Archinect - News

Creative community issues a call to remove Philip Johnson's name because of his fascist past

2020-12-03T18:00:00-05:00

The ---- Johnson Study Group, an online organization "studying the legacy of a 20th century white supremacist [Philip Johnson] who founded the most significant modern architectural institutions in the United States" has released the following letter calling for all institutions to remove the name Philip Johnson from any reference of honor.

The letter specifically cites the Museum of Modern Art, where Johnson was the director at the Department of Architecture from 1930-1936 and 1946-1954. The letter mentions Johnson used his office at MoMA and his curatorial work as a pretense to collaborate with the German Nazi party.

According to this Twitter thread, the form will eventually be opened up for additional signatures. Follow the The ---- Johnson Study Group on Instagram to stay updated.

A collective of architects has started a petition requesting equal recognition of Doriana Fuksas, wife and partner of Massimiliano Fuksas

2018-12-17T19:42:00-05:00

A number of architects are seeking justice for the exclusion of Doriana Fuksas in the recent recognition given to her husband and business partner at Studio Fuksas, Massimiliano Fuksas, for a Lifetime Achievement Award from INARCH Istituto Nazionale di Architettura.

The initiative has been spearheaded by architects Louise Braverman, Caroline James and Francesca Perani on behalf of Italian activistsRebelArchitette and VOW Architects. The petition currently has over 450 supporters, including Massimiliano Fuksas, Denise Scott Brown, Rem Koolhaas, Paola Antonelli, Beatriz Colomina, Gisue Hariri, Toshiko Mori and Bjarke Ingels.

The petition can be viewed and signed here: bitly.com/DorianaFuksas

Want Christo to make a US/Mexico border wall? Sign the petition!

2017-01-11T11:55:00-05:00

Dear President-Elect Donald Trump: Please commission U.S. artist Christo’s with the creation of a new a version of his Running Fence to separate the U.S. from Mexico. His first project in Sonoma was completed in 1976 with great success. Though only 24.5 miles long then, in full length today it would transform a racist project into a public art event, and help improve the image of the U.S. with a cultural veneer.

#ProtectCity campaign launched in support of Michael Heizer's "City"

2015-03-19T19:00:00-04:00

Located in Garden Valley, Nevada, Michael Heizer’s City is one of the most significant works of art in the United States. Begun by Heizer in 1972, the project is now in its final stage of completion. It will, in the future, be accessible by the public. [...] To see the land developed into a site for military, energy, or waste purposes, would ruin it forever. After 43 years of work, can it really be destroyed like this?

Notable American museums publicly expressed their support on Twitter via #protectCITY. The LACMA petition to protect Michael Heizer's City and the Basin and Range can be reached here.

Previously on Archinect: Michael Heizer's massive desert sculpture, "City", will make you cry

Bamiyan Cultural Centre online petition calls for jury to revise winning decision

2015-02-23T15:00:00-05:00

Note: This post has been updated to correctly list the petition organizers, the number of signatures, and includes a comment from the team.

Shortly after the UNESCO Office in Afghanistan announced the anticipated results of the Bamiyan Cultural Centre Design Competition on February 18, competition entrants Kia Massoudi along with Nick Roseboro, Fabio Pradarelli, and Alessandro Orsini of New York-based firm Architensions set up an online petition expressing opposition against the Jury's selection of the winners. It currently has 89 signatures.

A total of 1,070 online submissions to the single-stage competition, which invited professional architects worldwide to propose designs for the new Bamiyan Cultural Centre in the Bamiyan Valley of Afghanistan, near the World Heritage property of the Cultural Landscape and Archaeological Remains of Bamiyan. The Jury selected "Descriptive Memory: The Eternal Presence of Absence" by Carlos Nahuel Recabarren, Manuel Alberto Martinez Catalan, and Fran...

New whitehouse.gov petition urges to utilize open architectural competitions for the design of Federal buildings

2014-02-26T13:13:00-05:00

43 signatures down, only 99,957 more to go — Archinect senior contributor John Jourden brought to our attention a new online petition at whitehouse.gov, which urges the administration to award the design of new Federal building projects utilizing open architectural competitions.

The initiative has now until March 26 to reach its goal of 100,000 signatures to be considered for an earnest review.

Here's the petition text in full:

"The United States offers the best architectural education available in the world but has not engaged its young designer base in creating the vision for the future of America's built environment. American architecture programs as a leader in design education, technological innovation, and sustainability attracts students from all over the world yet the United States does not invite any input from its young designer base as is commonly done in many European countries. Young American designers truly represent an untapped resource for a new vision of the United Sta...

Angelenos: save the historic Figueroa-Riverside Bridge and preserve it for future park use

2013-10-28T17:45:00-04:00

The communities and neighborhoods along the LA River in the Northeast of Los Angeles have traditionally had poor access to parks and open space. The Riverside Bridge is an opportunity to immediately transform the bridge span into a park to enjoy recreationally and to connect the Glassell Park and Cypress Park communities to the Greater Los Angeles area. It is also an opportunity for extending the LA River Greenway Trail to Downtown Los Angeles and to Pasadena for bicyclists and pedestrians.

Petition to block the demolition of the State Savings Bank in Detroit

2013-08-07T13:30:00-04:00

According to Preservation Detroit, "The City of Detroit Historic District Commission has received a petition to demolish the State Savings Bank. The petition is subject to a public hearing, which is scheduled for the next Historic District Commission meeting on Wednesday, August 14."

Samantha Farr, an Urban Planning Graduate Student at University of Michigan, has started a petition to block the plans by Andreas Apostolopoulos, CEO of Triple Properties, to demolish the historic Beaux-Arts-Style State Savings Bank in Detroit, to make room for a parking structure. Triple Properties purchased the building in 2012.

Robert Stern refuses to sign petition for Pritzker to grant joint prize to Denise Scott Brown

2013-04-18T14:25:00-04:00

Robert A. M. Stern, the dean of Yale’s Architecture School, said he declined to sign the petition because he objected to its use of the word “demand,” but that he backed it in principle. “It would be wonderful for the Pritzker committee to review the situation and to offer her the prize,” Mr. Stern said. “The nature of the collaboration was so intense on every level.”