Marcel Breuer's Iconic Atlanta Library: Archived October 2010

Interview Exclusive: Barry Bergdoll @ MoMA

2010-02-03T12:30:00.028-05:00

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Photo: Barry Bergdoll/Image: Museum of Modern Art

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Max Eternity - Today I had a phone conversation with Barry Bergdoll, the Chief Curator of Architecture at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). I have had brief encounters with Bergdoll before, but today our talk was more focused and uninterrupted. Bergdoll, who's also a professor at Columbia University, has been one of the more prolific figures to take an interest in the the preservation effort for Atlanta's Downtown Central Library, designed by Marcel Breuer.

Last year, in a Metropolis Magazine article written by Jonathan Lerner, Bergdoll, Jon Buono, Isabelle Hyman and John Szabo, discussed the future of Central. I was interviewed as well, and so was Commissioner Rob Pitts, who is promoting the demolition idea.

In January of this year, Bergdoll gave a talk at the library entitled "Marcel Breuer: The Invention of Heavy Lightness" where, using the Central Library and the Whitney Museum--both built by Breuer in a 15-year sequence--he spoke about Breuer's ability to create monumental spaces that seem to hover and float above ground--adjacent sidewalks and streets.

Bergdoll has been involved with numerous book projects, as writer and editor, and most recently he, along with another curator at MoMA, Leah Dickerman, recently completed an epic exhibition in celebration of last year's 90th Anniversary of the Bauhaus, entitled 1919-1933: Workshops for Modernity.

-click image to visit t MoMA online-

Interview: Barry Bergdoll
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Max Eternity (ME): Beyond functionality, what role does architecture play in the everyday experience?

Barry Bergdoll (BB): Firmness, commodity and delight. It's delight and beauty, and it's a sense of civic spirit--an ethos about things
that matter in society.

ME: It hasn't happened since 1938, so what prompted MoMA to launch such a tremendous retrospective of the Bauhaus school this/last year? Is something especially relevant now?

BB: Well the nominal reason was the 90th anniversary of the Bauhaus and the 80th anniversary of the museum--MoMA--a museum inspired by the Bauhaus. A
nniversaries are not important, because they happen. W
hat was relevant, was to look back at different media, seeing how they influence each other--how media cross pollinates. Fixed and moving with still. how hybrids mix in. So it was, lets just look at avant garde art a century ago with different eyes.

-The Whitney Museum of American Art/Image: Wikipedia -

ME: Recently I heard you speak in Atlanta, the title of your talk was "Marcel Breuer: The Invention of Heavy L
ightness." We know that Breuer was both a student and instructor at the Bauhaus, yet what of this heavy lightness, as you say?

BB: The Atlanta library is a perfect example, the Whitney as well. It's a kind of gravitas of monumental forms. It's holding them aloft in the air--this idea that a heavy object can be light, floating above the sidewalk--the street. People think of the Whitney as an inverted ziggurat. but it's a hollow, inverted ziggurat, because it's transparent on the ground floor level. It's not like a pyrimid or ziggurat, because it gets heavier as it rises.

What Breuer was doing in his late career was thinking of how [he could] I can go back to monumentality--the ancient large scale forms, not reproduce it, but create it in a modern way--the way that you create that with steel form and concrete structures. So Breuer creates a synthesis with primitive monumentality and modern structural lightness.

- The Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library/Image: Wikipedia -

ME: Breuer built many houses. One I've recently discovered is the Weizenblatt house in North Carolina, but I read last year that you had taken an interest in the Frank House, located in Pennsylvania?

BB: Yes, that's the earliest American example where Gropius and Breuer were able to realize, in this country, the idea that a building was a total work of art. They did the building and the furniture, and had an impact on the landscape as well. Everything was a part of the total design concept.

ME: I understand one of your fields of study is the history of exhibiting architecture, and the museum challenges and practices associated with that. What's this about?

BB: That's simple. It's a simple problem, that you can't bring buildings inside a museum. So you have to figure out how to exhibit something that you can't put in a gallery. Unlike paintings and sculpture, where you bring things in to let people see, with architecture you have to try and create a relationship with a work of art of something that's not there.

ME: I recently saw a video interview with Richard Miers at the Big Think website. In that interview, Miers was asked if architecture was art. In response he said that all buildings weren't architecture, but that good architecture was art? Your thoughts on this, In other words, what defines a building as architecture--as art?

BB: That's a pretty wide open statement. To ask on a scale, where do you put the threshold--when do you say? I say yes, architecture is art.

- MLK Central Library in Washington D.C. by Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe/Image: Wikipedia -

ME: So many important buildings that have found themselves at risk of being demolished, are public structures, like for instance the Central Library in Atlanta and the Mies Van Der Rohe designed MLK Library in Washington DC. We know that architects and historians are interested in these sites, but what about the people they serve, who often times have no knowledge of a building's history? How might they be better informed?

BB: I think one of the things that's mystifying is why children are not taught in school about architecture?
Because of this, when a building is at risk, you end up with a small group of people fighting a battle that most people didn't even know about. Architecture concerns everybody. It's the art form that really influences the quality of our daily lives most directly. If our schools would take that on we'd have a much more engaged citizenry.

ME: Thanks for taking the time to speak with me

BB: Great. Nice talking with you again.

PART 1 of 3: Marcel Breuer Atlanta Exhibition 2010 - Barry Bergdoll Lecture from YAF Atlanta on Vimeo.

Interview Exclusive: Brenda Galina @ MoDA

2010-01-13T13:18:00.015-05:00

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Max Eternity - Moments ago I had a chance to chat with Brenda Galina, Director of the Museum of Design Atlanta (MoDA). Along with Architects Institute of America - Atlanta, the Atlanta Public Library System and others, Galina and MoDA have been largely responsible for the fruition of one of the brightest exhibition achievements in the recent history of Atlanta's museum scene--the Marcel Breuer Retrospective. (All images courtesy of Vitra Design Museum)

_________________________

________

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Marcel Breuer 1902 - 1981

_____________________________________

Max Eternity (ME): Brenda, thanks for taking the time to chat with me.

Brenda Galina (BG): It's my pleasure.

ME: So, first I'd like to ask a simple but important question, what's the role of artistic institutions?

BG: I think it's probably a lot of roles. there's one that comes to mind--to bring to the public their specific form of artistic endeavor...what ever that is. It's to showcase the finest of what they can create, also educating the public about what good architeture and sculpture is. These things enhance the quality of life for the public.

ME: How would you describe your experience with the Breuer exhibition, what's the response so far?

BG: I think people that have seen the exhibit, folks that aren't architects of historians, are really impressed. People are really just surprised to see these original pieces, especially the chairs.

As well, most people are stunned by the architecture, because so many don't realize what a modernist Breuer was at the time. So they are pleasantly surprised by how timeless Breuer was--his work.

ME: If lessons are to be learned by Breuer, what is it that he has taught us from a design perspective and as ordinary citizens?

BG: It's the same answer almost, because good design is lasting. Nobody will argue that his was expert design. And when you look at it today, it's as current as it was 50 years ago.

ME: With that in mind, what would you say is the role of a museum when it comes to cultural heritage?

BG: Well, I think [pause] it's to bring an awareness to the public of the magnitude of the Central Library, for instance. So, I think it's all just a matter of pointing out to the public the merits of good architecture and design.

ME: Is architecture art? I ask, because I've had this discussion with some, who seem to think that architecture is not art, because of its utilitarian nature. Others however say, yes, it is art. What's you view on this?

BG: I think good architecture is art. There's nothing more beautiful than seeing a beautiful building.

ME: So beyond the Breuer experience, what's the mission of MoDA, and are there any future development we should be aware of?

BG: MoDA's vision has always been to bring excellent design to the public eye. We're constantly seeking good design. And I think Marcel Breuer is one of the biggest names. This is one of the top exhibitions we've ever had.

Architecture is an important part of our programming. And next year, Februrary, we have our traveling show "Beyond Sticks and Bricks." The exhibit spotlights many of Atlanta's outstandig design examples, as the entire focus is to help the public to understand what it might mean to be "Green" while also giving them the tools to make a difference. This can help to raise an awareness about what living, working and playing in the Atlanta area can be--beyond the architectural significance, while also telling the story of individuals in various environments and locals.

ME: Brenda, I look forward to it.

BG: Thanks Max.

- Click here to visit the Museum of Design Atlanta-

October 27, 2009 - January 16, 2010: Breuer Retrospective @ Central

2010-01-08T10:33:00.012-05:00

Image Credit: Susan B.

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Max Eternity - A special thanks goes out to art historian, curator and photographer, Susan B, who took these recent photos of the "Marcel Breuer Retrospective" exhibition currently on display at the Breuer designed, Central Library in Downtown Atlanta. The exhibit, co-hosted at the Museum of Design Atlanta and The Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library has been on display since October of 2009, and is soon to come to a close on January 16, 2010.

In the last 2 years the Central Library has found itself at the center of a controversial restructuring plan for the entire public library system, which threatened to see the building torn down, to be replace by a newer, slightly larger building a few blocks away. However, with a terribly stalled national economy and a renewed interest in architecture of the Modernist-era, the building has surprisingly become more popular--more appreciated.

Over the weekend I had an email exchange with John Szabo, Executive Director of the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System, who made these remarks about the Breuer Retrospective:

“The Central Library’s ‘Marcel Breuer’ exhibition has brought in thousands of people since it opened, both local patrons and many new visitors from the Southeast and the world. Both those visitors who are well-informed about Breuer’s place in architectural history and those who are meeting his work for the first time, take away a greater understanding of Breuer and his last completed project, the Central Library. The exhibition is a wonderful way for us to celebrate not only Marcel Breuer but also the Central Library. We hope that those who have not yet come to see the exhibition will use the last two weeks in January to stop by and see what the Atlanta Journal-Constitution named one of the ’10 Best Art Exhibitions of 2009.”

Since the exhibition's well-attended opening reception, there has been a steady stream of lectures and presentations going on at the building. Yet beyond that, not just in Atlanta, much has been written and said about the legacy of the Bauhaus school, where Breuer studied and taught, as this year the now defunct institution celebrates its 90th Anniversary.

The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is currently displaying its first major exhibition of the Bauhaus since 1938, entitled "1919-1933: Workshops for Modernity", and many books and magazine articles have been published on the subject as well, indicating a new, resurgent interest in Modernism, for which the Bauhaus is largely responsible for introducing to the world nearly a century ago.

The presentation at Central will reach its peak next week, when Professor Barry Bergdoll, Chief Curator of Architecture @ MoMA, arrives to give his on site talk and presentation bearing the title "Marcel Breuer and the Invention of Heavy Lightness."

The following images are all courtesy of Susan B:

Scale model of Atlanta's Central Library by Marcel Breuer (notice the
left, South-facing side of the building in the adjacent photo)

Scale model of Atlanta's Central Library (notice the original,
sculpted, forecourt plaza design, its asymmetrical gradation)

Scale model of Atlanta's Central Library by Marcel Breuer

Scale model of St. Johns Abbey

Scale model of St. John's Abbey (cross-section)

Scale model of St. John's Abbey (campanile in foreground)

Scale model of Bronx Community College

Scale model and site photos of Bronx Community College

Scale model of Baldegg Convent

Scale model of Baldegg Convent

Scale model of the Whitney Museum of American Art

Scale model of the Whitney Museum of American Art

Assorted furniture (circa: 1925)

Plywood and tubular metal furniture assortment (circa: 1925)

Various chaise lounges and tables (circa: 1925)

Large plywood table and matching chairs (circa: 1925)

Stackable plywood chairs (circa: 1925)

ArtWorks Magazine: The Bauhaus Effect

2010-01-05T22:03:00.016-05:00

The Bauhaus Effect

by Max Eternity

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“Every work of art is a child of its age”

Vasily Kandinsky

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Originally published in ArtWorks Magazine (December 2009)

This year marks the 90^th Anniversary of the Bauhaus school, with a century having passed since one of its former instructors, Kandinsky, wrote that noteworthy quote in his book, “Concerning the Spiritual in Art”. In that single introductory line, Kandinsky reveals the magnanimity of the artistic forest, and the proverbial trees.

A creative zenith of the 20^th Century, Kandinsky gave the world great art, great words and many brilliant ideas. So it should come as no surprise that in the decades since his passing, neither he nor the school where he once taught have yet been forgotten. And why should they be? After all, Kandinsky is one of the founding fathers of abstract art, and the German Bauhaus school is the place where the modernist aesthetic was conceived—incubated—cultivated--formed.

Walter Gropius, descendent of two architects sharing the same name—father and great-uncle—Martin Gropius, founded the Bauhaus in 1919. Thereafter, with his expanding portfolio of buildings, Gropius would introduce to the world an elegant simplicity of reductive design, combining minimalistic functionality, tectonic geometry and timeless, aesthetic beauty. Several buildings would be built to house the school, though the Gropius designed Dessau site remains the most recognized of the Bauhaus’ three locales—Weimar—Dessau--Berlin.

Being co-ed, another specific impact that the school had on design and education was its embrace of women. And though female students were strongly encouraged to work with fabrics and textiles, as opposed to industrial design and buildings, at various points through Bauhaus history, women would make up to 50% of the overall student body. With one of the more notable standouts being Anni Albers, who, after the Bauhaus had closed, along with her husband Josef, migrated to the US at the behest of Phillip Johnson--another towering figure of Modernism.

Mrs. Albers is in-part credited with elevating the craftsmanship of the loom to fine art status, but as Bauhaus alumni go, she is not the only woman of tremendous success and achievement. There’s also Lilly Reich, a collaborator to van der Rohe who in 1930 was the first woman at the Bauhaus to teach interior design, which included furniture design. And then there’s Marianne Brandt, a photographer who, like her male colleague Wilhelm Wagenfeld, is better known for her industrial designs of exquisitely sculpted, household objects--lamps, ashtrays, tea infusers.

Wall hanging "Slit Tapestry Red/Green" by Gunta Stolzl, 1927/28

“The women of the Bauhaus set up a leadership structure of their own…Anni Albers and Gunta Stölzl…produced ambitious and exciting textiles that explored different permutations of design” says the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) Curator in the Department of Painting and Sculpting, Leah Dickerman. As well, Dickerman says, the women weren’t just following the lead of the men, because “the weavers rejected the idea that their work should solely be expressions of visual art.” Consequentially she says, the Bauhaus women “developed a huge range of textiles.”

Yet in this celebratory year, while many rejoice that historic institution’s worldwide contributions in art and design, others are loathe to bury the memory of Early and Mid-Century Modernism deep into the obscurity of our recent past....

- End Excerpt -

This article can be read in its entirety, including a selection of rare photos, in the December issue of ArtWorks Magazine. Print version available nationwide at Barnes & Noble bookstores.

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About Max Eternity:

Max Eternity, contributing writer to Artworks Magazine and Editor and Publisher to Art Digital Magazine, is a digital-aged Renaissance man who creates innovative print types reflecting the Bauhaus and Mid-Century Modernism. Via a network of informational web portals, Eternity advocates for artistic and social concerns ranging from architectural preservation and digital literacy to government transparency and the Afro-Euro fine art construct. An avid inventor, he currently has over a twenty utilities in various stages of development.

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Celebrating Bauhaus & Breuer: Eternity @ Central

2009-10-23T17:28:00.004-04:00

Beginning next week, in celebration of the German Bauhaus school, Alma Mater to Marcel Breuer, architect of Atlanta's Downtown Central Library, there will be on display an exhibition on loan from Vitra Design Museum--serving as a retrospective of Breuer's 50-year career. The exhibition and presentation(s) is being co-hosted by the Museum of Design Atlanta and The Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System. In advance of that event (Oct 27 - Jan 16) I was asked to collaborate on a 3rd Floor curio display for the celebration. The curio display and the ensuing,much larger exhibition pays homage to Breuer in relation to this year's 90th anniversary of the Bauhaus school where Breuer at one time studied and later taught.

In celebration of the 90th Anniversary
of the Bauhaus school

The Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library

Designed by Marcel Breuer

Eternity poses adjacent 90th Anniversary Breuer-Bauhaus curio display

90th Anniversary Breuer-Bauhaus curio display

Walter Gropius designed Bauhaus Dessau site as illustrated by Eternity

Photo: Velisa Caldwell

90th Anniversary Breuer-Bauhaus curio display

(above) MoDA poster, (below) Illustration of Bauhaus Dessau by Eternity
Photo: Velisa Caldwell

90th Anniversary Breuer-Bauhaus curio display

Eternity stands in front of Breuer's Atlanta Library

Photo: Velisa Caldwell

Breuer's Atlanta Library @ Farlie Street

Photo: Eternity

Breuer's Atlanta Library @ Farlie Street

Photo: Eternity

Breuer's Atlanta Library @ Farlie Street

Photo: Eternity

"Marcel Breuer: Design and Architecture"

2009-10-16T06:39:00.008-04:00

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Press Contacts:

Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System
Kelly Robinson - 404 730 1865
kelly.robinson@fultoncountyga.gov

Museum of Design Atlanta
Amanda Leesburg - 404 842 0040
amanda@leesburgpr.com

Museum of Design Atlanta (MODA) in partnership with Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System Presents Marcel Breuer: Design and Architecture.

ATLANTA - To Kick off their 2009/2010 season, the Museum of Design Atlanta (MODA) partners with the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System to present a dual location exhibit featuring the work of world-renowned furniture designer and architect Marcel Breuer (1902-1981), arguably one of the most influential designers of the modernist period. Open to the public October 27-January 16, 2010, the exhibit will be housed at both the MODA galleries and Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System's Central Library, the last major public building Breuer designed.

"I can think of no better place to celebrate the architectural work of Marcel Breuer than in one of his own buildings," said Brenda Galina, executive director of MODA. " We are honored to share this special exhibit with the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System and give Atlantans this unique opportunity to experience the work of this important and innovative designer." Read more.

Breuer's Atlanta Library chosen for 2010 WMF Watch

2009-10-06T10:52:00.009-04:00

October 6, 2009 - This morning in New York, The World Monuments Fund announced its 2010 WATCH LIST, continuing the organization's biennial tradition of of bringing international attention to threatened cultural heritage. 93 sites from 47 countries were chosen, some dating back several centuries, with one in Africa dating back 2 million years. The youngest site to received "at risk" or "threatened" recognition is the Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library. The building was designed by Bauhaus alumni, Marcel Breuer. Press release follows:

Press Contacts

Holly Evarts, World Monuments Fund, 646-424-9594, or hevarts@wmf.org.

Jeanne Collins & Associates, LLC, 646-486-7050, or info@jcollinsassociates.com.

WORLD MONUMENTS FUND ANNOUNCES 2010 WATCH LIST, INCLUDING DOZENS OF CULTURAL HERITAGE SITES AT RISK IN 47 COUNTRIES

NEED FOR COLLECTIVE ACTION AND SUSTAINABLE STEWARDSHIP

ARE COMMON THEMES

For Immediate Release—New York, NY, October 6, 2009…Bonnie Burnham, President of the World Monuments Fund (WMF), today announced the 2010 World Monuments Watch. For more than 40 years, WMF, a nonprofit organization, has worked to preserve cultural heritage across the globe. The 2010 Watch includes 93 sites now at risk, representing 47 countries. These include 9 sites from the United States and 15 dating from the 20th century. The Watch is WMF’s flagship advocacy program, and it calls international attention to threatened cultural heritage.

Ranging from the famous (Machu Picchu, Peru) and remote (Phajoding, a monastery high in the mountains of Bhutan), to the unexpected (Merritt Parkway, Connecticut, U.S.) and little-known (desert castles of ancient Khorezm, Uzbekistan), the 2010 Watch tells compelling stories of human aspiration, imagination, and adaptation. The need for collective action and sustainable stewardship are common themes running through the 2010 list, and the 93 sites vividly illustrate the ever-more pressing need to create a balance between heritage concerns and the social, economic, and environmental interests of communities around the world.

The 2010 Watch makes it clear that cultural heritage efforts in the 21st century must recognize the critical importance of sustainable stewardship, and that we must work closely with local partners to create viable and appropriate opportunities to advance this,” said Ms. Burnham. “The sites on the 2010 Watch list make a dramatic case for the need to bring together a variety of sectors—economic, environmental, heritage preservation, and social—when we are making plans that will affect us all. Greater cooperation among these sectors would benefit humanity today, while ensuring our place as stewards of the Earth for the next generation.”

Comprising products of individual imaginations, testaments to faith, and masterpieces of civil engineering, among other types of creations, the sites on the 2010 Watch are irreplaceable monuments to human culture. They are found in every type of environment, from urban centers and small towns to barren plains and riverside caves, and they are threatened by war, natural disasters, urban sprawl, and neglect. They range from the prehistoric to the contemporary, and include schools, libraries, municipal buildings, places of worship, roadways, aqueducts, row houses, bridges, gateways, parks, follies, cultural landscapes, archaeological remains, historic city centers, castles, private houses, forts, tombs, and ancient petroglyphs and cave art.

Download full press kit here.

May 25th, the Anniversary of Central

2009-05-24T11:19:00.060-04:00

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May 25th: Central's 29th Anniversary
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- The Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library by Marcel Breuer -

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- Wisdom Bridge sculpture by Richard Hunt -

May 25^th marks the 29^th anniversary of the Marcel Breuer designed Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library’s dedication. From Ann Boutwell's "A Look Back" column in Atlanta Intown magazine:

Mayor Maynard Jackson, along with the Atlanta City Council and the Board of Trustees of the Atlanta Public Library, dedicated the new structure at One Margaret Mitchell Square. Architects Marcel Breuer and Hamilton Smith of Marcel Breuer Associates with Stevens and Wilkinson of Atlanta designed the building.

The building was originally commissioned by then Library Director, Carlton Rochell. Rochell had a special interest in Breuer’s work, and was known to be quite fond of New York’s Whitney Museum of American Art, also designed by Breuer. From Isabelle Hyman’s book “Marcel Breuer: The Career and the Buildings” she writes:

The idea to seek an internationally famous architect for the new library was promoted by its board of directors and by the library’s director, Carton Rochell, who was particularly enthusiastic about Breuer’s Whitney Museum of American Art. Rochell and members of the board requested interviews with three architects in New York and visited two (Breuer and Paul Rudolph).

- The Whitney Museum of American Art -

One of the best works of Breuer’s late career, the Atlanta building is a departure from his standard library “box.” Instead, he reinvented the stepped profile, grand-massing, few windows and ”severe, hard-edged, geometric volumes,” as Hamilton Smith described them, of the Whitney Museum.

It should also be remembered that noted architect Carl Stein, who at one time worked for Breuer, is attributed with having made important contributions to the building’s site plan.

- The Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library -

Nonetheless, the building does have its critics.

It has been more than a year now since Rob Pitts of the Fulton County Board of Commissioners announced his plans to demolish the building and sell the property to a private investor. That plan, supported by the current Library Director, John Szabo, was controversial from the start. It was, however, embraced by the Board and hastily attached to a very popular library bond referendum. And though the referendum was adopted in a public vote last November, Pitt's plan is still as unpopular as ever.

In the course of the ongoing preservation debate, with praise being lavished on the building by conservator Albert Albano of the Intermuseum Conservation Association, artist Max Eternity of Art Digital Magazine, architect Jon Buono of DOCOMOMO and Professor Barry Bergdoll, Chief Curator of Architecture at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) – Bergdoll having declared the building a “masterpiece” -- the building and plaza have received much public attention. The Atlanta-Journal Constitution newspaper has featured the library in several news articles, as has Atlanta’s Creative Loafing newspaper. As well on the national and international front, both Preservation Magazin e and Metropolis Magazine have featured the library in their respective publications.

- Wisdom Bridge by Richard Hunt -

Still, however important the Breuer contribution is to Atlanta, there is yet another reason why the library's architectural site should remain intact. For one would be remiss not to acknowledge the site-specific, monumental sculpture created by famed American artist, Richard Hunt,. The stainless steel sculpture is entitled the “Wisdom Bridge.”

- Richard Hunt, American Sculpture (1935 - ) -

Like Breuer, Richard Hunt has had his share of firsts. In 1971, he became the first African-American artist to have a major solo exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. More recently, in 2008, the Sculpture Center in Cleveland, Ohio, exhibited a show of Hunt’s work. The exhibition was organized by Ann Albano, director of the center. Hunt is known for his lyrical compositions of metal in abstract form. His pieces tend to be sinewy and arabesque, while also retaining a certain degree of substance and heft. In Cleveland when asked about his work and process he said “when they're rendered in metal, the sources are synthesized into a metallic construction. What starts out as a leaf can become a flame." He went on to say “it's just like you learn a language -- you start to think in it," he said. "I think in metal. The ideas just come to me."

In April 2009, the International Sculpture Center honored Hunt with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Cleveland is a city with a long, complex past. And like many cities today, Cleveland is seeking to rebrand itself; carving out a fresh, new identity. Speaking to this, Hunt said “a lot of projects I'm doing are related to cities trying to renew themselves...feeling like art ought to be a part of it."

Sitting on the terraced forecourt of the Atlanta Breuer Library, the “Wisdom Bridge” sculpture which is a part of the Atlanta Public Art Legacy Collection, was commissioned by then Atlanta mayor, Maynard Jackson. Mayor Jackson, the great-grandson of slaves, became the first African-American mayor of Atlanta. He along with former mayor, Andrew Young – confidant to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and former Ambassador to the United Nations, appointed by President Jimmy Carter – are attributed with having elevated the appeal of Atlanta, transforming it into the capital city of what became known as the “New South.” In 2003 when Mayor Jackson died from a heart attack, Robert Cornwell of the UK’s Independent newspaper wrote:

Maynard Jackson was a giant in every sense of the word. Not just because of his boombox voice and his massive 6ft 3in, 21-stone frame that dominated every room he entered. He was a political titan as well, the first black mayor of a major Southern city, and a prime mover in the emergence of Atlanta in the 1970s and 1980s as one of the great metropolises of America.

- Mayor Maynard Jackson -

In 2004 Mayor Jackson was posthumously honored with an Atlanta Gas Light Shining Light Award. The award came with a purse of $10,000 which was donated to the Maynard H. Jackson Youth Foundation. Upon accepting the award, his widow Valerie Jackson said "This light so personifies Maynard's radiant soul…Maynard's light was a glow that took in everybody and everything around him." Ingrid Saunders Jones, a former member of Jackson's staff, called the gathering a reunion. And, when asked about Mayor Jackson’s legacy she said "we can't talk about the City of Atlanta without talking about Maynard Jackson. He gave voice to those who had no voice."

Learn more about Marcel Breuer here. Learn more about the "Wisdom Bridge" here.

Select images of works by American artist Richard Hunt can be seen below.

- Click Images to Follow Link(s) -

- Wisdom Bridge @ Breuer's Central Library - Atlanta, Ga. -

- Large Hybrid @ Hishorn Museum (D.C.) -

- I Have Been to the Mountaintop - Memphis, Tenn -

- Extended Hybrid @ LACMA - Los Angeles, Ca. -

The National Trust: Breuer's last Design

2009-03-24T15:42:00.004-04:00

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The National Trust for Historic Preservation:
Threatened in Atlanta: Breuer's Last Design

By Angela Serratore | Online Only | Mar. 23, 2009

Preservation Magazine - One of the most notable pieces of modern architecture in the American South may be demolished and replaced with a new design.

Local artist Max Eternity, along with New York University Breuer scholar Isabelle Hyman, have turned to the blogosphere as a grassroots method of garnering support for the library. To demolish a modern structure so integrated with its environment, Eternity writes on the blog, "seems sociologically, aesthetically, and historically incomprehensible—to say nothing of economically wasteful." Read more.

Béton Brut: An Architectural Primer

2009-03-22T20:40:00.030-04:00

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- Centre National de la Danse -

Auguste Perret (1874 – 1954) was a French architect who specialized in reinforced concrete construction, known as Béton Brut. Meaning ‘raw concrete”, Béton Brut, aka Brutalism, is an architectural style that was once much beloved. This was especially true in the postwar age, at a time when world leaders, governments and institutions held high hopes for a better life. In rebuilding their nations, these leaders aspired to create more egalitarian societies that were also uniform. And having harnessed the industrial revolution, with the emergence of easy to use, low-cost building materials, structurally sound pre-cast concrete became a favorite for civic revitalization. Most all the great modernists used it, with Le Corbusier, who had been formerly been employed by Mr. Perret, referring to Béton Brut as his “choice material.”

With its grand massing, Brutalism has a visual heft, also conveyed in structural strength. The use of a steel frame, with high grade reinforced concrete for the superstructure, makes these buildings very sound. Another clever aspect of this style is the implementation of accentuated supporting columns, creating distinct design attributes while dually enhancing the buildings durability even further. Indeed, a wise achievement.

Still in recent times, buildings of the Béton Brut age--Modernist and of the International Style--are perceived by some as anything but fabulous; with many of the world’s most iconic structures, like The Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library, Cleveland’s Ameritrust Tower, New York’s Whitney Museum and Boston’s City Hall having all (at some point) come under critical attack. There are, however, those who beg to differ.

Notably, at ground zero of this ongoing debate on the truth and beauty of concrete modernist structures, a rather high-profile organization calling itself DOCOMOMO, has come of age with local chapters throughout the world. DOCOMOMO is a moniker, which stands for DOcumentation and COnservation of buildings, sites and neighborhoods of the MOdern MOvement. On their (international) website it states that their mission is to:

1. act as watchdog when important modern movement buildings anywhere are under threat

2. exchange ideas relating to conservation technology, history and education

3. foster interest in the ideas and heritage of the modern movement

4. elicit responsibility towards this recent architectural inheritance

The World Monuments Fund, as well as The National Trust for Historic Preservation, offers a clear intent to bring attention to buildings of recent history. Too, there are other indications that the currently unappreciated genre of Béton Brut is being revisited, with in 2004 La Centre National de la Danse, a Modernist Béton Brut building located in France, was awarded the Prix d'architecture de l'Équerre d'argent, one of France's most prestigious design awards.

___________________________

An Open Letter to Greater Atlanta

2009-03-18T17:13:00.008-04:00

***

To: The Citizens of Greater Atlanta

Attn: The Honorable Mayor Shirley Franklin, City of Atlanta

Attn: Fulton County Board of Commissioners, Chairman John Eaves

Dear Greater Atlanta,

To a city that I love, admire and respect, I write today expressing my concerns about the future of The Atlanta-Fulton Central Public library, commissioned by former Atlanta Library Director, Carlton Rochell. The library site, which encompasses a full city block, is an architecturally significant building and plaza designed by internationally renown architect, Marcel Breuer. Along with the building, at the site, on its terraced forecourt, a monumental sculpture designed by Richard Hunt sits in residence. The sculpture, entitled “The Wisdom Bridge”, was commissioned by one of Atlanta's most beloved former mayors, Maynard Jackson.

So why am I concerned? Because, I believe this important site is in grave danger.

Two years ago in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, the Grosse Pointe Central Public Library, another civic site also designed by Marcel Breuer, was going to be demolished. Fortunately the Grosse Pointe’s Central has been saved, and is in route to be restored. Over time, the citizens and the leadership of Grosse Point came to understand that progress also meant preservation; that to successfully move into the future, one must also respect the past. The Grosse Point Central Library stands proud today and is in the process of having a complete, respectful renovation. Furthermore, the site is now recognized by the World Monuments Funds as one of 2008’s World’s 100 Most Endangered Sites; an achievement not to be taken lightly.

In the Downtown Central Library, Greater Atlanta has a legendary treasure of its own, but it needs to be respected and carefully preserved. To those ends, I am proud to announce that the site has been nominated for the World Monuments Fund 2010 100 Most Endangered Sites.

Enclosed with this letter is a selection of comments from the online petition, “A Plea for Preservation”, which now has over 400 endorsements; representing an international voice, sharing my views. Atlanta is a world class city and it would be a world class shame to destroy this masterpiece, a one-of-a-kind architectural site.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Bauhaus, the school in Germany, where many believe the foundation for modernism was laid. Marcel Breuer went there as a student and later taught there as a teacher, before migrating to America and teaching at Harvard. The Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library is the very last building the Breuer built in his 50-year career; a stellar career, which saw more than 300 public and private commissions. So the significance of this site, its pedigree and provenance -- function and locale -- cannot be overstated.

See attachment.

Respectfully yours,

Max Eternity

Cc: Council Chairperson Lisa Borders, City of Atlanta

Cc: The Honorable Mayor Jere Wood, City of Roswell

Cc: Executive Director John Szabo, Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System

Cc: Executive Director Susan Ellis-Proper, AIA Atlanta

Cc: The Creative Loafing

Cc: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Cc: Art Papers Magazine

***

Sign the Petition and Visit the Wordpress Site

2009-03-16T12:38:00.003-04:00

___________________

In December 2008 an online petition and preservation website was created for the Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library's preservation cause. Sign the petition here, then visit the other site where you will find a wonderful introductory essay written by Professor Emerita @ New York University, Dr. Isabelle Hyman. A noted Marcel Breuer scholar, Isabelle Hyman is the author of "Marcel Breuer, Architect: The Career And The Buildings."

Click here to visit the Wordpress site.

____________________

Kemp Mooney: Architect | Educator @ Central

2009-03-12T09:52:00.010-04:00

Last night at Central, Atlanta's Downtown Library, it was a treat for all who were there on site to witness Professor Kemp Mooney's lecture about Bauhaus and Breuer. Mr. Mooney, himself an architect and veteran educator who has been teaching for more than 30 years, presented in his lecture, an oral history of the Bauhaus and early American Modernism.

Using a well organized archive of photographs and ephemera, Professor Kemp succinctly synthesized 7 decades of both personal and observational milestones and occasions, reducing a formidable wealth of knowledge into a conversational narration based on analysis and direct personal experience.

After his talk, there was a brief Q & A session, where the Professor was asked about the challenges facing the Downtown Library and what he thought might be done to raise awareness towards a more sane approach to urban renewal. Kemp responded effectively saying that he thought that the lack of awareness was in large part directly due to the fact that the "children of Atlanta don't grow up being around and hearing about good architecture. " Continuing to speak to this point, he highlighted the fact that when new architectural students enter school here in the city, that most often those students are not required to take a class on the more recent aspect(s) of architectural history, Mid-Century Modernism; also synonymous with the Bauhaus and the International Style.

The point seemed well taken. Still, with individuals like Isabelle Hyman, Barry Bergdoll, Susan Piedemont-Palladino, Jon Buono, George Smart and Jonathan Lerner also playing a role in the eloquent dissemination of information signifying the relativity of Bauhaus, Breuer and Modernism, though the challenges of transformative learning may at this time seem a daunting task, the reality being revealed is that a certain degree of interest does exists.

Central & Buckhead Preservation Presentations

2009-03-02T10:48:00.008-05:00

***

When: Wednesday, March 11, 6:30 pm

Place: Atlanta Fulton County Central Library, One Margaret Mitchell Square

Cost: Free

- Presentations are followed by a self-guided tours -

AND

When: Saturday, March 7, 11:30 am

Where: Buckhead Branch Library, 269 Buckhead Ave NE.

Reservation required: rsvp@docomomoga.org

Cost: Free

_______________________________

UPDATE: March 24th

Central - DOCOMOMOga's Review

Central - Pictures from the event

***

Marcel Breuer: The Masterpiece Builder

2009-02-23T12:39:00.005-05:00

***
Named by Time Magazine as one of the "form givers of the 20th Century", Marcel Breuer--born in 1902 in Pecs, Hungary--is remembered as one of the most influential architects and designers the world has ever known.

Early in life he developed an interest in art, which led him to Weimar, Germany where he studied and taught at the famed Bauhaus school. Once there he participated first as a student from 1920 til his graduation in 1924. Thereafter, Breuer became a faculty member or "Bauhaus Master" from 1924 to 1928; by which time the school had relocated from Weimar to Dessau.

From the outset, Breuer had a clear understanding of the "form follows function" principle. To this, he embraced the concept of unit construction, and in 1925, with his innovative use of raw materials, Breuer was credited with being the first to use tubular steel in furniture; a now ubiquitous, modernist technique applied around the world. As well, Breuer was also one of the pioneers of minimalism.

In Europe, from 1928 to 1937, Breuer enjoyed a flourishing architectural practice. However, because of the outbreak of The Second World War, he made a decision to relocate in America. It was during this time when Harvard University offered him an Associate Professorship at it's School of Design. Simultaneously, many of his other colleagues were migrating to the U.S. including Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius, Le Corbusier and Bauhaus (faculty) colleagues Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe. At Harvard Breuer was joined by Gropius, who taught at the school as well. Breuer continued to teach at Harvard University until 1946. And in 1970 he received the only Honorary Doctorate in Architecture ever awarded by that school.

Throughout his illustrious career, Marcel Breuer was commissioned for numerous, monumental civic structures, with some of the more notable being The UNESCO World Headquarters (Paris), The Whitney Museum of American Art (NYC), The University of Massachusetts Campus Center in Amherst, the headquarters of The Departments of HUD and HEW in Washington D.C., St. John's Abbey (Minnesota) and The Atlanta-Fulton Central Branch Public Library (Atlanta). In addition to his civic commissions, Breuer also received many residential commissions, including The Wolfson House, Breuer House and The Frank House, which he created in collaboration with Walter Gropius.

A major Exhibition of Breuer's work was shown at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art in November 1972, and at Paris' Louvre Museum in the summer of 1974. More recently, in 2002 The Smithsonian Institution created an exhibition entitled Marcel Breuer: A Centennial Celebration

Marcel Breuer 1902-1981

***
Sources:
AFPL Central Public Library - Special Collections
Archives @ The Smithsonian Institution
***

The Wren's Nest: Blogging for Breuer

2009-02-19T17:31:00.004-05:00

***

Lain Shakespeare -- great-great-great grandson of Joel Chandler Harris -- Executive Director of The Wren's Nest -- has recently signed the "Plea for Preservation" online petition. This now comes from the blog @ The Wren's Nest.

________________

From: The Wren's Nest
_________________

Thursday, February 19, 2009
Atlanta’s Central Library in Metropolis Magazine

Posted by: lain // Category: Historic Preservation // 4:16 pm

One of the silliest trends in Atlanta recently has been to propose new “visionary” libraries to replace “old and busted” libraries. Please recall Ben Carter’s offer to create a replica of the Buckhead Library.

Metropolis Magazine — an architecture, design, and preservation magazine — just published a story on Atlanta’s central library designed by Marcel Breuer, he of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City.

Breuer’s building is an example of brutalism. It’s an angular, blocky architectural style which resides in the trough of no value for most people, including Fulton County Commissioner Rob Pitts.

Pitts would like to create a “visionary” “technology library” because other cities have built iconic libraries and been successful. The Breuer Library would be sold and “repurposed,” which might as well mean “demolished.” Pardon me, but this is totally wack. Read More.

***

Metropolis Mag: Atlanta's Downtown Library

2009-02-18T11:18:00.001-05:00

February 18, 2009 - International design magazine -- art and architecture journal -- Metropolis Mag, has publish in its February issue, a featured piece about Atlanta's Downtown Library. The building, The Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library -- designed by legendary architect Marcel Breuer -- is at risk of being demolished under the auspices of Robb Pitts, a notorious Atlanta politician. Nonetheless, with both a local and national preservation effort gathering steam, the table may soon turn and Mr. Pitts will have to find himself another architectural site to pick on.

Written by renowned journalist Jonathan Lerner, those interviewed for the magazine article consists of a veritable roll call of who's who in the art and design world, including Dr. Isabelle Hyman, Barry Bergdoll, Jon Buono and Max Eternity.

_____________________________________________________________________

FEBRUARY 2009 • METROPOLIS OBSERVED

Overdue!

Atlanta’s urge for a trendy new central library may mean that time is up for Marcel Breuer’s final building.

- Click Here to Read -

Sign the Online Petition: A Plea for Preservation

2009-02-16T00:01:00.000-05:00

300 Signatures in 8 Weeks !

***

To: The Fulton County Board of Commissioners

To: The Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System, Director John Szabo
To: Fulton County Board of Commissioners, Chairman John Eaves
To: The City of Atlanta, Mayor Shirley Franklin

We call to you attention that any and all attempts to obscure, defund and otherwise, with willful intent, delegitimize the great, historical significance of the currently standing and fully functioning, 28 year-old Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library, are now being met with resistance; as witnessed in the formation of this petition, operating in tandem with other forms of collective civic action.

We call to your attention that this declaration makes no assumptions about what may become, as we are most concerned with what we feel should be.

We call to your attention that the architectural site that we seek to protect and preserve was designed by legendary architect Marcel Breuer, who counts among his more than 300 public and private commissions, with being credited for the design of The Whitney Museum in New York City, the HUD and HEW buildings in Washington D.C. and (in a partnership) the UNESCO building in Paris, France.

We call to your attention that it is our desire to work with, not against, the leadership and stewardship of this collective civic investment, in that we believe that "to remove a significant modernist monument -- important in and for its time and still satisfactorily fulfilling its original function to serve the community -- designed by a major architect of historical importance and world renown, would be a serious civic blunder in the cultural history of Atlanta"

So let it now be known that all who sign herein speak peacefully, in a unified spirit of service, cooperation and preservation with the hope that our voices shall be known, counted and heard. As we ask that the leadership attributed to deciding the fate of this site, regard this petition as a formal request that said leaders make a sincere and honest pledge toward instituting a policy of site renovation and preservation in respect to Marcel Breuer's enduring legacy as expressed in his final epic work, the iconic Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library.

Sincerely,

(click here to sign)

DOCOMOMO Receives 2009 AIA Award

2009-02-09T09:51:00.009-05:00

***
DOCOMOMO US Selected as Recipient of the American Institute of
Architects 2009 Institute Honors for Collaborative Achievement

For immediate release:

New York, NY. – February 5, 2009 – The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has selected DOCOMOMO US as recipient of the 2009 Institute Honors for Collaborative Achievement. The award, to be presented at the 2009 AIA National Convention and Design Exposition in San Francisco, recognizes and encourages distinguished achievements of allied professionals, clients, organizations, architect teams, knowledge communities, and others who have had a beneficial influence on or advanced the architectural profession.

DOCOMOMO US

Affiliated with more than 50 international working parties and 10 national chapters, DOCOMOMO US is dedicated to the documentation and conservation of buildings, sites, and neighborhoods of the Modern Movement. John Morris Dixon, FAIA, on behalf of the AIA Committee on Design, nominated the organization for its vigorous and effective work to publicize Modern landmarks, document key works for archives, and research and disseminate preservation techniques particular to Modern buildings. “DOCOMOMO US, with its diverse membership of architects, preservationists, historians, and enthusiasts, has become both a recognized force and a respected name in the preservation of Modern heritage in the U.S.,” lauds
MoMA Philip Johnson Chief Curator Barry Bergdoll.

Visit AIA's 2009 National Convention and Design Exposistion

***

Bauhaus, Breuer and the International Style

2009-02-05T15:55:00.005-05:00

___________________

In 2002 Professor Emerita, Isabelle Hyman, -- who personally knew Marcel Breuer, architect of Atlanta's central library -- had her monograph Marcel Breuer, Architect :The Career And The Buildings published. The book celebrated the 100 year anniversary of Marcel Breuer's 1902 birth. Thereafter, in 2007-08, The U.S. National Building Museum ran an exhibition, curated by Susan Piedmont-Palladino, called Marcel Breuer: Design and Architecture. Now coming up later this year through 2010, Barry Bergdoll, Professor @ Columbia University and Chief Curator of Architecture @ MoMa [The Museum of Modern Art] will have his curated exhibition on display on the 6th Floor @ MoMA; that show being a retrospective on Breuer's Alma Mater, entitled Bauhaus 1919-1933: workshops for modernity.

This is all good news.

Still, one of the most obvious challenges being faced in relation to the preservation effort for The Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library in Downtown Atlanta, is a lack of awareness, appreciation and understanding of the historical significance and international pedigree of the building's creator, and the library site itself. In so far as, the architectural site could quite plausibly be considered as much a contemporary monument, as it is modernist, as it is pre-modern or Bauhaus; not to mention that because of its monolithic styled construction, the building appears to have it's roots reaching all the way back to ancient Mayan temples and the pyramids of Egypt. This point being made because, even to the casual observer, it is self-evident that the site both encompasses and transcends much of the architectural aesthetic, in America and around the world, for the last 90 years. And though the structure's site is less than 30 years old, it nonetheless, appears to be a perfect candidate for canonization. For, like Dr. King's childhood home or The Vanderbilt Biltmore House or The Empire State Building, The Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library has all the fine markers and indicators of a legendary architect, doing very significant work in a historically important town.

So, how have we forgotten...the man, the legacy and the building?

It was 90 years ago when the Bauhaus School was first founded. And it was at that school where Marcel Breuer, architect of the central library, was enrolled as a student; completed his studies and became a teacher at the school therein. And it is because of that school's founder, Walter Gropius, along with other modernist associates like Le Corbusier, Josef Albers and Mies Van Der Rohe, who -- making the Trans-Atlantic journey to arrive in the U.S. circa 1940's -- worked through independent firms, government institutions and educational entities, like The Chicago Art Institute, Black Mountain College and Harvard University, to lay the very foundation of modernism in America. It is that same creative movement, which later expressed itself in what became known as the International Style.

The history of the Bauhaus, Modernism and the International Style is so rich and layered,that one can hardly absorb it all in two or three sittings. Yet as strange and ironic as it may seem, the ubiquity of those intellectual and cultural elders -- of that school -- of that era and age -- is so omnipresent that the masses often take the impact of Breuer and his colleagues' achievements as uneventful "normal" reality as opposed to priceless contributions to humanity's enrichment.

Could it be that Marcel Breuer's life and legacy was too spectacular and generous for its own good?

Hence, we should all be reminded that Marcel Breuer did not just create places for shelter and dwelling. He pioneered engineering techniques, painted wonderful works of art, created beautiful craftsmanship furnishings, all the while endowing private individuals and institutions around the world with his vast portfolio of iconic, architectural sculpture; for which to live, work and play. He opened up his heart and his mind, giving us a new way to see and experience the world.

In Atlanta we have the very last piece of his architectural legacy; the last building he completed before his passing just one year later. Thus we owe it to ourselves to preserve, retain and enshrine this aspect of our shared birthright and collective, civic heritage.

It may not feel like it now, but our descendents will thanks us later.

Please Visit The New Preservation Website

2009-02-05T15:33:00.008-05:00

___________________

In December 2008 a new online petition and preservation website was created for the Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library preservation cause. At that site -- the new site -- you will find a wonderful introductory essay, written by Professor Emerita @ New York University, Dr. Isabelle Hyman, author and noted Marcel Breuer scholar. Click here to visit the new site.

____________________

The Sophomores of Genius

2009-01-18T18:53:00.007-05:00

Below are pictures -- captured from Google Earth/Maps, which show various views of the Marcel Breuer designed Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library; a building which county commissioner Rob Pitts called ugly, AJC writer Alan Judd called "an eyesore...with a scarcity of windows", Library System Director (John Szabo} called a fabulous brutalist (while all the same pulling every penny of the library's funding, advocating to have it emptied, sold or abandoned). With John Szabo going further still to lament "the building and the spaces inside have never been entirely embraced by Atlanta and Fulton County residents" as if he actually took the time to request a formal survey of how residents actually do feel about the site.

He didn't.

How could he, as he and his colleague Rob Pitts were too busy rushing through a gargantuan plan to build something exponentially more expensive, yet only 17% larger -- when the existing site is already 260,000 sq.ft. standing 8 stories tall.

Brilliant! Give these guys a Nobel Prize!

Still Szabo and Pitts had plenty of hubris to smear around, with Rob Pitts, who -- implying that the still young 28-year old architectural site has outlived it's purpose -- was quoted by Alan Judd as saying "Times have changed...We do need something that is more futuristic."

Yea, that's what we need; a new 300,000 sq. ft. library @ $550-$1000 per square foot.

It's like...damn -- I coulda had a V-8.

Well, there you have it. Apparently these are three geniuses...John, Rob, Alan; neither of which are architects; neither of which are art historians; neither of which has curated a modernist exhibition. But all of whom are perfectly happy to waste taxpayer dollars.

Enjoy the pics.

Awareness - Education - Funding - Preservation

2009-01-09T19:00:00.008-05:00

Beyond the messy dealings of questionable motives, convenient omissions and other attempts by one or more public servant(s) to "hijack" the public treasure and trust, let it now be stated in the most unambiguous terms that this is a site devoted to the goal of securing the certain preservation of the Marcel Breuer designed Atlanta-Fulton Central Public Library. To those ends a chart [below] is provided; demonstrating how that goal can be achieved. On the chart one will see two equations. The upper equation leads to certain preservation, while the lower equation - currently in effect - represents what has been ratified by the library system's Executive Director combined with the library's Board of Trustees and a majority vote from The Fulton County Boards of Commissioners. Thus, the building is now challenged - leaving it at risk - endangered through uncertain preservation.

- click chart for larger view -

Please click here to read and sign our petition "A Plea For Preservation"
***
Please click here to visit our new site, and read an essay by Dr. Isabelle Hyman
***

Marcel Breuer: The Man, The Legacy

2009-01-05T13:55:00.003-05:00

***
Born in 1902 in Pecs, Hungary, Marcel Breuer, is remembered as one of the most influential architects and designers of the 20th Century. Early in life he developed an interest in art, which led him to Weimar, Germany where he studied and taught at the famed Bauhaus school. Once there he participated first as a student from 1920 til his graduation in 1924. Thereafter, he became a faculty member or "Bauhaus Master" from 1924 to 1928; by which time the school had relocated from Weimar to Dessau.

From the outset, Breuer had a clear understanding of the "form follows function" principle. To this, he embraced the concept of unit construction, and in 1925, with his innovative use of raw materials, Breuer was credited with being the first to use tubular steel in furniture; a now ubiquitous, modernist technique applied around the world. As well, Breuer was also one of the pioneers of minimalism.

In Europe, from 1928 to 1937, Breuer enjoyed a flourishing architectural practice. However, because of the outbreak of The Second World War, he made a decision to relocate in America. It was during this time when Harvard University offered him an Associate Professorship at it's School of Design. Simultaneously, many of his other colleagues were migrating to the U.S. including Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius, Le Corbusier and Bauhaus (faculty) colleagues Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe. At Harvard Breuer was joined by Gropius, who taught at the school as well. Breuer continued to teach at Harvard University until 1946. And in 1970 he received the only Honorary Doctorate in Architecture ever awarded by that school.

Throughout his illustrious career, Marcel Breuer was commissioned for numerous, monumental civic structures, with some of the more notable being The UNESCO World Headquarters (Paris), The Whitney Museum of American Art (NYC), The University of Massachusetts Campus Center in Amherst, the headquarters of The Departments of HUD and HEW in Washington D.C., St. John's Abbey (Minnesota) and The Atlanta-Fulton Central Branch Public Library (Atlanta). In addition to his civic commissions, Breuer also received many residential commissions, including The Wolfson House, Breuer House and The Frank House, which he created in collaboration with Walter Gropius.

A major Exhibition of Breuer's work was shown at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art in November 1972, and at Paris' Louvre Museum in the summer of 1974. More recently, in 2002 The Smithsonian Institution created an exhibition entitled Marcel Breuer: A Centennial Celebration

Marcel Breuer 1902-1981

***
Sources:
AFPL Central Public Library - Special Collections
Archives @ The Smithsonian Institution
***

Special Interests, A Campaign of Disinformation

2009-01-03T12:41:00.015-05:00

***

The Atlanta-Fulton Central Library, built by legendary architect Marcel Breuer is one of the most iconic structures in Atlanta. However, there appears to be (by default) a stealth campaign, orchestrated by elements within the local government - namely Fulton County Commissioner Rob Pitts and Library Director John Szabo, who think this building is of no use and needs to go away - to muddle and confuse the well-documents issue at hand. Which is that Szabo and Pitts was quoted by another commissioner, Lynn Riley, as stating that Pitts et all were attempting to do the unthinkable.. with Riley saying "it was disappointing that a comprehensive library facility master plan could be hijacked for an un-substantiated purpose".

However, now that these same individuals - Szabo and Pitts - have been made aware that a growing movement for preservation is underway, they - particularly Mr. Szabo - have been disseminating information through what would appear to be one or more "covert" operatives who go about claiming - on chat boards, architectural sites and hearsay conversations - that they have inside information to the fact that the site is not at risk, further stating that there is no need for a preservation effort because the building is safe. I believe this rhetoric is coming from Szabo, because in a private conversation back in July 2008 (in the parking lot of the county commissioners building) John Szabo attempted to make me believe the same thing - even after he had endorsed Pitt's plan to strip all funding, using the money instead to build a new central. But if that is so, that the building is not threatened, then why don't Robb Pitts and John Sazbo just say that for themselves...on the record? Why don't they just hold a press conference and produce legally binding documents which provide such remarkable assurances? Yes, If John Szabo and Robb Pitts are committed to preserve the current Central Library, then why did they maneuver to defund the site of the originally proposed $34,000,000 for upgrades and renovation, and have been instead raising money ($84,000,000) to building a new site?

And furthermore, why is John Szabo on the record in this op-ed piece published in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, where he passionately advocates building a new central, lavishing praise on Robb Pitts while making absolutely no mention that no one ever asked for a new central - that the existing central is an 8-story building, approximately 260,000 sq ft. in size, taking up a full city block - and only 28- years old..."serving it's purpose" quite well as stated by Isabelle Hyman, Professor Emerita at NYU - Guggenheim Fellow - author of Marcel Breuer, Architect:The Career And The Buildings. And why doesn't John Szabo, Rob Pitts or the Atlanta Journal-Constitution mention the fact that Mr. Szabo used to be the Library Director in Clearwater (Tampa) whereupon he successfully advocated for the existing Central Library there to be demolished and a new one built...with that exact thing having happened. Then no less than 5 years later he's in Atlanta, attempting to do the same thing.

Hello? Are we to believe that all this is mere coencidence!

But most importantly, why has none of these questions been answered, when one considers that when all is said and done, the entire cost of restructuring the totality of the Atlanta-Fulton Library System could easily go from the orginally stated $225,000,000 to something like $500,000,000 when one considers all the costs of building a massive new central. I mean, just what is the going rate of purchasing an entire city block these days? I mean, even in these hard times, I would imagine that an entire city block of AAA property would still cost a very pretty penny...and that's just the land!!!

Are John Szabo and Rob Pitts bold faced liars who seem to have no shame? I think so. And I suspect, as with the debacle with The Atlanta-Fulton Buchead Public Library, that it's just a matter of time before it gets revealed that there is some "good old boy" back-room scheme going on, of which to funnel this public property into private hands. But they - the misguided and corrupt -failed with Buckhead (for now) and they will fail with Central.

So I say to Szabo and Pitts...THE GIG IS UP!

Please read and sign our petition here, and help to put a stop to the insanity in Atlanta.

We ask for your support.

Sign The Petition: A Plea For Preservation

2008-12-22T16:10:00.012-05:00

***

To: The Fulton County Board of Commissioners

To: The Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System, Director John Szabo
To: Fulton County Board of Commissioners, Chairman John Eaves
To: The City of Atlanta, Mayor Shirley Franklin

Sincerely,

(click here to sign)

***

Flashback: Addressing The County Commissioners

2008-12-17T23:06:00.001-05:00

July 2, 2007
Prepared Remarks:

To the Board of Commissioners, my esteemed colleagues and the citizens at large:

I'm here to talk about history, prudence, practically and reason; on an issue that should be an absolute no-brainer.

No offense to the honorable leadership of the Fulton County commission. But people, let's not make a mockery of ourselves.

We cannot afford this. We cannot afford this. Neither can we afford the financial cost, nor can we afford the cultural implications. Because, hastily cobbling together a last minute amendment to build the largest, most expensive public library the city has ever seen, might be a bit misguided.

We should move forward with the existing Library Master Plan, to first take care of the existing business at hand. Because, when it seems as if we can't even afford to wash the windows of the Central Branch we've already got? Does it make sense to be building a new one? Really, has anyone looked at those windows lately?

So the question should be, why are we neglecting our public institutions, and if we are already showing a pattern of this, what's to say we won't just continue this pattern of neglect once we build something new. More debt, more neglect.

And now a bit of history.

Marcel Breuer, the designer of the current central branch...was nothing short of a genius.

He was the Rosa Parks of industrial design. He was the Ray Charles of architectural engineering

Marcel Breuer was a pioneer of the modern aesthetic and he and his colleagues at the Bauhaus school are almost entirely responsible for laying down the architectural foundation of all the great creative minds since, including Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, I.M. Pei, Roberto Piano, David Adjaye, Phillip Johnson and Frank Lloyd Wright.

So, let's not commit cultural suicide. And let's not waste hard earned tax dollars.

Let's go back to the original Library Master Plan.

Let’s preserve The Central Branch

***
Max Eternity © 2008

Scrunity & Temptation: While Avarice Has Its Way

2008-11-05T16:09:00.021-05:00

***

"A lollipop can be oh so nice
Especially when covered with sugar and spice
Though when secretly filled with fish eyes and lice
Joy and delight turns to horror and fright"

(Scrutiny and Temptation, a limerick by Max Eternity)

***

Marcel Breuer's iconic Atlanta-Fulton Central Branch Library is at risk. And with yesterday's passage of Fulton County's Library Bond Referendum, the public has unwittingly been sold a civic investment package based on hollow rhetoric and gross manipulation that was supplied by an outright campaign of misinformation, courtesy of County Commissioner Robb Pitts, Library Director John Szabo and Atlanta Journal-Constitution writer David Bennett.

We all want better libraries. No doubt about that. But in a quest to inspire, ensure, upgrade and improve, whether individual or collective, it behooves us all to make sure that what we wish to pursue passes the almighty "smell test".

Here's a comparison. Just think of all the people who have recently lost their homes. It is an unfolding tragedy, mostly because the homeowners signed on the dotted lined, entering into a legally binding arrangement, without fully understanding what they had agreed to. These individuals were boondoggled by finely dressed, smooth-talking loan officers who promised all sorts of pie in the sky, but in the end, what they ended up with was a bloated budget, in the form of an unsustainable mortgage loan which proved itself to be more trouble than it's worth. We've all heard about this in the recent months and years. Some readers may even have a personal testimony? But if one is to learn from such a painful lesson, the question to be asked is, did things have to happen this way?

I don't think so.

And again, we've all heard about the federal governments $700 billion dollar bailout, taxpayer money that is being used to rescue private investment banks who's interconnected debts threatened to swallow us all. But did this have to happen?

I don't think so.

There are countless other examples that could be put forth...truly. Yet, self-evident accountability comes through transparency and sober analysis. I wrote about this in a 4 paged letter (found here). And further still, the bottom line is this. Haste makes waste. Just think of Iraq. And just like Iraq (war) Fulton's Library Bond seemed to make sense, at first glance.

But does it really?

We trust our leaders instinctively, sometimes to our own peril. I say this because, based on staggering list of soundly based facts, I felt compelled to craft said letter which was addressed to our local leaders and the local press. That letter was presented as a collection of common sense questions which one would expect to be standard issue. Nonetheless, these questions were never answered. Not by the press, not by the politicians.

Again, the letter that I speak of can be found here.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news and from the start, it has not been pleasing to go against the grain in order to speak truth to power. But worst than that, in my heart of hearts, I earnestly feel that knowing what I know about what has transpired, it would have been absolutely unconscionable to stand by idle while avarice has its way.

***

Buono & Bergdol Discuss The Central Branch

2008-10-02T14:00:00.008-04:00

On September 18^th 2008 at DOCOMOMO’s International Architectural Conference (held in Rotterdam, Netherlands), preservation advocate Jon Buono spoke on the current threats facing Atlanta’s under-recognized historic modern architecture; of which includes The Central Branch Public Library. Also speaking at the multi-day event was Barry Bergdol, Chief Curator of Architecture and Design at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). In his lecture, Bergdol discussed the challenges and threats that often confront preservation efforts for 20^th-century architecture; highlighting in his talk, the uncertain future of the The Central Branch Public Library, designed by legendary architect and designer, Marcel Breuer…(more)

Coming Soon: Isabelle Hyman @ Georgia Tech

2008-09-29T13:18:00.009-04:00

***

Isabelle Hyman Lecture: Marcel Breuer and The Downtown Library

DATE: October 28, 2008
TIME: 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM
LOCATION: Georgia Tech Architecture Library
FEES: none

At a public lecture co-sponsored by the Georgia Chapter of DOCOMOMO and Georgia Tech College of Architecture, Isabelle Hyman will explore the 28-year-old Central Library of the Atlanta-Fulton County Library System designed by Marcel Breuer.

Hyman is Professor Emerita of the Department of Art History at New York University. An accomplished historian of art and architecture, she has published a number of works on Marcel Breuer, a preeminent figure of the modern movement.

Hyman was educated at Vassar College and Columbia, and received her PhD in Art History at the Institute of Fine Arts at NYU. Most recently, she received the Alice Davis Hitchcock Award for "most distinguished work of scholarship in the history of architecture" by the Society of Architectural Historians.

About: DOCOMOMO

DOCOMOMO stands for DOcumentation and COnservation of buildings, sites and neighborhoods of the MOdern MOvement.

DOCOMOMO promotes the study, interpretation and protection of the architecture, landscape and urban design of the Modern Movement. It promotes the exchange of knowledge about this important legacy which extends from the planned city and the iconic monument to the house next door. DOCOMOMO is an international organization. Founded in 1988 in The Netherlands, today it has national chapters or working parties in 54 countries and over 2000 individual members. It is an important presence in conservation and in architectural culture, worldwide, working in partnership with other international organizations, national governments, and regional and national associations. Click here for DOCOMOMO International.

Visit the Georgia Chapter of DOCOMOMO at http://docomomoga.org

EVENT CONTACT:
Teri Nagel, College of Architecture
Contact Teri Nagel
404-385-2156

***

Marcel Breuer: Architect of The Central Branch

2008-09-26T22:49:00.019-04:00

Born in 1902 in Pecs, Hungary, Marcel Breuer, is remembered as one of the most influential architects and designers of the 20th Century. Early in life he developed an interest in art, which led him to Weimar, Germany where he studied and taught at the famed Bauhaus school. Once there he participated first as a student from 1920 til his graduation in 1924. Thereafter, he became a faculty member or "Bauhaus Master" from 1924 to 1928; by which time the school had relocated from Weimar to Dessau.

From the outset, Breuer had a clear understanding of the "form follows function" principle. To this, he embraced the concept of unit construction, and in 1925, with his innovative use of raw materials, Breuer was credited with being the first to use tubular steel in furniture; a now ubiquitous, modernist technique applied around the world. As well, Breuer was also one of the pioneers of minimalism.

In Europe, from 1928 to 1937, Breuer enjoyed a flourishing architectural practice. However, because of the outbreak of The Second World War, he made a decision to relocate in America. It was during this time when Harvard University offered him an Associate Professorship at it's School of Design. Simultaneously, many of his other colleagues were migrating to the U.S. including Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius, Le Corbusier and Bauhaus (faculty) colleagues Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe. At Harvard Breuer was joined by Gropius, who taught at the school as well. Breuer continued to teach at Harvard University until 1946. And in 1970 he received the only Honorary Doctorate in Architecture ever awarded by that school.

Throughout his illustrious career, Marcel Breuer was commissioned for numerous, monumental civic structures, with some of the more notable being The UNESCO World Headquarters (Paris), The Whitney Museum of American Art (NYC), The University of Massachusetts Campus Center in Amherst, the headquarters of The Departments of HUD and HEW in Washington D.C., St. John's Abbey (Minnesota) and The Atlanta-Fulton Central Branch Public Library (Atlanta). In addition to his civic commissions, Breuer also received many residential commissions, including The Wolfson House, Breuer House and The Frank House, which he created in collaboration with Walter Gropius.

A major Exhibition of Breuer's work was shown at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art in November 1972, and at Paris' Louvre Museum in the summer of 1974. More recently, in 2002 The Smithsonian Institution created an exhibition entitled Marcel Breuer: A Centennial Celebration

Marcel Breuer 1902-1981

***
Sources:
AFPL Central Branch - Special Collections
Archives @ The Smithsonian Institution
***

The Whitney NYC: A Letter From John Stanley

2008-09-22T22:18:00.009-04:00

From: John_Stanley@whitney.org
Sent: Mon 9/22/08 2:31 PM
To: maxeternity@hotmail.com

Dear Mr. Eternity:

Thank you for your thoughtful e-mail, which the Director's Office forwarded to me. As I hope you can understand, it is difficult for The Whitney to take an institutional stand, one way or another, on a subject that is in another city with issues and players that we cannot begin to know or understand. Having said that, however, as one who works with a Breuer building, and has had the privilege of working with many world-class architects over the years, I would like to send my personal hope that all possible uses might be examined and exhausted before this building is torn down.

As a frequent visitor to Atlanta, I can appreciate the desire for those there to try to preserve its architectural heritage. The sort of 60's concrete brutalism is much unloved, as I can attest having lived in Boston for a long time, witnessing the attacks on its Kallman, McKinnel City Hall building. Long term gain can sometimes be lost with short term thinking. I suspect at some point in the future this style architecture will be embraced for what it is, a raw, beautiful art form.

Best of luck in your quest. Regards,

John

John S. Stanley

Deputy Director

Whitney Museum of American Art

945 Madison Avenue

New York, NY 10021

212.671.8354 office

212.535.6186 fax

Pimping The Public: Literary Bliss Or A Shotgun Wedding?

2008-09-07T07:45:00.043-04:00

***
Since all the world now knows that this country was led into a trillion dollar war through a hijacked foreign policy of fear, lies and deception, are we really that shocked to experience more of the same at a local level? Yes, does it really come as a surprise that we Metro Atlantans now find ourselves being pigeon marched into submission by a group of greedy myopic public officials, with Commissioner Rob Pitt's and Library Director John Szabo dragging us down the isle while holding a $275M library bond 'shotgun' to our heads?

Really?

And though of course, a new war will not come out of this, still, second only to pimping and prostitution, it's the oldest trick in the book...a shotgun wedding. It starts with a misappropriation of sperm (sexual recklessness) a compulsive, selfish deed that then leads to unwanted pregnancy and a forced wedding. But of course, in this case, it's not some individual's metaphorical seed or sperm bank, it's a real live bank (roll) of $275 million dollars. And it's not an imaginary wedding of some giddy knocked-up girl to some freckle-faced, hormonal young man, it's the current, brutal reality of the public being hog-tied to the special-interest-wet-dream of two grossly egocentric, public officials who have absolutely no problem with lying and deceiving us all the way to the chapel...or in this case, the poorhouse.

Sounds outrageous, but do I exaggerate?

Well, if you think this scenario sounds scandalous, over-the-top, vulgar and horrifically grotesque, you better think again, because that's exactly what it is. For this, the November 4th Library Bond Referendum, is nothing short of a crucible to the soul of greater Atlanta's literary and architectural future. Pitts and Szabo knew that. Which is why, Pitts and Szabo exploited that. And in the weeks that have passed since Fulton County's once perfect Library Master Plan got transformed into a $275M legal deception of a pet project nightmare that can only be described as a financial Frankenstein. I have come to discover that I am not alone in my conflicted feelings about whether or not to allow myself to be hijacked and forced to support the now radically amended version of the original Library Master Plan; a plan which was originally designed to equally distribute money throughout the county, that now instead uses 30% of said funding to go directly toward new construction of yet another downtown library.

What?

Now spending so much money, $84M, toward the construction of a new Central Branch library would be a good thing if it were something needed and asked for. But here's the thing, it's not needed and it wasn't asked for. Because anyone who'd been downtown in the last decade knows that we already have two massive public libraries already standing in the downtown area, the Marcel Breuer designed Central Branch Library and the civil rights inspired Auburn Avenue Research Library. Thus for reasons other than political profiteering, we do NOT need another library built in that area. It makes absolutely no sense. But the public be damned, because Pitts and Szabo decided that this is what they wanted (for their own socio-political careers?) and that that's what they'd manipulate us to get. And sure enough, it's stuck in our craw like a taco going down sideways.

Though if that were not enough, guess what. That $84M that I just mentioned, it doesn't buy us a whole library. It just gets our foot in the door. As we'd need more than $150M additionally (including the cost of land) to actually complete such a massive project, not to mention the laundry list of lingering questions that would still swirl around this completely ridiculous idea.

So make no mistake, we are being pimped. Pie is not falling from the sky. Osama Bush-Bin Laden has neither been caught nor impeached. And we Atlantans will not be getting the library system we asked for. Because in this high-wire walk of financial philandering, the public is the prey. It's a win/lose situation no matter how you slice it. Pitts and Szabo made sure of that. And as far as I can tell, the only real way out of this conundrum is to reject the referendum and expose Pitts and Szabo as the hideous frauds that they are.

I'd prefer not to advocate doing this, but these men fit the perfect description of wolves in sheep's' clothing. They have the public trust in their hand, but they have their own self will in their hearts. They have hijacked the democratic process. They have subverted the will of the people, and in turn they have perverted the outcome of the vote. Hence, instead of a vetted process of literary bliss, we are now stuck with a $275M last-minute, shotgun wedding, which appears to stave off the wolves, but ultimately leaves us economically anemic and civically deprived.

It's like something straight out of Karl Rove's playbook, cynicism at it's worst. But to this proposition I say no.

Hell no.

And a final word of advice to Rob Pitts and John Szabo. Do what's asked of you and serve the public honestly or find new work. For whether federal or local, we the people are still in power.

Questions For The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

2008-08-04T19:49:00.010-04:00

Sent: Sunday, August 03, 2008 @ 9:08 PM

To: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ATTN: Angela Tuck, Public Editor/Ombudsman
CC: AJC Staff Writer, Alan Judd
CC: AJC Staff Writer, David Bennett

Dear Angela,

As a engaged citizen who's deeply concerned about Greater Atlanta's legacy of cultural diversity, artistic excellence, sustainable "greenliness" and long-term economic success, I now write to you in the hopes of having a few rather vexing questions answered. The subject on which these questions are based pertains to The AJC's media coverage of Fulton County's recently drafted bond referendum for it's Library Facility Master Plan; a risky plan which may have grave consequences for the entire public library system, as well as specifically horrific consequence for the future of it's flagship library, The Atlanta-Fulton Central Branch. That building being a monumental structure designed by a creative genius of epic proportions, the late Marcel Breuer.

Nonetheless, before I ask these questions, allow me to state for the record, that I consider The AJC to be a respectable organization, which employs many a fine journalist. And because I have in the past, found the paper to be worthy of merit, I trust and believe that the paper's management takes the view that critical self-analysis is an asset and not a liability. And again, before I pose these questions, I also ask that one be mindful of the fact that the future of 30+ libraries is at stake as well as $275,000,000.00 taxpayer dollars.

Here are the questions:

The original Library Master Plan went through a 2-year public vetting process, but the last-minute, radically- amended plan did not. Why is this not emphasized and clearly stated by the AJC?

Recorded in FCC public documents (transcripts of meetings & video) is a procession of opposition to the Robb Pitts (amended) version of the Library Master Plan, but in reading several news articles by AJC writer, David Bennett, it occurred to me and some of my colleagues that while there are seven members on the FCC Board, one seems get his voice heard in every published piece, that person being none other than Commissioner Rob Pitts. Why is this? Why, I ask, has one individual been allowed to molest public dialog and shape the entire public debate for his own personal will, especially when that same person's voice grossly misrepresents the will of the people who had already made their intent very clear through the heavily documented two-year vetting process?

The 2 year public vetting process for the original Library Master Plan included input for every public library in the system and was unanimously supported by all parties involved, with not one single individual asking that the current Central Branch be demolished, sold or otherwise disposed of. Why is this not clearly stated by the AJC?

FCC Chair John Eaves, as well as Commissioners Bill Edwards and Lynn Riley, are on the record stating that they had received hundreds and hundreds of phone calls and emails voicing support for keeping and renovating the current Central Branch, and they also said that not a single person (absolutely no one) ever called or wrote for anything otherwise. In other words, in the last two years, there was never any desire expressed in the public process by any citizen to build a new Central Branch, but instead there was overwhelming consent of a desire to keep the iconic structure that we already have. Why then is this point not emphasized and/or clearly stated by the AJC?

Led by Commissioner Rob Pitts and the library system's executive director John Szabo, with the auspices of a few additional "self-will-run-riot" commissioners, a PR campaign is in full force. It is a PR campaign, which mentions none of the information I now inquire about, though I will say that some of these omissions were very beautifully written about by Cynthia Rogers, in an op-ed AJC piece entitled Progress In Preservation. Still however, the assigned writer(s) who are supposed to be reporting on all sides have never really confronted Pitts et all on all these omissions. Why is this?

Furthermore, while heading Clearwater/Tampa's Public Library System, John Szabo is credited with getting a new central branch library built there. Now the same thing appears to be happening here. Is this a coincidence? Or was he hired with the intention to work stealthily towards doing away with our current central branch, in exchange for Pitt's vision of a "bigger better" newer one? And keep in mind, whether being coincidence or deliberate action, shouldn't the public know about this bit of potent information?

FCC Chair John Eaves, as well as Commissioner Lynn Riley, expressed much dissent against Pitt's et all, with (at a later date) Lynn Riley, in response to an email that I had sent to her thanking her for voting to honor the people's will by supporting only the original Library Master Plan, she wrote back in her reply saying "It was disappointing that a comprehensive library facility master plan could be hijacked for an un-substantiated purpose". By any measure, that statement packs a punch. So, with the question being that if I, a private citizen with no special access to public officials, was able to learn this directly from the source, why could the infinitely more powerful staff at The AJC not gather this very important quote…and so much more?

Moving on.

The Executive Director of American Institute of Architects Atlanta Chapter, Susan Ellis Proper, as well as the organization's president, Bruce McEvoy, are ardent supporters of the original Library Master Plan. I know this information as I have personally spoken with both of them. However they like I, do not support the Pitts/Szabo amended plan that has now become the stated bond referendum. Thus with both of these very knowledgeable architects and many of their architectural peers having expressed these same sentiments at FCC meeting(s) and through the AIA Atlanta website, why have neither they, nor young architect leader Newel Watkins, not been given, as respected cultural stewards of Greater Atlanta, a proper interview? Yes, why haven't any of these distinguished individuals been asked to weigh in on this issue via The AJC?

Too this, with an onslaught of daily news reports around the globe which speak of the collapsing state of the U.S. economy, with some economist essentially equating our current recession as fast approaching the very same dynamics and fallout of the 1929 Great Depression, why has Commissioner Rob Pitts and Library Director John Szabo been allowed to dramatically fatten the projected budget of the Library Master Plan by approximately almost 25% with virtually no public input, or rigorous scrutiny from your paper; a paper which itself is feeling the direct effect of the prior mentioned economic woes i.e. with the laying off of 200 of your own employees. Where is the objectivity and scrutiny that ought to be de rigueur, especially in such dire economic times?

And, another question…. with local and global concern for environmental preservation increasing daily, why hasn't The AJC thought to ask a LEED certified expert or some other knowledgeable individuals in the field of project sustainability and urban renewal, about the impact of the wholesale "junking" of a large civic structure? Wouldn't that have been an appropriate line of questioning for the commissioners, which may have shown a sign of sane, reflective, leadership on the behalf of the FCC Board?

And then there is this looming question, with Marcel Breuer having been such a phenomenal artist, architect and industrial engineer, and given the fact that Atlanta-Fulton has the very last public structure built by such a towering figure, why hasn't The AJC asked the same type of questions that one would expect to be asked if a structure of said significance had such historic value to African-Americans causes and the Civil Rights Movement. In other words, as an African-American myself, who is very proud of that fact and who prides himself of the legacy of equanimity and justice that our own Dr. King and Coretta Scott King left with us, why then has the AJC not inquired to the commissioners as to why that the same sensitivity of one subculture cultural value is not being given to another subculture. I make this point because as a fair-minded human being (that happens to be African-American) who can chew gum and walk at the same time, meaning that I understand the win/win of a multi-faceted system of just inclusion, I have a deep appreciation of civic equity where ever it may be. From this place of vision, it is a logical step that an awareness should exist, which facilitates that the Marcel Breuer building represents an easily seen parallel equation in the world of architecture and civic preservation to the civil rights world? Meaning that if one were to draw a direct comparison between the Civil Rights aesthetic and the Artistic aesthetic, Marcel Breuer would easily rank as an Andrew Young, Malcolm X, or Rosa Parks. So again, to rephrase, why wasn't The AJC able to parse the need for common sense wisdom, historical sensitivity and civic stewardship, when dealing with the legacy of ALL the great contributors to our society?

And what about the one off, site-specific monumental sculpture by famed African American sculpture Richard Hunt. It is a piece ironically titled "The Wisdom Bridge". What's to happen to that irreplaceable piece and doesn't such an epic work of art deserve to be thought of in advance? Why aren't we talking about this?

Jere Woods, mayor of one of Fulton's largest cities, The City of Roswell, spoke eloquently (with the endorsement of Sandy Springs Mayor, Eva Galambos) at the July 16th FCC meeting about why he stridently endorses the original Library Master plan and not the Pitts/Szabo amended one. Shouldn't some of his remarks have shown up in a subsequent AJC news article, given the fact that he represents such a huge populace in the metro area?

Through my own independent studies as a freelance artist and layman's intellectual, and through the engagement of a discourse with government officials, past and present library employees, a plethora of reputable architects, school teachers, urban "green" stewards and private citizens from all walks of life, more often than not, I have encountered a sheer befuddlement at the idea of ditching the ever fabulous current central branch, and that in effect doing so would essentially be tantamount to cultural genocide. Why then has this diversely held, public perception been utterly ignored in The AJC's ongoing reporting effort?

And about the money, with there being $275,000,000.00 at stake, shouldn't the "watchdog" element of The AJC's journalistic ethic, have automatically kick in…Isn't that appropriate, just as a natural response to the prospects of such a staggering amount of money being misappropriated; this being especially true when one considers that the county's largest city, Atlanta, is now (last time I checked) facing a class-action law suit for it's own misappropriations of public funds with the Percent for Art program?

And finally, what is The AJC's position when it comes to espousing a civic duty of holding public officials publicly accountable?

I look forward to your reply

Bests,

Max

Trusting Private Media With Public Policy

2008-07-29T20:44:00.013-04:00

***

This past Monday, July 28th, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution published a front page piece by writer Alan Judd. It was a piece concerning the Central Branch Library and the Library Master Plan. And thought the piece was well written with some facts included, I and others felt that there were just too many glaring omissions (missing facts) for this piece to be seen as entirely independent and objective. Consequentially, I opted to post a public reply here on this site (see below) and I also sent a copy of this reply to Alan Judd via Email.

Thereafter Mr. Judd responded in a timely manner. And in his response and subsequent correspondence(s) I learned that wrote as he wrote because he was essentially "filling in" for AJC writer David Bennett (a.k.a. D.L. Bennett) who is officially assigned to this story, but currently on a two week vacation.

Et Viola!

That's when it all started to make sense. Because, from the start, I had noticed that Alan Judd had not written about this subject before. No, it was writer David Bennett who was the one in the last weeks and months, that had repeatedly wrote about this issue. And in reading Mr. Bennett's news articles, I noted that he had, time and time again, given preference to Commissioner Rob Pitts and Library Director John Szabo, all the while omitting and/or distorting the overwhelming voice(s) of dissent against Mr. Szabo and Pitts' bullish plan to hijack the budget and turn it to their favor.

It was a voice of dissent, which included Commission Chair Dr. John Eaves along with Commissioner Lynn Riley, as well as the Mayor(s) of Roswell and Sandy Springs, just to name a few. Then there were other omissions like the unanimous public support of the two year vetting process, which created the original Library Master Plan; that process now being totally ignored, effectively subverting the will of the people. Another omission was the fact that prior to coming to Atlanta, John Szabo was known as a tourist attraction library builder, as he had successfully done this exact thing (built a big fancy new central branch) when he was the head of The Tampa (Clearwater) Public Library System. Then there is this issue of public officials forming stealthy pacts with private developers, this being seen in the Buckhead Library incident with commissioner Tom Lowe and "friend" developer Ben Carter. There is plenty, plenty more that's been omitted, but I'll stop there.

Bottom line is this. David Bennet never really mentioned any of this. And when I confronted him on this some weeks back he claimed that he was just writing updates. What? What does that mean? The guy has written three or more news articles about this library fiasco and he wants me to believe that he couldn't have done a better job at representing the voice of both sides of this issue? How crazy is that?

Anyway. When David Bennet went on vacation and Alan Judd was temporarily handed the reigns for the follow-up story, he was given a major hot potato issue, with scant half the facts. Mr. Judd had not been ordered to follow this issue from the start, because he was not the writer originally assigned to cover it. But, David Bennet was. Thus, I now sense that Mr. Judd honestly and truly did the best he could. But with being given just a couple of days to write the piece, and with all the prior documentation having come from David Bennett, what else could Mr. Judd do, but mostly fumble the ball? Though with that said, I must say that he still did a better job than Mr. Bennet.

It's a terrible set of circumstances for a writer to find themselves in. And though I offer no apologies for my public reply, I do feel a sincere sympathy for Alan Judd or any other writer who finds themselves faced with such a loaded deck. Yet when one adds to this incident the overall horror that so many corporate news outlets are being faced with today, namely their demise via forced downsizing (AJC just laid off 200 of it's staff) it's a wonder that any work is getting down at all.

Thus as I sit here agape at the media prospects, I can't help but wonder...how can a profit driven, market controlled, corporate media system be consistently depended upon to provide thorough, accurate, independent analysis and prose, when their own financial floor is crumbling beneath their very feet?

Is this realistic? Is this possible? And in the meantime, who's watching our elected officials?

***

A Public Reply to Alan Judd of The AJC

2008-07-28T13:52:00.007-04:00

***

Alan,

To your recently penned AJC news article;

Beauty, truth and bonds: Is library a classy eyesore?

I say this:

Your piece is an opinion piece.

That is what you provide.

But with this piece being presented on the front page as "fact", I ask... where are the facts?

...all the facts?

Not the cherry picked facts, but all the facts...you know, the ones that will sink your case.

As a private citizen you are entitled to your opinion, just as you faux news brother David Bennett is. Yet this recent piece was not on the op-ed page, it's on the front page. And while there are plenty of good journalist at the AJC and elsewhere, there can be no denying that the public is ripe with complaints of men (and women) of your ilk; individuals who think we (the masses) are just a bunch of idle fools, eager to gobble up your swill.

Not.

All eyes are watching, and with so many news organizations collapsing before our very eyes, you might want to rethink your strategy of playing kissy face with the highest bidder.

I'm not saying that you are taking bribes (though I wouldn't be surprised). No, I'm suggesting that the highest bidder = the loudest, slickest, most well-connected voice.

The media has a responsibility to the public to tell the whole, unvarnished truth. Omitting vital facts = lying. And don't worry, I won't bother to point out all of your omissions, you know what they are.

So does Szabo. So does Pitts.

And if Pitts et Co. are fully at ease with subverting the truth. Let them do that. But that's not your job. You are (supposedly) an unbiased, independent journalist.

Because, what Pitts & Szabo are doing amounts to nothing more than legalized money laundering. They have re-routed and finagled money that in a 2 year vetting process, had been decided to be spent a certain way. They have ignored that 2 year vetting process, in which, not a single citizen asked for a new central branch. Not one. And to that, Commissioner Lynn Riley has gone on the record saying,Pitts et all hijacked the process. But has a prosecutable crime been committed? Not yet. And though what's being done might be legal, but it's anything but right. No, it's wrong.

Very wrong.

In closing, I'll say this. I have no delusions of grandeur in thinking that I am some supreme arbiteur of justice. I am just one man. Yet, it is interesting how the facts seem to have a way of showing up at the most inopportune time...just ask GWB. He can tell you all about that.

Oh yea, and I hear the AJC is laying off 200 journalist. How painful. Yet, with slop like yours being sold as news, I can't imagine why.

Now is not the time to squander money on some extra $100M pet project. The City of Atlanta is already struggling with insurmountable debt. Again, The AJC is laying off 200...hello? Even Starbucks is closing 600 stores...hello? Foreclosures??? Banks are collapsing??? The economy???

You have misrepresented the voice of the people.

You have done the public a great injustice.

And it has not gone unnoticed.

Bests,

Max

***

Progress Is Preservation

2008-07-18T10:46:00.006-04:00

***

Update: Central Branch Library

In the two brief orations that I (Max Eternity) have been fortunate to give before The Fulton County Board of Commissioners, and in a desire to echo the same sentiment(s) online, a set of beliefs have developed, which prompted me to create the Central Branch Library blog (see first blog entry). Then here in today's edition of the The Atlanta Journal Constitution, the same case is put forth in perfect form.

With clarity and vision, a woman named Cynthia Rogers has penned a piece entitled: Progress In Preservation.
***

Dead On Arrival: The Library Master Plan (revised)

2008-07-16T20:48:00.005-04:00

***

Update:

What started out as beauty, has been transformed into the beast. For today, five of the seven Fulton County Commissioners, decided that their own personal interests were more important than the publics' collective best interest. With the end result being that from the original Library Master Plan's budget, $34M dollars has been siphoned off, to this $50M has been added for some down the road (pie in the sky) pork barrel 'trophy library' project. Of course we were assured that this would be in the people's best interest, yet by judging the crowd at today's meeting, the commissioners (save Riley and Eaves) were the only ones who seemed convinced of that.

The rest of us weren't buying it.

Not only that, why attempt to force something onto the public that they don't want. Meaning that not a single person who attended the meeting asked for a new downtown library. We like the one we already got and fixing it up will only cost us $34M...$34M which has now been stripped away.

Now again, this $34M was the money that was supposed to refurbish the existing Central Branch Library, a noteworthy building that was designed by legendary Bauhaus architect, Marcel Breuer. But now that money is gone. And as if it were not enough to toss the Central Branch Library down a memory hole of abysmal neglect, the commissioners then decided to go back and double dip in the public treasury to add another $50M to this Faustian deal, sitting a total of $84M aside (supposedly with good intent) yet bloating the Library Master Plan's total budget by almost 25% bringing the grand total to $275M.

So let's see, we GET LESS but PAY MORE...with the promise of something (maybe?) down the road.

Not.

Needless to say, by the time all this ridiculousness rolled around, the entire room began to reak of bacon and fatback.

And if you're reading this wondering, why? What? This doesn't make good sense. Well, join the club. Because if ever there were a textbook example of over-indulgent, self-congratulatory, pork barrel spending, disguised as loyal, public service...then this is it!

The people didn't ask for this. For as it is, we are already struggling to maintain what we've already got. Thus, we do not want any additional, unnecessary debts. We already have buildings that need taking care of and the commissioners themselves have publicly admitted several times that everybody was happy with the original plan and that the people were overwhelmingly against any additional new debt that went beyond any monies already decided upon. And yet, somehow or another, we got screwed.

We demanded satisfaction, but instead we were treated to a dog and pony show to the tune of $84M. Because, neither do we get a refurbish central branch nor do we get a new central branch. Basically, all we get is a promise. And while we are all looking the other way waiting for our "cross my heart, hope to die" promise to be fulfilled in the form of a glorious new central library...who will be watching the $84M? Because with the price of the average new "centerpiece" city library costing near $300M, exactly how, how long and what will getting that kind of money actually involve.

Hello? The economy? The falling dollar? The collapsing banking system?

Hence in the end, there is only one way to explain why we got what THEY wanted instead of what WE wanted.

Hubris and Pork.

But perhaps by the time the referendum reaches the ballot box (general election) in November 2008, this nefarious, money-siphoning plan will brought to the light of day and the people (we, all of us) will reject it hands down.

It's the only sensible thing to do.

But, until then...we're stuck with hubris and pork.

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July 16th - The Final Push

2008-07-13T13:24:00.001-04:00

July 16th marks the final critical phase for the Central Branch Library, a historical site that was designed by legendary artist/architect Marcel Breuer. (scroll down to learn more)

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Date: July 16th, 2008

Time: 10:00am - 3:00pm

Fulton County Board of Commissioners
141 Pryor Street, SW
Atlanta, Georgia 30303

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If you can make it to this meeting, your support would be much appreciated. Otherwise, phone calls and emails to the county commissioners make a wonderful substitute.

Contact The Fulton County Board of Commissioners by clicking here.

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Library Master Plan

2008-07-04T15:03:00.001-04:00

The executive summary of the Atlanta-Fulton Library Master Plan as drafted by it's director, John Szabo, leads off by clearly calling for the renovation of the existing Central Branch and NOT for building a new $173,000,000 Central Branch, as desired (and pushed for) by Commissioner Robb Pitts; a disastrous idea that would lead the county toward unprecedented debt.

[begin]

Your Library's Facility Master Plan

Executive Summary

The stakeholders of the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System have realized for some time that a comprehensive master plan for library facilities is needed. It was clear that our Board of Commissioners and Library Board of Trustees needed and wanted a plan to guide decisions on facilities: identifying where citizens are unserved, where they are underserved, where libraries are most needed, what is the optimal size, and what improvements need to be made to our existing facilities-a plan that will examine these issues for the entire service area, not just one neighborhood or community. Most importantly, this much needed and desired plan must be fair, unbiased, and based on good information and valid, authoritative data. I believe this plan accomplishes this.

With the excellent assistance of the Sizemore Group, the Fulton County General Services Department, the Department of Environment and Community Development, the Atlanta Housing Authority and many others, this plan makes recommendations for:

• Ten new branch libraries-five of which will replace services at seven existing facilities.
• Major expansion and improvements of the Auburn Avenue Research Library
• Complete reprogramming and renovation of the Central Library
• Renovations and improvements at most existing branch facilities.

[end]

The above statement is just the intro to the Library Master Plan. For those interested in reading the entire master plan, it can be be found by clicking here.

UPDATE: Commissioners Meeting

2008-07-03T00:26:00.001-04:00

Though it's still undecided as to what the fate of the current Central Branch, Library will be, one things for sure. The push by Commissioner Robb Pitts to add an additional $173,000,000 to the already $225,000,000 Library Master Plan, so that a new (tourist attraction) Central Branch can be built, is losing steam fast. As today, during the Commission meeting, there were signs of a cracking solidarity between board members. This was most notable when Commissioners Emma Darnell, Bill Edwards and John Eaves expressed their concerns about the inadequate planning and bloated budget put forth by Robb Pitts. But it's it's not over just yet. There's one last critical meeting coming up on July 16th, whereupon it should become entirely clear what the future of the Central Branch will be. Nonetheless, there is still cause for celebration, as we have now been assured that the Buckhead Library will be kept intact. Buckhead has been saved!

June 2nd Commissioners Meeting

2008-07-01T11:49:00.001-04:00

There will be a commissioners meeting on July 2nd, 2008. Among other things, at this meeting will be discussed (and debated) the financial (and cultural) costs of abandoning the existing Central Branch Library; designed by legendary artist/architect Marcel Breuer.

Time: 10:00am - 3:00pm

Place: Fulton County Board of Commissioners
141 Pryor Street, SW
Atlanta, Georgia 30303

For those you can attend, this is a very important meeting. And for those who (for whatever reason) cannot attend. You can always make phone calls or send emails. Click here to visit the commissioners website which has all pertinent contact information.

John Szabo - Public Library System Director

2008-06-30T16:43:00.001-04:00

Less than a month ago, the leadership of the Fulton County Commission voted to amend it's Library Master Plan. So that now, instead of providing funding for the expected cost of repairs and general maintenance of the existing infrastructure, they want to instead build a very expensive new Central Branch...and abandon the existing Central Branch all together. This has all come about in a very short period of time.

Yet now that it public knowledge that the future of the Central Branch is in question. We need to know what the Director of the Library System believes to be in the best interest of the public.
After all, this is a public institution. So the publics' voice should be heard. This can't just be a hurried and hushed, a one sided debate? Thus, where does the Director of the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System stand on all this?

Well? Click here to read his opinion...

...an opinion that was published just a few days ago in the Atlanta Journal Constitution. It's a glowing, well-penned piece that highlights out all the pros and omits many of the cons. Nonetheless, I admire and respect Mr. Szabo for having the courage to be so forthright in his desires. Yet, one still has to wonder if he fully comprehends all sides of the issues. Like, what about the costs, costs that just might sink the entire plan? And again, why build something we don't really need. And too, why are we in such a rush? Don't we need more than a month to decide on something this big and important? Mr Szabo, on an issue that has become one of the library system's most important issues of all times, now more than ever, we really need your guidance.

Atlantans For Progressive Libraries

2008-06-26T14:58:00.001-04:00

While this blog was created specifically to address the future concerns of the Central Branch Library, there is also another historically significant public library currently at risk, the Buckhead Branch. As well, for those who might be interested in getting a broader scope of other pressing agendas that relate directly and indirectly to the Central Branch and the Buckhead Branch, there is a very informative site packed with lots of good information: click here

The Central Branch

2008-06-25T11:16:00.001-04:00

THE FUTURE OF THE CENTRAL BRANCH

The Issue:

In the course of this year, Fulton County, represented by it's commissioners, has created a master plan for the entire public library system. This master plan essentially renovates, overhauls, and upgrades the entire public library system. Meaning that, some new libraries will be built, others will be restored. At the center of all this are John Eaves (district 1), Commission Chairman and Commissioner At Large, Rob Pitts (district 2) Commissioner At Large, and Tom Lowe (district 4).

Now originally, the Central Branch, which is the crown jewel of the entire library system, was slated for a much needed renovation. And as best I know, that renovation was voted on by the board of commissioners and as a result of a majority "yea" vote, the building was assured a safe, secure future. Then, in a surprise twist, just weeks before the final vote was to take place on the library master plan (which then becomes a bond referendum for public vote in November) one of the commissioners, Mr. Rob Pitts, made a motion to amend the master plan. This amendment would take the money already allotted for the Central Branch and divert it toward the construction cost of building, what I suppose he considers, a bigger, better (visually and technologically au courant) public library. And herein lies the problem and the heated debate that has ensued. Because, as it stands, some (including myself) see this as a rather Faustian deal. On the surface it sounds good, but when one realizes that this newer, grander library would come at the expense of one of Atlanta's most iconic and historically significant architectural structures, the amended plan starts to seem questionable.

Why?

Because, progress should not come at the price of preservation. And furthermore, if we are struggling to take care of what we have, why burden ourselves with something new?

But let's be clear about this. Bigger, better, new...is not a bad thing. In fact, it can sometimes be good. However, we must be (with satisfaction) able to challenge and address the concerns for all parties involved. We can't just move full steam ahead without looking both ways, as this might surely lead to disaster. In short, in some, way, shape or form, the future of the existing Central Branch must be affirmed and ensured.

Preserving our civic heritage while ensuring a path to progression

2008-06-24T22:36:00.001-04:00

The creation of this blog has been done so as to provide a public forum for the preservation of the Marcel Breuer, Bauhaus designed, Atlanta-Fulton Central Branch Public Library. For as it stands the future of this priceless, iconic structure now hangs in the balance. And while the function of this building and it's historic presence holds dear and near to the hearts of many, this is especially true for me, as my own personal art and design experience is in direct aesthetic lineage to the original German Bauhaus School.

For those who are interested in this matter, you may click here to find a page that provides a solid overview of the Central Branch's origin and history. And within that site there are a multitude of links which one can use to delve deeper into rich architectural genealogy of the building's creator.

In the days and weeks to follow this site will be updated to provide a chronology of important developments and call(s) to action.

Bests,

Max Eternity