This week we're joined by Inga Saffron, the Pulitzer Prize-winning architecture critic for the Philadelphia Inquirer. If you haven't read her latest piece on Henry Wilcots, the relatively unknown architect responsible for finishing Louis Kahn's masterpiece in Dhaka, go read it now. We talk with Inga about her experience meeting with Wilcots, architecture criticism pre and post-internet, Philadelphia and more.
Listen to "Every City Needs a Crank":
I miss Philly so much it makes my heart hurt to look at pictures of its beautiful rowhouse streets. Sigh.
When Ken and I were there for AIA 2016, and I hadn't been back for 10 years, we drove down South Broad Street, headed to the Navy Yard to see the BIG building. As soon as we crossed Washington Street (I bought all my building products for my home renovation there - sigh) I started laughing my ass off because I had *totally* forgotten that people park in the median all along South Broad! It was so delightful to see that and remember how horrid and lovable the residents of South Philly are, cranky and wonderful all at once.
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I miss Philly so much it makes my heart hurt to look at pictures of its beautiful rowhouse streets. Sigh.
When Ken and I were there for AIA 2016, and I hadn't been back for 10 years, we drove down South Broad Street, headed to the Navy Yard to see the BIG building. As soon as we crossed Washington Street (I bought all my building products for my home renovation there - sigh) I started laughing my ass off because I had *totally* forgotten that people park in the median all along South Broad! It was so delightful to see that and remember how horrid and lovable the residents of South Philly are, cranky and wonderful all at once.
Thank you for doing this interview! Inga Saffron is among the very best architecture critics. One of the very few who get that the job is not about selling real estate!
Nice interview, but you can't blame Robert Stern for delivering McColonial PoMo, blame the idiots who hired him. It's interesting how places like Philly, Dallas, Chicago and SF have better arch critics than NY, LA. So much trash going up, and so few to challenge the conventional development wisdom. Most seem to just be giving up traditional building crit for these generic urbanism narratives.
Chicken / Egg argument. If he didn't exist, they couldn't have hired him.
What Chicago architects you talking about? We have a buncha shit going up recently.
I'm so glad she distinguished between real estate sites and real critics visiting the sites and talking with people. I feel like the NYT and LAT is under the impression that these blogs are sufficient, so there is no need for traditional criticism.... wrong.
Ken- have the conversation.
yes.
.
Marc, could you elaborate? Do you mean talk to Henry?
Yep. I think it would be a nice follow up given the overlaps in coverage on archinect, and frankly the story. A conversation with someone who is overlooked. (point of transparency, it's something Ive been mulling over).
I agree and I'm working on it. The other thought I had, is there is a generation of architects that are going to soon be gone, and I think it's important to get their audible story on the record. For future generations.
That's my thought as well.
Well done.
I practiced in Philadelphia for 40 years as a Black architect and never knew or heard of Henry Wilcots. None of my colleagues-mentors ever mentioned him. Not even Theodore Victor Cam, James Walter Wilson, or Walter Raleigh Livingston.
When we created PhilaNOMA his name never came up. I recently created a blog - PHILADELPHIA'S BLACK ARCHITECTS: 1950-2000 - and intend to include as many of my contemporaries as I can (and there were many more than you might think). How can I contact Henry? Can you get him to email me (rssaxon@saxoncapers.com)??
Was I the one voicemail that was ever left, on the Archinect call-in line?
Ha! I think it was! Archinectors tend to be much more shy via telephone than they are via internet comments :)
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