In the Know - Volume 1, No. 2
Historic Preservation Course Announced
“For those of you interested in historic preservation, we intend to offer an elective course this Spring titled “Preserving Traditional Buildings in Modern Times”. This will be a 3 credit seminar format course, with a limit of 25 students. Architecture students will have first preference for registering, but students from Landscape Architecture, Architecture Engineering, Art History or Integrative Arts are welcome too. The instructor will be Ted Strosser, an architect specializing in the historic preservation of buildings, who is also an architect for the Pennsylvania Historic Museum Commission. The class will produce a conditions assessment report of an actual historic structure in need of restoration. The structure is the Packwood House Museum, in Lewisburg. The course is partially funded by a grant that will support student transportation to and from Lewisburg.”
“The class will tentatively meet Monday evenings from 6:30 to 9:30 P.M. We do not yet have a course number, but will assign one as soon as possible.”
From Prof. Dan Willis, Head of Department of Architecture
Carr House Obituary/Loss Announcement
“With great regret and considerable outrage, the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy must announce the demolition of the W.S. Carr House, built in 1916 in Grand Beach, Michigan. This represents the first loss of a Wright designed building in nearly 35 years and the first since the Conservancy was founded.
Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy
http://www.savewright.org/
Other FLW sites:
www.franklloydwright.org/
www.pbs.org/flw/
http://franklloydwrightinfo.com/
Robert Stern spoke at Penn State
Robert A.M. Stern, dean of the Yale School of Architecture, spoke to a full house in the HUB Auditorium 16 November 2004. His presentation can be summed up by the statement on his firm’s home page. “Our firm’s practice is premised on the belief that the public is entitled to buildings that do not, by their very being, threaten the aesthetics and cultural values of the buildings around them. We do not believe that any one style is appropriate to every building and every place. We do believe in the continuity of tradition and strive in our work to create order out of the often chaotic present by entering into a dialog with the past and with the spirit of the places in which we build.”
I was impressed by the time and energy his team spent studying the existing architecture at a site before creating a design for the owner. Stern spoke about his commitment to creating buildings that are uniquely appropriate for the site and the program.
One of his recent projects is the PPL Building of Allentown in which an emphasis on energy prevailed. However, a later project, Penn State’s new Smeal College of Business Building, showed no sign of its awareness to the University’s desire to conserve energy. The lack of apparent connectedness from one commission to another led me to question Stern if it was possible for his practice to weave the positive design and performance issues into future projects. The answer was a disappointing “no”. He held true to the premise that each project deserves a design that is not preconceived by some notion, even as important as designing for high energy performance. [What is your opinion?]
As Professor James Kalsbeek pointed out, Stern may well be remembered best for his impact on the houses in America’s suburban landscape. While Stern’s designs were specifically for his upscale clients, residential developers of suburbia freely helped themselves to Stern’s design details. The borrowed sophistication of the new tract houses ironically may be the highest form of flattery to this great architect.
Before returning to New York, Stern interacted with dinner guests at the Alpha Rho Chi house. I felt fortunate to have met one of the great architects of our time. Thanks you, Alpha Rho Chi for arranging this special event. M.Ling
More on Robert Stern and the Smeal College of Business new building
http://www.ramsa.com/
http://www.giveto.psu.edu/Buildings/Smeal.aspx