All posts by Martha González Palacios

archive

Treatment of architectural watercolor rendering of Havana courtroom interior by James Riely Gordon, ca. 1911

For many years now the Alexander Architectural Archive and iSchool lecturer and paper conservator Karen Pavelka have collaborated on preserving works on paper from the archive collections.  Conservation students at the Kilgarlin Center for for the Preservation of the Cultural Record gain experience treating archival works as part of the Paper Laboratory taught by Pavelka. Second year Conservation student D. Jordan Berson describes his process of treating an early 20th century watercolor by Texas architect James Riely Gordon.

To see other images of this installation, visit the slide show on the Architecture & Planning Library flickr page.

Gordon watercolour before treatment
Gordon watercolour before treatment

The goal of this treatment was to stabilize the fragile drawing in order to lift access restrictions and enable safe handling by researchers. It was also desired to reduce detracting visible damage. The object had tears and surface distortion, creases and a damaged acidic mat that was adhered directly to the artwork. It was evident that large areas of additional artwork were obscured by the existing mat. In addition, there were several areas along creases where the paint had been burnished or rubbed completely away, exposing the paper substrate.

The first part of the treatment was to mechanically remove the mat and adhesive residue as much as possible. Where residue remained adhered to the object, it was scraped away as possible by introducing very light amounts of moisture to soften it, then scraped away with a microspatula or wiped away with cotton swabs. This process took many hours. Then the piece was dry cleaned on both sides using soot sponges, and white eraser shavings. Tears were mended and splayed corners were consolidated using wheat starch paste. Thick Japanese tissue mending strips were glued down on the reverse side of creases to reduce planar distortion. Detracting media loss was remedied through inpainting. First a gelatin sizing was painted into the areas of loss, followed by inpainting with color-matched watercolors. Finally, a new acid-free mat was hand-cut using a Dexter mat-cutter. Instead of adhering it to the object as the old one was, a new “T-hinge” design was used that replicated the design of the original mat while enabling viewers to see the long-hidden artwork underneath.

Gordon watercolour after treatment
Gordon watercolour after treatment

To see other images of the treatment, visit the slide show on the Architecture & Planning Library flickr page.

library

Sustainable Architecture In Vorarlberg

Sustainable Architecture in VoralbergSustainable Architecture in Vorarlberg by Ulrich Dangel

Earth Day is celebrating its 40th anniversary on April 22, 2010. This once-a-year event galvanizes millions of individuals across the world to help make the planet a cleaner, more sustainable, place to live.

Architects play a crucial role in this effort, helping to solve such issues as urban sprawl and density, environmental impact of building projects, energy performance of buildings, affordable housing, social equity and sustainable technology.

In his book, Sustainable Architecture in Vorarlberg, Ulrich Dangel, assistant professor of architecture at The University of Texas at Austin, discusses the regional building style in Vorarlberg, an Austrian city known for its sustainable construction methods that have culminated into a model for architecture worldwide.

Dangel will have a book signing from 6 to 8 p.m., Thursday, May 6 at Domy Books located at 913 East Ceasar Chavez, Austin, Texas.

By Amy Crossette, Director Public Affairs for School of Architecture, School of Information.

This book is available at the Architecture & Planning Library.

exhibition, News Items

Transparent People: reBILD installation at the library

reBILD installation at the Architecture & Planning Library Reading RoomreBILD installation at the Architecture & Planning Library Reading Room. To see full size image, click here.

On February 25, 2010, reBILD created an installation in UT’s Architecture and Planning Library featuring
8 full-scale “statues” of people made of transparent tape and plastic-wrap arranged to appear as active patrons of the library. This specific location was chosen because of the light quality, scale and design of the main room, as well as the unique condition of libraries as spaces that discourage talking, altering what might otherwise be predictable reactions to this spatial intervention. A particularly surprising aspect of the project was the degree to which different kinds and amounts of light (natural, artificial, direct, indirect, etc.) dramatically changed the effect of the sculptures and, thus, changed their spatial presence.

reBILD plans to use observations made from this project as a starting point to inform their next project, which should be in late March.

reBILD is a student group at the University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture building on the initiatives of Linus Day, a 19th century experimental artist/architect. Our aim is to challenge preconceived notions of spatial experience and document the results to inform a wider sense of design. reBILD hopes to accomplish this goal by developing fun and decidedly unscientific experiments that alter spatial conditions and engage the community. reBILD grew out of a project that the founding students undertook as part of a Theory of Architecture class with Larry Speck, the organization’s advisor.

To see other images of this installation, visit the slide show on the Architecture & Planning Library flickr page.

exhibition, News Items

Historic Preservation Program: A Retrospective of Student Work, 2008-2009

Historic Preservation Program: A Retrospective of Student Work, 2008-2009 exhibtion on view at the Architecture & Planning Library Reading RoomHistoric Preservation Program: A Retrospective of Student Work, 2008-2009 exhibtion on view at the Architecture & Planning Library Reading Room. To see full size invitation, click here.

“Historic Preservation Program: A Retrospective of Student Work, 2008-2009” will be open in the Architecture & Planning Library Reading Room in Battle Hall March 6 through May 24, 2010.

Presented by the Graduate Program in Historic Preservation and curated by a committee of students, the exhibition showcases the products of various preservation classes from the past two years, including Preservation Studio, Graphic Documentation, and Materials Conservation.  The works on display from the multi-disciplinary classes include annotated drawings for building condition assessments, HABS-level documentation measured drawings, design proposals, photographs, and models.

Austin sites, including historic campus buildings, are the focus of all of the projects. This exhibit offers a preservation perspective for conservation, documentation, as well as exploration of new design ideas for several of the city and the university’s historic resources.

Sponsored by: The University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture, the University of Texas Libraries, the Texas Union Student Events CoSponsorship Committee, the Graduate Student Assembly, the Senate of College Councils, Kemp Properties and the Paul C. Ragsdale Excellence Fund for Historic Preservation.

News Items

Dodd speaks at Texas Preservation Summit, February 5, 2010

Beth Dodd, Head Librarian at the Architecture & Planning Library, participated on a panel discussion at the “Modernism + Recent past” roundtable.  The panel, made up of  6 professionals involved in historic preservation, spoke about their experiences and issues related to modernism and the recent past.  In an organized discussion, key themes of awareness, advocacy and action were addressed to identify specific challenges inherent in preserving the recent past with the end goal of suggesting proactive solutions statewide.

Discussion included an understanding that access to knowledge plays a significant role in historic preservation.  That open access and preservation of historic records must go hand in hand with the preservation of the building.  Modern buildings and their records share similar challenges including identification, documentation and preservation.  It was an opportunity to raise awareness about the incredible unique resources found in the University of Texas Libraries’ Alexander Architectural Archive- a public keeper and steward of knowledge.  Solutions included proactively identifying historic records, raising awareness of  public repositories, and encouragement to increase web presence and the use of Web 2.0 for sharing knowledge and images.  A stronger web presence helps in research and proves international interest in what might more commonly be considered a local issue.

The Preservation Summit, sponsored by Preservation Texas, was organized as an opportunity to identify issues related to the preservation of the historic built environment, develop strategic approaches and solutions to issues and to cultivate partnerships across the state.

News Items

Log goes 3-D

Log 17 cover: Untitled by Tristan Eaton, 2009Log 17 cover: Untitled by Tristan Eaton, 2009

Check out the latest issue, Fall 2009, of Log [Observations on architecture and the contemporary city].  The initial thought for this issue was to “explore the idea of depth in the superficial in architecture” (1) so a 3-D drawing for the cover seemed perfect as it references the idea of depth, which can only be seen properly by using 3-D glasses.

Naturally, the initial superficial attraction to the 3-D cover will soon be overshadowed by the articles this issue contain, which, are as always, engaging and timely. “Log 17, guest edited by Mark Foster Gage and Florencia Pita, features essays and conversations focusing on relationships between new media and materiality in architecture – with an emphasis on sensation and affect.”(2)

1. –, “Cover Story.,” Log, no. 17 (Fall 2008): 152

2. Contents. Log.

exhibition, News Items

Karl Kamrath, Architect and Collector

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Karl Kamrath exhibition on view at the Architecture & Planning Library Reading RoomKarl Kamrath exhibition on view at the Architecture & Planning Library Reading Room

“Karl Kamrath: Architect and Collector” will be open in the Architecture & Planning Library Reading Room in Battle Hall through March, 2010.

Houston modern architect, Karl Kamrath (1911-1988) collected and consumed information on Frank Lloyd Wright and organic architecture, and then incorporated his own articulations of Wright’s principles in built form. His interest in organic architecture was evident in projects that blended into the landscape while satisfying the individual needs of his clients.

This exhibit highlights several of these projects through drawings and photographs from the Karl Kamrath collection in the Alexander Architectural Archive. Evidence of Kamrath’s collecting practice is displayed through books and journals selected from the Library’s Special Collection of published material.

Karl Kamrath, Architect and Collector continues a series of student-curated exhibitions held at the Architecture and Planning Library, drawing from rare and unique resources used during their research.

This exhibit reflects the scholarship of Katie Pierce, who recently completed her master’s thesis in architectural history on Kamrath. Pierce was also the lead processor of the Kamrath archive while earning her Masters degree at the School of Information. She is now an IMLS Doctoral Preservation fellow in the School of Information.

Katie Pierce stands by one the cabinets displaying drawings and artifacts from the Karl Kamrath Collection.Katie Pierce, curator, stands by one the cabinets displaying drawings and artifacts from the Karl Kamrath Collection.