TMH's George Smart To Address National Preservation Conference

Sept. 22, 2009 - PRLog -- (DURHAM, NC) – George Smart of Durham, NC, the founder and director of Triangle Modern Archives, Inc. and TriangleModernHouses.com, will be part of a panel of seasoned preservationists and colleagues from around the nation that will address the preservation of modern resources during the National Trust of Historic Preservation’s National Conference. The Conference will be held in Nashville, Tennessee, from October 13 to 17.

The theme for the 2009 National Conference is “Sustaining The Future In Harmony With Our Past.” The interactive session in which George Smart will participate, dubbed “Help! There's this Modern Resource I Want to Save,” will be held Friday, October 16, from 1:30 - 3 p.m.

Smart launched his own advocacy for modernist residential architecture in the Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill “Triangle” of North Carolina in 2007. Cataloging every Modernist house he could find in the area, this work became the basis for Triangle Modernist Archives, Inc., a nonprofit organization that preserves, advocates, and builds community around modernist residential design. The nonprofit runs www.trianglemodernisthouses.com and frequent tours of modernist houses from
the 1950s to new construction.

In July 2009, Smart was honored for efforts on behalf of modernist houses when he received the 2009 Paul E. Buchanan Award from the Vernacular Architecture Forum. The Buchanan Award recognizes contributions to the study and preservation of vernacular architecture and the cultural landscape that do not take the form of books or published work.

According to the National Trust’s website, Smart’s session is designed to generate support, ideas, and resources for saving the nation’s modernist buildings and other resources. Session members will be invited to share information about modern resources they are trying to save or relate success stories.

Devin Colman, incoming president the Recent Past Preservation Network, and
others to be announced are also on the panel. Chris French is the moderator.

For more information on the National Trust’s 2009 National Preservation Conference, visit www.preservationnation.org and click on “resources.” For more information on George Smart and Triangle Modernist Houses, visit www.trianglemodernisthouses.com.

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About Triangle Modernist Houses: Triangle Modernist Archive, Inc. (TMA) is a North Carolina nonprofit organization. Established in 2007 by George Smart, the organization became a formal nonprofit in 2009. TMA is committed to restoring and growing modernist architecture in the Triangle. Our primary public service is managing Triangle Modernist Houses.com (TMH), an award-winning nonprofit educational archive for cataloguing, preserving, and advocating modernist residential design. TMH also hosts popular modernist house tours several times a year, giving the public access to the Triangle's most exciting residential architecture, past and present. These tours raise awareness and help preserve these works of art for future generations. Visit the website at www.trianglemodernisthouses.com.