Blog

Docomomo US Tour Day 2014

Join Docomomo WEWA today for Docomomo US Tour Day 2014!

The Little Finn Hill neighborhood in Kirkland, Washington is home to a collection of modest, mid-century modern residences designed by revered Northwest architect Paul Hayden Kirk and built for developer Richard G. Robinson in 1954-1955. Docomomo WEWA invites you to explore this community of livable homes that was once prominently featured in Life and Sunset magazines in the 1950s. One of the houses on the tour was featured in Pacific NW Magazine in 2012. Tickets are available in advance or at the door. Learn more about this event here.

Not in the Seattle area? Join Docomomo US for Tour Day 2014. The 2014 event includes 41 partnerships offering approximately 50 tours planned in nearly half of the states across the country, including 37 individual cities. Tour Day continues to be one of the nation’s largest events promoting modern architecture, design and our built heritage of the mid-20th century. Learn more about Docomomo US here.

Docomomo US announces “The Future of Mid – Century” featuring 50+ tours during the eighth-annual national Tour Day celebration.

Docomomo US is pleased to announce the full schedule of Tour Day, one of the largest national programs devoted to the appreciation of Modern architecture in the United States. Set to take place on October 11, 2014 and throughout the month of October, this year’s event includes more than 50 tours planned in 21 states and 37 individual cities and brings together 17 Docomomo US Chapters, 5 Friend Organizations, in addition to architecture and preservation organizations, architects, historians, designers, and enthusiasts. Hosted by many of the leading preservation voices, Tour Day 2014 events will offer something for everyone. For the full list of tours and locations visit www.docomomo-us.org/tourday.
Tour Day 2014 “The Future of Mid-Century” looks into current issues facing modern architecture today and highlights the innovative and progressive work of architects, designers, and typologies not usually recognized within the scope of mid-century design. Featured events include a lecture and reception hosted by Docomomo US’ Southern California chapter that celebrates the work of Bruce Goff and Bart Prince, pioneers of organic architecture. The tour offered by Docomomo US’ chapter in Minnesota will allow attendees to explore modern residential design in two Saint Paul neighborhoods, one that is familiar to many—University Grove, and one that is a hidden gem—Stonebridge Boulevard. Hosted by the New York-Tristate chapter, the tour of the Lenox hill HealthPlex, formerly the headquarters of the National Maritime Union gives a unique opportunity to visit a recent preservation success story. Guests will hear from the key members of the HealthPlex project’s on the historic preservation and adaptive reuse efforts that lead to the building being designated a New York City Landmark and successfully repurposed into a medical facility. For those who will be in the Lone Star State, the North Texas chapter will be touring Dallas’ Exchange Park which boasted in 1957 to be the US’s first fully integrated commercial development.

“After 20 years of advocacy, the work of Docomomo US and the preservation of Modern architecture have finally come of age,” says Docomomo US president Theodore Prudon, “Docomomo US is pleased to see its hard work and advocacy pay off so that mid-century can have a future.”

In Albany, New York, tour attendees will have exclusive, behind-the-scenes access to “The Egg,” designed by Wallace Harrison, as part of Historic Albany’s guided walking tour. Detroit Area Art Deco Society’s tour of select Detroit area Lustron Homes will provide a rare look into the world of post war prefab homes. In Las Vegas, guests can hop on Paradise Palms’ double-decker bus and learn which homes belonged to local and national celebrities such as Johnny Carson, Phyliss Diller, Sonny Liston, Juliet Prowse, and Rip Taylor, and in Maryland attendees should bring their bike for a tour of modern residential architecture hosted by Montgomery Modern in partnership with the AIA Potamic chapter. Tour Day 2014 is also partnering with organizations such as Sarasota Mod, Palm Springs Modernism Week, and Tucson Modernism Week who are offering multiple day celebrations of modernism in their area.

“One of the most exciting Tour Day 2014 events is the debut of SarasotaMOD,” states Docomomo US’ Executive Director Liz Waytkus. “The idea of a legacy event was developed during our National Symposium in Sarasota in 2013, and we are thrilled to see this festival celebrating Sarasota’s rich mid-century architecture.”

As a collective, national event, Docomomo US Tour Day is able to offer distinctive tours and events that are open to the public, as well as opportunities to celebrate recent preservation achievements and identify new issues. Tour Day 2014 anticipates the participation of thousands of attendees, made possible through a wide variety of partnerships that collectively offer an exciting range of tours and events. New commitments from organizations such as La Jolla Historical Society, Claremont Heritage, and East Texas Modern along with the continuing participation of organizations such as the New Haven Preservation Trust, The Glass House, and the Los Angeles Conservancy continues to result in a program aimed to reach more individuals and offer the public the opportunity to explore modern architecture in their region.
A complete listing of partners and events for Tour Day 2014 is now available at www.docomomo-us.org/tourday
Follow us on Twitter: @docomomo_us #tourday
Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/DOCOMOMO.US

Participating Partners and Hosts for Docomomo US Tour Day 2014

Docomomo US Chapters Friend Organizations
DC Houston Mod
Chicago Mid-West Indiana Landmarks
Florida Modern STL
Georgia North Carolina Modernist Houses
Hawaii Palm Springs Modernism Week
Mid Tex Mod
Minnesota
Michigan
New England
New Orleans
New York Tri-State
Northern California
North Texas
Oregon
Philadelphia
Southern California
Western Washington

Participating Partners
At Home Modern – Wallingfrod, Pennsylvania
Claremont Heritage – Claremont, California
Detroit Area Art Deco Society – Detroit, Michigan
East Texas Modern – Tyler, Texas
First Presbyterian Church of Stamford – Stamford, Connecticut
The Glass House – New Canaan, Connecticut
Historic Albany Foundation – Albany, New York
Indiana Historic Landmarks Foundation – Indianapolis, Indiana
La Jolla Historical Society – La Jolla, California

Los Angeles Conservancy – Los Angeles, California
Montgomery County Planning Department’s Historic Preservation office with the AIA Potomac
Valley Chapter and Docomomo US/DC – Silver Spring, Maryland
Modern Phoenix – Phoenix, Arizona
New Haven Preservation Trust – New Haven, Connecticut
Paradise Palms Housing Community – Las Vegas, Nevada
Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Postwar Architecture Task Force – Phoenix Arizona
Preservation Iowa – Des Moines, Iowa
Preservation Houston with Houston Mod – Houston, Texas
Sarasota Mod with Sarasota Architectural Foundation – Sarasota, Florida
Schweikher House Preservation Trust – Schaumburg, Illinois
Southfield Historical Society & City of Southfield – Southfield, Michigan
Tucson Modernism Week – Tucson, Arizona

About:
Docomomo US (Documentation and Conservation of buildings, sites and neighborhoods of the Modern Movement in the United States) is a 501(c)3 registered non-profit organization consisting of a union of 17 regional chapters and 5 friend organizations that share its members’ knowledge of and enthusiasm for the Modern Movement. Docomomo US was founded in the United States in 1995 and was incorporated into its present organizational structure in 1997. Docomomo
US operates as an all-volunteer group comprised of enthusiasts, historians, architects, designers, students, and preservationists. Its Board of Directors represents the diverse professional and academic interests and its presence in regions across the country.

2014 Notable Programming:
Docomomo US held its 2nd annual National Symposium, Modernism in Texas, in Houston, Texas in March 2014 and is looking forward to its 3rd annual Symposium taking place in June 2015 in Minnesota.
In 2014, Docomomo US’s inaugural Modernism in America Awards became the first national program of its kind to celebrate the projects and the people working to sensitively preserve and rehabilitate significant mid-century modern buildings for continued productive use and to raise public awareness of the ongoing threats to modern architecture and design.