July 2014

Three Michigan Architects: Part 3—George Brigham (new addition, Free Press Review)

Three Michigan Architects: Part 3—George Brigham

Also, see August 21 review of the show by Michael Hodges, Detroit Free Press.

Wayne Hazen residence

July 19–October 12, 2014

Three Michigan Architects: Part 3—George Brigham is the last in a series of three consecutive exhibitions. Part 1 of the series presented the work of David Osler (December 21, 2013–March 30, 2014) and Part 2, the work of Robert Metcalf (April 5–July 13, 2014). The series will culminate on October 5, 2014 with a symposium that will explore the importance of this circle of Ann Arbor-based architects, situating their regional body of domestic work into the larger context of modern architecture in the U.S. that developed on the East Coast and West Coast from the 1930s–1980s. Symposium participants include UMMA Director Joseph Rosa, Head of the University Archives Program at the Bentley Historical Library Nancy Bartlett, Bentley Associate Archivist and Head of Digital Curation Services Nancy Deromedi, and Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning faculty Claire Zimmerman, Greg Saldaña, Craig Borum, and Robert Beckley.

This exhibition is part of the U-M Collections Collaborations series, which showcases the renowned and diverse collections of the University of Michigan. This series inaugurates UMMA’s collaboration with the Bentley Historical Library, and is generously supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Lead support for Three Michigan Architects.

Image source: George B. Brigham, Architect, Hazen Residence exterior, Ann Arbor, MI, 1949, Courtesy of the U-M Bentley Historical Library

David Osler's Former Architectural Studio Tour 8/10/14-parking update!

Registration for the David Osler architectural studio tour is now open.

Description
Sunday, August 10, 2 pm – 4 pm
This event has limited space availability. Cost: $10/person. Registration is required.

Osler’s architectural studio was built in 1902 by the Washtenaw Light and Power (predecessor of Detroit Edison) as a place to change voltage from high to low, it had been empty since 1949. Windows were missing. The slate on the roof was damaged from the years of being jiggled by all the trains going by. Conduit insulators were sticking out just below the roof. The inside was a total mess. In addition, the neighborhood, then filled with ramshackle houses, was considered a bad part of town. Osler admits “there were not many who would want it,” but he could see the possibilities.
“It was like the building was shaking hands with me,” says David Osler, describing turning a deserted electric power substation into a modern office. He made the dilapidated shell into a useable space and then put on an addition, staying within the perimeters allowed by the structure and lot. The tour will show how a historical building can successfully be repurposed. The current owners of the building, Dr. Kristine Freeark and Dr. Robert Zucker, will be in attendance to answer questions about the most recent reuse of the building.

Light refreshments will be served.

a2modern is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to the awareness of and appreciation for mid-century architecture and design, celebrating the accomplishments of the architects, designers, builders, and homeowners in Ann Arbor. UMMA is pleased to partner with a2modern to provide audiences the opportunity to experience Ann Arbor’s modernist architecture in conjunction with the exhibition Three Michigan Architects: Part 3—George Brigham on view July 19 –October 12, 2014.

The exhibition Three Michigan Architects: Part 3—George Brigham is the final in a series of architectural exhibitions that also featured Michigan Architects David Osler (Part 1) and Robert Metcalf (Part 2). It is part of the U-M Collections Collaborations series, co-organized by and presented at UMMA and designed to showcase the renowned and diverse collections at the University of Michigan.

REGISTER HERE
Space is limited
$10/person

LOGISTICS

The office is located at 916 Fuller Street. There is not enough room to park at this location so, you will need to park nearby and walk a bit to get to the office. Some suggestions:

To the east (toward Glen):

On Glen Court there are spaces on the street with no time limit.
At the end of Glen Ct. is a U of M parking structure (open on weekends and weekdays after 6 p.m.). No UM permit is required on Sundays. [This is kitty corner to Angelo’s and has plenty of parking]

In the other direction there’s parking on State St. and on High St.

UPDATE: Geoff Perkins owner of Perkins Construction and former Osler employee has offered his parking lot and side of building for attendees. Perkins Construction is located at 310 Depot Street right next to Casey’s. You can park in the back or on the side of the building.

a2modern upcoming summer activities

a2modern has several activities planned for the rest of the summer. See registration links below and descriptions by date.

JULY
Saturday 7/19 Mies van der Rohe’s Lafayette Park, Detroit Tour
Thursday 7/31 Walking Tour I

AUGUST
Thursday 8/7 Walking Tour II
Sunday 8/10 David Osler’s Former Architectural Studio Tour

JULY
7/19/14
Modern Living Series: Tour of Detroit’s Mies van der Rohe Historic District

Time: 1:00-3:00 p.m.
Cost: $30/person
This event has limited space availability. Registration is required. See www.a2modern.org for registration details, follow the link below REGISTER HERE or email modernists@a2modern.org.

Detroit’s Mies van der Rohe Historic District in Lafayette Park includes 186 cooperatively owned Town House and Court House units, three apartment towers, an elementary school, a retail district, and a 13-acre park known as the Lafayette Plaisance.

The neighborhood has been hailed as “one of the most spatially successful and socially significant statements in urban renewal” and as a “prototype for future urban development predicated on human values.” The site contains the largest collection of buildings by the architect Mies van der Rohe in the world, as well as the only group of row houses built to his specifications.

The tour will be conducted by Christian Unverzagt and Neil McEachern, both long-time residents of Lafayette Park. Unverzagt is an Assistant Professor of Practice in Architecture at the University of Michigan’s Taubman College. McEachern, now retired, is a former Detroit Public Schools principal.

You can learn more at MiesDetroit.org

REGISTER HERE

LOGISTICS
Transportation is on your own. We will all meet at 12:45 p.m. at the Mies van der Rohe plaza located between the two buildings at the Lafayette Park Shopping Center on E. Lafayette between Rivard St. and Orleans St.

The Mies van der Rohe Historic District is located at the northeast corner of E. Lafayette St. and Rivard St. Take the freeway to downtown Detroit as if you were headed to Greektown, exiting at the E. Lafayette exit off southbound I-375. But instead, turn left and head east at Lafayette. Rivard St. is one block east of I-375.

Parking is available in the parking lot of the shopping center, one half mile east of Rivard, or on the public streets of Joliet Place and Nicolet Place (off Rivard, north of E. Lafayette.) If you park on Joliet or Nicolet you can walk east through the park to the shops, just beyond the Chrysler School.)

For questions about this event email: modernists@a2modern.org

Modern Living Series: Walking Tour I of Ann Arbor Hills Modern Residences

Thursday, July 31, 5:30 pm – 7 pm
$10/person
This event has limited space availability. Registration is required. See www.a2modern.org for registration details, follow the link below REGISTER HERE or email modernists@a2modern.org.

This walking tour is a look at several modern homes located in one area of Ann Arbor Hills. The tour will view the exteriors of homes designed by Robert Metcalf, George Brigham, William Muschenheim, David Osler, Edward Olencki and Joseph Albano. It will provide a historical overview of the area and will look at in particular at site planning. The tour will conclude with an interior view of Robert Metcalf’s first commission, the Crane residence (1954). Current homeowners Linda and Jim Elert will be present to answer questions about the house and its history. The walking tour will be lead by Nancy Deromedi and Grace Shackman.

a2modern is a local 501 (c)(3) organization dedicated to the awareness of and appreciation for mid-century architecture and design, celebrating the accomplishments of the architects, designers, builders, and homeowners in Ann Arbor. UMMA is pleased to partner with a2modern to provide audiences the opportunity to experience Ann Arbor’s modernist architecture in conjunction with the exhibition Three Michigan Architects: Part 3—George Brigham on view July 19 –October 12, 2014.

The exhibition Three Michigan Architects: Part 3—George Brigham is part of the U-M Collections Collaborations series, co-organized by and presented at UMMA and designed to showcase the renowned and diverse collections at the University of Michigan.

REGISTER HERE

LOGISTICS: Park near 1109 Heather Way which is at the corner of Heather Way and Aberdeen. We will proceed from there.

AUGUST

a2modern Modern Living Series: Walking Tour II of Ann Arbor Hills Modern Residences

Thursday, August 7, 5:30 pm – 7 pm
Cost: $10/person
This event has limited space availability. Registration is required. See www.a2modern.org for registration details, follow the link below REGISTER HERE or email modernists@a2modern.org.

This walking tour will look at several modern homes located in one area of Ann Arbor Hills. The tour will view the exteriors of homes designed by Robert Metcalf, William Muschenheim, David Osler and Herbert Johe. It will provide a historical overview of the area and will conclude with an interior view of Herbert Johe’s Holcomb residence (1959). Current homeowner Glenn Watkins will be present to answer questions. The walking tour will be lead by Nancy Deromedi and Grace Shackman.

a2modern is a local 501 (c)(3) organization dedicated to the awareness of and appreciation for mid-century architecture and design, celebrating the accomplishments of the architects, designers, builders and homeowners in Ann Arbor. UMMA is pleased to partner with a2modern to provide audiences the opportunity to experience Ann Arbor’s modernist architecture in conjunction with the exhibition Three Michigan Architects: Part 3—George Brigham on view July19 –October 12, 2014.

The exhibition Three Michigan Architects: Part 3—George Brigham is part of the U-M Collections Collaborations series, co-organized by and presented at UMMA and designed to showcase the renowned and diverse collections at the University of Michigan.


LOGISTICS:
Park near 1109 Heather Way which is at the corner of Heather Way and Aberdeen. We will proceed from there.

REGISTER HERE

Sunday August 10th
a2modern Presents: Tour of David Osler’s Former Architectural Studio
Sunday, August 10, 2 pm – 5 pm
This event has limited space availability. Cost: $10/person. Registration is required.

Osler’s architectural studio was built in 1902 by the Washtenaw Light and Power (predecessor of Detroit Edison) as a place to change voltage from high to low, it had been empty since 1949. Windows were missing. The slate on the roof was damaged from the years of being jiggled by all the trains going by. Conduit insulators were sticking out just below the roof. The inside was a total mess. In addition, the neighborhood, then filled with ramshackle houses, was considered a bad part of town. Osler admits “there were not many who would want it,” but he could see the possibilities.
“It was like the building was shaking hands with me,” says David Osler, describing turning a deserted electric power substation into a modern office. He made the dilapidated shell into a useable space and then put on an addition, staying within the perimeters allowed by the structure and lot. The tour will show how a historical building can successfully be repurposed. The current owners of the building, Dr. Kristine Freeark and Dr. Robert Zucker, will be in attendance to answer questions about the most recent reuse of the building.

Light refreshments will be served.

a2modern is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to the awareness of and appreciation for mid-century architecture and design, celebrating the accomplishments of the architects, designers, builders, and homeowners in Ann Arbor. UMMA is pleased to partner with a2modern to provide audiences the opportunity to experience Ann Arbor’s modernist architecture in conjunction with the exhibition Three Michigan Architects: Part 3—George Brigham on view July 19 –October 12, 2014.

The exhibition Three Michigan Architects: Part 3—George Brigham is the final in a series of architectural exhibitions that also featured Michigan Architects David Osler (Part 1) and Robert Metcalf (Part 2). It is part of the U-M Collections Collaborations series, co-organized by and presented at UMMA and designed to showcase the renowned and diverse collections at the University of Michigan.

Patterson house tour: thank you!

patterson3

a2modern thanks everyone who came Saturday to the Patterson House tour! We would like to thank the homeowners, Audra Wenzlow and Dave Hollinden; special guests Eunice Burns and Ann Ormand; and several UMMA docents. We hope you enjoyed the afternoon and wanted to note that the Robert C. Metcalf exhibit at the University of Michigan Museum of Art ends July 13th.

Rendering: Robert C. Metcalf Collection, Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan

a2modern is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization formed to raise the appreciation and awareness of modern architecture and design in Ann Arbor. Contact: modernists@a2modern.org

Paul Evans: Crossing Boundaries and Crafting Modernism (exhibit at Cranbrook)

Paul Evans: Crossing Boundaries and Crafting Modernism
ArtMembers’ Opening Reception: Friday, June 20, 2014
Public Exhibition Dates: June 21, 2014 – October 12, 2014
Note: Cranbrook Art Museum will be closed Friday, July 4, 2014

This first comprehensive survey of Paul Evans’s work, this exhibition will document Evans’s role in the midcentury American studio furniture movement, his approach to furniture as sculpture and abstract composition, and his unremitting new approaches to metal. Opening earlier this year at the Michener Art Museum in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, and then traveling to Cranbrook Art Museum—the only other venue for the exhibition—Paul Evans: Crossing Boundaries and Crafting Modernism will be comprised of some sixty-eight works, spanning the artist’s entire career. It includes choice examples of Evans’s early metalwork and jewelry, collaborative pieces made by Evans and Phillip Lloyd Powell during the fifties when they shared a studio, as well as a comprehensive selection of Evans’s studio work representing his sculpted steel; verdigris copper; copper, bronze and pewter; argenté sculpted bronze, and cityscape techniques. The show will also include examples of Evans’s sculpture as well as a selection of work he produced for Directional Furniture Company. The presentation at Cranbrook Art Museum will include work by Evans’s contemporaries selected from Cranbrook’s permanent collection, including the celebrated Shuey Collection, placing his pioneering designs for furniture with the context of concurrent trends in midcentury art and design.

Paul Evans studied Metalsmithing at Cranbrook Academy of Art in 1952 and 1953, working with Artist-in-Residence Richard Thomas.

For an interview with architects Tod Williams and Billie Tsien on Paul Evans, please click here.

Paul Evans: Crossing Boundaries and Crafting Modernism was organized by the James A. Michener Art Museum, Doylestown, Pennsylvania, and curated by Constance Kimmerle. The presentation at Cranbrook is supported, in part, by the David Klein and Kathryn Ostrove Exhibition Fund.