architectural ruminations

Mid-Century Modern Architecture in St. Louis

2012-01-09T06:00:00.000-06:00

Course offering, Spring 2012: Mid-Century Modern Architecture in St. Louis
Instructors: Andrew Raimist, AIA and John Guenther, FAIA
Course: A46 ARCH 478A. Mid-Century Modernism in St. Louis 1930–1965 (Credit 3 units).

Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts
Washington University in St. Louis
Tuesdays, 1pm – 4pm

Images represent subjects of student research projects from Spring 2011.

This course offers students the opportunity to visit, document and research prime examples of Mid-Century Modern Architecture in St. Louis. The city has a rich heritage in 20th century modernism and many excellent works that are not well known. Our weekly visits will include talks and tours with designers, architects, clients and historians will put the work into historical and cultural context.

Contact me with questions.

Artists' Guild Sustainability Exhibit

2012-01-06T12:13:00.000-06:00

The exhibit at the St. Louis Artists' Guild, "Sustainability and the Built Environment in St. Louis" will have its last day on view tomorrow Saturday 7 January. If you haven't seen it yet, this is your last chance.

This video is a documentation of the panel discussion hosted by Jean Ponzi of 88.1 KDHX / Earthworms fame.

The exhibit is part of the Aggregate series encompassing a wide range of works including photography, architecture, sculpture, mixed media, graphics and community arts projects.

(en)visioning Hyde Park Exhibition

2011-12-12T18:51:00.003-06:00

We had a wonderful exhibition at the Old North St. Louis Restoration Group gallery which remained on view nearly through Thanksgiving. The exhibition was a great success with many visitors and lots of encouraging, supportive compliments.

View of north wall of (en)visioning Hyde Park exhibition.

The following images of exhibit reveal the layers of work presented. The central band of colors photographs (running horizontally) contained the students' photographs. The band of small images in a line across the bottom represented the 7" square book's pages. You can find an online preview of the book at Blurb.com. At the top are enlargements of portraits of students and teaching artists in the program.

Detail of north wall of (en)visioning Hyde Park exhibition.

These 48" high halftone portraits were printed as part of a global art project called InsideOutProject. These portraits were first displayed at 1415 Mallinckrodt Street, Rebuild Foundation's Art House.

Detail of east wall of exhibition with Urban Expressions portraits.

View of south wall of exhibition with InsideOutProject portraits of teaching artists above.

Detail of south wall of exhibition.

Sustainability Awards!

2011-12-12T13:37:00.001-06:00

The joint exhibition sponsored by the Missouri Gateway Chapter of the USGBC and the St. Louis' Artists' Guild is on display through Saturday, January 12, 2012. I created this video presenting the three winners of the Sustainability Awards:

Film Review: Brick by Chance and Fortune

2011-11-21T22:01:00.006-06:00

Film Review: Brick by Chance and Fortune – A Celebration of St. Louis Masonry

Brick by Chance and Fortune: A St. Louis Story is an entertaining, informative documentary about one of the most common and seemingly simple building materials: the brick. Bricks are an old technology. They aren't sexy like stainless steel or titanium. Clay bricks are about as "down to earth" as you can get, as this film demonstrates in more ways than one.

Image from official trailer.

The story of bricks in St. Louis is fundamental to understanding the city, its people, its history and its architecture. This film establishes the narrative groundwork for people unfamiliar with thinking about bricks as anything special to be able to begin to appreciate just how significant a role they play in our community's culture, economy and physical composition.

You can purchase your own copy of the DVD by attending the upcoming event at The Royale on Wednesday 23 November 2011 from 8pm to 11pm. The director will be there to sign personal copies!

Image taken from official trailer.

The centerpiece of the film is a series of compelling interviews with wonderfully demonstrative people who care deeply about the history and future of brick masonry culture in St. Louis. The subjects of the interviews include community treasures like the founder of the St. Louis Building Arts Foundation, Larry Giles, a lover and collector of St. Louis building history, Missouri Historical Society Director Robert Archibald and blogger / activist, Toby Weiss, a prolific writer and photographer of the architectural scene past and present.

The director, Bill Streeter, treats the interviews as the key scenes of the film. They are well lit and composed, the audio quality is very good and the personality they offer is remarkable. In many documentaries, interviews are treated as so many “talking heads”. This film gives the speakers the gracious, personal presentation they deserve, making them the film’s real characters and allowing them to graciously direct the film’s narrative. We are made to feel as though we’re having a conversation with some our community’s most fascinating and intelligent people.

Image taken from official trailer.

Of particular significance emotionally and intellectually are the interviews with architectural historians and preservationists Nini Harris and Michael Allen. Not since Gwendolyn Wright's star began to shine on History Detectives, have architectural historians looked and sounded so good.

Nini Harris’ knowledge and excitement are a constant touchstone giving the film genuine historical clarity and honesty combined with a touching, loving portrayal of the people who created and used the brick structures that make up the fabric of our city. She makes this story a personal one and helps to communicate many of the film's key points in a way that's understandable by laymen not initiated in the rites of architectural history, but accurate and compelling for those already captivated by the spell of St. Louis architecture. Her commentary puts the film into a social and cultural context that doesn't overly romanticize the past.

Nini Harris. Image from official trailer.

Michael Allen’s commentary is forthright and striking in a way that only he can achieve. He reveals St. Louis' geographic good fortune in containing rich and extensive clay deposits that not only made the magnificence of St. Louis architecture possible, but also formed the basis for our significant contribution to the industrialization of brick manufacturing. He describes the humble beginnings of hand-molded bricks made in wooden forms and enlightens us as to the prominent role our community played in developing brick industry nationally. Michael also speaks eloquently about the serious problems we face relating to brick theft and illegal demolition taking place on a daily basis.

Michael Allen. Image from official trailer.

The soundtrack and music for the film served to emphasize the dramatic moments. In some cases, the music provided the joyful and lyrical atmosphere necessary to hold the visual montages together. At other moments, the tragic drone of a harmonica (?) provided a haunting backdrop without becoming funereal or pessimistic. Some compositions seem to have been written and produced specifically for the film. They offer some thematic support, but the lyrics were overshadowed by the folksy rhythms and melodies.

This film could easily for the basis for an in-depth series on St. Louis architecture and building history. Such documentary programs generally seem to be the purview public television, however with funding constraints everywhere, we should all thank Bill Streeter, a native Chicagoan, for seeing the story in the humble St. Louis brick and pursuing the film through his own force of will.

Image from official trailer.

As an architect and photographer, my primary disappointment was with the visual representations of our present day buildings and streets. Too often, a reliance on extreme wide-angle pans or extreme telephoto compression of space made for a less than satisfactory appreciation of the architecture itself. Clearly, the film was created with the general educated public in mind, not so much specifically for architects and historians. The filmmaker had to make tough choices about how to best represent our rich building heritage. My preference would have been for a greater reliance on the details and textures of the buildings themselves, to the point of abstraction, rather than a more superficial gloss on the buildings themselves.

This criticism should be considered as coming from a specialist (and obsessionist) in architectural photography and representation. I imagine most of the audience found the visuals to be sufficiently compelling and illustrative. They contributed to a balanced presentation combining visuals, spoken word and music to tell an important and fascinating story. Bill Streeter deserves our thanks and appreciation for helping us to see our own city more clearly.

Anyone with an interest in St. Louis history, architecture, urbanism or building should see this film. Best viewed in a theatrical setting, you should also consider purchasing the production on DVD. Doing so will help to support more worthwhile projects of this kind. Owning the DVD may prove to be a unique reference that might not otherwise be accessible.

Website: http://www.stlbrickfilm.com/

Film trailer:

Illustrations: The images embedded in this post are all screen shots taken from the film’s official trailer.

Andrew Raimist is a St. Louis architect, educator, writer and photographer.

Bartholomew's City Plan of 1947

2011-11-20T22:37:00.000-06:00

City Planner Harland Bartholomew developed a detailed, comprehensive plan for St. Louis which documents the existing conditions at the time and projected future development based upon increasing population density and totals. In actuality, the city's population peaked shortly thereafter and then following a steady decline as St. Louis County became increasingly suburbanized.

This chart presents four primary demographics. The top line represents the population of the United States (dashed lines at right indicate projected figures). The second pair of lines represent the populations of the states of Illinois and Missouri. The third line represents the City of St. Louis. The shorter line at the bottom represents St. Louis County.

Population growth (historical and projected)

This analysis of the population of the region formed the basis for the comprehensive plan. The caption for this illustration (Plate Number Two) reads, "St. Louis cannot expect sizeable population increases in the future."

This pair of maps compares the population density within the boundaries of the City of St. Louis as of 1940 (top) and the projected/desired density as of 1970 (bottom):

Population density (historical and projected)

As illustrated, Bartholomew suggests that the density of the city's core would increase and that the westward expansion would not only stop, but actually be reversed. The same desire for increasing the density in the center of the city has been suggested as desirable and ideal by many urban planners since, but the reality has been exactly the opposite.

The multicolored plan below represents Bartholomew's ideal Land Use Plan. The reality is much more complex and heterogeneous. Achieving such clarity in function and use was a dream for planners of the modern American city was an ideal never to be attained in practice.

Desirable Ultimate Land Use Plan

The mismatch between the actual and zoned uses are indicated in this diagram of the Lafayette Neighborhood District. These drawings compare the existing land uses with the existing zoning. Clearly the actual facts on the ground were much more heterogeneous, mixed and complex than the simplistic organization suggested by the area's zoning.

Lafayette Neighborhood District (present land use and present zoning)

The serious nature of reconfiguring the city to correspond to the desired land uses is suggested by the sample rezoning of a neighborhood in this series of plans for the Macklind Neighborhood District. From left to right the drawings depict: Present Land Use, Present Zoning and Proposed Zoning. Clearly to achieve the purity of the desired zoning would require major alterations to the city fabric.

Macklind Neighborhood District (present and proposed uses)

Achieving the clarity of vision suggested by the "Desirable Ultimate Land Use Plan" (above) would require massive rebuilding of the city as suggested by the following plan which highlights in red areas of Substandard Housing ("a measure of obsolescence and blight").

Substandard Housing

The plan indicates two areas of city which would require massive reconstruction. The red hatched areas indicate "blighted areas" and the black hatched areas indicate "obsolete districts".

Obsolete and Blighted Districts

A key method for determining whether districts were obsolete and/or blighted involved determining how many residences in the area relied on outside toilets. This map documents the absolute numbers (red figures) and the density of such conditions in the city. In general, the closer to the riverfront and the older the age of the structure, the more likely that they did not include indoor plumbing.

Percentage of Dwelling Units with Outside Toilets

The necessity for rebuilding the city along different lines altogether is made bluntly clear by this suburbanized images of a redesigned Soulard. To Bartholomew's way of thinking, this district was entirely obsolete and needed wholesale replacement.

Soulard Neighborhood District

The following map delineates neighborhoods (outlined in red) and industrial districts (highlighted in yellow). In general, the greatest density of industrial districts were located along the Mississippi River or along the Mill Creek Valley area. Both of these areas were served by extensive rail networks. These areas remain largely industrial in nature with greatly reduced railroad activity, however many of these tracks remain in place.

Neighborhood and Industrial Districts

The plan features two maps indicating the massive investments in upgrading infrastructure the city was undertaking. The first indicates the many improvements that were a part of the 1923 Bond Issue. The largest projects included major upgrades to the system supplying potable drinking water for the city ($11,000,000) and construction of the River Des Peres drainage system beginning in Forest Park, extending through the south city before draining into the Mississippi River.

Other significant improvements included the following new structures in the downtown area: Civil Courts Building, Municipal Opera House, Municipal Power Plant and the Soldiers Memorial. Other amenities included a series of public hospitals, fire houses, parks, playgrounds, sewer upgrades and a major street lighting program. Public spaces to be improved included Union Station Plaza and Memorial Plaza. The total cost of the 1923 Bond Issue exceeded $67,000,000).

1923 Bond Issue

Further investments in the city were made as part of the "Post War Bond Issue" of 1944 which totaled more than $63,000,000 and included improvements to streets, water systems, sewer systems, parks, fire stations, telephone networks, hospitals, airport, art museum and zoo.

Post War Bond Issue of 1944

Of course, the actual development of the City of St. Louis in the second half of the 20th century followed an altogether different design which was occurred through the combined action of major highway construction, massive new suburb development in the surrounding communities and the demographic shifts associated with "white flight".

If Bartholomew had considered the evidence of population shift away from the city center toward the perifery, he might have been able to more accurately visualize and create a realistic city plan that could possibly have been implemented in a more coordinated way. Clearly, such a plan would have to deal with (at a minimum, St. Louis City and St. Louis County). My suspicion is that he was only authorized to prepare a plan for the city itself.

Population Change (1930–1940)

Sustainability and the Built Environment

2011-10-31T18:59:00.001-05:00

You are invited to attend the exhibition opening at the St. Louis Artists' Guild upcoming on Friday, November 11, 2011 at 6pm.

Take a look at this short video I put together announcing the show and explaining the criteria for the USGBC Missouri Gateway Chapter's selection of awards.

Please share a link to the video with others who would be interested in the event!

Sarah Paulsen's Anytown

2011-10-09T01:21:00.004-05:00

I'm writing about Sarah Paulsen's mini-epic animation dealing with the City of Kirkwood. I encountered the first section of her production entitled, "Act I – Anytown" at the Critical Mass Creative Stimulus group exhibition (curated by Sarah Colby) held at the Regional Arts Commission gallery in August and September.

I was immediately drawn to the sprawling collage of elements situated in the southeast corner of the gallery opposite the glass entry doors. It featured a swirling montage of images, backdrops, abstract elements and multifarious materials. The tableau was grounded on the walls themselves on which the artist had drawn, painted, colored and pinned numerous images. Included were cuttings from color magazines, hand painted buildings and settings, three-dimensional figurines, string, rope, fabric and many other elements creating a rather hypnotic, almost psychedelic effect.

Detail of Sarah Paulsen's animation props for Anytown, 2011 (photograph by Andrew Raimist).

As I began to inspect these collaged parts, I began to notice recognizable structures that were well know to me at least. A Target store was prominently situated along the axis of a downtown American main street with post office, restaurants, train station, churches and other buildings typically found in midwestern towns and cities. As I looked closer, I realized the train station included was the iconic stone building in downtown Kirkwood. "Perhaps just a coincidence," I thought.

Detail of Sarah Paulsen's animation props for Anytown, 2011 (photograph by Andrew Raimist).

I was working on trying to piece together what this tableau was addressing. While the overall visual imagery was playful and fanciful, there was a solid grounding in a very real place, one that I feel strongly connected to . . . and I began to wonder what this was all about. At that point, I had no idea that the materials displayed on the walls had any relation to the video playing in the little mini-theater set up nearby.

However, once I noticed pedestrians looking up at the spire of St. Joseph's Catholic Church, I realized that this representation didn't just have some elements borrowed from Kirkwood, it actually was a re-creation of the city itself although in an unfamiliar configuration.

Detail of Sarah Paulsen's animation props for Anytown, 2011 (photograph by Andrew Raimist).

I explored the composition, following string, thread, rope and paint from one scene to another. I came across seemingly generic images of suburban America. Comfortable green neighborhoods with grand homes, automobiles, children at play and an abundance of flowers. The striking cloverleaf located above the overview of a residential street grid suggested a kind of controlling mandala that kept the energy of the community flowing through the veins of the streets. Being green and having four quadrants, it was also reminiscent of an actual leaf of clover suggesting a grounding of the community in nature and landscape (if only abstractly and distantly).

Detail of Sarah Paulsen's animation props for Anytown, 2011 (photograph by Andrew Raimist).

Dividing the scenes were rather abstract sections that seemed curious in their materiality. The juxtaposition of flat two-dimensional representations with these physical things created a sense of disjunction that seemed to destroy the ability to impose a coherent narrative structure or sequential pattern in the layout of these collaged elements.

Detail of Sarah Paulsen's animation props for Anytown, 2011 (photograph by Andrew Raimist).

Small child-like figures were suspended from thread by clothes pins in the corner. At once, Vladimir Tatlin's Corner Relief of 1915 came to mind while I stared curious and inquisitive into these Sears catalog types of happy figures. The idyllic aspect of the suburbs was abundant in the scenes of happy family life, joyful childhood summers and luscious, well-tended gardens.

The most powerful part of the animation is the story of the families picking up their children for ballet and the kids all going in different family's minivans. The story, and your delightful depiction of it, touched my heart. That is the kind of essence of trust and goodwill that is at the center of what makes Kirkwood special.

Detail of Sarah Paulsen's animation props for Anytown, 2011 (photograph by Andrew Raimist).

A sense of naivete suffused the work, yet it was clearly the product of someone with some very definite thoughts and intentions. Was this meant to be a critique of the suburb as a kind of utopian community without strife and loss? As I considered this question, I began to notice small suggestive details that indicated we were not quite in paradise, such as the "For Rent" and "For Lease" signs depicted in some of the vacant storefronts.

Throughout my examination of this display, I kept hearing deep tones of voices muffled but suggestive. I found it a bit hard to focus my attention on the work that had initially grabbed my attention because so many people were grouped around the table display positioned nearby. I took a look to see what was drawing people's interest there assuming it was another artist's presentation.

As I stood and looked over the shoulders of those gathered around, I realized that some of the images included in the animated film being projected in this mini theater featured some of the elements I'd just been examining on the walls. I gradually pieced together that these displays were both parts of a larger whole and began to try to listen more closely to the audio track to no avail.

Detail of Sarah Paulsen's Anytown, 2011 (photograph by Andrew Raimist).

Once I was able to get to a spot where I could see the video I started to get a better sense for how the characters and the scenery displayed on the wall were being used to tell a story. That night at the gallery opening, I could only hear the timbre of the voices and sounds on the soundtrack, but couldn't really discern their content. In a way, this made the experience all the more powerful for me, since I had to fill in the audio track with a narrative of my own making.

Detail of Sarah Paulsen's Anytown, 2011 (photograph by Andrew Raimist).

The conversations of those attending the gallery opening caught my attention, particularly when I heard someone mention Connie Karr. Now this whole presentation began to take on a different aspect entirely. Perhaps it was intended to comment on the recent turmoil, violence and conflict that had cropped up in my city (viz. 'Cookie' Thornton's February 2008 shooting at Kirkwood City Hall).

Once I returned to the collaged elements on the wall, I then noticed the small, empty stage set emblazoned with, "Connie Karr for Mayor." This gave me pause. I realized she did in fact intend to take on those difficult events. This put my appreciation and understanding of your intentions into a completely different realm. At that moment something deep in the pit of my stomach fell and realized that there was something of a fairly serious nature being addressed by these playful, engaging images, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. (I only later realized the image was likely based on a display at the Greentree Festival and not a proscenium decorated for a political rally).

Detail of Sarah Paulsen's animation props for Anytown, 2011 (photograph by Andrew Raimist).

I returned to the video projection which was a bit difficult to view because the projector was located within one building and the movie screen was situated on the facade of another building. This set up imposed a particular scale and limited the number of people who could reasonably view the animated images being projected.

I patiently waited while the film looped until I could move up to the side of this unusual model theater. Why was it this size? Why couldn't I clearly make out the audio which seemed to include women's voices speaking rather dispassionately about something.

Detail of Sarah Paulsen's Anytown, 2011 (photograph by Andrew Raimist).

All of a sudden I realized the building containing the projector was an abstraction of Kirkwood City Hall and the facing structure suggested the Station Plaza facade across the street. The City Hall was blocky and solid, while the Station Plaza structure seemed to be supported on a kind of scaffolding suggesting a billboard or outdoor drive-in movie.

Detail of Sarah Paulsen's Anytown, 2011 (photograph by Andrew Raimist).

At the gallery opening, I must've watched the animation sequence at least four times through and began to gather a sense about what kind of a story you were trying to tell. While the opening mentions "Anytown" and indicates that it's the first part, I was unclear about the direction in which the story was intended to head.

I began to listen in the conversations going on around your sort of digital version of the Globe Theatre. I heard people mention that your mother was a good friend of Connie Karr and that your project was somehow being done in relation to those painful events in recent Kirkwood memory.

Until that moment, I was seeing what you'd produced as being a pleasant, charming, engaging depiction of suburban life in America, with Kirkwood being given as a local example. I felt the kind of playful fun of Monty Python's animations which tend to end with a giant splat or some unexpected surrealistically complete and sudden change of context.

Examples of Terry Gilliam animations for Monty Python's Flying Circus.

Once I understood that you had some intention of dealing with some of the serious, heavy events in recent Kirkwood history, I started to view your project somewhat differently. I was looking for bits that somehow relate to racial, economic and class divisions. I could find a few insinuations of the that, but I couldn't be sure if I was projecting that onto your work or if they were something that I'd actually "discovered". For example, there's the bit about the country club and the gate which seems to indicate an element of exclusion within the seeming suburban paradise of the American midwest.

Her approach of interviewing people in Kirkwood to fashion an audio track and act as a scaffolding for the narrative and a basis for the imagery is clever and effective.

I determined to return to see the exhibition another time when the gallery was not so crowded and I might be able to hear the audio track. I did revisit the exhibit finding myself even more captivated by the thoughtfully constructed scenes and able to expose the small speakers hidden within the City Hall model so I could hear it more clearly.

Detail of Sarah Paulsen's Anytown, 2011 (photograph by Andrew Raimist).

This posting doesn't come to any substantive conclusions, in part because the work itself seemed open-ended and deliberately incomplete. After all the beginning of the video loop indicated it was, "Act I – Anytown." I now realize that this piece is merely the beginning of a larger project. I look forward to seeing this project develop as Sarah continues to investigate this rich mine of emotions and history.

On Laskey

2011-09-08T00:28:00.000-05:00

Professor Leslie Laskey shocked the hell out of me with his question at my first critique as a student at Washington University's School of Architecture. I'd just finished presenting some conte crayon on newsprint sketches and described the concept for my upcoming project to design a wall in a garden.

After I finished presenting, he exclaimed, "JUST WHERE DID YOU COME FROM?" Into the tense silence, I meekly replied, "Cornell."

"Oh, . . . well, that explains it!"

~ ~

That was my introduction to the force know as Laskey. I was never fortunate enough to have him as my professor as he taught the undergraduates, though I did participate in a few of his design salons some years later.

He certainly influenced the direction of my own work, suggesting I take a close look at Harris Armstrong's Magic Chef Building and its Noguchi ceiling. I'd come to him asking for his advice about how I might pursue my interest in issues relating to the historic preservation of modernist architecture.

Now, at ninety, Laskey's work will be the subject of simultaneous exhibitions at the Bruno David Gallery and at Steinberg Gallery at the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts. The openings will be held tomorrow evening, Friday 9 September 2011 in conjunction with exhibit openings at the Pulitzer and the Contemporary.

Take a look at this wonderful short video by David Wild:

Leslie Laskey: Hinge from David Wild on Vimeo.

Opening Tonight at Old North St. Louis!

2011-09-01T07:45:00.000-05:00

(en)visioning Hyde Park opening :: Thurs., Sept. 1st

Please read and share this notice regarding the upcoming exhibition opening for (en)visioning Hyde Park. The opening will take place tonight,Thursday, September 1st from 6pm to 8pm.

The exhibit is being held at Old North St. Louis Restoration Group's gallery located at :

2700 N. 14th Street
St. Louis, Missouri 63106

This very special opening features the work of Hyde Park middle school children who participated in Rebuild Foundation's Urban Expressions program in June and July. Andrew Raimist acted as digital photography instructor and the results of their summer's work will be on display.

The kids receive awards and certificates as well as a book documenting their work over this summer which they accomplished alongside Washington University students in Theaster Gates' CityStudioSTL design-build program.

Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=238900999484639

You can find out more about the program at:

http://kck.st/m32Pqu (Kickstarter)

http://rebuild-foundation.org (Rebuild)

The opening will include food and beverages, a slide show as well as a special collection of cameras spanning over 100 years from the Brownie to the digital point-and-shoot camera's used by the kids.

If you're unable to join us, please share this information on your blog or with your social media contacts.

This project has been generously supported by backers of our Kickstarter grant as well as support from the Missouri Arts Council, Rebuild Foundation and Most Holy Trinity Catholic School. We welcome additional contributions to this worthwhile community arts effort.

If you have any questions about the exhibition, please contact Andrew Raimist:

phone: 314 / 640 6878
email: ALWRaimist@me.com
blog: http://AndrewRaimist.com

(en)visioning Hyde Park exhibit :: Thurs. Sept. 1st

2011-08-24T20:24:00.000-05:00

Please read and share this notice regarding the upcoming exhibition opening for (en)visioning Hyde Park. The opening will take place on Thursday, September 1st from 6pm to 8pm.

The exhibit is being held at Old North St. Louis Restoration Group's gallery located at :

    2700 N. 14th Street
    St. Louis, Missouri 63106

This very special opening features the work of middle school children living in Hyde Park who participated in Rebuild Foundation's Urban Expressions program in June and July. Andrew Raimist acted as digital photography instructor and the results of their summer's work will be on display.

The kids will all be given awards and certificates as well as a book documenting their work along with the accomplishments of Washington University students in the CityStudioSTL design-build studio.

You can find out more about the program at:

    http://kck.st/m32Pqu (Kickstarter)

    http://rebuild-foundation.org (Rebuild)

If you're unable to join us, please share this information on your blog or with your social media contacts.

This project has been generously supported by backers of our Kickstarter grant as well as support from the Missouri Arts Council, Rebuild Foundation and Most Holy Trinity Catholic School. We welcome additional contributions to this worthwhile community arts effort.

If you have any questions about the exhibition, please contact Andrew Raimist:

    phone:     314 / 640 6878
    email:      ALWRaimist@me.com
    blog:        http://AndrewRaimist.com

USGBC – International green Construction Code

2011-08-02T21:18:00.000-05:00

Take a look at this short video introduction to the IgCC (International green Construction Code) announcing our local chapter's USGBC meeting next week on Tuesday, August 9th.

Video by Andrew Raimist, 2011.

SPEAKER: Dave Bowman, PE, Manager of Codes for the International Code Council’s Codes and Standards Group. Mr. Bower’s responsibilities include the management of all ICC standards development and the direction and coordination of ICC Staff when assisting or participating in standards development with other organizations. He also maintains the integrity of the referenced standards chapters of the I-Codes and assists code development as the Staff Secretary for the IBC Fire Safety Committee and the IBC General Committee. He provides portions of the IBC Commentary and is involved in the development of the ICC Performance Code.

CONTINUING EDUCATION:
Submitted for approval of 1 GBCI CE Hour & 1 AIA LU/HSW/SD

WHEN:
Tuesday, August 9, 2011

5:30 – 6:15 pm – Registration & Networking
6:15 – 7:30 pm – Formal Presentation

WHERE:
Ameren Missouri, 1901 Chouteau, St. Louis, MO 63103

FEE:
Free for USGBC-Missouri Gateway Chapter Members, ASHRAE – St. Louis Members, MABOI Members, and Full-time Students; $20 for Non-members.

REGISTER:
Click here to visit our Event Registration page. Scroll down and click the “Register” button under the International Green Construction Code event listing.

QUESTIONS?
Contact USGBC-Missouri Gateway staff at usgbc-mogateway@mobot.org or (314) 577-0225.

Hyde Park Update -- Painting

2011-07-03T23:02:00.001-05:00

On the Friday before the 4th of July weekend, the Urban Expressions students painted several benches that will be installed in the Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church's garden. It was another hot St. Louis summer day, but we worked in the shade and produced some inspiring designs.

Afterwards we enjoyed milkshakes from Crown Candy Kitchen and some basketball. Check out the short video of the event:

Hyde Park update!

2011-06-27T02:11:00.000-05:00

During our second week working with the kids in the Urban Expressions program, we organized the kids in teams to share the cameras we have available. We headed north from their school along Blair Avenue, visiting sites (and looking at and seeing sights) along the way. The range of conditions to be found in the span of a few blocks runs the gamut.

Across the street from the school is a wonderfully restored home with a beautiful cornice. Its fenced yard to protected by several fierce-sounding dogs which coming running as we head up the sidewalk. We smile as we see three cute, curly-haired mutts arrive at the fence.

Next door is a house presently undergoing renovation. Sweaty men are busy hauling debris from its dark, boarded-up interior.

At the corner of Blair Avenue and Salisbury Street is the Cornerstone Cafe. The owners are a wonderful family with deep roots in the community. They serve inexpensive, delicious sandwiches. Their patrons range from kids just learning to walk to older men who fondly recall the "good old days". The kids take photos around the simple cafe: the homemade mural of collaged faces, the mounted deep water ocean catch and the patron and servers. Before we leave, the owner offers the kids suckers.

Diagonally across from the cafe is the historic firehouse which has been lovingly restored. It's beige bricks contrast with the dark reddish bricks that comprise most of the neighborhood's buildings.

The old Salisbury Hardware store stares blankly across the intersection encrusted with a patina of texts, graphics and graffiti that suggest something of its history. We're told that renovations of the building should be starting sometime soon.

A few doors down, there's a solid old duplex being completely restored. Masons have been repairing and tuck pointing the brickwork for several weeks. Windows have started to be installed.

A little farther down the street, a similar structure is missing much of its facing bricks and most of its windows marking a clear contrast to the newly preserved duplex.

These homes face the historic square green landscape of Hyde Park, one of St. Louis' 19th century open spaces which was originally built in the village of New Bremen, before the area's incorporation into the City of St. Louis. Stories suggest that the open space was named for London's Hyde Park. While some residents believe the park was originally named Bremen Park (after the German city from which many of the area's early residents emigrated), the aerial views prepared by Compton & Dry in 1875 show it as named "Hyde Park".

Their belief that the name was changed from Bremen seems to be based upon the anti-German sentiment that developed during the two world wars. While that story is apocryphal, some of the Cornerstone Cafe regulars recall seeing Nazi's parading through the streets with flags and National Socialist regalia during WWII.

While the park is green and open with mature trees, playground, pavilion and other amenities, it seems underutilized.

Turning on Bremen Street, we find an empty burned multifamily structure that had years ago been painted blue next to a series of vacant lots that appear to have been relatively recently cleared. In the far corner, piles of mulch and compost suggest the existing of a garden in this unlikely locale.

We're delighted to find rows of planting in various states of growth and then pleased meet its owner and caretaker, a slender woman with a broad gardeners hat capping her long flowing hair. She patiently answers the kids' rapid-fire questions.

"Did you make this garden?"

"Do you really live here?"

"How old are you?"

"Why do you have gray hair?"

"Where's the lettuce? Spinach? Melons?"

She calmly answers them all and even shows us how she hand pollinates the plants she keeps wrapped in lightweight fabric as a barrier to insects. She uses only organic methods in maintaining and developing her garden.

Hoses are strewn across the alley and around the planting beds to facilitate watering. The start of a circular bed of ornamentals edged in irregular limestone edging is beginning to take shape nearby.

As the heat of the afternoon sun starts to bear down on us, a large black dog barks at us from across the alley signaling our time to leave.

While some of the kids profess an inability to make it all the way back to the school, we do arrive as a group three blocks back toward the south under the shadow of the Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church.

(en)Visioning Hyde Park Begins!

2011-06-20T00:38:00.001-05:00

Our program has begun! The kids are totally psyched and I've already got them taking pictures. In addition to working with Canon Powershot digital point-and-shoot cameras, each day I bring in a different camera to show them.

The first day they all got to try out my Nikon DSLR. The second day I brought in a Kodak Brownie from the early twentieth century. I explained that fundamentally all of these cameras do exactly the same thing.

We concluded the week with plans for a barbecue and an afternoon creative celebration with volleyball, face-painting, t-shirt screen-printing, portraits and more. Friday's intense storm drove us inside, but didn't dampen our spirits!

I shot everyone's portraits in a makeshift portrait studio set-up. I've edited and posted several to my Flickr photostream.

We also got a wonderful article published about our program in St. Louis Magazine written by Zakea Boeger. A special shout-out goes to their Arts & Entertainment Editor Stefene Russell who helped make it all possible!

And here's a self-portrait taken in the midst of all the action:

Thanks again for your support! Please be sure to let others know the deadline for reaching our goal is Wednesday 6 July. If we don't reach our goal by that date, then no money gets donated and we receive nothing. :(

Hyde Park: The Interview

2011-06-19T22:03:00.004-05:00

Following is a short video interview conducted by Dickson Beall of the new website StLouisan.com where he's developing an arts and culture channel for Saint Louis.

We're discussing my project (en)Visioning Hyde Park and its Kickstarter component. Please check it out!

Check out the video describing the project here:

National Great Rivers Research & Education Center

2011-06-14T01:42:00.000-05:00

Check out this short video regarding the recently opened National Great Rivers Research & Education Center. The USGBC's June chapter meeting will include a tour of the facility which features a range of innovative technologies related to its intended Platinum LEED status.

The meeting takes place on Tuesday 14 June 2011 at 5:30pm. Visit USGBC website for more information and to RSVP.

(en)Visioning Hyde Park

2011-06-07T22:48:00.000-05:00

I've just launched a Kickstarter.com fundraising effort to support the summer photography program I'm teaching kids in North St. Louis' Hyde Park neighborhood.

Please take a look at the project page.

Thanks for checking it out! Please let others who would be interested in this effort know about it. Can you encourage people to support the project even with a nominal contribution of $1 or a Facebook "Like"?

Please let me know what you think about the project, how it might be improved or resources you believe we should consult.

Regarding "free unemployment"

2011-05-08T17:38:00.002-05:00

FOLLOWING IS A RESPONSE TO SOMEONE CRITICIZING THOSE RECEIVING 'FREE UNEMPLOYMENT' (on LinkedIn).

I understand your frustration with finding qualified people. There's no doubt that there are some people getting unemployment payments who are doing little or nothing to improve their skills and employability. However, I know many eminently qualified people who are diligently seeking work and investing in developing their inherent talents to make themselves even more valuable to employers.

In the two years that I've been "unemployed" as an architect (a building-type architect), I have earned two certificates in web design, have been doing a wide range of freelance design work, expanded my services to include photography, video and writing, been teaching as a substitute teacher in public schools, recently completed a graduate level university seminar (as instructor), will be teaching urban youth during the summer and am lining up more work all the time.

I'm also just about ready to publish my first book which I've researched, written, illustrated, designed and produced myself. http://andrewraimist.com/2010/05/harris-armstrong-book-preview.html

I've periodically gotten financial support from unemployment. When I earn enough money, I simply don't get a check from unemployment for that week. Without those funds from unemployment, it's possible that our home mortgage would have gone into foreclosure and thereby destroying the years of physical, financial and emotional investment I've made in designing, building and maintaining it.

The "system" is screwed up, without doubt. In some instances it would be financially better for me not to work. That is wrong. I personally believe that I'm working for something much more than just a few hundred dollars at the end of a week (although that's certainly part of the motivation). I'm working to make more connections and to demonstrate my skills and abilities to others who will recognize the value of my contributions and appreciate the value I offer.

I'm presently producing a series of videos for the local chapter of the US Green Building Council in exchange for membership in the organization and the ability to take additional courses and get more certifications. To my way of thinking, I am being entrepreneurial in a way that benefits others and myself simultaneously. To me, that's what work is all about.

If you have a moment, please view my most recent video for them and let me know if you think I'm wasting my time receiving "free unemployment". http://andrewraimist.com/2011/05/biomimicry-at-usgbc.html

ALWRaimist@me.com
http://RaimistDesign.com

Missouri HIstoric Tax Credits in Danger

2011-05-04T22:57:00.002-05:00

Following is an email that was forwarded to me today regarding a massive cut proposed to the Missouri Historic Tax Credit legislation:

From: Jerry Schlichter [mailto:jschlichter@uselaws.com]
Sent: Wednesday, May 04, 2011 1:01 PM
Subject: Historic Tax Credit

After 12 years of success and Missouri becoming the national model, the Historic Tax Credit may be devastated in the next few days as the Legislative session comes to a close.

The Senate has passed a bill, Senate bill 280, which drastically slashes the credit to $75 million from the $140 million cap that was previously put on it, which itself was a 25% cut from the level it had been.

It is critical that supporters of the Historic Tax Credit weigh in NOW to key legislators to show their opposition to this. Some of the facts that demonstrate why this is bad for the state follow, but feel free to give your own reasons, and in your own words, if you contact legislators.

1. The Historic Tax Credit is by far the most productive jobs law, producing 43,000 documented jobs in a study for the Missouri Growth Association;

2. Other states are going in the opposite direction with their credit. For example, Iowa increased its credit by $30 million because of its job creation; Kansas removed its cap; Minnesota passed a historic tax credit as its flagship economic development strategy, and the model for it was Missouri;

3. Developers are leaving Missouri and going to neighboring states because of their encouraging use of their historic tax credit and increasing its availability;

4. To create new tax credits and destroy the historic tax credit for other hoped-for projects and hoped-for jobs, as the Senate bill does, makes no sense when it would kill the credit as we know it, with its proven track record at producing tens of thousands of jobs;

5. The exemption from the cap for small projects, which is eliminated by the Senate bill, would end the redevelopment of Main Street projects and neighborhood revitalization;

6. We have been the national model of success, having revitalized parts of many cities and towns, and the credit pays for itself;

7. The budget for this year or next year will not be affected by this action.

The key legislators and their contact information are:

In the House:

Representative Steven Tilley, Speaker of the House
MO House of Representatives
201 West Capitol Avenue, Rm. 308A
Jefferson City, MO 65101
573/751-1488
Steven.Tilley@house.mo.gov

Representative John Diehl
Missouri House of Representatives
201 West Capitol Avenue, Rm. 309
Jefferson City, MO 65101
573/751-1544
John.Diehl@house.mo.gov

Representative Timothy Jones
Missouri House of Representatives
201 West Capitol Avenue, Rm. 302A
Jefferson City, MO 65101
573/751-0562
Tim.Jones@house.mo.gov

In the Senate:

Senator Eric Schmitt
Missouri State Senate
201 W. Capitol Avenue, Rm. 323
Jefferson City, MO 65101
573/751-2853
eschmitt@senate.mo.gov

Senator Ron Richard
Missouri State Senate
201 W. Capitol Avenue, Rm. 431
Jefferson City, MO 65101
573/751-2173
ronald.richard@senate.mo.gov

We will never get the historic tax credit back if it is slashed like this, and the 12 years of success in developing cities and small towns throughout the state and creating jobs will be over.

Thanks for your consideration.

Jerry Schlichter
Missouri Coalition for Historic Preservation and Economic Development

Jerome J. Schlichter
Schlichter, Bogard & Denton
100 S. 4th Street, Suite 900
St. Louis, MO 63102
314/621-6115 Phone
314/621-7151 Fax

Biomimicry at USGBC

2011-05-03T20:44:00.004-05:00

Take a look at this short video announcing the upcoming USGBC chapter meeting on the topic of Biomimicry. The speaker, Taryn Mead, is Senior Biologist at the Design Table at the Biomimicry Guild.

I produced the above video for the Missouri Gateway Chapter of the USGBC (United States Green Building Council). Here's the low-down on the event:

WHEN
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
5:30 - 6:15 pm - Registration & Networking
6:15 - 7:30 pm - Formal Presentation
WHERE
Missouri Botanical Garden's Shoenberg Theatre
4344 Shaw Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63110
FEE
Free for all attendees!
REGISTER
Click here to visit our Event Registration page. Be sure to scroll down and click the "Register" button under the Biomimicry event listing.
QUESTIONS?
Contact USGBC-Missouri Gateway staff by email or phone (314) 577-0225.

Here's some background / biographical information about Taryn (images and text courtesy of the Biomimicry Guild):

Taryn Mead, Senior Biologist at the Design Table, Biomimicry Guild

Taryn's training in ecology and the socio-industrial aspects of environmental issues provides a systems-based platform for discussion of biomimetic principles and methodologies. As a Biologist at the Design Table for the Guild, she specializes in Nature's functions at the ecosystem level. With a bird's eye view on planning, architectural and production challenges, she provides insights into ecological principles that can be used to enhance the way designs fit into the landscape of a place.

She guides clients through a design process that asks the local organisms how to flourish in the regional habitat conditions and incorporate ecosystem nutrient cycling into landscape scale designs. Her assignments include consulting with corporate clients, researching biological strategies, facilitating workshops with design professionals and biologists, creating tools to assist in the design process and managing the Guild's internship program.

She grew up in the woods of the rural Midwest, catching crayfish in the "crick" near her parents' long time home. Her adventures, educational endeavors and employment have since moved her to south Florida, Brazil, various parts of Colorado, Los Angeles and the Aleutian Islands of Alaska.

She participated in the National Student Exchange Program and worked at the Lyle Center for Regenerative Studies at California Polytechnic University in Pomona, CA. She graduated Cum Laude with degrees in Environmental Studies and Biology with an emphasis in Ecology from Western State College of Colorado in Gunnison. She was involved with numerous sustainability initiatives in Gunnison, eventually serving as Student Body President and the State Coordinator for the Sierra Student Coalition. Upon graduation, she received the Alumni Award for Excellence for her service to the campus and community.

She relocated to Helena, MT, when she joined the Guild, after working as a biologist on commercial fishing vessels in the Bering Sea. In her free time, she enjoys bluegrass music, dark roasted coffee and getting her hands dirty, be it climbing, gardening, camping or rafting.

1415 Mallinckrodt | children's dreams

2011-04-15T22:00:00.002-05:00

"After and before"

Dayna Kriz and others working with Rebuild Foundation have developed a program called "Urban Expressions". They work with students of the Most Holy Trinity Catholic School in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Saint Louis. One of the exercises they worked on involved encouraging the kids to imagine what an existing vacant building near their school could possibly become.

"Back in the day"

The kids developed their ideas for transforming an eyesore into a place that is useful and vibrant. They wrote and drew their ideas which have been posted on the door to 1415 Mallinckrodt as a way of imprinting their vision directly onto the building itself.

"Colorful space with retro decorations"

They are now participating in a joint effort of Rebuild Foundation, The Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts and the Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts to rehabilitate this structure into a place in which the community can be justifiably proud. Under the inspired leadership of Theaster Gates, Jr., two vacant buildings in the neighborhood will be revitalized over the course of the coming months.


"Play ground"

Not only will be the kids be able to see positive change taking place in their neighborhood, they will also be actively contributing to this transformation which promises to be at least a bit magical.

USGBC April video

2011-04-05T22:16:00.004-05:00

Following is a video I produced for the Missouri Gateway Chapter of the USGBC (United States Green Building Council):

Please feel free to forward a link to the video to invite people to attend the 8th Annual LEED Showcase being held at Alberici's Headquarters on Tuesday 12 April.

View Larger Map

Powers of Ten (AMP-style)

2011-03-23T19:15:00.000-05:00

I recently completed a five month program offered by the Regional Arts Commission: the Community Arts Training (CAT) Institute. Each year eight artists and eight people committed to social betterment, study, play and learn together in a series of intensive sessions monthly from November and March.

This year instead of 16 CATs, there were 17. I believe I am the first architect to be included in the program and perhaps was selected as the 17th CAT since I didn't entirely fit the profile of either an artist or a community activist.

CAT AMP team: Maggie Ginestra, Pamela Jackson and Andrew Raimist.

As part of the program, we worked in teams to develop a proposal for a community-based arts program. My team designed an intergenerational digital storytelling effort that would bring together ten young people and ten elderly people. They would interview each other and then tell the story of the person with whom they were paired. We call our project "Powers of Ten".

To get an idea of what we've been up to, check out the video we created to document our process:

Mid-Century Modern Architecture in St. Louis

2011-01-06T21:18:00.004-06:00

Mid-Century Modernism in St. Louis.
Photographs by Andrew Raimist.

Seminar in Mid-Century Modern Architecture in St. Louis being given Spring 2011 in the College of Architecture, Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Art, Washington University in St. Louis.

We will be visiting and studying excellent examples of Mid-Century Architecture throughout the semester. Students will undertake their own in-depth research of a particular building of note.

Information will be collected throughout the course of our investigations in the form of drawings, sketches, photographs, videos, interviews, archival material, among other documentation.

We'll be using the buildings themselves as primary sources of information and will also speak with some of the architects behind these projects and others with special knowledge of their history.

One of the books we'll use as a resource will be Professor Eric Mumford's Modern Architecture in St. Louis.

What are your favorite examples of modern architecture built in St. Louis between 1930 and 1970?

How I Write

2010-12-22T13:54:00.002-06:00

How I Write
Uploaded by Andrew Raimist.

Here is a comment I made on a post on the Inside Higher Ed website:

I have been using an iPad for writing since purchasing it in June 2010. It works seamlessly with my Bluetooth Apple keyboard. Without this additional device, I would say the iPad is a terrible device for writing. With it, I'm finding it to be exceptional especially for quickly writing notes and comments in moments in time when it would be too cumbersome or obtrusive to open up a laptop.

I write quite a lot: a book in progress, blog posts, emails and other communications, etc. I don't use the iPad for image creation in general, except for quick "sketches" using a free app like Doodle Buddy.

My photography and videography generally works best through my laptop or desktop computer. I can then upload images to the web, to online file sharing sites (Dropbox, Evernote, etc.). (By the way, at this point, I still have not paid for a single app on my iPad or iPod Touch.)

I rarely take my laptop with me anymore unless I have to do hardcore serious work involving multiple applications such as Photoshop or if necessary for collaboration in real time and real space with someone with whom I'm working.

I'm getting more writing accomplished using the iPad per week than I was ever able to produce previously when I would jot down notes on paper or make notations on my iPod Touch.

The limitations of the iPad are real, lack of Flash support being the most obvious. Printing will soon be a real possibility. Right now I'd say it's pre-beta. Until the printer companies update their drivers, there are few printers that can take advantage of Apple's AirPrint. However, the ingenuity of app developers is astounding and I regularly find new apps that make my life easier.

Using my iPad is a joy and a boon to my work. Personally, I don't use it for purely consuming media beyond reading and viewing tutorials. I can't see watching a movie on it unless I were stuck in a snow-bound airport.

Priory Chapel: Mid-Century Monastery

2010-12-18T00:02:00.000-06:00

The Priory Chapel located at the Saint Louis Abbey will be a featured building in a course I will be co-teaching with John Guenther, FAIA this spring focused on Mid-Century Modern Architecture in Saint Louis between 1930 and 1970.


View of interior with central altar and surrounding circular pews. Photograph by Andrew Raimist.

One of my recent photographs of the interior was selected as "Photo of the Week" by our public radio station KWMU. This building was one of the early projects by the relatively young Saint Louis architectural firm Hellmuth Obata & Kassabaum. It brought a great deal of recognition to the firm and attention to it's lead designer Gyo Obata, FAIA.

A single vault with its own altar and sculptural crucifix. Photograph by Andrew Raimist.

The building was one of the highlights of the AIA's 1964 National Convention held in Saint Louis. More recently it was (somewhat belatedly) honored with the Twenty-Five Year Award by the Saint Louis Chapter of the AIA (American Institute of Architects).

The Chapel is set in the verdant landscape of the 150 acre campus. Photograph by Andrew Raimist.

The building is constructed of thin shell concrete formed in a series of parabolic arches. The building has a circular plan with an altar set in the center of the space below a central skylight.

The arches are arranged in three successive levels. The first series are set at ground level (the surrounding earth is bermed slightly from the landscape). A major circular structural beam of reinforced concrete joins these arches together and forms a base for the second tier of smaller arches which are aligned with those below. These vaults rise to a small ring which supports the bell tower and contains the central skylight.

The series of vaults are reflected in polished granite. Photograph by Andrew Raimist.

Raimist portfolio

2010-12-02T21:37:00.003-06:00

Please check out this SlideShare Presentation . . .

(click on "Menu" in bottom left corner and "View fullscreen" for best image quality)

Raimist portfolio

View more presentations from Andrew Raimist.

EXHIBIT A

2010-11-15T18:40:00.000-06:00

Please join me in attending the annual fund-raising event sponsored by Cannon Design entitled "Exhibit A".


Announcement for Cannon Design's Exhibit A 2010.

The event will feature artwork by international renowned architects that will be available for purchase via silent auction as described in their announcement:

The auction offers original signed drawings and sketches donated by notable (and generous) architects from around the world. Some of the work is produced specifically for the event. Some is a product of current or recent design work. It is all very cool, collectible and for an exceptional cause.

Also in the mix this year, the event will feature award-winning photographs from the American Institute of Architects National Photography Competition, produced by AIA St. Louis.

The photographs included in the auction will include one of my own taken at the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts during their exhibition of Dan Flavin:

Ando's Ghost, photograph by Andrew Raimist.

From their announcement:

The event will take place Nov. 18 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Power House. The 2010 beneficiary is the COCA Urban Arts Programs, which makes arts education, performance and hands-on experiences available to more than 3,000 children who would otherwise lack access to such programs.

To attend, register by contacting Laura Augustine by telephone at 314 685 1000 or by email at: rsvpSTL@cannondesign.com.

Ethical Society gets Distinguished Building Award

2010-10-12T16:08:00.003-05:00

The Saint Louis Chapter of the American Institute of Architects recently honored the Ethical Society by Harris Armstrong, FAIA with their "Distinguished Building Award". I had the honor of presenting the award along with showing some photographs of the building.

View from the southeast. The reflecting pools with spray fountains were designed as the heat sinks for the HVAC system as part of Armstrong's original design.

You can find out more about the building and the organization's esteemed history at their website: Ethical Society of Saint Louis. They are located at: 9001 Clayton Road, St. Louis, MO 63117 (click here for location via Google Maps). I encourage you to visit the building personally as it is the only true way to appreciate its dynamic space, natural daylighting and reverent form.

Light streaming into the main entry hall shines through the abstract, yet sensual colors of the stained glass Armstrong selected for this south-facing space.

The organization is to be especially commended for the great attention to detail and maintaining the original architect's design in renovating and adding to the structure to meet current needs.

A cast-in-place concrete fireplace separates the two entry vestibules that penetrates the building's south facade.

I'm including recent images of the building as presented at the 2010 AIA St. Louis Design Awards and in a St. Louis Business Journal article discussing this honor.

A night view looking into the main entry hall from outside. The paired concrete columns that surround the space are here joined to form the back of the central fireplace and chimney.

The central windowless meeting room is lined with a screen of pecan wood panels. Cylindrical concrete columns define the perimeter and support the custom glulam curved beams which rise up to meet at the central skylight.

Armstrong worked with Ethical Society members to select the range of fabrics used in the auditorium seating.

The auditorium is contained within a square room with beams rising up to a square skylight which forms the central spire on the building's exterior. This high point of the roof gives the building its distinctive silhouette and gives the building visual prominence from Clayton Road where it lies below street level.

Looking directly up into the central light fixture gives the impression of a solar eclipse with light from the central skylight playing off the symmetrically splayed beams.

Eames in Saint Louis on display

2010-10-02T00:22:00.002-05:00

Charles Eames studied architecture at Washington University in Saint Louis back in the 1920s, but was asked to leave due to his overly enthusiastic interest in modernism (i.e., Frank Lloyd Wright in those days). He had several architectural partnerships in the ensuing years, designed stage sets for the MUNY, painted murals, documented historic architecture for HABS (Historic American Building Survey) and designed several homes which still grace our city.

The most elaborate expression of his ideas on architecture, furniture, integrating art and design from this period was the monumental Meyer House in Huntleigh Village of 1936.

Facade, Meyer House, Huntleigh Village, Missouri (1936) by Eames & Walsh Architects. Photograph by Andrew Raimist.

The Meyer House includes custom-designed furnishings, decorative glass, murals and other site specific artworks. By the time the house was receiving its finishes, Eames had begun a fellowship at the Cranbrook Academy with the resulting beneficial influence on its completion.

Cast decorative metal ornament on entry door, Meyer Residence. Photograph by Andrew Raimist.

Another work from this era inspired by certain aspects of modern design was the design for the Dean House of 1935 in a Deco-inspired, Streamline Moderne work.

Facade, Dean House, Webster Groves, Missouri (1935). Photograph by Andrew Raimist.

This complex white-painted brick masonry home features a curious combination of details including corner windows at the second floor, brick quoins on the first floor and a stringcourse with dentils dividing the two levels. The entry door features a carved chevron pattern reminiscent of a door of the same time period by Eames' friend Harris Armstrong for the Cori Residence.

Entry door, Dean House. Photograph by Andrew Raimist.

A third home from this period was done for a collector of 18th century American furniture in a Williamsburg manner:

Facade detail, Dinsmoor House, Webster Groves, Missouri (1936). Photograph by Andrew Raimist.

My photographs of these three homes, including many more images with details, will be featured as part of the Award Benefit and Auction for the Museum of California Design being held on Sunday 3 October 2010 at the Entenza House (Case Study House #9 designed by Charles Eames and Eero Saarinen).

Entenza House (Case Study House #9), Pacific Palisades, California (1949) designed by Charles Eames and Eero Saarinen. Photography courtesy of www.casestudynine.com.

If you're in the neighborhood and would like to see this historic mid-century modern home, click the link to purchase a ticket. I wish I could be there myself as the house has never been open to the public !

Anyone interested in purchasing a print of my photographs should feel free to contact me.

Last Gasps of the Morton D. May House

2010-09-26T23:06:00.000-05:00

Today I gave a slide talk on Morton D. "Buster" May's home designed by Chicago architect Samuel Marx. It was constructed in 1941-42 and constituted an early, excellent example of International Style architecture in the Saint Louis suburbs.

Morton D. "Buster" May's House at 2222 South Warson Road, Ladue, Missouri (1941-42). Photograph by Hedrich-Blessing.

I covered many issues surrounding the house including:

- The special challenges of historic preservation of modernist architecture including land speculation, preservation ordinances and property boundary modifications.

Paul Hohmann photograph of interior (July 2005).

- The important contributions of Morton May to Saint Louis including his extensive art collections largely held by the Saint Louis Art Museum, his dedication to seeing the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial project from the city's riverfront implemented and his contributions to the business community by making the May Company one of the most progressive department stores in the country.

Photograph including Mayor Tucker (far left), Vice President Nixon and Morton May (far right). May was chair of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Committee.

- Overview of Samuel Marx's architectural career, furniture designs and art collections including his restaurant and hotel interiors, museums and galleries as well as residences. Marx's careful integration of architecture and interiors received special emphasis.

Glass coffee table with book display shelves below designed by Samuel Marx.

I was asked to show some video clips that were taken by Saint Louis architect Paul Hohmann before the house's demolition. Here's a link to the first of two videos he posted to YouTube. Below is a photograph from the same time.

Photograph by Paul Hohmann posted to Flickr documenting the house prior to its demolition (July 2005).

Compare the above photograph taken by Hedrich-Blessing of the house in 1942 with this image of the house before it was demolished. The house was fundamentally unchanged. It had simply been a victim of a combination of lack of maintenance and real estate speculation.

Marx's "Radio of the Future" circa 1942

2010-09-23T01:36:00.002-05:00

An ad by Admiral from 1942 featured the futuristic moderne styled "radio" as proposed by Marx. The image at the bottom left shows the unit when closed and not in use, while the central image offers a vision of a multimedia future with radio, television and turntable all in one unit.

Advertisement for a "Radio of the Future" designed by Samuel Marx.

The streamlined design with emphatic horizontals, rounded edges and clear lucite supports must have seemed an unreal vision to many Americans in those difficult days of World War II. As far as I know, the design never went beyond this concept drawing.

It's interesting that Marx is depicted hard at work at a drafting table with two titles: "Industrial Designer" and "Architect". The position of the designer in society was still in flux at the time and the concept of an industrial designer still relatively new. What sort of background should an industrial designer have?

Zenith's Bakelight "Radio Nurse" of 1937 designed by Isamu Noguchi must have set a precedent that Admiral would have liked to follow. Noguchi's design was exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in the "design" category, but such work would not be viewed as being considered in a category on a level with "art" for many years to come.

Images from advertisements and publications of Noguchi's Radio Nurse of 1937.

Even Samuel Marx the painter and artist likely wouldn't have considered his design work on a par with art. Should he have thought about his design work differently?

Watercolor by Samuel Marx from Morocco.

• • • • •

I'll be giving a talk on the Morton May House in Saint Louis designed by Samuel Marx this Sunday 26 September 2010 at 3pm. The slide talk will be held at Landmarks Association of Saint Louis.

My talk is part of a series on mid-century modern architecture being held this fall. Reservations are required as the talks are quite popular and only 50 people can be accommodated.

Edward G. Robison's Art Gallery

2010-09-22T00:31:00.057-05:00

As an art collector and director at the Art Institute of Chicago, Samuel Marx was constantly in contact with galleries, dealers and collectors of 20th Century modern art. One of the most extensive collections Marx worked with belonged to Edward G. Robinson who was an obsessive collector.

Edward G. Robinson with some of his prized art works. Photograph from LIFE magazine online digital archive.

In 1941 Robinson commissioned Marx to design an art gallery attached to his home at 910 North Rexford Drive in Beverly Hills. Robinson's home was a picturesque Tudor style and the actor contemplated selling it after building a new home that would better accommodate his growing art collection. Marx convinced Robinson to stay in the house which was then remodeled to display his collection to its greatest effect. Ultimately, they decided to construct a new free-standing windowless art gallery. While the exterior was plain with a peaked roof, the gallery's interior was modern to the core.

New art gallery at the south end of the house has skylights set into its peaked roof. Courtesy of Google Maps.

The gallery addition replaced an existing badminton court at the south end of the house. A porte-cochere was constructed linking to the existing structure.

Samuel Marx's clean modern design for the interior of Edward G. Robinson's art gallery.

While the above black and white image represents the fundamental architecture of the gallery, the color photograph published in an issue of LIFE magazine provides a richer sense of the character and palette of the space. For Marx, architecture and interiors formed an interconnected whole. He would typically refuse projects for which the client requested his architectural design services only. He believed the interior fixtures and finishes were an essential aspect of a project's experience and integrity.

Color photograph of Robinson's art gallery published in the March 1, 1948 issue of LIFE magazine (page 66).

Marx employed fossil-encrusted stone (a favorite material) as the primary structure organizing the space. Sets of stone slabs support a floating ceiling plane above and allow filtered natural light to wash the gallery walls.

Marx's cross-section through the new art gallery. Image from Ultramodern: Samuel Marx by Liz O'Brien.

Marx had a keen understanding of the requirements for displaying art from aesthetic, practical and technical viewpoints. The skylight prevented any direct harmful rays of the southern California sky from reaching the works. A scrim was installed above the floating plane diffusing the light further while directing it toward the gallery's outside walls.

Use of fossil stone is consistent and considered: surrounding entry, fireplace and free standing partitions.

Marx also provided an ingenious artificial lighting configuration approximating the daylight configuration in intensity and orientation, while keeping the fixtures concealed from view.

In some ways the design suggests Louis I. Kahn's later design for Fort Worth's Kimball Art Museum.

Louis I. Kahn's Kimball Art Museum, Fort Worth, Texas at captured in a photograph posted on Flickr by tim_buk2.

• • • • •

Chicago's Alexander Hamilton Memorial

2010-09-21T00:18:00.004-05:00

Photograph by Hedrich Blessing from the Archives of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Samuel Marx designed the Alexander Hamilton Memorial in Chicago's Lincoln Park in 1953 as a set of abstract stone slabs juxtaposed with a statue of Hamilton supported on a cantilevered block of red granite. The origins of the commission could be found decades earlier with a bequest to the Art Institute of Chicago to erect a monument in his honor.

Photograph by Hedrich Blessing from the Digital Archives of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

In the 1930s, philanthropist and art patron Kate Sturges Buckingham (1858 – 1937) decided Chicago deserved a monument to the country's first Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton (1757 – 1804). She considered Hamilton to be “one of the least appreciated great Americans.” She believed he was responsible for the nation's financial prosperity and made her family's fortune in banking and grain elevators possible.

Photograph of original rendering by Eliel Saarinen at the Art Institute of Chicago by Flickr member chernobyl.skies.

Eliel Saarinen design proposed creating a monumental framework 80 feet tall to surround the bronze statue created by the New York figurative sculptor John Angel toward fulfilling Kate Sturges Buckingham's conception. The collosal stripped classical exedra wasn't favorably received by the public and the project remained incomplete upon her death in 1937 without a site or setting firmly established.

On her death TIME magazine published the following brief obituary:

Died. Kate Sturges Buckingham, 79, Chicago art patron, philanthropist; of heart disease; in Chicago. Of Miss Buckingham's numerous gifts to Chicago, most spectacular was $1,000,000 she gave in 1927 for the Clarence Buckingham Memorial Fountain in Grant Park, which she endowed for $300,000.

The Art Institute of Chicago was entrusted with carrying out her wishes in the erection of the Hamilton Memorial. Over time, questions were raised regarding the project and whether the funding would revert to the Institute if a memorial was never constructed.

Samuel Abraham Marx's design for the Alexander Hamilton Memorial.

The Institute directed architect Samuel Marx to design a more appropriate setting for the Hamilton statue. While the overall height of the structure (78 feet) was of a similar scale to Saarinen's design, the overall visual mass was reduced considerably emphasizing the free-standing sculpture which it was decided should be gilded. The site was to be in Lincoln Park.

Postcard of Lincoln Park, Alexander Hamilton Monument from the SAIC Digital Archives of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Unfortunately the structural basis for the stone clad monument was eventually found to be inadequate and in 1993 the modernist setting for Hamilton's statue was removed leaving only the red granite base set in a landscaped garden near ground level.

Photograph of Alexander Hamilton Memorial by Flickr member evanembee.

Thus, through a series of indirect decisions and circumstances, we find Alexander Hamilton in bright gold standing atop a block of red granite. While it certainly isn't quite as grandiose at Kate Sturges Buckingham originally envisioned, perhaps it retains some of the dignity she desired.

• • • • •

What do you think? Would Saarinen's more classical design been more appropriate and lasting? Or do you think Marx's modernist composition should have been retained and rebuilt? Or do you like the monument as it exists today?

• • • • •

Professor Eric Mumford, Washington University, Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Art

Esley Hamilton speaking on Saint Louis modern architect Frederick Dunn

Eugene Mackey, III, FAIA speaking on modern architecture in the 1950s

Mary Reid Brunstrom, PhD Candidate speaking on Murphy and Mackey's religious architecture

Toby Weiss talking on STL loves MCM (Saint Louis loves Mid-Century Modernism)

Lines of Beauty Exhibit at Landmarks Association !

2010-09-16T17:39:00.001-05:00

Opening Reception

Lines of Beauty: Original Renderings by St. Louis Architects

September 16, 2010 | Thursday, 5:30 - 7:30 PM

Sept. 16 - Dec. 15, 2010

Carolyn Hewes Toft Gallery at Architecture St. Louis
911 Washington Avenue
Suite 170

Samuel Marx's Morton May House

2010-09-13T14:48:00.000-05:00

View of south elevation of the home with views looking out over its pastoral landscape. Photograph by Hedrich-Blessing courtesy of the Chicago Historical Society.

One of the best International Style houses built in Saint Louis was undoubtedly this home for Morton D. May by the Chicago architect Samuel Marx. Located at 2222 South Warson Road in Ladue, the house was built in 1941. At the time, Morton "Buster" May was an executive of the May Company and heir to the May family fortune.

View looking down on the dramatic helical staircase at the center of the home. Photograph by Hedrich-Blessing courtesy of the Chicago Historical Society.

A series of blog posts will provide an informative introduction to the circumstances surrounding the house's design and construction, related works by the architect (including commissions for May Company Department stores), Marx's influence on May as an art collector and the home's significance in Saint Louis architectural history.

Photograph of the Los Angeles May Company Department Store on Wilshire Boulevard by Carol Highsmith via Library of Congress Pageturner.

These posts will serve as a prelude to my upcoming talk at Landmarks Association of Saint Louis on Sunday 26 September 2010 at 3pm. You must make reservations to attend the event. My talk is one of a series of talks on Sunday this fall focused on Saint Louis modernism.

Book

2010-08-08T13:50:00.001-05:00

Thanks to everyone who has been asking about my book on Harris Armstrong. Unfortunately it isn't quite ready yet; I've run into some difficulties (both technical and personal) that haven't allowed me to complete the work on it.

I've been out of work for quite some time and some great job opportunities have recently appeared on which I've had to focus my energies. These have taken me away from completing the publication. I hope to have the book completed soon.

I'll definitely post a notice on my blog, Architectural Ruminations, when the book is available. I'm hoping that will be before the end of August.

Louise & Harris Armstrong -- About Houses

2010-07-07T17:07:00.003-05:00

About Houses (book cover)
Uploaded by Andrew Raimist

Armstrong drew and designed this book cover for a book on modern houses in the 1940s. While they submitted the manuscript to several publishers it was never published. The typed manuscript was mimeographed by Louise Armstrong informally bound for distribution.

During WWII there was limited work available for architects as building supplies were in short supply and capital resources were devoted to the war effort. Many architects set about putting down their ideas about the future of the modern American home though articles and books. Many such books were published at the time. A good example is "The Modern House in America" by James and Katherine Morrow Ford.

Harris Armstrong talk at Masonry Institute !

2010-05-26T08:39:00.005-05:00

Andrew Raimist will be presenting a seminar on Wednesday 26 May 2010 on modern architect Harris Armstrong's interest in, use of and influence on the practice of masonry construction. The event will be held at the Masonry Institute of St. Louis (MISL).

Google Map locating MISL (including address, phone number, website address, etc.):

View Larger Map

Harris Armstrong book preview

2010-05-25T18:53:00.003-05:00

Here's a preview of my book Harris Armstrong | Masonry. I'll be speaking on this topic tomorrow, Wednesday 26 May 2010, at the Masonry Institute of Saint Louis (MISL).

While a full accounting of Armstrong's architecture and life is my ultimate goal, this book will fill a void in the public knowledge and understanding of his career, ideas, and impact. The focus on masonry is based on several issues:

Focusing Armstrong's masonry work reveals critical aspects of his architectural work. These fundamental principles are of particular interest to architects, designers, builders and the "architecturally informed public".

The book establishes a framework for Armstrong's progressive approach to design in the context of Saint Louis' development between the 1920s and 1960s.

The emphasis on masonry highlights Armstrong's key ideas to architectural design with respect to form, materials, composition and function.

A full accounting covering Armstrong's life and career requires a more expansive book with more pages, illustrations, text, notes, etc. Such a book is beyond presently available resources. Interest and sales of this book will go a long way toward realizing the full Armstrong monograph.

The book includes insightful color photographs by the author as well as historic documentation from the Harris Armstrong Archives, Special Collections, Washington University in Saint Louis. In addition, personal material obtained through Louise Armstrong (Harris Armstrong's widow), relatives, clients, and friends.

Examples of some of the previously unavailable material published here include:

- Student works from Ohio State University circa 1924 based upon the Beaux-Arts instructional methods current at the time.

- Family history, snapshots, sketches and other personal records revealing Armstrong's unconventional personality.

- High-quality reproductions of Armstrong renderings representing various phases and periods in his career including: graphite, colored pencil, watercolor, freehand sketches and ink with zip-a-tone.

- Photographs by the author including exhibited, published and award-winning images.

- Captivating samples of his unique styles of hand lettering are featured throughout the book.

- Samples of architectural working drawings highlight his compelling approach to design by the thoughtful juxtaposition of photographs and measured drawings.

- Many examples of unbuilt designs are presented that reflect ideas and forms incorporated into projects constructed many years or decades later.

- Images and quotations from unpublished documents such as "The Life and Death of the Rockpile" and "Building Modern Houses" by Harris & Louise Armstrong.

A self-published, print-on-demand book, Harris Armstrong | Masonry is an accessible, high-quality and reasonably priced. The book is 120 pages, 10" x 8" landscape format book on premium-weight paper with four color printing throughout.

The book will be available for purchase online or directly from the author (eliminating shipping + tax). Three binding formats are available: softcover, hardcover with dust jacket and hardcover with image-wrap (see examples):

The book costs:

Softcover: $ 39.95

Hardcover with dust jacket: $ 52.95

Hardcover with image wrap: $ 55.95

Proofs of the book have been received from the printer (see illustration above). Corrections are presently being made. Printed copies will be available for purchase beginning Wednesday 30 June 2010. Pre-orders made before that date (for hardcover books with dust jacket to be purchased in bulk) can be made at a reduced cost of $50.

It will be offered through the Blurb Bookstore for purchase online (with added tax and shipping charges). You will be be also be able to purchase the book directly from the author. Ordering the book in greater quantities reduces the per book charges allowing the author to sell the book directly without additional costs.

Please direct inquiries to

Andrew [dot] Raimist [at] me [dot] com.

noguchi.stl • Pecha Kucha Saint Louis • Volume 3

2010-05-06T15:01:00.000-05:00

Andrew Raimist will be giving a talk entitled "noguchi.stl" at the third Pecha Kucha held in Saint Louis on Thursday 6 May 2010 @ 7pm at Mad Art Gallery.

The presentations will all be based upon the 20 X 20 format: 20 images x 20 seconds per image.

Visit the PK•StL website for more details.

There is no cost for attending the event. All are welcome.

~ ~ ~

The slide presentation will touch upon:

• Noguchi's concepts for sculpting the earth and its connections to Native American Indian mounds.

• The critical influence of the Midwestern history, culture and landscape on Noguchi's formative years growing up in Indiana.

• Noguchi's collaboration with the New York modern architect Edward Durell Stone in developing an entry to the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Competition.

• The visceral connection between Noguchi's desire to mold the landscape and evocations of the human body represented in the earth.

• Noguchi's collaboration with Saint Louis modern architect Harris Armstrong on the iconic Magic Chef lunar landscape.

• The significant, original Noguchi plaster model for the Magic Chef ceiling in the collection of the Saint Louis Art Museum.

• The impact of Noguchi's confinement at the Poston Relocation Center (for US residents and citizens of Japanese origin in 1942) upon his conception of the purpose and meaning of art, sculpture, and landscape.

Map for Harris Armstrong Sappington Spur House Tour

2010-05-01T13:52:00.003-05:00

This map indicates the homes of the Harris Armstrong house tour to be held on Sunday 2 May from 2pm to 5pm. You may wish to print out this image and bring it with you to the tour.

The house tour is a benefit for the Sheldon Art Galleries. Tickets for the tour will be available on Sunday on site. Park at the Hough School (at the corner of Sappington and Lockwood) and take the shuttle bus to Sappington Spur. Homes will be open to tour between 2 and 5pm.

You may also be interested in attending the "After Party" for "Golden Key Ticket" donors which will include limited edition photograph, slide talk by Andrew Raimist, and party at #3 Sappington Spur.

MISL -- Harris Armstrong | Masonry

2010-04-30T12:51:00.014-05:00

Harris Armstrong | Masonry.
Uploaded by Andrew Raimist.

Andrew Raimist will be presenting a seminar on Thursday 26 May 2010 on modern architect Harris Armstrong's interest in, use of and influence on the practice of masonry construction. The event will be held at the Masonry Institute of St. Louis (MISL).

While know as the earliest, most recognized modernist architect in Saint Louis (practicing from the 1920s through the 1960s), he developed an increasingly sophisticated knowledge of the history and use of masonry construction in the Midwest and throughout America. In the earlier years of his practice, he designed and built structures in a variety of styles and under many different influences.

At the same time he created the International Style design for the Shanley Building, he was creating buildings in a traditional Missouri vernacular manner, a Williamsburg style home, Prairie style homes and buildings created under a wide range of influences. This eclecticism was particularly evident during the 1920s and 1930s.

The talk will present the full range of Armstrong's use of masonry from early traditional designs, unbuilt projects conceiving the modern architecture of the future, radical modernist practice pushing the envelope of technology and practice, as well as his personal trademarks and unique applications of masonry in the context of comprehensively designed and implemented modernist architecture.

The talk will include a critique of Armstrong's use of masonry in non-standard applications with a view toward understanding which methods succeeded and which failed (with regard to long-time weathering, functionality, maintenance, aesthetics and permanence).

Raimist's book Harris Armstrong | Masonry will be available for purchase for the first time at this special event.

Anyone may attend and bring guests, but all must RSVP in advance by calling 314 / 645 5888 or visiting www.MasonryStL.org.

Images on the announcement poster (from top to bottom):

• Magic Chef Building (1947-48) colorized black and white photograph featured on the cover of Architectural Forum

• Cori Residence (1935) historic, archival photograph as published in the American Magazine of Art

• Magic Chef Building (1947-48) corner detail at ground level adjacent to the loading dock at southwest corner (photograph by author)

• Arcularius Residence (1928-29) built in Washington, Missouri in historic, archival photograph

• Meatcutter's Medical Clinic (1954) detail of brick facade with granite base adjacent to the children's playground (photograph by author)

• Industrial Aid for the Blind (1938) detailing for moulded brick on main facade for unrealized project to be built on Forest Park Boulevard

• string line box illustration (at top of page) from public domain figures for online published patents

Harris Armstrong house & garden tour

2010-04-26T16:54:00.006-05:00

Harris Armstrong house & garden tour
Uploaded by Andrew Raimist

You are invited to attend this rare opportunity to tour several of Harris Armstrong's most significant residences.

The house tour is a benefit for the Sheldon Art Galleries. Tickets for the tour will be available Sunday on site. Park at the Hough School (at the corner of Sappington and Lockwood) and take the shuttle bus to Sappington Spur. Homes will be open to tour between 2 and 5pm.

There will also be an "after party" for "Golden Key" ticket holders with several added benefits including specially commissioned photographs, a slide talk by Andrew Raimist, great food at Durb & Ellen Curlee's home (Armstrong's second residence circa 1938) and the company of other interested donors.

Harris Armstrong House Tour -- Sun 2 May 2010

2010-03-31T14:23:00.004-05:00

3 Sappington Spur, detail
Uploaded by Andrew Raimist

project: Armstrong Residence II, 1938.
location: Oakland, Missouri.
condition: somewhat modified.
architect: Harris Armstrong, FAIA.

This detail of the stone and brick masonry facade created by Armstrong illustrates his intentional, considered reuse of remaining masonry from an earlier 19th century stone foundation on the site. The brick and stone wall creates a kind of one-story mask for the combination house and architectural office.

See information below for details on the house tour. Tickets are limited, so make your reservation soon. I will be presenting a special slideshow during the "after party" so consider attending if at all possible.

Funds raised through this event will benefit the Sheldon Art Galleries exhibitions program.

Eames' Portrait of Isamu Noguchi & Shirley Yamaguchi

2010-03-30T20:14:00.002-05:00

A photograph taken by Charles and Ray Eames will be available for auction through Wright20. I've examined an extensive range of photographs and portraits of Isamu Noguchi and have never seen this image published or available online previously.

Isamu and Shirley are shown standing outside the Eames House in Pacific Palisades, California. The house is an amazing work of art, a modernist box of glass and steel informed by a wide range of influences including neoplasticism, Japanese design, and indigenous cultures the world over.

Noguchi and the Eameses seem to have had a fruitful relationship personally and professionally. This photograph (from the Library of Congress) taken by Charles features Isamu Noguchi, Shirley Yamaguchi, Charlie Chaplin, Charles Eames and others at a Japanese tea ceremony held at the Eames house.

The wire base side table depicted in the photograph was designed by Ray and Charles Eames for Herman Miller in 1950. According to the product sheet that came in the box:

Practical in so many milieus, the tables gave the Eameses the perfect place to serve chanoyu, the traditional Japanese tea ceremony, to special guests, such as sculptor Isamu Noguchi and film star Charlie Chaplin.

The portait of Isamu and Shirley standing outside appears to have been taken on another occasion since Noguchi and his wife are dressed more formally in the tea ceremony image.

There have been other images including them together at the Eames home, including some taken by Noguchi himself. For example, a series of negatives in the Charles and Ray Eames Collection of Library of Congress includes series images attributed to Noguchi as photographer. These images are dated 24 July 1951.

This series appears to have been exposed at the same event as the larger one above (including Charles and Isamu) that is attributed to Charles Eames. The first three of this series seems to show the entire group attending the tea ceremony (less Isamu). The fourth and fifth images include Charlie Chaplin and Shirley Yamaguchi. The final image is a close-up of Chaplin clowning around with a fan.

Seeing Abstractly

2010-03-11T12:09:00.002-06:00

Learn to see abstractly by looking for geometrical forms and compelling compositions despite the “subject matter”. A good way to sidestep preconceived images is to consider a subject that’s commonly photographed, a well-known icon.

To learn to “see creatively” we should approach the subject in a more personal yet more detached manner as if you were a child experiencing it for the first time. This manner of “seeing” isn’t natural for many. We “know” what the Statue of Liberty, Washington Monument, and Gateway Arch “look like.” We need to reconsider these subjects “abstractly” as two-dimensional forms without reference to its well-known image.

Look for suggestive forms, shapes, and lines for creatively framing you image. The actual “subject” is secondary. Your task is creating a compelling photograph. Use ambiguity to achieve a meaningful level of abstraction. By abstraction, I don’t mean, “Something no one can possibly identify.” Rather I mean forms suggestive of other things eliciting emotional reactions.

Frame the subject from an unusual viewpoint or limit the image to a fragment of the subject. Work to perceive the two-dimensional forms displayed on your screen as an interesting composition on its own grounds.

My view of the Gateway Arch was taken looking up one leg and then adjusting my view until the arch’s top touched the corner of the frame.

It takes a focused effort to find new ways of perceiving things you “already know.”

A DSLR’s LCD display is helpful. Use the framed forms in the display to test possible compositions. Look for shapes suggestive of other objects with multiple references like an ear, tongue, road, or other identifiable form.

A higher density of references enhances a photograph’s potential richness and power. Try shooting in series.. Become fully engaged visually and physically. Move around adjusting view, position, zoom, etc. Continue exploring alternative viewpoints until you feel perhaps you’ve accomplished a step in the right direction. Evaluate your images later on a monitor rather than trying to prejudge what is good or bad on site.

Note: This blog entry was previously published on the Digital Photography School site with the title "Learn to See Abstractly" as a guest post. I've reposted it here upon request.

Origin of the Meatcutter's Medical Clinic

2010-02-12T11:55:00.007-06:00

Meatcutter's Medical Clinic
Uploaded by Andrew Raimist

project: Meat Cutter's Medical Clinic.
architect: Harris Armstrong.
date: 1957.
location: 4488 Forest Park Boulevard, Saint Louis, Missouri.
condition: good condition, somewhat modified.

In Saint Louis, the International Amalgamated Meatcutters' Union organized Local 88 in January 1897. Eventually this union became one of the most forward thinking such groups in the United States by creating facilities for the health and welfare of their members.

From a website posted by a president for the organization:

Local 88 was the first labor union in the United States to negotiate "Preventative Health Care" for it's members. In 1958 the "Medical Institute of Local 88" opened its' doors, thanks to its' visionary President and leader, Colonel Nicholas Blassie.

This state of the art medical facility (part of the Local 88 Health and Welfare Trust Fund) offered full-service medical, dental, vision and pharmaceutical services to all Local 88 members.

The Health and Welfare Fund received regular contributions from the companies it represented, thus union members received most services free-of-charge. Many other labor unions, primarily the Teamsters, soon copied this model of health care for their members.

Color photographs by Andrew Raimist, October 2006.

Armstrong ~ perforated stacked bond brick

2010-02-12T00:51:00.009-06:00

perforate.
Uploaded by Andrew Raimist.

project: Meat Cutter's Medical Clinic.
architect: Harris Armstrong.
date: 1957.
location: 4488 Forest Park Boulevard, Saint Louis, Missouri.
condition: good condition, somewhat modified.

Harris Armstrong's design for the Meat Cutter's Medical Clinic pushed many boundaries. It was apparently the first medical clinic created specifically for the members of a union. Armstrong also took the building as an opportunity to experiment with many materials combined in unorthodox ways.

This photograph of a detail of the north face of the building (now part of the expanding Medical Center at Washington University in Saint Louis) faced onto a playground designed as an integral part of the center, so members children could play in a safe environment while their parents sought medical care.

The combination of the stacked bond red brick wall with the rusticated granite seems almost perverse in it's combination of two load-bearing materials in direct contact where the granite is firmly rooted in the ground while the stacked bricks have a somewhat precarious aura.

The slits and slots cut into the brick plane are sometimes blind, but some of them allow for views from the interior out to the playground. Perhaps the idea was to keep the children on their best behavior in a situation where they couldn't be sure whether or not their parents were spying them through a narrow slot.

The sills of the vertical slots feature slate set into the brick coursing. The cuts seem random, but a certain logic suggests itself. The series of slots at the bottom right suggest a bar graph or scientific reading. The four elements are cut into the brick in a way so that two of them align with the stacked bond and the other two cut into a pair of stacks. Either way, the sense of oddly floating bricks over the openings create a curious condition.

The other types of cuts into the wall represented along the base (where the children would be playing) offer a full void, a half void and another vertical slot centered on a vertical joint. The playful, picturesque organization of the cuts in the wall are riffs on these basic themes.

These cuts undermine the sense of solidity normally associated with brick masonry construction. If studied in any detail, they become a source of wonder and curiosity. Perhaps that was sufficient justification for Armstrong: providing a light-hearted, playful dance of voids for the playground.

The other aspect that likely motivated Armstrong was the sheer technical challenge of constructing, detailing and crafting such a wall. One can only imagine the conversations between the masons and the architect in resolving particular details.

Photographs by Andrew Raimist, October 2006.

Armstrong Residence II will be coming on the market

2010-02-09T13:06:00.004-06:00

Parents Magazine article.
Uploaded by Andrew Raimist.

project: Armstrong Residence II, 1938
location: Oakland, Missouri
condition: excellent, somewhat modified
architect: Harris Armstrong, FAIA

This wonderful, truly one-of-a-kind home will be coming up for sale later this spring. I first heard this news through Ted Wight's blog St. Louis Style. He's posted several exterior and interior photographs of the house recently, one of which you can find here.

I will post more images, descriptions and discussion of this house that will help situate it in the contemporary architectural scene of the late 1930s. In addition, I'll relate the story of Frank Lloyd Wright's visit to the house to visit the Armstrongs as told to me by Louise Armstrong (Mrs. Harris Armstrong).

There are some elements of the International Style (white stucco and corner windows), but I would not generally think of it in those terms. The hipped roof and ornamental treatment of the copper fascias clearly suggest a strong Wrightian influence.

The house has a fundamentally eclectic, almost collage-like blending of styles, materials, forms and references. It has taken me many personal visits over many years and quite a bit of time, effort and thought to gain an appreciation for the complex and sometimes confounding ideas embodied in its design and construction.

This image above is taken from a Parents Magazine article of the early 1940s. It was the first in a series of articles developed in cooperation with Architectural Forum Magazine in its "campaign to stimulate home building and remodeling".

Magazine article courtesy of the Harris Armstrong Archives, Special Collections, Washington University in Saint Louis.

Matta-Clark :: The City as Studio

2010-01-21T12:28:00.000-06:00

Panel Discussion :: The City as Studio

Thursday 28 January 28 2010
7:30pm (doors open at 7pm)

Art-based interventions in the community take many forms and can have a powerful impact. How alternative art spaces and creative interventions can empower both individuals and communities will be a focus of the discussion . The panel will highlight some of the initiatives that are taking place in St. Louis and other similar cities.

Panelists will include:

• Christy Gray, Executive Director, Whitaker Foundation, St. Louis, MO

• Theaster Gates, 2010 Whitney Biennial artist, Chicago, IL

• Juan William Chávez, Artist & Director, Boots Contemporary Arts Space, St. Louis, MO

• Mary Jane Jacob, Executive Director of Exhibitions, Sullivan Galleries, School of the Art Institute of Chicago

• Luis Croquer, Director, Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit

Photograph: Gordon Matta-Clark, Bingo, 1974. The Museum of Modern Art, New York; Nina and Gordon Bunshaft Bequest Fund, Nelson A. Rockefeller Bequest Fund, and the Enid A. Haupt Fund. Installation photography © Francois Robert. Gordon Matta-Clark works © Estate of Gordon Matta-Clark / Artist Rights Society (ARS), New York.

Deffaa Residence -- stair

2010-01-20T10:58:00.014-06:00

Deffaa Residence -- stair
Uploaded by Andrew Raimist.

Armstrong's design for this compact cubic white-painted brick house features a surprising vertical slice of glass blocks on the west face of the house. This wall is largely hidden from view on the exterior since it abuts a neighboring house rather closely. The other three exterior walls of the house are largely public and visible since the house is located at the end of a block on a corner, raised up from street level.

The consequences of creating this almost arbitrary cut into the brick masonry shell could hardly be more surprising. From the outside, the uninterrupted column of glass blocks spanning the first and second floors suggests the presence of a relatively large space with a high ceiling.

In truth, the house contains no such high, open airy space. Rather the slot admits light to the narrow stair beginning at the far side of the living room and climbing steeply toward the center of the house where it is surrounded by sleeping quarters, bathroom and an outdoor terrace.

The house's interior isn't particularly flooded with natural light although a grouping of windows at the southwest corner of the living room does admit a healthy dose of light.

Nevertheless, the visceral shock of the vertical slash at the stairs is all the more gratifying for being unexpected. The light admitted in this corner penetrates to the core of the house, lighting and orienting the staircase as a primary organizational feature within the home.

Armstrong's desire to keep the glass blocks clear of any structural or visual interruption from the interior results in some unusual cantilevering of a second floor bedrooom, held up over the point of maximum tension where the stair turns ninety degrees and a support post would normally be encountered.

In fact, the original construction drawings for the house (in plan, interior elevations and stair details) Armstrong indicates the use of a round wood post at this location. Perhaps he realized once the framing was underway that the post was not structurally necessary given the rigid framing of the floor diaphram (including 14" and 7" high steel 'I' beams to maintain the open column free areas of the living and dining rooms.

Instead, a curious sense of open lightness appears where it would be least expected. Far from being a generic white International Style cube, the house creates a spatial and structural puzzle of interlocking rooms and elements.

The use of a simple bent bar of solid aluminum provides just the right contrast, complementing the unusual cut out of the wall and overhanging unsupported ceiling.

Photographs by Andrew Raimist. Architectural drawings courtesy of the Harris Armstrong Archives, Special Collections, Washington University in Saint Louis.

Ethical Society -- seating

2010-01-19T22:25:00.007-06:00

Ethical Society -- seating.
Uploaded by Andrew Raimist.

Armstrong worked with the congregation's building committee to select the fabric for the auditorium seating for the Ethical Society. How the selections were made and how the colors were distributed throughout the very controlled, axial, symmetrical space is rather marvelous.

On the one hand, it is a great surprise to the visitor who sees only the painted metal backs of the theater style seating upon entering the space. Only after searching for a place to sit or perhaps upon leaving does a visitor realize the playful use of color and texture.

A few years ago when the copper roofing was replaced, a leak damaged the seats and wood finishes. True to their dedication to the building, the membership reinstalled the colorful fabrics according to their original distribution.

Photograph: Andrew Raimist.

(re)Presenting G. Matta-Clark

2010-01-10T16:48:00.004-06:00

The current exhibition of Matta-Clark’s work at The Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts has been very thoughtfully and carefully designed and presented. A critical part of this effort involves the printed and on-line graphics. Subtly, yet powerfully, the typographic composition and brochure layout reflect many of the concerns and methods employed by the artist.

The freely distributed brochure immediately presents the recipient with hints of the kinds of procedures and experiences that are central to Matta-Clark ’s practice. The splitting of the all cap text using a modern, simple non-serif font puts his work into a formal context immediately, that is, disruption and alteration of standardized modernist design practice.

The inversion of 'Urban Alchemy' from 'Gordon Matta-Clark' creates a sense of uncertainty and imbalance. There is already a degree of unclear sense of proper orientation to the earth and gravity. The slippage of the dark bar of the 'H' in alchemy into the vertical of the 'K' in Matta-Clark suggests the kinds of geometrical slicing and interchange you are about to experience.

The inversion of 'Upper' from 'Level' adds a new dimension to the graphic play placing the two sections of upper case text inline, but inverted from one another.

If you look carefully, you’ll notice that the cut letters are not consistently altered throughout the headline and caption text. Sometimes E’s are sliced and other times remain whole. Taking these modifications down to the level of the bold titles for the captions reveals the extent of the thought and care of this method. It’s not simply deployed willy-nilly. Rather, the geometry of the project often informs the typographic slices.

Good examples of this correspondence between almost unnoticeable alterations to the captions are:

• Day’s End: the slice through the letter ‘y’ relates to the diagonal cutting Matta-Clark inflicted on the end wall.

• Pier In/Out: an almost unnoticeable cut in the capital letter ‘P’ reflects the small section taken from a much larger structure. The caption for the image depicting the building from which the section was extracted remains uncut.

• Conical Intersect: The slice through the capital letter ‘C’ suggests the creation of a hole through the center of a curved surface which reflects the geometrical relationship of the building fabric and the conical void cut into it.

Appropriately, the “Other Works on View” follow the graphic color scheme and fonts used in the rest of the Matta-Clark brochure, but without inversions or cuts in the typography.

The folded structure of the brochure in half creating a stiff handout that opens with a central split. As the reader further opens the piece, the overall structure becomes more flexible and malleable. To use it while perusing the gallery the visitor is subconsciously folding and refolding the panels to offer the proper panel in relation to the architectural space in which they’re located.

The idea of the parallel presentation of comments from the artist / anarchitect Matta-Clark with a quotation from the building’s architect Tadao Ando reveals a fascination with creating particular sorts of openings in buildings, but the concept doesn’t appear to inform the gallery presentation in an clear and deliberate manner that is immediately obvious to the exhibition viewer (or the brochure reader).

An exchange on maps and Matta-Clark (made public)

2009-12-28T15:19:00.050-06:00

Sanborn Map from Urban Review STL blog

Following is a brief exchange of comments between Andrew Raimist (author) and Steve Patterson (Urban Review STL blogger) regarding the beauty and efficacy of Sanborn maps.

Andrew Raimist
I love these old Sanborn maps.

Steve Patterson

I have to watch myself when I go into the site with the maps because it may turn into a 3-4 hour trip.

yes, i know exactly what you mean.

have you seen the Fake Estatescreated by Gordon Matta-Clark he researched such boundary maps to find left-over slivers of unclaimed property and purchased and documented them.

SP
Is that part of the current exhibit [at The Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts]?

yes, absolutely. he bought spaces that are 8" x 100' and photographed them, as well as inaccessible spaces trapped between lots.

I've thought about doing that before. I was thinking more the rant against our city govt than an artistic statement.

in my opinion, his work was grounded in social and political criticism presented in the context of art. not so much as objects of aesthetic appreciation as critical tools for unveiling the stupidity and blindness of our institutions.

Odd Lots: Revisiting Gordon Matta-Clark's Fake Estates

Mid-Century Modern Design . . . for Kids !

2009-12-21T23:38:00.013-06:00

Kid Made Modern
By Todd Oldham
Published by Ammo.
Length: 192 pp.
ISBN: 978-1-934429-36-5.
Intended audience: Age 8 & up (& up!).

This activity / craft / art book is inspired by the great Mid-Century modern designers — including Isamu Noguchi, Alexander Girard, and Charles & Ray Eames — as the basis for dozens of creative activity. Tutorials introduce particular techniques including full-color photos of kids engaged in these creative activities.

Designer Todd Oldham shares his love of mid-century design ideas and transforms them into creative, colorful, and thought-provoking projects for kids. Oldham was originally a couture fashion designer with boutiques in New York and a commentator on MTV's House of Style. Oldham has designed dorm room furnishings for Target. He's presently developing a television program based on his earlier book Handmade Modern.

This book features the use of inexpensive, recycled, and easily accessible materials for the projects. Easy step-by-step instructions illustrated with photographs makes this a great source for creative inspiration during the cold, blustery days of winter. The book is ostensibly a craft project book encouraging children to produce their own handmade art, it simultaneously introduces them to the greats of modern American design of the last century.

If you click on this sentence, you can download the pattern pages for creating a Noguchi-esque paper cut-out sculpture.

Kid Made Modern includes projects inspired by Alexander Calder, Jack Lenor Larsen, George Nelson, Paul Rand, and Mary & Russel Wright (in addition to the iconic designers noted above).

This inspirational do-it-yourself book could be a great gift for aspiring young artists.

re: Arch Grounds Design Competition

2009-12-21T12:27:00.006-06:00

Following is a letter to the editor published in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch from architect Laurent Jean Torno, Jr. of Laurent Jean Torno, Jr. & Associates.

Open vigorous — not limited — competition for Arch grounds

That St. Louis and the National Park Service would contemplate a semi-closed competition based on a review of resumes and brain-picking is astonishing in its timidity and lack of confidence. This is an opportunity to unleash a vigorous and intense competition of ideas, open to all comers.

Eero Saarinen probably could not have submitted a compelling resume at the onset of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial competition, though his father, Ellel, might have. And Eliel Saarinen almost certainly would not have made a preselected list of finalists based on his resume for the Chicago Tribune Tower competition. His extraordinary second-place finish launched his very distinguished career in America.

Harris Armstrong was a fine St. Louis architect, but his resume would not have earned him a chance at the Jefferson Memorial competition. He was one of five prize winners, none renowned firms or individuals. Many major firms failed with their attempts.

Maya Lin won the Vietnam Veterans Memorial competition as an architectural student. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the Arch are two of the most elegant and profound monuments of the 20th century. Both resulted from competitions open to all, as was the Tribune Tower competition. The Flight 93 National Memorial and the Oklahoma City National Memorial pale in comparison.

No individual or elite group can divine which individual or firm embodies the most imaginative and creative talent.

Walter Metcalfe Jr., former Sen. John Danforth and other leaders of the effort to make the Gateway Arch grounds more exciting and accessible deserve our thanks for that vision and very considerable effort. It is time to raise that vision to another level: Prepare a succinct competition program, appoint a distinguished jury, sweep away the middle-men and unleash an intense and open competition of ideas. St. Louis and the National Park Service deserve nothing less.

Laurent Jean Torno Jr., University City

Laurent Jean Torno Jr. & Associates

I concur with many of Mr. Torno's comments. A two stage competition with open submissions from a relatively widely defined group would be a much more inclusive an desirable beginning point. For example, the pool of qualified applicants could include all registered architects, landscape architects and urban design professionals. Submissions could be limited to designers in the United States or could be extended internationally. Prizes could be offered for the best designs with the guarantee only that they be included in the final round of submissions along with other preselected candidates.

An exhibition, conference and publication of the results of such a competition could have many benefits to the design community in general, Saint Louis in particular, and the Arch Grounds most importantly!

Matta-Clark's Bingo :: gallery talk

2009-12-17T01:02:00.008-06:00

Gordon Matta-Clark is one of my heroes. He had the balls, brains and brawn to physically attack buildings and to forever alter our perception of building demolition, its inherently stimulating, fascinating nature, as well as the social, political and economic implications of the progressive aspects of modernist urban planning (aka, urban renewal).

When I heard this exhibition was coming to the Pulitzer Foundation I was truly excited. I'd read about his project Splitting from the early 1970s many years ago while an architecture student at Washington University in Saint Louis. His simple act of slicing a house in half was alternately confounding and exciting.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect at the opening, but was thoroughly impressed and energized by the work on display. It was a great event where I met several friends and made some new ones. The Pulitzer's web communications specialist Amy Broadway had a small Flip mino on a tripod that she used to record visitor's thoughts and reactions to the show. She noticed me chattering away up on the balcony overlooking the main gallery and stopped by to capture my architecture-related ramblings.

In the past, I've avoided being "on camera", preferring to be the one looking through the lens capturing images. This brief encounter with speaking into a surprisingly diminutive black plastic device offered me a much more positive, exhilarating experience especially when compared to the massive black and white television studio cameras I'd used way back in high school when exploring my AV interests.

When the Pulitzer asked if I'd be interested to speak about one of the pieces on display as part of their "Frame of Reference" series I was simultaneously flattered and excited. I immediately knew the piece I was most fascinated by was Bingo represented by three wall sections in the main gallery along with a series of photographs documenting the sequence of Matta-Clark's deliberate carving into the side wall of that red sided house. His decision to leave the central square remaining, hanging in space, after having removed the eight other wall sections surrounding was wonderfully playful and insightfully critical.

I interpreted the nine-square grid Matta-Clark superimposed on the house in light of the architectural theory/propaganda he learned while a student at Cornell University's School of Architecture during the 1960s. One of the chief theorists at the school was Colin Rowe, a writer and critic famous for his essay "The Mathematics of the Ideal Villa" (1947) which related the abstract grids behind Palladio's Classical villas from the time of the Renaissance and Le Corbusier's 20th century modernist villas.

SLAM expansion is back on !

2009-12-16T01:21:00.005-06:00

The David Chipperfield designed addition to the Saint Louis Art Museum in Forest Park is now back on track. The 200,000 sf black modernist addition will have its ground-breaking ceremony on Tuesday 19 January 2010. John D. Weil, president of the Museum's Board of Commissioners commented via press release, "This expansion is our generation's contribution to the future of this great St. Louis institution."

This expansion will increase the museum's gallery and public spaces by 30% and more than double the parking available. A below ground 300 car parking garage will be located below the addition which will be situated on a landscaped plinth. The building will feature a fully accessible entrance on its north facade overlooking Fine Arts Drive.

The building cost has been established at $130.5 million. In addition, a $30.5 million endowment will be provided resulting in a total cost of $161 million dollars. The museum already has $145 million commitments and will raise the addition funds necessary for the expansion through private philanthropy, foundation support and proceeds from the sale of tax exempt bonds. While funding from taxes are critical to the museum's operation, no tax monies will be used for the museum expansion.

The building's design follows an open plan, with natural daylighting throughout. Wings extend out in all directions while the connection points to the existing Cass Gilbert designed structure have been sensitively and deliberately designed to minimize the potential for incompatible, inappropriate disjunctions. This course is wise, honest and direct. The earlier addition to the museum designed by Venturi Rauch Scott Brown seemed to have been thoughtfully and deliberately respectful to the original Beaux-Arts structure, however, the lack of a direct visual link above ground created some awkward spatial conditions where the circulation intersects adjacent to the Museum Shop and Cafe. In addition, their decision to remain detached visually and physically from the original building resulted in a truly ungainly, dysfunctional sculpture court surrounding an array of acrylic skylights.

The new Chipperfield design rightly contrasts sharply with the existing limestone and brick exterior of the original 1904 museum. It features full height black polished concrete panels that include Missouri stone aggregate as well as full height glazing. The honesty and directness of approach bodes well for the addition in contrast to the superficially decorated, modulated brick modernist office block the earlier addition ultimately became.

Watching the construction of this new museum addition will be a special opportunity for architecture, construction and art enthusiasts. The project promises to be a jewel in Forest Park's landscape with its modest scale visually and its injection of new vitality to the areas south and east of Gilbert's historic structure.

Leonie, the film

2009-12-13T17:44:00.010-06:00

A forthcoming film of great interest to modern design enthusiasts this season is Leonie. A portrait of Léonie Gilmour (played by Emily Mortimer) and her life in Japan raising her children Isamu and Ailes during the early decades of the century. The film, presently in post-production, is directed and produced Matsui Hisako (松井久子).

Filming took place from April through mid July, 2009. Shooting locations include in Kagawa, Japan, Santa Ynez, California, and New Orleans, Louisiana. It is expected to be released in 2010.

Isamu's father Yonejiro Noguchi (野口米次郎 Noguchi Yonejirō) was a distant, detached figure during this period of their lives in Japan despite Leonie's critical support of his published writing when he was struggling to make a name for himself in the United States. At that time, around the turn of the century, she was his editor, translator, lover and confidant. Her support was essential in his efforts to present his writing to an English speaking audience.

One of Yone Noguchi's early successes was The American Diary of a Japanese Girl published in 1902 after being serialized in monthly installments during 1901. It was purportedly the diary of a "Miss Morning Glory", but presented an outspoken, strong 18-year old woman visiting the US for the first time. The book presented her as the antithesis of the image presented of Japanese woman popularized in stories such as Madame Butterfly.

Yone indicated his intention to marry Leonie before the end of 1903 on a plain sheet of paper, writing, "I declare that Leonie Gilmour is my lawful wife. (signed) Yone Noguchi." Many years later wrote of his desire for a "young American Woman" in a poem:

With a young American woman,
I took a walk in New York's Central Park.
(It's now some twenty long years ago.)
"Let's walk in the dark, dark place, " I told her,
And we stepped in the shadow of the trees where no one passed by.
The chill of the winter night pierced by body,
I could not even hear the sound of the wind.
(Oh, how ashamed I am of my irresponsible curiosity.)
I told her of my love for her,
And I even promised her many things.
I squeezed her hand,
And touched it to my mouth.

Yone subsequently proposed to (and was rejected by) another American woman writer before leaving the US for Japan in 1904 when war erupted between Russia and Japan despite Leonie's recent pregnancy. He left the US in August 1904. Their son Isamu was born on 17 November 1904.

Leonie and Isamu moved to Japan in March 1907 following letters from Yone to Leonie requesting that they join him in Japan. Unknown to Leonie, Yone had already married a Japanese woman with whom he had set up a household. Thus begins the strange, conflicted story of Isamu Noguchi's life.

Hang with Robert Irwin tonight !

2009-12-09T14:15:00.020-06:00

Tonight White Flag Projects is hosting artist Robert Irwin with complimentary beer, wine and cocktails from 5 to 7pm! They are located at 7568 Manchester in Saint Louis, MO 63110.

If you're not familiar with Robert Irwin's work, consider . . .

• he began as a member of the New York School of Abstract Expressionism

• worked with John Cage, Robert Rauschenberg and Merce Cunningham at Black Mountain College

• initiated key concepts of installation and site-specific environmental works

• was subject of cult classic Seeing Is Forgetting the Name of the Thing One Sees

• designed Getty Center's Central Garden in stark contrast to Richard Meier's neo-modernist museum

Matta-Clark talks | Sat 5 Dec

2009-12-02T14:57:00.023-06:00

On the first Saturday of each month, the Pulitzer Foundation hosts four Frame-of-Reference in-gallery discussions. The current exhibition, Urban Alchemy / Gordon Matta-Clark, is the subject of the upcoming discussions this Saturday.

Gordon Matta-Clark, Pier In/Out.

This Saturday 5 December 2009 will feature four short discussions of Matta-Clark's work on display each beginning on the hour. This week's speakers include:

Francesca Herndon-Consagra, [12pm] Senior Editor, The Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts will discuss Splitting: Four Corners.

Tom Tobias, [1pm] Art Teacher, Metro High School will discuss Garbage Wall.

Andrew Raimist, AIA, [2pm] Architect will discuss Bingo.

Joanne Kluba, [3pm] Pulitzer docent and book artist, will discuss Pier In/Out.

Chris Krehmeyer, [4pm] President/CEO of Beyond Housing will also speak.

The first installment of these talks (on Sat 7 Nov) included:

Emily Augsburger, Practicum Student for the partnership between the Pulitzer and George Warren Brown School of Social Work, Washington University in St. Louis, discussed Bingo.

B.J. Vogt, Artist/Adjunct Lecturer: Core Program, Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Art, Washington University in St. Louis discussed two sets of Matta-Clark works: Bronx Floors and Pier In/Out.

Serra Bording-Jones, Docent, The Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts, discussed Conical Intersect which is represented in the exhibition with a film documenting the project by Matta-Clark.

Peter MacKeith, Associate Dean, Associate Professor of Architecture, Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts,Washington University in St. Louis, discussed Splitting: Four Corners. The Pulitzer's installation of this work is among the most powerful spatially, conceptually and experientially.

Frederick Keisler Lamps

2009-11-22T01:26:00.009-06:00

As part of the interior furnishings for Harris Armstrong's Shanley Building, Armstrong custom designed a chair of wood with woven straps reminiscent of Shaker furniture. As part of the carefully and deliberately staged photographs for publication, Armstrong contrasted the warmth of his chair with the sleek, cool chrome of Frederick Keisler floor lamps.

Two of the original Keisler lamps from the Shanley Building's waiting room are now being auctioned by Wright. The auction will begin at 10am PT on 8 December 2009.

Following are details from the item's listing:

• designer: Frederick Kiesler floor lamp (Lot 219)

• manufacturer: Rembrandt Lighting Company, USA, 1930/1935

• materials: chrome-plated and enameled brass, chrome-plated steel

• dimensions: 12 w x 35.5 d x 49 h inches

• description: This lamp was part of the original furnishings of the 1935 Shanley Building in St. Louis, an International Style building awarded a silver medal at the 1937 Paris Exposition of Art and Technology and listed on the National Historic Register.

• literature: Architectural Review, Vol. LXXXI, No. 484, March 1937, ppg. 137, 141 illustrate this lamp in situ Frederick Kiesler, Phillips, pg. 23 illustrates related form

• provenance: Shanley Building, St. Louis | Dr. Leo M. Shanley, St. Louis | Thence by descent | Acquired from the Estate of Dr. Leo M. Shanley by the present owner

This auction addresses "Important Design". It is being handled by:

Wright
1440 West Hubbard Street
Chicago, Illinois 60642

This auction features many truly wonderful examples of design. Check it out !

Matta de Matta

2009-11-14T12:57:00.027-06:00

Following his graduation from Cornell University (Ithaca, New York) with a Bachelor of Architecture degree, Gordon Matta-Clark began to tentatively explore human interaction with space and structure. His work in this period seems to derive from a desire to comment upon architecture, the human environment and its material basis. Some comments from his unprinted manifesto for an exhibition catalog of his largely performance-based works at Vassar College in upstate New York (such as Tree Dance, 1971) outline his initial motivating thoughts and ideas.

The first full paragraph of this statement of purpose deriving from his performance based works of the period between his graduation from Cornell University's College of Art and Architecture and his return to New York City in the early 70s reads:

Completion through removal. Abstraction of surfaces. Not-building, not-to-rebuild, not-built space. Creating spatial complexity, reading new openings against old surfaces. Light admitted into space or beyond beyond surfaces that are cut. Breaking and entering. Approaching structural collapse, separating the parts at the point of collapse. [emphasis added]

Matta-Clark's architectural sensibility is also evident in the visual language contained in the schematic diagrams directing the elements, actors, forms and movement for his presentation of Tree Dance. Portions of the diagram appear to use section and elevation details depicted in series, indicating change over time.

The sense of gravity and danger is a key aspect of such a performance. Extrapolating that sense of tension and anxiety to an architectural situation is in part how Matta-Clark was able to bridge from his origins relating to Land Art (via Smithson, Oppenheim, etc.) by initially instigating performance and action in the context of a natural structure, in this case a mature deciduous tree.
Although there may not be a direct causal relation between Matta-Clark's production with that of his father, Surrealist painter Roberto Matta, it can be instructive to view their art in relation to each other. For example Invasion of the Night (1941) embodies certain forms and associations with the natural landscape, floating bodies, and organically suggestive abstract objects.

These descriptive aspects of Matta's painting could also be attributed to this early work of his son Gordon Matta-Clark where he hangs suspended in space, wrapped in netting like a cocoon. The attribution of human qualities to this amorphous form contains the same sense of hesitancy and anxiety involved in interpreting many of Matta's forms in relation to the human figure.

Unfortunately, the father Matta did not see the value of his son's artist production, once taking an occasion to spit upon one in public.