Following on the success of the Docomomo DC Tour Day, Rediscovering Brutalism, founder Deane Madsen has been asked to deliver a lecture on Brutalism for the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC). Teaming up with Docomomo DC president Tom Jester, Madsen will have the opportunity to educate NCPC staff on the importance of Brutalism, highlighting successful examples of renovations and restorations while also pointing to buildings that have been lost, such as the Third Church of Christ, Scientist, and the API Building in Reston, Va.
Hofstra University to Celebrate Axinn Library’s Semicentennial with Brutalism Symposium
Hofstra University’s Axinn Library, designed by Warner, Burns, Toan & Lunde, turns 50 this year. Hofstra will commemorate the occasion with a symposium on Brutalism, to be held November 1, 2017.
“The Axinn Library building, along with its revolutionary partner, the Unispan, unites the campus as a hub for the academic experience,” said Sarah McCleskey, Head of Resource and Collection Services, in a release from Hofstra University. “The towers of North Campus are connected physically and symbolically with the academic buildings of South Campus. The library stands in the center, an imposing concrete structure designed to house information and foster learning.”
The symposium will be free and open to the public, but advance registration is required. The full schedule for the symposium is below:
9:45-10 a.m. Welcome and introductions with Neil H. Donahue, Ph.D., vice provost for undergraduate academic affairs; and Howard Graves, director of library and information services.
10-10:15 a.m. Historical background on The Axinn Library, led by Geri Solomon, assistant dean for special collections.
10:15-10:45 a.m. A look back with Professor Herb Deutsch, who will reminisce on time when the library was being built.
11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Keynote address by London-based art director and graphic designer, Peter Chadwick, who will also serve as scholar-in-residence throughout the day and teach a Master Class in the music business program. Chadwick worked at Creation Records, where he designed for chart-topping bands including Primal Scream and Spiritualized. After setting up his own studio in 1996, he masterminded campaigns for major artists including Groove Armada, Fatboy Slim, Cream and Hed Kandi. Chadwick runs the popular This Brutal House twitter account and is a champion of Brutalist architecture. His recent book This Brutal World (Phaidon, 2016) has been described as “a beautifully curated visual manifesto” for Brutalism.
1:30-2:30 p.m. Yankee Brutalism with Architectural Historian Brian Sirman, whose scholarship centers on the intersection of twentieth-century architecture and politics.
2:45-4:15 p.m. Panel with Alexandra Lange, architecture critic for Curbed; Peter Bentel, a partner in the studio of Bentel & Bentel, Architects/Planners AIA and a licensed architect; and Mark Pasnik, a founding principal of over,under, an internationally-recognized architecture and design practice. This panel will be moderated by Daniel Rubey, professor of library services at Hofstra.
Hirshhorn x IGDC x BrutalistDC for #WorldArchitectureDay Oct. 2
The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden is once again pulling out all the stops to host a full day of Brutalist programming (and doughnuts!) on World Architecture Day, which falls this year on October 2. Following on the success of last year’s collaboration with WalkWithLocals, BrutalistDC has been invited back for another evening walking tour of the Hirshhorn grounds, starting at 6.15pm.
Here’s the Hirshhorn’s full schedule of #WorldArchitectureDay events:
For kids
10 a.m.: For a special edition of STORYTIME, the museum’s youngest visitors are invited to explore architecture through a read-aloud of Iggy Peck Architect by Andrea Beaty and a hands-on building activity.
For all ages
12:30 p.m.: Architecture specialist Amanda Hurley talks Brutalism and color, expanding on her Washington Post Magazine article arguing in favor of preserving brutalist architecture in Washington.
1–1:10 p.m.: Visitors can witness the motorized magic of “The Project for the Preservation of Natural Resources” as the miniature model—complete with working windmills and running water—comes to life in the exhibition “Ilya and Emilia Kabakov: The Utopian Projects.”
2 p.m.: A Gallery Guide-led tour will explore architecture-inspired art on view, including the fantastical world of Ilya and Emilia Kabakov’s models in “The Utopian Projects.”
4 p.m.: Kelsey Keith, editor-in-chief of Curbed, debates the good, bad, beautiful and ugly of Brutalism, and the Hirshhorn’s groundbreaking design in architecture history.
6:15 p.m.: Deane Madsen (@deane_madsen), former design editor of Architect magazine, will lead an IGDC (@igdc) brutalist Instameet tour #atHirshhorn. Founder of the Instagram account @brutalistdc, Madsen will explore the exterior and lush garden at sunset.
From the Hirshhorn:
Known best for the art displayed within its walls, the Hirshhorn will devote the day to spotlighting its sculptural Gordon Bunshaft-designed building, which opened to the public in 1974. Standing out among the classical buildings of the National Mall, the Hirshhorn—affectionately nicknamed the “Brutalist donut”—is one of the most popular examples of the Brutalist architectural style, which erupted from the 1950s through the 1970s.
For the second year in a row, visitors of all ages can drop by the museum to enjoy complimentary donuts, while supplies last, and partake in a wide-ranging schedule of architecture-themed activities led by Washington-based experts. Architecture, photography and art enthusiasts alike will be drawn in by local Instagram community IGDC to join in appreciating the monumental stature of this much-debated architectural style.
More information is available via The Hirshhorn.
BrutalistDC Lecture at GWU Museum, Oct. 2
Join BrutalistDC founder Deane Madsen for a public lecture at the George Washington University Museum on Monday, Oct. 2 at noon. As part of the Mondays at the Museum series, this lecture will discuss the rise of Brutalist architecture in Washington, D.C. and its many examples of the architectural style. Whether you like or loathe it (or don’t know what it is), you have likely seen it around the city.
WHEN: Monday, Oct. 2, 12pm-1pm
WHERE: The George Washington University Museum,
701 21st Street, NW, Washington, DC 20052
More information is available via the GWU Museum.