March 2006

Letter from the Chair
by James J. Malanaphy III, AIA
This is the year for the AIA Historic Resources Committee to achieve some significant outreach, and we've gotten off to a great start. With the approach of the AIA sesquicentennial celebration in 2007—AIA150—now is the time to strengthen our national network of historic preservation professionals. Find out what you can do right now that will benefit all who practice in the preservation field and improve your own practice as well.

Meet the 2006 HRC Advisory Group and Subcommittee Leaders
The AIA HRC Web site always carries the current lists of HRC Advisory Group members and national HRC subcommittees. Check out your 2006 leaders and contact the subcommittee chairs to get involved in the national AIA HRC programs and activities.

2006 HRC Programs and Events
The AIA HRC home page now runs a regularly updated list of scheduled HRC events in the "HRC Highlights" box. Just click on the links for more information about any HRC event.

Other Historic Preservation Events
In addition to the HRC events listed on the HRC home page, check out these other preservation-related events as well as the National Trust for Historic Preservation's comprehensive list of historic-preservation conferences and workshops scheduled through June 2006.

Calling all HRC Members!
This segment of our eNewsletter is designed to provide an up-to-date listing of upcoming events of interest to the membership. To keep you well informed, the AIA HRC Subcommittee for Communications and Publications strives to provide as diverse a selection of worldwide events as possible. Many of you attend these events out of your own desire to learn and travel, and we salute your enthusiasm. We truly desire feedback from attendees and would greatly appreciate it if you would share your experience with the HRC and overall AIA membership. If you plan to attend an upcoming event (whether listed in Preservation Architect or not), please inform us in advance (contact Kathleen Lane at klane@aia.org) so that we can help you to share your adventure with other attendees. We can include your own written report in the subsequent issue of Preservation Architect. Please consider including photos as well (for specifications, see the "Guidelines for Submitting Content for Use on AIA.org"). Let’s make our eNewsletter much more inclusive and informative! Thank you very much!

Kwendeche, AIA
Chair, AIA HRC Subcommittee for Communications and Publications

Now Available for the AIA Historic Resources Committee!
Non-Members Can Subscribe to a Knowledge Community for $35/year.
Download the application

Non-architects can now subscribe to a knowledge community and receive these benefits:
An annual subscription to the knowledge community's eNewsletter
AIA member discounts on knowledge community events
AIA member discounts on knowledge community publications
Access to experts in your field

This offer is available currently for the AIA Diversity Committee; Historic Resources Committee; and Interfaith Forum on Religion, Art and Architecture. To subscribe, you must not be eligible for full AIA or Assoc. AIA membership. FREE subscription for AIAS members is currently available for the Historic Resources Committee only. For further information, please e-mail Terri Stewart tstewart@aia.org.

Featured Liaison Organization: Preservation Action
by James J. Malanaphy III, AIA
Preservation Action (PA) not only keeps the HRC up to date on preservation-related legislative issues; for the the past two years it has also helped the HRC to identify issues and prepare issue briefs for AIA Government Advocacy to include in the AIA’s legislative agenda (recently carried forward by hundreds of AIA members during the annual Grassroots visit to Capitol Hill). Since 1974, PA has been a Capitol Hill advocate for national legislation favorable to historic preservation. Recently, however, its focus has moved from the need to formulate preservation policy and programs to one of supporting those initiated by our legislators. PA is currently seeking HRC members from western states to serve on its board of directors.

Calls for Nominations

National Preservation Awards
Nomination deadline: May 1, 2006
Each year the National Trust for Historic Preservation celebrates the best of preservation by presenting National Preservation Awards to individuals and organizations whose contributions demonstrate excellence in historic preservation. We invite you to nominate a deserving individual, organization, agency, or project for a 2006 National Preservation Award. The nomination form is only available online, so go to the National Preservation Award Web site and download the 2006 nomination form today! If you have questions or need additional information about the awards or the nomination process, please contact Sarah Hopson at sarah_hopson@nthp.org or call 202-588-6236.

Best of the South: Preserving Southern Architecture Award
Nomination deadline: June 19, 2006
The Southeast Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians (SESAH) seeks nominations for the Best of the South: Preserving Southern Architecture Award. This new award will honor a project that preserves or restores a historic building, or complex of buildings, in an outstanding manner that demonstrates excellence in research, technique, and documentation. Projects in the 11-state region of SESAH that were completed in 2004 or 2005 are eligible. For further information, see the SESAH awards Web site, call 434-534-8123, or e-mail Travis McDonald at travis@poplarforest.org.

Calls for Papers

"Steel Cities: Tradition, Transition and Transformation"
National Centre for English Cultural Tradition, The University of Sheffield, England
Deadline for abstracts: April 17, 2006
For nearly two centuries steel has been the fundamental building block of modernity, revolutionizing the lives of millions. From its use in building and construction, in weapons production, to its role in the home kitchen, the transformative power of steel is undeniable. The "Steel Cities" conference will bring together academic professionals from a wide range of disciplines to explore the ways in which steel has affected people, places, and pasts and how it continues to shape lives and relationships in the context of local and global change. Conference organizers have already received a number of interesting abstracts from a wide range of disciplines, which appear on the conference Web site. They are still seeking abstracts, especially in the following areas: industrial archaeology, history of technology, landscape, material culture, postindustrial sociology, tourism, and heritage. If you are interested in presenting a paper at "Steel Cities," send an abstract of 500 words by April 17, 2006, to Professor Joan Beal, National Centre for English Cultural Tradition, University of Sheffield, 9 Shearwood Road, S10 2TD United Kingdom, or by e-mail to j.c.beal@shef.ac.uk.

"Celebrating Historic Structures and Spaces Within Small Towns of the Northwest"
Annual Meeting of the Marion Dean Ross/Pacific Northwest Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians (SAH)
Deadline for abstracts: April 30, 2006
The Marion Dean Ross/Pacific Northwest Chapter of SAH invites proposals for papers to be presented at the annual meeting September 14-16, 2006, at the University of Idaho in Moscow. Papers may address any aspect of architectural history from any geographic region. The conference theme is "Celebrating Historic Structures and Spaces within Small Towns of the Northwest." Although papers may address any topic, proposals are especially welcome that focus on the conference theme in the following subject areas: small town architecture and planning; cultural, economic, and environmental sustainability of small towns; college towns; architecture and settlements related to agriculture, logging, mining, and tourism; American Indian architecture and settlements; issues related to rapid transformation from one economic base to another; and adaptive reuse of historic structures. For further details, see the chapter Web site.

Preservation Opportunities

Job Announcement: Heritage Education Coordinator, National Center for Preservation Technology & Training (NCPTT)
Applications are invited from qualified candidates for the position of Heritage Education Coordinator at the National Center for Preservation Technology &Training (NCPTT). NCPTT is an office of the National Park Service located on the campus of Northwestern State University (NSU) in Natchitoches, La. The full-time position is available in February 2006. The coordinator will be an employee of NSU and will work closely with NSU faculty. Candidates must meet eligibility criteria for state employment. Compensation will be based on experience, including academic experience. The position is open until filled. For further information, see the full announcement.

Preservation Leadership Training
Application deadline: March 31, 2006
The next Preservation Leadership Training (PLT) will take place June 10-17, 2006, in Nebraska City, Neb. This PLT is cosponsored by the Nebraska Lied Main Street program. PLT is an intensive, one-week experience tailored to respond to the needs of state and local preservation organizations and agencies. It provides a participatory experience in leadership and organizational development techniques as well as the most effective information and training in current preservation practices, issues, and action strategies. PLT is aimed at staff and volunteer leaders of private, nonprofit preservation and Main Street organizations; staff members of state and local government agencies; commission members or staff; and others who are in a position to influence preservation activities in their communities. For further information and to apply, see the PLT site. A limited number of scholarships are available.

Getty Foundation Launches $2 Million Fund for New Orleans
Application deadline: April 15, 2006
The Getty Foundation established a special initiative to help New Orleans arts institutions to recover from the impact of Hurricane Katrina. The $2 million Fund for New Orleans will enable nonprofit arts organizations to apply for support in two areas: Conservation Grants, designed to help the city's cultural institutions to care for their art collections and archives, historic buildings, and landscapes; and Transition Planning Grants to strengthen nonprofits as they respond to the changed environment for the arts following the storm. For further information, see the Fund for New Orleans Web site.

Building Conservation Workshops from Heritage Conservation Network
Heritage Conservation Network's (HCN) hands-on building conservation workshops provide an excellent opportunity for preservation, architecture, and art conservation students to gain practical experience while contributing to the success of a preservation project. Topics for 2006 include documentation and assessment; stucco, adobe, and masonry conservation; and structural repairs at locations in the United States, Mexico, and Slovenia. We will also work to mitigate flood damage in historic neighborhoods in the Gulf Coast. Each workshop is produced in partnership with a local preservation organization and led by a technical expert. For complete workshop details and registration information, see the HCN Web site or call 303-444-0128.

2006 National Preservation Institute Seminars
The National Preservation Institute (NPI), a nonprofit organization founded in 1980, educates those involved in the management, preservation, and stewardship of our cultural heritage. The 2006 National Preservation Institute seminar schedule is now available online at www.npi.org. Details on scholarship funding NPI has received from the National Endowment for the Arts and applicable NPI seminars can be found in the online news release. For information on seminars with AIA/CES credit see the news release online. Registration is recommended six weeks prior to each seminar, and a registration form is available online at www.npi.org/register.html. For questions, contact NPI Executive Director Jere Gibber at P.O. Box 1702, Alexandria, VA 22313; by calling 703-765-0100; by sending a fax to 703-768-9350; or by sending an e-mail to info@npi.org.

ACHP "Section 106 Essentials" Training Course
This two-day course, sponsored by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP), provides an in-depth look at the requirements of Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, which applies whenever a federal, federally assisted, or federally approved activity might affect a properly listed in or eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. The remaining courses this year will be offered in Las Vegas; San Juan, Puerto Rico; Washington, D.C.; Denver; St. Louis; San Francisco; and Pittsburgh. For more information or to register, please visit the ACHP "Section 106 Essentials" Web site or contact Diane Secchi at dsecchi@achp.gov or 202-606-8521.

Recent Preservation Publications

Keeping Time: The History and Theory of Preservation in America
Reviewed by Don A. Swofford, FAIA
Keeping Time, a practical and succinct history of the historic preservation movement in the United States, is the third edition of the classic textbook of graduate and college-level courses in historic preservation and architectural history. The new edition features a basic, pithy account of the history and spirit of historic preservation, a new preface by Murtagh, and a new chapter expanding the scope of the work to an International venue.

French America
Reviewed by Raymond Plumey, FAIA
This richly illustrated and photographed book explores the architectural and cultural heritage of the Nouvelle France (New France) in the territory known as La Louisiane (Louisiana Territory) in the United States from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian border.

Theaters: A Norton/Library of Congress Visual Sourcebook
Theaters by Craig Morrison, AIA, offers a richly illustrated history of a revered cultural artifact and a technological challenge, following its progression from the 18th-century opera house to the modern movie multiplex. This visual sourcebook traces the development of its colorful and varied forms as they developed in early America, on the western frontier, and in cities from coast to coast. The first comprehensive study of American theaters, it illustrates their wide range from raucous music halls to vaudeville, from circus to grand opera, from World's Fair to Coney island, from nickelodeon to glorious picture palace. Also featured are theaters for burlesque, theaters afloat, military theaters, Shakespearean theaters, summer theaters, theaters and African-Americans, and arenas (when a stage just won't do), enlivened by a cast of entrepreneurs and showmen who were the movers and shakers of our theatrical heritage.

A Public Trust at Risk: The Heritage Health Index Report on the State of America's Collections
The first comprehensive survey to assess the condition of U.S. collections concludes that immediate action is needed to prevent the loss of millions of irreplaceable artifacts held in public trust. Heritage Preservation, the country's leading conservation advocate, in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), a federal agency, details these and other findings in A Public Trust at Risk: The Heritage Health Index Report on the State of America's Collections. The report includes these key findings:

Eighty percent of U.S. collecting institutions lack an emergency plan to protect collections with staff trained to carry it out.
Sixty-five percent of collecting institutions have experienced damage to collections due to improper storage.
Approximately 190 million objects are in urgent need of conservation treatment.
The most urgent need at U.S. collecting institutions is environmental control.

A Public at Risk: The Heritage Health Index Report on the State of America's Collections has been placed online in its entirety at www.heritagehealthindex.org. An illustrated summary report may also be downloaded from this site or purchased for a modest shipping and handling fee at https://www.heritagepreservation.org/catalog. For further information, send an e-mail to survey@heritagepreservation.org or call 202-233-0800.

"Reclaimed Spaces" in AIA/J The AIA Journal of Architecture
The most recent issue of AIA/J The AIA Journal of Architecture, in the mail now, focuses on “Reclaimed Spaces.” Anchored by former HRC Advisory Group chair Michael J. Mills, FAIA, the issue explores the arguments for “making the past part of our future” while presenting case histories to back those arguments. Copies can be requested from Ushma Suvarnakar, usuvarnakar@aia.org.

Winter 2005 Issue of Future Anterior
The Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning & Preservation announces the publication of Future Anterior: Journal of Historic Preservation History, Theory and Criticism, v.2, n.2 (Winter 2005). Future Anterior is a refereed journal that "approaches historic preservation from a position of critical inquiry, rigorous scholarship, and theoretical analysis to engage new ways of understanding and transforming material environments." The Winter 2005 issue is currently available only in print. Past issues of Future Anterior are available online as PDFs. For more information and calls for papers, visit the Future Anterior Web site or write to futureanterior@columbia.edu.