Triangle Modernist Houses "Modernism at Risk: Modern Solutions for Saving Modern Landmarks"

April 24, 2012 - PRLog -- (Raleigh, NC) -- Triangle Modernist Houses (TMH), the award-winning non-profit organization dedicated to documenting, preserving, and promoting Modernist residential design, will present “Modernism at Risk: Modern Solutions for Saving Modern Landmarks,” an international exhibit, from June 1-9 in the new AIA NC Center for Architecture & Design in downtown Raleigh.

“Modernism at Risk” features a large-format photographic gallery of destroyed or endangered Modernist buildings by internationally renowned photographer Andrew Moore.  The exhibit has traveled the world including the Art Institute of Tampa, the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach, The AIA New York Center for Architecture, Lund University in Sweden, the University of Florida-Gainesville, the University of Montreal, and the University of Michigan’s Taubman School of Architecture.

A project of the World Monuments Fund, “Modernism at Risk” presents five case studies exploring the role designers play in preserving Modern landmarks. These include buildings by architectural luminaries Mies van der Rohe, Walter Gropius, Marcel Breuer, Eduardo Catalano, Paul Rudolph, Charles Gwathmey, Edward Durell Stone, and Warren Platner. The exhibit’s goal is to persuade the public that Modern buildings can continue to be economically and functionally viable.

“The demise of Modern buildings is a local issue,” said TMH founder and board chair George Smart. “Starting with the destruction of Raleigh’s Catalano House in 2001, we have lost many ‘livable works of art.’ In addition to the photographs, the exhibit will include rare models and a ongoing video loop of award-winning houses in North Carolina. People can learn about great NC houses still standing, which ones are endangered, and how we can work to preserve them.”

Modernist architecture firms and product vendors in the Triangle area are sponsoring each day of the exhibit. They will share samples of their own work and be on hand to speak with tour-goers. These sponsors are: Frank Harmon, FAIA, of Frank Harmon Architect PA; Vinny Petrarca of Tonic Design + Construction; Phil Szostak, FAIA, of Szostak Design/Build; Steve Schuster, FAIA, of Clearscapes Architecture; Kenneth Hobgood, FAIA, of Kenneth Hobgood Architects; Matthew Griffith, AIA, and Erin Sterling Lewis, AIA, of In Situ Studio; Will Alphin of Alphin Design Build; Jerry Nowell of Nowell’s Contemporary Furniture; and Dan Nicely, Assoc. AIA, of VMZINC.

Tickets to the exhibit are: Opening night, June 1, $6.95 in advance, $10 at the door; June 2-9, $3.95 advance, $5 at the door. AIA North Carolina members are admitted free.  Each night is hosted or sponsored by a different design firm.  For more information and tickets, visit http://www.trianglemodernisthouses.com/atrisk.htm. Proceeds benefit TMH's ongoing documentation, preservation, and promotion projects.

The new AIA NC Center for Architecture & Design is located at 14 East Peace Street directly across from Peace College. For more information, contact George Smart at 919-740-8407.