Sacred Architecture Tour - impressions

Last Saturday, April 18th, AIA Cleveland and the Institute of Classical Architecture and Classical America held the first in what I hope are to be a series of Tours that showcase the Cleveland Catholic Churches which will be suffering closings as ordered by the Cleveland Catholic Diocese. Recently it was also announced that the appeals which had been filed by parishioners on behalf of their places of worship have been rejected with nary a structure spared.

I did a miserable job of catching everyone's name however listed on the flier that went about a week ago the tour was to be led by Tim Bennett. Whomever the speaker was did a rather fine job of keeping the discussion light enough for everyone in the audience and sprinkled in enough humor, history and gossip to keep our attentions sharply focused.

The churches were both quite beautiful and quite different and I imagine the merging of St. Colman's into St. Stephen's will be quite a shock (for those who had grown up in the grand open space that is St. Colman's) however perhaps the Gothic touches of St. Stephen's will counter with a rather fine and auspicious sense of wonder at the delicate balance of the the structure's graceful arcs and lines. Both buildings are quite beautiful and it was with heavy heart to sit among the throng and realize that even if I were to be an atheist, it would be difficult to not sense a greater purpose or being in a shrine such as these. They were garish in their ways, as most representations of true devotion are, but there was a noticable love in the care and craft and the intention of each item's placement that made amends for the decadent bauble and gild.

It makes the argument that we live among no great built works one hard to accept. It also adds a sting of biting remorse to acknowledging the undeveloped or undercooked "contemporary" design that has become our status quo, our "background" fabric.

When these treasures are stripped or their ornament (perhaps even are unfortunate enough to endure a dance with the wrecking crew) they will be gone forever and in their stead lay no certainty to worth or value, either as inspiration or as grace upon the eye. So I will look forward to the next tour, as an excuse to remember that great spaces can invoke a sense of wonder and awe, (as horribly easy as that is to forget).

I believe the next one is to be planned for early May 2009.

Richard Sommer named dean of University of Toronto with clear indication of cause

Blueprint for a New Architectural Dean Complete

University of Toronto recently named Richard Sommers, formerly of Harvard University Graduate School of Design new dean of U of T's John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design. Undoubtedly Sommers was brought in for a myriad of reasons however his connection as a designer specializing in urban areas was a reason specifically cited by University of Toronto. In fact University of Toronto put together quite a nice "mission statement" of goals for the new director which are meant to play to Sommer's and the University's strengths.

Univ. of Toronto's work to get out the news about their happenings, including events, and of course lectures, rather inspiring as a good Educational Institution should act as an extension of the community in which it resides and serves. Even though I am was never a student at UofT I find their program extremely interesting and of course love the city in which it resides. All of which is helped by the exposure that UofT works to attract to their accomplishments and community.

It is refreshing to see and a fine example of what a design school that wishes to use their location as an asset through involvement can achieve. I hope the local design community appreciates what they have.

The Soloist Benefit Screening for Magnolia Clubhouse

The Soloist Benefit Screening for Magnolia Clubhouse
Tuesday, April 28th, 2009
Cedar Lee Theater
2163 Lee Rd Cleveland, OH 44118

Tickets are only $20. Proceeds to benefit Magnolia Clubhouse.

Magnolia Clubhouse is a community that creates opportunities for people living with mental illness. Our mission is to ensure that people who have a mental illness are respected coworkers, neighbors and friends. Formerly known as Hill House, the Clubhouse has been promoting vocational, educational, social, and personal achievement as a center of psychosocial rehabilitation, since 1961.

2009 Bridge Project: Call for Artists

Deadline: June 1, 2009

The Cleveland Ingenuity Festival, the KSU Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative, Spaces Art Gallery, Cleveland Public Art, the Flats, Oxbow Neighborhood Development Corporation and All Signs Go are seeking proposals for THE BRIDGE PROJECT, taking place September 25th and 26th 2009 at the streetcar level of the Detroit Superior Bridge.

Actual Call for Artists - .pdf

Photo from "Historic Photos of Cleveland" by Ronald Burdick and Margaret L. Baughman via about.com

Record Store Day

Saturday, April 18th, 2009
Music Saves
158041 Waterloo Road
Cleveland, OH 44110

Tons of releases (2 page pdf)
Amazing Savings
See some sweet Dioramas
Tons of other Waterloo businesses and galleries are joining in the fun including the new Blue Arrow Records

So make a day of it, it should be beautiful outside. Go support local businesses and get to know your neighbors.

Pritzker Prize 2009 Laureate - Peter Zumthor

Photos and information can be found here on the Pritzker Architectural Prize Website

Kent State Architecture tries to sneak another lecture past us - Brad Cloepfil

Monday, April 13th, 2009
Brad Cloepfil of Allied Works Architecture
Cartwright Hall at THE Kent State (top secret events) University
7pm (although the poster says 7.15pm - I am thinking no one knows what the hell is going on there anymore)

Special thanks to Jacob at archinect for mentioning this, even though when I was down for the last lecture, last week, and mentioned to staff that getting the word out would be awesome for those of us interested in design, no one mentioned the upcoming lecture at all. Not a damn peep.

Knowing is half the battle.

Cleveland Sacred Architecture Tour I

St. Colman
2027 W. 65th St.
10am

St. Stephen
1930 W. 54th St.
11.30am

AIA Cleveland, the Institute of Classical Architecture and Classical America have begun compiling tours of recently closed Catholic churches in Cleveland and the surrounding area in order to celebrate much of the architecture before it is lost forever. This first tour is to mark the beginning of a series in which groups of visitors will be led (by Tim Barrett) will be exposed to and have time to capture some of the grand spaces and details. Participants of the tours are encouraged to bring cameras (video and still), sketchbooks, etc. AIA Cleveland hopes to stage an exhibition of the recordings.

In light of the pending closure of so many of the region's Roman
Catholic churches, tours of several of the most significant ones have
been scheduled. On April 18, the first tour begins at 10 am, at St.
Colman Church, the second tour begins at 11:30 am at St. Stephen Church.
Future church tours will be announced as they are scheduled. The tours
are free of charge and Continuing Education Credits (1 HSW unit per
church) are available.

flier

any press isn't always good press - cia addition makes list of dubious honors

I had this article pointed out to me a couple of days ago. I was trying to find the article online but couldn't so I apologize for the crummy scan (which you can click to enlarge to readable size).

Not to be outed about it but I actually liked MVRDV's "bump and kiss" proposal and found it to be a much more interesting addition to a cultural institution than the proposed Burt Hill addition which is rather disappointing (especially when compared to OSU's newer Knowlton Hall design studio's building which embodies what a studio workspace could be if it were designed for working or designing in).

Article thanks to ID Magazine who I hope won't ask me to pull the scanned page right away so that Cleveland can enjoy being architecturally infamous, again.

Tremont Art Walk - April 2009

Tremont Art Walk
Friday, April 10th, 2009
Tremont Neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio
6-10pm

Image and Object Show at Asterisk Gallery Curated by Irina Koukhanova and Mark Slankard

Innerbelt Plan Public Meeting

Innerbelt Plan Public Meeting
Tuesday April 21, 2009
Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church
2187 West 14th Street, Cleveland, OH 44113
4-8pm

In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the purpose of this hearing is to provide an opportunity for review and comment on the project’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement and for citizens to provide feedback through written, verbal or recorded verbal comments. In addition, in accordance with the National Historic Preservation Act, public comments are requested on projected impacts to historic properties.

Comments received (by mail, email, or fax) by 5 p.m. Thursday, May 21, 2009 will be considered in the Final Environmental Impact Statement. Comments may be submitted to:

Ohio Department of Transportation, District 12
Attention: Craig Hebebrand
5500 Transportation Boulevard Garfield Heights, OH 44125
Fax: 216.584.3508
On the Web: www.Innerbelt.org

Strangely I saw the notice after a delicious lunch at Sterle's Slovenian Country House (danger, embedded polka music!), otherwise I would have completely missed that there was the possibility of any more public input, of which I am sure there should be plenty.

Just imagine how important this project is to businesses in and around Cleveland. Then imagine how many commuters it affects as well as visitors coming from the airport. Now maybe it becomes apparent how vital the innerbelt bridge is to not only the fabric of the city but also our image. I understand the need to rush this project in order to capitalize on federal money but that should not supersede the base requirement of a project being done well.

groundbreaking vs groundbreaking

What is a groundbreaking anyway? A true marking of the beginning of the construction of a project? A milestone to simply mark an symbolic "beginning" with some kind words and the moving of a shovel full of dirt?

27 coltman

circle 118

Above are two images from two almost adjacent projects. Circle 118, which exists on the corner of Euclid and East 118th and 27 Coltman which are being constructed on Coltman and East 119th near Euclid Ave. The Euclid Avenue and the Red Line are all that separate the two sites.

It was interesting to note that Circle 118 broke physical ground in mid March and has already begun excavating (or at least started pushing giant piles of dirt around) and seemed to completely bypass the public groundbreaking ceremony. Meanwhile the Coltman project had its groundbreaking ceremony March 27th which consisted of the standard blessing, photo ops and party (held at the Sculpture Center) which drew a pretty large crowd (estimated at around 300). However the Coltman project still doesn't have any equipment on the site.

Word on the street (from a single unverified source for whatever that is worth) is that both projects have units moving and should both be realized, which would be quite an interesting achievement in this market.

So what is a groundbreaking? Is it the actual beginning of construction? A milestone that indicates that funds have been allocated and are being utilized in the building of the project or a large ceremony which attracts a large crowd and fanfare but does not indicate any actual construction? I ask because I find both happening in the absence of the other rather interesting and perhaps a little telling about the life of building projects in Cleveland.

I am leaning towards the physical moving of earth in preparation of building to indicate a true groundbreaking and even though the Coltman project threw one hell of a party, I fear they have a bit of catchup.

Craig Scott lecture reaction - KSU spring 2009 lecture series

This last Thursday, April 2nd, Craig Scott of iwamaotoscott gave a lecture/presentation at the Micheal Schwartz Auditorium at Kent State University.

The lecture happily consisted of much more than a simple traipse through a project portfolio as Scott illustrated not only a series of projects ranging from art installations and large scale masterplan proposals, but also the rigor and trials that exemplified a well thought out and practiced approach.

An aspect that permeated the projects shown was an almost childlike sense of awe at exploiting the constraints of materials. Utilizing digital media to create electronic models, ideas were quickly studied and metrics of evaluation were formed. However, what makes iwamotoscott architects so very interesting is the then deliberate exercise in physically studying the material constraints and exploring the visual and tactile relationship of construction.

From the Voissuir Cloud installation at sci arc (which employed a rigorous structural study and painstaking craft of construction to execute) to the REEF ps1 proposal (which required a half scale model to verify that the inferred material properties would react in a predictable fashion) the love of crafting shines through. Somewhere through their history, Lisa Iwamoto and Craig Scott's desire to discover the pure truths of material exploration has ingrained itself richly within the partner's ideals and it is a testament to the tenacity of the firm that these explorations are so finely executed.

I suggest that greater attention is to be paid to the impetus behind these and other proposed projects including the Ordos 100 villa, Hydro-Net (designed for the History Channel's City of the Future, and the proposal for Battery Park South (whose images should be released soon) for each project, as diverse in construction or scope as possible, rely on a sense of desire to empirically explain the truth of and through materiality and then fashion the proper technique to celebrate it.

Craig Scott Lecture - Kent State University

somewhere around here:

View Larger Map

at:

...sort of old news as the "happening" has been posted on the Kent Arch College website (danger resizes your browser cause it knows better than you) for a bit now, however it took me a while to get a poster that I could actually reference and verify and glean actual information from such as time and or place. Perhaps Kent State actually would like people to come to these once in a while. Sigh.