Mps newsletter 05 spring 2014

Tulane Preservation Alumni Group Tulane Master’s of Preservation Studies Alumni Newsletter • Spring 2014

MPS has a busy spring with interactive timeline launch and successful symposium The MPS program has had a busy spring, with two major initiatives debuting in April.

The first was Preservation Matters III: The Economics of Authenticity, the third in a Tulane School of Architecture symposium series started by Dean Kenneth Schwartz in 2009. A slate of nationally-renowned urban theorists spoke at the event, which was co-hosted by the Preservation Resource Center in celebration of its 40th anniversary.

LSU College of Art and Design Dean Alkis The blockbuster line-up included former Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, who just left P. Tsolakis (left) with Tulane School of Architecture Dean Kenneth Schwartz (right) at the office this past January after 20 years of great work including huge advances revitalPreservation Matters III symposium izing Boston’s Main Streets; acclaimed author Anthony Tung, who writes about urban development around the world; preservation economics guru Donovan Rypkema, founder of PlaceEconomics; Eduardo Rojas, a heritage consultant for World Bank and other prestigious global organizations; Marsh Davis, president of Indiana Landmarks, the nation’s largest statewide preservation organization; and nationally-renowned landscape architect Charles Birnbaum, who is founder and president of the Cultural Landscape Foundation and served as the opening keynote speaker.

Mayor Menino was introduced by New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, who said Menino has long served as a mentor and was the first leader he called on for guidance after being elected to office. Read more about the two mayors’ time in New Orleans and the great reception the event’s varied talks had in the Times-Picayune by clicking here.

“At this point in our city’s long and distinguished history, New Orleans both needed and deserved a conference that seriously addresses the ‘value’ of our built heritage and its important implications going forward. The invited speakers are the best that we could find in the world,” said conference co-organizer and MPS Director John Stubbs.

The MPS program also used the event as a platform to debut the New Orleans Preservation Timeline, a web-based tool that lists significant events, people, organizations and places in the history of New Orleans’ preservation movement. The history of the city’s storied leaders and the events that led to the safeguarding of the Vieux Carre and other significant structures and neighborhoods in New Orleans is presented as an interactive, chronological timeline. Users are also able to access information by reading entries about people, organizations and places, and seeing significant locations on a map.

The searchable site debuted with 37 entries that were originally crafted by students in Stubbs’ Intro to Preservation Studies class and edited and rewritten by MPS graduate Gabrielle Begue of Clio Associates LLC. Input from Professor Ann Masson and others helped shape the subjects that would be featured, and Masson also aided in a thorough editing to make sure the site is entirely accurate. The program is currently seeking funding to launch Phase II of the project, which will aim to increase the number of entries on the site to 100.

FROM THE DIRECTOR The MPS program since October 2013 has progressed along with much other positive change in New Orleans. At the civic scale, things are on a positive trajectory as New Orleans approaches the tenth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Neighborhood revitalization is visible everywhere, with extraordinary progress especially being seen in the Lower Ninth Ward and the Irish Channel areas. Adaptive reuse and rehabilitation is commonplace along Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard and in the Central Business District, and numerous infrastructure projects continue, including even the re-laid track of the National Register-listed St. Charles Streetcar Line. Tourism in the Crescent City is at an all time high, the population grew by over 9,000 people in the last year alone, real estate prices have climbed. The special exciteDirector John H. Stubbs ment and spirit associated with dynamic growth is being felt by all.

This year’s MPS faculty and 21 students, including some eight others earning certificates and minors, have fully participated in this spirit, utilizing most every teaching modality possible, including lectures, studios, interdepartmental collaboration, internships, theses or practicums, and field trips to locales near and far—all addressing real projects and challenges facing the historic preservation community. Field trips have ranged from numerous local site visits to attending national conferences (National Trust or Association for Preservation Technology), to a weekend excursion up the Mississippi River to Natchez. The spring International Field Studies course offered a choice of studying best cultural heritage conservation practices in either Cambodia or Puerto Rico, with both trips being led by myself and with the aid of leading local experts.

The faculty has continued to refine and coordinate our course offerings. With newly appointed professor and architect Beth Jacob, we explored urban conservation in Studio II at two scales by analyzing in detail a representative whole city block in the French Quarter. Later in the semester the class examined and conducted preservation planning for the sizable former St. Maurice church complex in the lower Holy Cross district as a service to a local developer.

Highlights in research and public engagement were the staging of the MPS program’s biennial Preservation Matters III symposium, this year in cooperation with the Preservation Resource Center in honor of its 40th anniversary, and the creation of the New Orleans Preservation Timeline project that aims to document the city’s rich and storied efforts to preserve itself. Preservation Matters III, through a stellar line-up of speakers including Charles Birnbaum, Anthony Tung, Donovan Rypkema, Marsh Davis and Eduardo Rojas and participation by Roberta Brandes Gratz and Maurice Cox, addressed the economic valuation of historic built environments as its central topic. Held at the special venue of The Historic New Orleans Collection, the gathering’s high level of seriousness was represented in inaugural addresses by New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu and five-time elected former Mayor of Boston Thomas Menino. An expert chronicle of the event penned by TSA Professor Richard Campanella is available for download on our website, and new strategies for improved preservation efforts in New Orleans are an expected outcome.

The Preservation Matters III conference was the occasion to announce the Web-based New Orleans Preservation Timeline project. Initial research on over 100 entries was conducted by students in the Introduction to Preservation course that were refined by MPS graduates Gabrielle Begue, Danielle Del Sol, Beth Jacob, and Professor Ann Masson. Phase I entailed placement of its first 37 entries on a custom-designed database; it can be viewed at http://architecture.tulane.edu/preservationproject. Adding 70 more entries is the goal of Phase II, which will commence this fall.

Plans for the coming year include stepped-up instruction in preservation advocacy taught by Danielle Del Sol, additional administrative support provided by Marie Chinappi (MPS ‘12), a special focus on research and documentation skills, and a new course on the Business and Practice of Preservation slated for Spring 2015.

The past year reflected a quality in the MPS program and the School of Architecture that is as impressive as anything else; an extraordinary sense of cooperation and collaboration among faculty, students, visiting experts, and the local preservation community alike. Such sharing and collaboration offers the greatest hope of all going forward in training for and preserving the world’s historic built environments.

Have a good summer all, doing interesting preservation work!

MPS STUDENTS TRAVEL THE GLOBE SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO

By Margot Ferster, MPS ‘14 The objectives of the International Field Studies course include receiving firsthand exposure to the work of professional preservationists abroad, through visiting counterpart educational institutions and various conserved sites. During the 2014 MPS trip to Puerto Rico, we did just that and more. It was a fabulous experience, and our host Jorge Rigau, a hugely respected local conservation architect and professor at Polytechnic University, was a phenomenal guide. He introduced us to Puerto Rico’s beautiful architecture and granted us unprecedented access to museums, historic sites, and ongoing preservation projects all over the island.

Our first site visit in San Juan was incredible—we had uninhibited access to Iglesia de San Jose while it was undergoing a major restoration. We explored every nook and cranny of the exquisite 16th-century church, climbing up the extensive scaffolding and down into the catacombs under the altar. We also The group celebrates Carnival in Ponce visited Casa Blanca, originally built for Juan Ponce de Leon in 1521. Archeologists on staff showed us the recently discovered foundation of the property’s original kitchen. Luckily for us, the archeological site was about to be buried again for protection, and we had visited just in time to catch a glimpse.

Just in time for Mardi Gras, we traveled across the island to the city of Ponce. While the local Carnival celebration was much tamer when compared to the fun we were missing back in New Orleans, there were many similarities between their celebration and ours. The architecture was familiar, too. Instead of the simple, clean lines found in Old San Juan’s colonial architecture, Ponce’s ornate late 19th-early 20th-century architecture resembled New Orleans’ Queen Anne and Eastlake shotguns and cottages. We visited multiple museums, the local architecture school, and the legendary Intercontinental Hotel. Perched high above the city, the once grand hotel is a significant example of tropical modernism. Although long abandoned, the structure is intact and is an incredible site to explore and imagine the glamorous vacations it once hosted.

Jorge Rigau instructs Back in San Juan, we visited Casa Klumb, the former home of modernist architect Henry Klumb. The former hacienda had been renovated by the architect in his signature modern fashion. Now vacant, a noted conservation architect and students at the University of Puerto Rico are working on plans to restore and repurpose the structure. We also visited Polytechnic University where we met with many of Jorge Rigau’s colleagues and saw some of the incredible work being created by their students.

We ended our trip with a round table meeting with faculty from the university to discuss preservation in Puerto Rico and many of our observations from the week.

The International Field Studies trip to Puerto Rico was an incredible experience. We all learned a great deal not only about the local architectural and preservation movements in Puerto Rico, but how sites are conserved globally, and the different factors that dictate preservation interest and activity. We all felt very lucky to have Jorge Rigau lead us on the incredible journey, as his personality and passion for conservation are truly inspiring. The trip exposed us to so many facets of the field, as well as to the many wonders of Puerto Rico, and I cannot wait to return.

Casa Klumb

MPS STUDENTS TRAVEL THE GLOBE

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CAMBODIA

By Philippa Eden, MPS ‘14 The Tulane University Master of Preservation Studies Program made an international study trip to Cambodia over winter break, taking a detailed look at the variety of international organizations, techniques and preservation concerns involved in the professional conservation of Khmer architectural cultural heritage. Students explored historic sites, from reconstructed and tourist heavy to ruined and abandoned, and discovered what it meant to be a conservationist in a country where a history of colonization, recent political turmoil and economic stress present challenges for historic sites. We gained the ability to identify international interventions, developed an understanding of the local history and symbolism of Khmer architecture, and gained an increased awareness of the effects tourism, information transmission and presentation, and natural environmental factors have on the successful conservation of a site.

Left to right: MPS Students Philippa Eden One of the greatest difficulties conservationists face in preserving Cambodia’s and Madeline Norton with MPS Director John architectural cultural heritage is thievery, internally and externally, which does Stubbs and TSA Professor Errol Barron and not just include the petty tourist muggers, but the black-market stealing of cul- his wife Kate tural artifacts. National laws and international policies promise to combat this threat with increased surveillance and shoot-to-kill policy for thieves caught in major temple pillaging operations.

Beyond small-scale thievery, large-scale redevelopment also threatens Cambodian architectural heritage. For example, Cambodia’s Phenom Penh is currently experiencing a changing skyline due to a complicated mixture of political indifference, economic stress and foreign investors shifting the city’s buildings to foreign businesses. The renowed modern Cambodian architect Vann Molyvann, who built extensively in the 1950s and ‘60s, strove to create a national Cambodian architectural style. His stadium, built for the Southeast Asian Peninsular (SEAP) Games in 1963, refers to moats surrounding Cambodia’s historic Khmer temples and employs water as integral to the design. American architect Bill Greaves started the Vann Molyvann Project in 2009 to graphically document Molyvann’s various building designs, even for buildings recently demolished. Documenting these buildings may be the only active role architectural conservationists can take as long as foreign investors have ownership of his sites and the Cambodian government remains apathetic to their purchase. Intervention by international organizations is limited because countries are responsible for conserving their own cultural heritage. Nowadays, new buildings in Cambodia are being built by developers from China, Korea, and Tower sculpture at The Bayon (12th century) Thailand, and fewer opportunities for Cambodian architects means Khmer architectural identity is being lost.

Structural stabilization work on a shrine at Bakong temple

Cambodia’s complicated position as a country emerging from so much political and financial instability and the loss of millions of its people under Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge has affected its attitude toward its architectural cultural heritage. Foreign intervention through conservation programs has been a great ally to Khmer cultural heritage. However, although a prime source of economic stability, Cambodian commitment to tourism may be stressing popular sites. In addition, foreign investment puts Cambodian cultural heritage in a questionable position as foreign buildings replace uniquely Cambodian ones. Advocacy and education can help promote conservation of irreplaceable historic structures as integral to the Cambodian sense of place.

Alumni AND STAFF News • Erin Edwards, ‘08, was hired by Gulf South Research Corp. in Baton Rouge as an architectural historian. She is currently working on Section 110 surveys of military installations around the country and world.

• Current student Margot Ferster, ‘14, was named Rebuilding Together’s AmeriCorps Volunteer of the Year in January in honor of her exemplary year of service with Rebuilding Together New Orleans in 2012.

• Clio Associates LLC, the preservation consulting firm founded by MPS graduates Beth Jacob, ‘12 and Gabrielle Begue, ‘12, moved into a new office in the former St. John the Baptist rectory at 1139 Oretha Castle Haley recently. The group is working with Tulane City Center and the New Orleans Redevelopment Authority (NORA) on Facade Renew, a commercial corridor revitalization grant program (3 historic commercial corridors: O. C. Haley, Bayou Road, and St. Claude), as well as serving as project editor of the MPS New Orleans Preservation Timeline, among other things.

• After a move to Minneapolis with her husband and daughter Reese, Erin Brush, ‘10, was hired as project manager for Preservation Design Works, a firm that consults with owners, developers, architectural and engineering firms, and more on how historic buildings can be preserved, restored, and reactivated.

• Victor Tomanek, ’12, was recently hired as a Landmarks Preservationist at the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission.

• Stephen Fowlkes, ‘07, is in private practice, doing Historic Preservation consulting, historic tax credit work, historic building rehab design and project management, and historic property redevelopment. He also continues to manage the Pierre Coulon Guest House in his home in the Faubourg Marigny.

• Ryan Jackson, ‘12, began a new job in October 2013 as Operations Manager at Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carre, a historic non-profit community theater in the heart of the French Quarter.

CONGRATS, GRADUATES! The MPS program graduated an impressive group this May. They were: Cynthia Crews, Sarahgrace Godwin, Sarah Norman, Antonio Pacheco, and Yvette Tyler. Sarah Norman received the Best Thesis Award and Antonio Pacheco received the Award for Distinguished Service to the MPS Program. Congratulations and best of luck to these five!

(Pictured, from left to right: Sarahgrace Godwin, Sarah Norman, John Stubbs and Cyndi Crews)

job and internship news • NCPTT will be hosting several summer workshops on their campus in Natchitoches, LA over the coming months. Lead Certified Renovator Training will take place on July 28, 2014, and Mold Control and Remediation Training will be held July 29 - July 31, 2014. Learn more here. NCPTT is also accepting summer interns; more information can also be found on their website.

• ICCROM is currently accepting applications for courses on various fascinating topics in locales around the world. Study stone conservation in Rome, heritage impact assessments in Shanghai, and more. Learn more on their website here.

• Ever considered Carson City, Nevada? The Nevada SHPO is looking for an Architectural Historian to manage the National & State Register Programs. Applications accepted until June 8; learn more here.

• Our favorite preservation job sites: Preservation Directory, HistPres, PreserveNet, National Conference of SHPOs, USA Jobs (for positions with the National Park Service and other governmental organizations) and the National Trust for Historic Preservation Career Center.

Keep your fellow tulane preservation alumni in the loop!

To submit your news items, job or internship announcements or just to keep in touch, email Danielle Del Sol (‘11) at danielle.delsol@gmail.com. Please help us build the Tulane Preservation Alumni Group into an active, helpful resource for all graduates in Preservation Studies!