or some other reason. Stop by

our Facebook page and share your story!

Photo by Lilit Sargsyan

UNIVERSITY LUTHERAN

Gainesville, Florida

1961

THIS MONTH ON THE WEB

CLOWES MEMORIAL HALL

Indianapolis, Indiana

1962

FEDERAL RESERVE

BANK OF

MINNEAPOLIS

Minneapolis, MN

1973

NATIONAL WINDSHIELD SURVEY

RPPN BULLETIN MARCH 2010 25

October 17- April 18

John Portman: Art & Architecture High Museum of Art Atlanta, Georgia

January 16- April 11

Arcadia/Suburbia: Architecture on Long Island, 1930-2010 Heckscher Museum of Art Huntington, New York

January 24- May 1

Westport Modern: When Cool Was Hot! Westport Historical Society Westport, Connecticut

February 6- April 17

After You Left, They Took it Apart: Demolished Paul Rudolph Homes Auburn University Auburn, Alabama

February 16- May 14

Work of Jose Oubrerie The Spitzer School of Architecture City College of New York New York, New York

February 17- May 1

Modernism At Risk: Modern Solutions for Saving Modern Landmarks World Monuments Fund, New York, New York

February 20- May 23

Between Earth and Heaven: The Architecture of John Lautner Palm Springs Museum Palm Springs, California

March 1- April 26

Eero Saarinen: Shaping the Future Yale University Art Gallery New Haven, Connecticut

March 14- August 1

Modern Art, Sacred Space: Motherwell, Ferber and Gottlieb The Jewish Museum New York, New York

March 21- June 20

Las Vegas Studio: Images from the Archives of Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles, California

March 30- January 15

The Art of Architecture: Foster + Partners Nasher Sculpture Center Dallas, Texas

EXHIBITIONS

April 8 7:00 PM

The Early Modern Houses of William R. Jenkins HoustonMOD Houston, Texas

April 8 12:00 PM

Saving 20th Century Architecture: Lessons from Europe AIA Chicago Chicago, Illinois

April 13 7:00 PM

Mid-Century Modern Savannah: Architecture in Oglethorpe’s Colonial Capital Historic Savannah Foundation Savannah, Georgia

April 15 12:15 PM

Mid-Century Houses of Worship: A Radical Departure Landmark Illinois Chicago Cultural Center Chicago, Illinois

April 21 6:00 PM

Modernist Manifesto on the Dunes Russell Wright Design Center + Cape Cod Modern House Trust New York, New York

April 22 6:00 PM

Preserving Colonial Modernism: The Belgian Friendship Building AIA NY AIA NY Century for Architecture New York, New York

April 22-24 All day

Imagining the Blue Ridge Parkway for the 21st Century Blue Ridge National Heritage Area Boone, North Carolina

April 28 6:30 PM

A Modernist Suburb National Building Museum Washington, D.C.

May 1 7:30 PM

Lloyd Wright: Architecture of Sunlight and Shadow Art Center College of Design Pasadena, California

May 6-8 All day

Landscapes for Living: Post-War Years in Texas The Cultural Landscape Foundation Dallas/Ft. Worth, Texas

EVENTS CALENDAR

LECTURES & WORKSHOPS

www.recentpast.org 26

April 10 9:00 AM

Morning at the Museum: Gropius House Historic New England Lincoln, Massachusetts

April 11 11:00 AM

AIA Spring Home Tour AIA Los Angeles Venice, California

April 10-11 All day

Annual Modern Phoenix Home Tour and Expo Modern Phoenix Phoenix, Arizona

April 14-15 All day

White Rock Home Tour White Rock PTA White Rock, Texas

April 17 All day

Georgia’s Modern Byways DOCOMOMO/US Georgia Augusta, Georgia

April 17 9:00 AM

Street of Eames Portland, Oregon

April 30- May 2

Wright & Mid-Century Modern in Minnesota FLW Building Conservancy Twin Cities, Minnesota

May 8 10:00 AM

Lloyd Wright Homes Gamble House Southern California

May 15 9:00 AM

Modern Architecture Walking Tour Historic New England Cambridge, Massachusetts

May 18 10:00 AM

Philadelphia Modern Modern Homes Philadelphia Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

June 5 1:00 PM

Back to the Future: MidCentury Modern Home Tour Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana Indianapolis, Indiana

June 5-6 All day

Modern Atlanta Home Tour Modern Atlanta Atlanta, Georgia

April 9, 10, 11 7:00 PM

Fotofest Film Screening of Visual Acoustics: The Modernism of Julius Shulman Museum of Fine Arts Houston Houston, Texas

April 13 7:00 PM

William Krisel, Architect The Getty Center Los Angeles, CA

April 14 6:00 PM

John Margolies: Roadside America Architectural League of New York New York, New York

April 21-25 All day

Society of Architectural Historians Annual Meeting SAH Chicago, Illinois

April 29 6:30 PM

Utah Premiere Screening of Visual Acoustics: The Modernism of Julius Shulman Utah Heritage Foundation Salt Lake City, Utah

April 29 6:30 PM

Screening of Desert Utopia: Mid-Century Architecture in Palm Springs HoustonMOD Houston, Texas

May 1-2 All day

Los Angeles Modernism Show Santa Monica Air Center Santa Monica, California

EVENTS CALENDAR

TOURS OTHER EVENTS

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View our full calendar.