March 1, 2008: "Exploring Mid-Century Architecture in Florida" -- Jacksonville.

DOCOMOMO/US-Florida and the Jacksonville chapter of the American Institute of Architects, in conjunction with the Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens, staged a symposium on mid-century modern architecture in Florida.

215 people attend the morning event while another 250 disappointed people were turned away from the SRO event. Already there is talk of a follow-up event in 2009, which certainly will occur in a larger venue.

Presenters included Jan Hochstim, Gene Leedy and Alfred Browning Parker. Jacksonville architects Robert Broward, William Morgan and Taylor Hardwick participated in a panel discussion.

An afternoon convoy of two buses toured from Riverside to Woodstock, through downtown and to Arlington, before returning to the Cummer three and one-half hours later.

Alfred Browning Parker. (Photo courtesy by Wayne Wood.)

Gene Leedy. (Photo by Wayne Wood.)

Architect Taylor Hardwick points out aspects of his Haydon Burns Library design from 1965.

Architect William Morgan outside of his 1965 Rawls house. (Photo by Wayne Wood.)

Robert Broward at his Unitarian Universalist Church (1965). (Photo by Wayne Wood.)

The symposium and bus tour marked the 50th anniversary of the 1958 exhibit "Half Century of Significant Architecture in Jacksonville."

The July, 1958, issue of Florida Architect, included an article by Bob Broward about that exhibit. This article can be viewed by clicking on the image below (4.47 mb).

To see a full-size image of the poster below, click on the thumbnail.

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"Promises of Paradise: Modernism on Display" at the Bass Museum, Miami.

An exhibit highlighting architecture, planning, and decorative arts of mid-century Miami was displayed at the Bass Museum between December 5, 2007 and February 24, 2008.

The exhibit (curated in part by DOCOMOMO/US-Florida board member Allan Shulman) wasthe first to highlight Miami's enormous mid-20th century contributions to the decorative arts.

For additional information, click here.

The exhibit's opening corresponded with the Miami's Art Basel extravaganza.

Architect Alfred Browning Parker's buildings and furnishings are well represented in the exhibit. He is depicted here at the show's opening on December 5, 2007.

DOCOMOMO/US Florida board members, Martha Kohen, Allan Shulman & Enrique Madia, apparently buoyed by enthusiasm for the exhibit.

Next year, this exhibit is expected to travel to the Harn Museum at the University of Florida in Gainesville.

Gene Leedy and The Sarasota School of Architecture

Prominent architect and DOCOMOMO/US Florida Advisory Board member Gene Leedy gave a lecture at the Miami-Dade College Kendall Campus on Monday, November 12, 2007.

The lecture was sponsored by DOCOMOMO/US Florida and by the Miami-Dade College School of Architecture, Earth Ethics Institute, Architecture Club AIA Miami, and Max Strang Architecture.

For more information on Gene Leedy, click here or here. To view a full-sized poster for the event, click on the tiny one below.

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The self-guided Leedy Lifetime Works Tour in Winter Haven is available online at www.geneleedy.com. A downloadable mp3 file containing an audio version of the tour is available here.

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New News About Rudolph's Riverview High School, Sarasota, Florida

This 1958 landmark structure by noted Sarasota School architect Paul Rudolph has been slated for replacement with a new structure. The Sarasota Herald-Tribune reports the local school board has given preservationists one year to come up with $20 million for an innovative parking solution. (Prevailing plans anticipated leveling the Rudolph buildings to accommodate parking for the new facility.) More information is available on the Save Riverview blog, on the Sarasota Herald-Tribune's site, and on the National Trust for Historic Preservation web site. Rudolph's 1960 Blue Cross/Blue Shield building in Boston is also threatened with destruction.

The Save Riverview Committee and Sarasota Architectural Foundation have assumed responsibility for finding alternatives for Riverview.

In collaboration with the Sarasota Architectural Foundation, the Interior Design Department of the University of Florida is developing a senior-level studio project that will document the building to the standards of the Historic American Building Survey (HABS) and develop design solutins for adaptively reusing the building while retaining its significant features.

The World Monuments Fund's Modernism at Risk program kicked in a $5,000 grant to offset expenses.

University of Florida Students measuring and documenting Riverview H.S.

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DOCOMOMO Florida/Wolfsonian Ft. Lauderdale Modernism Tour

Saturday, September 29, 2007.

This tour was an unqualified success. Another one is planned for this winter. Stay tuned!

On June 6 the City of Hollywood, Florida awarded the renowned Florida architect Alfred Browning Parker with the Historic Preservation Award: Architect of the Year for his prolific career and for his role in the Modern Movement in Florida. Mr. Parker selected DOCOMOMO/US Florida Florida President Enrique Madia to receive the award on his behalf.

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Docomomo/US Florida and Florida Atlantic University offered a presentation by Enrique Madia on Modern Architecture in South America at the Broward County Library in Ft. Lauderdale on February 22, 2007.

To view a full-size poster for the event, please click on the image below.

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Docomomo/US Florida and Florida Atlantic University were delighted to sponsor a talk, "Contemporary Architecture in Brasil," on February 6, 2007, at FAU.

To view a full-size poster for the event, please click on the image below.

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The fall, 2007, issue of the DOCOMOMO-US Newsletter contains more information on this and other threatened Rudolph buildings. To see it, please click here.