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Emergence
(article)

By Ian Merker, Associate AIA, AIACV Associate Director

 

Not too long ago, I went looking through my father’s attic for my children’s books.  My son is of an age now to appreciate them and I thought that it would be such a treasure for him to read some of my books from when I was his age.  To my amazement, I found another treasure, a piece of family history.
 
There was a box full of my dad’s concert posters and rock posters from the ‘60s, ranging from The Beatles to Jefferson Airplane.  Within that same box was a slightly tattered, yellowed set of blueprints.
 
“These are THE house plans,” my dad said.  “When your grandparents got married, they had an associate of theirs draw up some plans for a piece of land they bought in Boyle Heights, right by where Cal State L.A. is now located.”
 
My grandparents were a progressive young couple.  The war had just ended, my grandfather got out of the army, got a transport to Los Angeles and chucked his heavy jacket in a waste bin at Union Station and never looked back.  He was into acting and comedy and tried his talent in a few playhouses and befriended a some people in the business.  Somewhere along the way he got connected to a young designer named Theo. Van Fossen.  “Ted” had spent some time with Frank Lloyd Wright out in Arizona.  This guy was a true bohemian.  He was from the school of thought that believed becoming a licensed “Architect” would detract from his design.  This was just the kind of guy my grandparents would have commissioned for the design of their home.
 
He would come to their house and spend all day with them, seeing how they lived.  They would chat and have cocktails.  There was probably a lot of smoking involved.  But this was all part of the process.  Ted would take clues from how they lived and leave them with the idea that Nature and dwelling are integrated and the organic geometries of Nature are the highest form of architecture.  Frank Lloyd Wright spelled Nature with a capital “N”.
 
The design incorporates every Usonian ideal that Frank Lloyd Wright taught.  Work with the contours of the land, orient the building for solar access, use earthen materials, and design for the people, not the cars.  It was a small house and minimally decorated with a pattern of brick and concrete block that I can only describe as elegant as a chalk stripe suit.  The building would have had significant thermal mass and easily accommodate radiant flooring.
 
Not until recently had there been such a housing boom.  The City of Los Angeles practically grew overnight and many great designs and poor designs came along with it, but the concepts that Mr. Van Fossen and my grandparents had were not meant to be.  My grandparents were newlyweds living from paycheck to paycheck.  They would have to get a building loan for their project.  Even a bank that was known for catering to immigrants and small businesses was not willing to finance their home.  The loan officers said it was “Too modern.”  My grandmother would curse those words for the next five decades until her death.
 
Mr. Van Fossen left L.A. soon after and ended up developing a village just outside of Columbus, Ohio, integrating the same design ideas he shared with my grandparents. The neighborhood went by under the radar until 2003, when it was awarded a National Historic Landmark status.
 
Surprisingly, Mr. Van Fossen is still alive, in his nineties, and working in Pennsylvania.  He returns to his project in Ohio at least once a year to do a little consulting work.  He intends to have his work archived at his alma mater, the New Bauhaus, now part of the Illinois Institute of Technology.
 

My dad let me keep the copy of the house plans.  I guess I’m of an age now to appreciate them.  I’ve written a letter to Mr. Van Fossen to thank him for being a part of my family history and forwarded a copy of the Merker Residence to be stored with the other Van Fossen drawings at Rush Creek. 

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Modesto International Architecture Festival

A Celebration of Architecture and Community

By Barrett Lipomi, AIA, AIASV Vice President

 

In 2008 AIA Sierra Valley founded the “AIA Sierra Valley Film Festival” in collaboration with three other local non-profits.  The festival was created with the goal of celebrating architecture and educating our community about the value of architects and their profession.  Over the past two years the festival has grown, hosting seven events and featuring films, documentaries, and guest lecturers.  The festival gained national attention as it was recognized in January 2010 by the AIA’s “Best Practices” publication. 

Inspired by the overwhelmingly positive response from the community, the 2010 festival has expanded into a three day celebration.  The newly titled “Modesto International Architecture Festival” will showcase tours, movies, exhibitions, discussions, and special events.  The festival provides an opportunity for the general public, design professionals, companies, and cultural institutions to celebrate architecture and the architecture profession as both an art and a science, and to heighten public awareness of architecture and the value of architects. Additionally, programming will explore the ways architecture and urban design impact our communities emphasizing the AIA’s Ten Principles of Livable Communities.

The three day festival will take place on October 21, 22, 23, 2010 at the State Theatre in downtown Modesto.  Opening on Thursday evening with a free interactive multimedia exhibition featuring Adam Goss and Red Mike of Chicago based Spirit of Space who will demonstrate the significance of video as an integral part of the design process, a valued marketing tool, and an important method of post-occupancy evaluation.  Other activities include a Friday morning Architecture Café, self-guided tours of Modesto’s modernist architecture and the city’s religious architecture, and an evening short-movie program.  

Friday’s short-movie program includes A Girl Is A Fellow Here”: 100 Women Architects in the Studio of Frank Lloyd Wright, a 15-minute documentary that explores a little known legacy of Frank Lloyd Wright. Produced by the Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation, the movie premiered at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York. At a time when few architectural firms would hire women, Frank Lloyd Wright unhesitatingly employed women, giving them both training and opportunity to practice. Ultimately, over 100 women architects and designers worked with Wright.

On Saturday morning Luciole Designs will present on sustainable landscape architecture, this will be followed by a guided tour of downtown highlighting Modesto’s response to issues of livability.  A gala reception will be held that evening before the screening of two feature-length movies including the award winning Visual Acoustics: The Modernism of Julius Schulman.

The Modesto International Architecture Festival will also engage the public and design professionals, with Modesto's rich architectural and design heritage.  For decades through the 20th century, Modesto was on the cutting edge of architecture in California. Modesto's landscape, commercial, residential, and government architecture was held up as a model for others and major architects designed buildings and landscapes in the city. Among them are John Funk, William Wurster, Frank Lloyd Wright, Joseph Esherick, Lawrence Halprin, Thomas Church, and many others.

My hope is that the festival will be a catalyst for a greater movement within the Central Valley.  To create livable communities and inspire residents to value their rich architectural history while promoting progressive design, smart growth, and environmental sensitivity.  Members of the city government have applauded our efforts and in honor of the festival, Mayor Jim Ridenour will officially proclaim October 17-24, 2010 "Modesto Architecture Week".

Tickets for individual events are on sale now.  A festival pass providing admission to everything is only $25.  AIA members can also earn up to 7 CEU for attending festival events.   Information about the festival can be found at: www.modestoarchfest.com

Barrett Lipomi, AIA is an architect with Lionakis in Modesto.  He has been an AIA member since 2005 and currently serves as the Vice-President of the Sierra Valley Chapter.   

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Meet AIA San Diego’s 2010 Young Architect of the Year, Mike Burnett, AIA

By Alison Morita,  Associate AIA, LEED AP and Associate Director, AIA San Diego

 

The AIA San Diego chapter Young Architect of the Year Award is bestowed upon individuals who have shown exceptional leadership and made significant contributions to the profession in an early stage of their architectural career. This year’s award was given by jury members Randy Brown FAIA, Gwynne Pugh FAIA, and recipient of the AIA’s 2010 Young Architect Award, Kristine Royal AIA to Mike Burnett AIA of FoundationForForm Architecture & Development. The award was presented to Mike by last year’s winner, Kevin deFreitas AIA. Being a southern California native and also earning his bachelor’s degree and Master of Architecture in Real Estate Development from Woodbury University, Mike Burnett is a true regional representation of the great architects that continue to emerge from San Diego.   AIA San Diego’s Emerging Professional Commission had the wonderful opportunity to ask Mike a few questions regarding the profession, inspiration, and San Diego.

EPC: Growing up, did you know you wanted to be an Architect? If not, what did you want to be and when did you realize that architecture was in your future? 

As far back as I can remember I was sketching space around the human body – it started with futuristic cars and triple-decker motor-homes then moved into buildings and eventually cities… I have always been fascinated by ideas of scale and how materials positioned around us influence our behavior and use of space.

 

 

EPC:  Who have been some of your mentors throughout your life and your architectural career?

Well of course I have to say my mom & dad who supported me in whatever crazy idea I had next..

 

my college job boss who turned to me one day and asked why I wasn’t going to architecture school… when I had no answer for him he told me he would fire me if I didn’t follow my dreams – so with that, off to architecture school I went!

 

Ted Smith, Jonathan Segal, Eric Naslund and Alan Rosenblum – these are just a few of the absolutely key inspirational architects during my education that helped me realize I could actually do this..

 

Herzog & de Meuron  - enough said… these guys are simply brilliant!!

 

 

EPC: At what point did you decide you needed to have your own practice, and how long after you made that decision did it materialize?

When I was standing in mxd830, half-framed and got the call that we won tax credits on the lemon grove project…  the next day we started CDs on laptops in the construction trailer and voila!… FoundationForForm was officially born.

 

EPC: What has been your biggest challenge in developing your practice and yourself as an architect? 

Besides the uncertain paycheck ;) - its been finding the right consultants that create a TEAM environment and being able to delegate tasks in a concise way to keep the project moving forward as efficiently as possible… its tough to transition from the employee to employer! – Now I get why my old bosses did some of the things they did!

 

 

EPC: Could you share some of your short term and long term goals as an architect?

Short term, organize our ACAD detail library… ha! right… 

long term, be a part of bringing value back to the quality of our built environment – reinstating the value of ‘Architect’ in the client and public perception. We are quick to pay a sports figure mutli-million dollar contracts- but when it comes to long-term decisions like land-use planning and the design of our urban centers, there is a rushed design process and way too much community involvement for design input, often leading to watered-down – less exciting outcomes.… when I go to the doctor or lawyer for help with an issue, I listen to their professional opinion… why don’t architects have this kind of perceived value anymore?

 

EPC: Any current projects in the work that you can share some information about?

Currently putting together a small deal in Imperial Beach working with the American Legion Post to replace their Legion Hall and add 18 units of affordable veterans housing.  Also a tiny deal in Solana Beach to build above an old beach parking lot with 10 units of affordable family housing including a neighborhood market w sidewalk café.

And another market-rate deal near downtown SD with loft housing with sidewalk restaurant/bar and professional offices and pocket park.

 

EPC: Besides architecture, what else do you enjoy doing?

Restoring hotrods with my dad, driving and tinkering with my VW Karmann Ghia, drinks w friends, theatre and of course the weekly Dreamgirls show at Mos! 

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