MID-CITY MODERNISM
LEARNING FROM THE LESSONS OF THE RECENT PAST REBECKAH BLOSSMAN I MAURICE COX I SPRING 2013
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ABSTRACT GULF SOUTH MODERNISM ESSAY ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY CASE STUDIES SITE ANALYSIS PROGRAM DESIGN 2
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ABSTRACT
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New Orleans was the epicenter for modernism along the Gulf Coast in the Post-War era. How can new architecture continue this tradition while preserving the architecture of the recent past?
During the mid-twentieth century, the modernism that was popular in Europe began to make its way to America. In the Gulf South, architects adapted the European design principals with local materials and vernacular traditions to create a regional modernism. While the style was prevalent throughout the Gulf South, New Orleans was home to the most diverse and award winning project types and the firms who designed them. In contrast, New Orleans was also home to a mass demolition of mid-century modern buildings and faces the greatest preservation challenges. Hurricane Katrina was the catalyst for the mass demolition of many mid-century modern public institutions including schools and libraries. A handful of these designs, such as Phillis Wheatley School had won awards and international acclaim. Many people debate that these designs aren’t worth saving. These buildings represent the spirit of an age of prosperity in New Orleans. It is important to conserve and adapt these buildings because of their unique style in the overall fabric of the city. If present events continue there will be few examples of non-residential mid-century modern left in the city. Although some of these buildings have been adapted it was done in disregard of the original concept. Education is a very important step in this process. Until more people are educated on the movement to save these designs they will continue to be overlooked and undervalued. My initial proposal for this investigation would be an adaptive reuse project of a mid-century modern building, with a new harmonious modern addition. I have a particular interest in mid-century modern design in regards to education.
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UMBRELLA HOUSE I SARASOTA I PAUL RUDOLPH I 1953
GULF SOUTH MODERNISM 6
KAPPA SIGMA FRATERNITY HOUSE I AUBURN I PAUL RUDOLPH I 1961
BOWMAR AVE. ELEMENTARY SCHOOL I OVERSTREET AND TOWN I VICKSBURG I 1939.
MILAM RESIDENCE I PAUL RUDOLPH I JACKSONVILLE I 1959
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ESSAY
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During the mid-twentieth century, the modernism that was popular in Europe began to make its way to America. In the Gulf South, architects adapted the European design principals with local materials and vernacular traditions to create a regional modernism. While the style was prevalent throughout the Gulf South, New Orleans was home to the most diverse and award winning project types and the firms who designed them. In contrast, New Orleans was also home to a mass demolition of mid-century modern buildings and faces the greatest preservation challenges. Hurricane Katrina was the catalyst for the mass demolition of many mid-century modern public institutions including schools and libraries. A handful of these designs, such as Phillis Wheatley School had won awards and international acclaim. While modern designs were scattered throughout New Orleans, Canal Street became a major hub for new designs and architecture offices including prominent modernists Curtis and Davis. The result was a landscape that mixed the past vernacular with a modern vernacular. While Canal Street has lost a lot of its mid-century modern, the past and present still exist harmoniously though a healthy remaining population. Many people debate that these designs aren’t worth saving. This ideology, along with the City’s prevailing thought that new is better has resulted in the demolition of dozens of modern buildings throughout New Orleans. These buildings represent the spirit of an age of prosperity in New Orleans. It is important to conserve and adapt these buildings because of their unique style in the overall fabric of the city. If present events continue there will be few examples of non-residential mid-century modern left in the city. Although some of these buildings have been adapted it was done in disregard of the original concept. Education is a very important step in this process. Until more people are educated on the movement to save these designs they will continue to be overlooked and undervalued. My initial proposal for this investigation would be an adaptive reuse project of a mid-century modern building, with a new harmonious modern addition. I have a particular interest in mid-century modern design in regards to education. The proposal for this project is in its simplest form an institute for the study of regional modernism on Canal Street. For this to be successful, the following questions need to be answered:
What is modernism? What is regional modernism? In order to define regional modernism we must first define modernist architecture. While the time period for the style generally dates from mid-nineteenth century through the 1970s, I believe that modernism continues on today. The style emphasizes shape, form, light, transparency while removing emphasis from decorative embellishment. Modernist architect Adolf Loos emphasized this in his writing Ornament and Crime. In this essay, Loos argues that the removal of ornament directly relates to cultural progress because ornamental details will make it obsolete in the future. Loos’s radical aesthetic purism came from the time he spent in the United State and a particular comment by Louis Sullivan: “It could only benefit us if for a time we were to abandon ornament and concentrate entirely on the erection of buildings that were finely shaped and charming in their sobriety.”2 Modernism focuses more on form and function as an 2 Ulrich Conrads, Programs (Cambridge: MIT Press, 1971), 19, http://books.
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Le Corbusier’s Villa Savoye Source: archikey.com
expression of rationalism while removing emphasis from surface decoration to ornament through structure. The ideology of rationalism and individual reason are the basis for the social modernist movements of the time. Le Corbusier’s Towards a New Architecture is perhaps the most fundamental architectural writing produced by the movement. 3 In my opinion, the Crystal Palace foreshadows the beginning of modernism principals, embodying new technology, vast transparency and lack of decorative ornamentation. Similarly in the United States, the work of Frank Lloyd Wright echoes the beginning of modernism. In the 1930s the International Exhibition of Modern Architecture defined the international style as a sect of modernism, highlighting the works of Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius and Mies van der Rohe in Europe. Perhaps the greatest catalyst for the modernism movement in America was of World War II because of the technical discoveries and building boom that followed. Following the War, the principles of the movement were applied to mass housing and urban design to accommodate the growing population. Gropius began to teach at Harvard’s School of Architecture where he educated American architects on the principles of modernism. He worked with students, including southern modernists Arthur Davis and Paul Rudolph on his “famous home” in Lincoln, Massachusetts where they adapted international design influences to American conditions and materials, creating a regional modernism.4 The ideology uses the foundations of the modernist movement along with the consideration of local climate, vernacular architecture and materialism. Davis returned to New Orleans to practice while Rudolph’s designs can be seen in Florida and Alabama. google.com/books?id=lXSg6NMDAN0C&pg=PA19&dq=ornament+and+crime+loos&hl=en&sa=X&ei=dDO0UM_ZLYTl0QHd8YCYDg&ved=0CDAQ 6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q&f=false (accessed November 15, 2012). 3 Columbia University,“Modernism,” Real? Vertical: Representing Architectural Time and Space,http://www.learn.columbia.edu/ha/html/ modern.html (accessed November 20, 2012). 4 Arthur Q. Davis, It Happened by Design: the Life and Work of Arthur Q. Davis (Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2009), 120.
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Why New Orleans? In the 1930s the international style was introduced in Louisiana. The earliest modernist buildings in the state appeared in Shreveport. Local architects had traveled to Europe and studied the international styles “machines for living” as Le Corbusier called them. Among the first practitioners of the international style in America were brothers Sam and William Wiener who introduced the style to Shreveport.5 The city remains the largest collection of the international style in the state. In Mississippi the Art Nouveau style was applied to schools and government buildings throughout the state. In Alabama and Florida the international style was ju\ st as rare, but later modernist works by Paul Rudolph appear in both states. New Orleans did not adopt the modernist movement until the end of the decade. The city was so absorbed in its historic architecture that residents were hesitant to accept modern architecture. The post-war era national building boom allowed local architects to embrace the style, although they found many in the community were still hesitant6. Regardless, New Orleans architects began to receive national recognition for their designs. A large part of this was the commission of thirty public schools between 1952 and 1960. Unlike the past, the school board did not use a city architect but commissioned local architects.7 The school designs allowed local architects to create a regional modernism. While only one of these schools remains, they still have a lasting legacy. In the late mid-century, New Orleans also began to reemerge as a tourist destination, resulting in the construction of new hotels and convention centers in the modernist style.
Flesch House
Source: LA National Register
The political climate of post-was American contributed heavily to modernist construction in New Orleans. Post-war bliss was erased by escalating racial tension. In New Orleans, the black community’s call for more and better school facilities fueled a series of studies commissioned by new superintendent Lionel J. Bourgeois. The studies found that the city was operating eighty-seven schools for whites and only thirty-four for black children despite about equal enrollments.8 Another study by architect Charles R. Colbert concluded that the condition of New Orleans’s public schools was deplorable, many were located in neighborhoods without a school aged population and a significant imbalance existed between white and black schools. The conclusions and recommendations of these studies would result in the construction of the new school and additions to eighteen existing schools funded by a raise in Orleans Parish property tax. The new designs were chosen after a competition was held for school designs. The competition resulted in the selection of designs that were modern but sensitive to the climate. One of the winning submissions was by Colbert himself for Phyllis Wheatley School in Treme. He raised the school on a platform that provided a covered space for children to play and protected the school from flooding. The rectangular school was hollow in the middle which allowed for ample light and natural ventilation.9 5 The Louisiana National Register of Historic Places Database. http://www.crt.state.la.us/hp/ nationalregister/nhl/document2.asp?name=09013001.pdf&title=Flesch+House 6 Lindsay McCook, Modernism in New Orleans (New Orleans: Southeastern Architectural Archive, 2012), pageNr.,http://seaa.tulane.edu.libproxy.tulane.edu:2048/sites/all/themes/Howard_Tilton/images/exhibits/modernism/ModernisminNew%20Orleans.pdf (accessed November 20, 2012). 7 Donald E. DeVore and Joseph Logsdon, Crescent City Schools: Public Education in New Orleans, 1841-1991 (Lafayette: University of Louisiana at Lafayette, 1991), 338-340. 8 DeVore and Logsdon 1991, 216-234. 9 DeVore and Logsdon 1991, 338-346.
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Phillis Wheatley School Source: nola.com
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Mid-century modern designs were more than just buildings in New Orleans; many were and are symbols. The growth in population resulted in the planned construction of 30 new schools between 1959 and 1960. These schools were designed by renowned local architects and were a symbol of the changes that took place in public education during that era. Many used this symbolism as argument for demolition after Katrina, but the outpour of support for the preservation of Phyllis Wheatley demonstrated the positive symbolism the schools held for their students. Actress and local activist Phyllis Montana-LeBlanc attended Wheatley as a child and was active in the fight to preserve the school. She made her feelings about Wheatley clear in an interview with The Times Picayune: “Once Wheatley is gone, another part of our history, of African-American culture in New Orleans, is demolished … If we’re going to worry about a history of racial struggle, let’s remove the plantations. Let’s remove the slave quarters.”10 Phyllis Montana-LeBlanc looks on as Wheatley is demolished Source: nola.com
The human experience is a huge catalyst in perceived symbolism. The opening of the Louisiana Superdome in 1975 resulted in renewed downtown development and symbolized the shift of New Orleans to an entertainment based economy. The structure is inarguably an engineering and architectural wonder. The positive symbolism of the Superdome was shattered by Katrina when it became a symbol for human suffering and government failure. A year later, the symbolism shifted again when the Superdome became a symbol of hope and normalcy in New Orleans after the Saints were victorious over the Falcons at the first home game since Katrina. While this message has remained strong, the Superdome has accepted the addition persona of investment after Mercedes-Benz purchased the naming rights this past year.
Why on Canal Street? In mid-century New Orleans, Canal Street emerged as a hub where traditional vernacular architecture and modernist architecture lived harmoniously. Closest to the river, the World Trade Center, the Rivergate Convention Center and modern store facades emerged.11 As Canal moved towards the lake, individual stores and office buildings emerged among residential structures. Canal Street was also a popular choice for architecture offices, including prominent modernists Curtis and Davis. Through research, I have identified 29 modernist structures that called Canal Street home in the past and present. This is the largest collection of modernism I have been able to find in a pre-war settlement in New Orleans and the Gulf South. The project argues that as the largest collection of regional modernism along the Gulf Coast, New Orleans and specifically the concentration of modernism on Canal Street is the ideal site for an institute dedicated to the principles of modernism and regional modernism. The project also proposes the adaptive reuse of a modernist landmark on Canal Street. The Automotive Life Insurance Building embodies regional modernism in New Orleans. The architects were sensitive to the neighborhood character by creating a two story building that is set back from the street.12 The design mimics the plantations found throughout Louisiana. It takes on the simple massing form of an interior block surrounded on the exterior by covered outdoor space. The glass entrance embodies the loggias often found in plantations while 10 Times Picayune Staff, “Historic Phyllis Wheatley torn down in Treme,” Times Picayune, June 17 2011, Metro News Section. 11 Francine Stock, Modern On Canal Street (New Orleans: DOCOMOMO Louisiana, 2010) 12 Fernandez, Mariela, and Francine Stock. “Automotive Life Insurance Co.: The Ondulated Modernism.” Regional Modernism: The New Orleans Archives. Entry posted March 28, 2008. http://www.regional-modernism. com/ (accessed September 18, 2012).
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World Trade Center
Source: LA Digital Archives
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creating an ambiguity of interior and exterior. Each vault is 12’x12’which is replicated in the column grid throughout the building plan. Like the repeated facades of plantations, the two story windows funnel light to both floors while creating a cohesive façade.13 The design defies its inspiration with it curvilinear aesthetic which was a common trend with Curtis and Davis. While the design does not necessarily use local materials it utilizes precast concrete with steel to support the roof structure. On the same block is the Singer Sewing Machine Buildings which was the first modernist building to be designated a city landmark. The Automotive Life Insurance Building is a precedent for the fight to designate modern designs as landmarks. The current owners of the Automotive Life Insurance Building sued the City of New Orleans and the HDLC to oppose the designation, citing that they have not, nor have any intention to alter the architectural character. The plaintiff used the demolition of other prominent Curtis and Davis Buildings like the Rivergate and St. Francis Cabrini Church to argue that modernist buildings do not deserve landmark designation. In addition a quote was used from an interview of former city council woman Cynthia Willard-Lewis who stated that it was ridiculous to describe a building as historic if it was built in her lifetime. Judge Joan Bernard Armstrong heard the case and based on the evidence she was presented denied the plaintiffs argument because of the architectural significance of the building and of Curtis and Davis14. With this decision, the building became more than a city landmark; it became a landmark of modernist preservation. It also stands as a symbol of the change in perceived notion of modernist architecture. This is the first step in preserving this wonderful style.
Olivetti Typewriter Store
Source: Regional Modernism
New Orleans serves as the capital of modernism on the Gulf Coast. Studying these designs is a great way to learn about regional and site specific design. The first step in preserving mid-century modern architecture in New Orleans is education. While many applaud these designs many think it holds no merit within New Orleans’s historic fabric. It is frustrating to see this attitude reflected in city government, such as Mitch Landrieu ignoring calls to save Wheatley and Cynthia Willard-Lewis’s comments on modern architecture. Educating the public is not the only issue at hand. Architects, preservationists and contractors also need to be educated on how to deal to restore mid-century modern materials and designs. Therefore, my thesis will explore an institute for the study of regional modernist principles and conservation techniques.
13 4140 Canal Street v. City of New Orleans. CA-1038. (LA Ct. App. 2010). 14 4140 Canal Street v. City of New Orleans. CA-1038. (LA Ct. App. 2010).
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Bibliography 4140 Canal Street v. City of New Orleans. CA-1038. (LA Ct. App. 2010). Columbia University. “Modernism.” Real? Vertical: Representing Architectural Time and Space. http://www.learn.columbia.edu/ha/html/modern.html (accessed November 20, 2012). Davis, Arthur Q. It Happened by Design: the Life and Work of Arthur Q. Davis. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2009 Conrads, Ulrich. Programs. Cambridge: MIT Press, 1971. http://books.google.com/books?id=lXS g6NMDAN0C&pg=PA19&dq=ornament+and+crime+loos&hl=en&sa=X&ei=dDO0UM_ZL YTl0QHd8YCYDg&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q&f=false(accessed November 15, 2012). DeVore, Donald E., and Joseph Logsdon. Crescent City Schools: Public Education in New Orleans, 1841-1991. Lafayette: University of Louisiana at Lafayette, 2012. Fernandez, Mariela, and Francine Stock. “Automotive Life Insurance Co.: The Ondulated Modernism.” Regional Modernism: The New Orleans Archives. Entry posted March 28, 2008. http://www.regional-modernism.com/ (accessed September 18, 2012). Flesch House in the Louisiana National Register of Historic Places Database. http:// www.crt.state.la.us/hp/nationalregister/nhl/document2.asp?name=09013001. pdf&title=Flesch+House. (accessed November 10, 2012) McCook, Lindsay. Modernism in New Orleans. New Orleans: Southeastern Architectural Archive, 2012.http://seaa.tulane.edu.libproxy.tulane.edu:2048/sites/all/themes/Howard_Tilton/ images/exhibits/modernism/ModernisminNew%20Orleans.pdf (accessed November 20, 2012) Stock, Francine. Modern On Canal Street. New Orleans: DOCOMOMO Louisiana, 2010 Times Picayune Staff, “Historic Phyllis Wheatley torn down in Treme,” Times Picayune, June 17 2011, Metro News Section.
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ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
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Graf, Franz. “How Should We Teach the Conservation of Modern and Contemporary Architecture?” The Challenge of Change: Dealing with the Legacy of the Modern Movement. By Dirk Van Den Heuvel. Amsterdam: IOS, 2008. 287-94. Print.
In this article Franz Graf attempts to tackle how the conservation of modern architecture should be taught to present and future generations. With over half of design work presently produced involving existing structures; this is an important part of architecture education. His first step is through survey work and documentation work. He emphasizes that in order to successfully conserve a building you must know everything about it first. The next step is to analyze the findings—this is particularly important in understanding the materiality. Next, you must judge the work. He deems different parts of the building “hard” and “soft” or malleable parts. By altering soft parts, minor adaptations can be made without removing any of the building’s character. Finally, he deals with the issue of additions to modern buildings. Overall he expresses the extreme importance of the survey process and its vitality in conserving modern buildings.
Kisho, Kurokawa. “What Is the Legacy of Modern Architecture?” Back from Utopia: The Challenge of the Modern Movement. Rotterdam: 010, 2002. 266-73. Print.
According to Kurokawa “modern architecture is built on the spirit of the age it represents.” Modern architecture represents a time of abstraction and emphasis on the machine. Kurokawa argues that there are parts of modern architecture worth preserving and other parts that are in need of revision. If architecture is solely interpreted within the framework of its original period, then it will die when that period ends, rather architecture must be interpreted of the philosophical spirit of the era. Kurokawa believes the legacy to be recorded is that of abstraction, and divides the 20th century into “the age of the machine” and “the age of the life principle. The spirit is in the relationships between the objects, and reproduction does not simply reproduce the spirit that was. There is a different in this interpretation from East to West. The West places importance on physical originality while the East emphasizes the spirit and technique of the physical original.
Monnier, Gérald. “The Reception of Modernism by Users: Practical Value and Symbolic Value. “ Back from Utopia: The Challenge of the Modern Movement. Rotterdam: 010, 2002. 2658-367. Print.
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Monnier seeks to answer the question of how usage and symbolic value interact in mid-century modern architecture. Emphasis is placed on looking at a building in its environment---does it function as a landmark? Has it influenced neighboring buildings? How would the environment change without the building? He examines these questions by analyzing Le Corbusier. He argues that Villa Savoye has no local existence because of it remoteness and the planted environment that separates it from the public domain. Instead of a local movement, it took an international movement to begin the efforts to conserve Villa Savoye. A strong example is made of Unités d’Habitation and he state, “ if conservation of the building is likewise dependent on the point of view of the users, then its future is guaranteed.” Conservation of modern architecture should contribute to the identity of the work rather than the prestige of the architect. Monnier argues that the designs of the modern movement should be socially useful so that they have local importance. This is one of the driving issues of my thesis.
Stipe, Robert E. “Where Do We Go from Here?” A Richer Heritage: Historic Preservation in the Twenty-First Century. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina, 2003. 451-93. Print.
During the last two decades preservation has transgressed from emphasis of the physical original to include social and community building. This change has come as a response to changes in the US economy, ideas about environment, desegregation, demographic changes, energy shortages and the growing impact of computer based technology. Preservation has also become me inclusive, recognizing human values. The preservation movement must accept that times have changed so preservation must too. These changes will reflect the emerging physical forms of our cities and towns. He suggests the same forces driving the city outwards may reverse to result in a more compact environment fueled by technology. He advises that the future kryptonite of preservation may be judging too quickly what should be preserved and what shouldn’t.
Stock, Francine. “Is There a Future for the Recent Past in New Orleans?” Mas Context 9 (2010): n. pag. Max Context. Mas Studio, Dec. 2010. Web. 16 Sept. 2012. <www.mascontext.com/issues/8-public-winter-10/is-there-afuture-for-the-recent-past-in-new-orleans/>.
In this essay, Francine Stock makes a plea for what is left of the midcentury modern in New Orleans. Most people are not aware of how abundant the international style once was in New Orleans and how much of it has been lost. New Orleans modern architecture won many design awards throughout the 1950s mostly for the designs of public schools. The population of New Orleans had grown significantly in the 1940s, resulting in the need for more schools in the 1950s. These designs, by various architects, were extremely sensitive to site and climate. In this vein, the architects adapted the modernist style to the regional conditions of New Orleans, which is why the designs were so successful. In the wake of recovery from Hurricane Katrina, Orleans Parish proposed a plan for revitalizing public schools. Unfortunately, the money they received from FEMA encouraged demolition over adaptive reuse to most of these beautifully designed schools have been demolished. Stock recommends education as a way to save the international style in New Orleans. She suggest that placing landmark status on the city’s most iconic modern building, the Superdome, would help to educate the public on the style and why it is important to preserve it.
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CASE STUDIES
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Laura Plantation Image by Author
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Destrehan Plantation Sorce: studyblue.com
Diagrams show living space v. outdoor space in typical plantation homes 22
Plantation homes in South Louisiana were designed to ease the harsh climate conditions. Generally, the plantations feature a large gabled roof under which sits the smaller indoor areas that are surrounded by full galleries on all sides. The galleries offer shade during the hot summers while sheltering the living space from direct sunlight. The houses are only two rooms deep to allow for cross ventilation. An allĂŠe of trees was planted in a line in front of the house to funnel wind through the house. The ground floor is typically soft brick from a local source while the first floor is crafted from cypress harvested from local swamps. Historically, the main living floor would have been accessed from stair cases on either side of the gallery. As the English style became popular, front stairs were added to many plantations. As families expanded and needs changed plantation owners enclosed side and back galleries.
Automotive Life Insurance Building
Source: SE Arch. Archives
Section diagram of indoor and outdoor space
The Automotive Life Insurance Building was designed by local architects Curtis and Davis in 1963 to celebrate the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 75th anniversary. They designed a two story building to fit in with the residential area. Curtis and Davis used elements found in plantation architecture in their design. It features a larger roof over a smaller indoor two level space. On the ground level driveways allow guests to access the back parking lot on either side of the building. The second floor area extends over the driveways to the edge of the roof structure, like alerted plantation homes. The building is constructed of pre-cast concrete, marble and large glass windows.
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building in isolation. He designed the new museum as a modern response to the existing structure and joined the new construction with the historic Villa with a narrow glass bridge at the upper level. The buildings itself follows a rectangular grid that expands angularly.
Museum of Applied Art The Museum of Applied Art Frankfurt or MAK involved a new museum design on the gardens of the historic Villa Metzler. The Villa was built in 1804 for an apothecary and became a museum in 1967. In his design, Richard Meier â&#x20AC;&#x153;reinforced the public context in the urban fabricâ&#x20AC;? while rejecting the modernist idea of the free standing building in isolation. He designed the new museum as a modern response to the existing structure and joined the new construction with the historic Villa with a narrow glass bridge at the upper level. The buildings itself follows a rectangular grid that expands angularly.
Source: 24 pausaino.de
TWA Building
Source: eldorado.com
The TWA Corporate Headquarters Building was originally designed in 1956 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. At some point in time the glass, metal and concrete facade was covered with a layer of mud brown stucco. El Dorado took on the restoration of this building and restored the former red and white color scheme using some existing materials. The most notable feature in the adaptation of this building is the new green roof. This system manages stormwater runoff in addition to providing meeting and event space. While the interior was designed by a different firm, El Dorado designed the underfloor systems, elevatore, bathrooms, stairways and furniture for the roof. The corner of the building features of replica of the Moonliner II Rocket.
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SITE ANALYSIS
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1940 Sanborn Map Source: nutrias.org 27
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The map shows past and present modernist buildings on Canal Street. The footprints rendered in white are existing, while the gray footprints are no longer. The site is rendered in orange.
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WHAT’S LOST
4 CANAL STREET (1966)
1806 CANAL STREET (1951)
1900 CANAL STREET (1966)
1717 CANAL STREET
30 1402 CANAL STREET (1945)
2677 CANAL STREET (1968)
WHAT REMAINS
2 CANAL STREET (1964)
2400 CANAL STREET (1952)
442 CANAL STREET (1953)
1501 CANAL STREET (1951)
900 CANAL STREET (1938)
2515 CANAL STREET (1956)
3700 CANAL STREET (1954)
31 4841 CANAL STREET (1931)
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The proposed site is on the block bounded by Canal Street, Carrollton Avenue, S. Solomon Street and Cleveland Avenue. The block was chosen because it contains the Automotive Life Insurance building along with ample open space to allow for new construction. On the right side of the block is the Singer Sewing Machine Building, which was the first midcentury modern buildings in the city to be designated a landmark by the Historic Districts and Landmarks Commission. The site begins at the Automotive Life Insurance building and extends to Solomon Street. While the site was once dense historically the block lacks density. A church once stood where the Automotive Life Insurance Building is today, and the two share near identical footprints.
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PROGRAM
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INSTITUTIONAL
Library (5,000 SF)
Café (300 SF)
Lobby (500 SF)
Offices (2,800 SF)
Studio (1,500 SF)
Classrooms (1,200 SF)
Auditorium (2,800 SF)
Gallery (4,000 SF)
Public Outdoor Space
Materials Library (1,000 SF)
20,400 SF
RESIDENTIAL
Suite Apartments (2,500 SF)
GROSS SQUARE FOOTAGE: 28,560 SF 35
DESIGN
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EXPLODED ISOMETRIC OF AUTOMOTIVE LIFE INSURANCE BUILDING
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FORM DIAGRAMS
The project proposes that because of the population of modernist architecture in New Orleans, and more specifically Canal Street, that an institute for the study of modernist and regional design should be built here. The new design extended the existing grid to the back of the site. To get the form a series of volumes were shifted using the core as a base. The shifts create double height and outdoor spaces using modernist principles like ramping, open floor plan and roof gardens. The program contains a residential component which is cantilevered off of the back of the building, facing Solomon Street. The ground floor of the existing building remains the same, while the second floor is opened up to house the library and materials library. The ground floor of the new design contains the auditorium and gallery, which continues on the second floor. Classrooms and studios are on the third floor, while the fourth floor contains offices and outdoor space. The existing and new building would create a central courtyard with screening between the two. A water feature acknowledges the entrance of the new design, as water does the existing building.
VOIDS DIAGRAM 38
cafe
studio
OFFICES
materia
ls
RY
LIBRA
NEW ORLEANS PUBLIC LIBRARY
MCDONOUGH SCHOOL
ELEMENTS OF MODERNISM
PHILLIS WHEATLEY SCHOOL 39
SECTION PERSPECTIVE
FIRST FLOOR PLAN 40
SECOND FLOOR PLAN
THIRD FLOOR PLAN RESIDENTIAL SPACE RENDER
FOURTH FLOOR PLAN
GALLERY RENDER 41
EXTERIOR RENDER FROM CANAL STREET
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ENTRANCE SEQUENCE RENDERS
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SECTION PERSPECTIVE
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