On Tuesday, Docomomo US, the United States nonprofit chapter of Docomomo International, announced the winners of its 2018 Modernism in America Awards. This year, the organization picked 13 projects—seven design awards of excellence, five citations of merit, and one special award of restoration excellence. Each year since 2014, the awards program has recognized projects that highlight the diversity of modern buildings and sites, and demonstrate excellent preservation and documentation practices. This year's winners will be honored on June 20 at the Design Within Reach store at the corner of E. 57th Street and Third Avenue in New York City.
“By recognizing the important design and preservation work being done around the country that often is overlooked, the Modernism in America Awards program is bringing further awareness to the substantial contribution that preservation in general—and the postwar heritage in particular—makes to the economic and cultural life of our communities," said Docomomo US president Theodore Prudon, FAIA, in a press release.
Chaired by Aaron Betsky, an ARCHITECT contributor and president of the School of Architecture at Taliesin in Scottsdale, Ariz., this year's jury comprised Lizabeth Cohen, dean of the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass.; Susan Rademacher, parks curator for the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy in Pennsylvania; and Eric Keune, AIA, a design director at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill in Chicago.
Last year, Docomomo US recognized nine projects (five awards of excellence and four citations of merit).
2018 Winners
Design Award of Excellence: General Motors Design Dome and Auditorium
Original architect: Harley Earl and Eero Saarinen
Restoration team: Paul Urbanek, FAIA, Wayne Bills, AIA, Terry Guitar, AIA, Rodrigo Manriquez, Leland Curtis, Lori James, Ed Pfannes, Dom Pastore, Mark Goyette, Gerard Gutierrez, AIA, Matt Seeley, and Ryan Dashkevicz
Design Award of Excellence: Lenox Health Greenwich Village
Original architect: Albert Ledner
Restoration team: Northwell Health, Perkins Eastman, CANY, Turner Construction, BR+A, Silman, Cerami & Associates, Russell Design, Sam Schwartz, VDA, Langan Engineering, and Louis Sgroe Equipment Planning
Design Award of Excellence: Hill College House
Original architect: Eero Saarinen
Restoration team: Mills + Schnoering Architects, INTECH Construction, AHA, Becker & Frondorf, Edwards & Co., Floss Barber, Keast & Hood, Keystone Preservation Group, The Lighting Practice, Metropolitan Acoustics, Olin, Pennoni, Ricca Design Studios, Shen Milsom Wilke, and Zipf Associates
Design Award of Excellence: George Kraigher House
Original architect: Richard Neutra
Restoration team: Lawrence Lof and Texas Southmost College
Documentation Award of Excellence: Imagining the Modern: The Architecture and Urbanism of Postwar Pittsburgh
Project team: Chris Grimley, Michael Kubo, and Rami el Samahy with Ann Lui, AIA, Mark Pasnik, AIA, Cameron Longyear, Shannon McLean, Brett Pierson, Andrew Potter, AIA, Rebecca Rice, Valny Aoalsteindottir, Silvia Colpani, and Lindsay Dumont
Advocacy Award of Excellence: Starship Chicago: A Film by Nathan Eddy
Project team: Nathan Eddy (director)
Advocacy Award of Excellence: Tom Little: Georgia Advocacy
Project team: Tom Little
Citation of Merit (Design): 115, Geotronics Labs Building
Original architect: Printz and Brooks
Restoration team: DSGN Associates (Architecture) and Rick Fontenot
Citation of Merit (Design): George Washington Bridge Bus Station
Original architect: Pier Luigi Nervi
Restoration team: The Port Authority of N.Y. and N.J., Engineering Department, and Architectural Unit STV
Citation of Merit (Design): Lurie House
Original architect: Kaneji Domoto
Restoration team: Lynnette Widder, Evita Yumul, Yaron Pardo, Robert Boeschl, Erik Olsen, and Floris Buisman
Citation of Merit (Documentation): Banking on Beauty: Millard Sheets and Midcentury Commercial Architecture
Project team: Adam Arenson
Citation of Merit (Documentation): UC San Diego Historic Context Statement and Historic Resource Survey
Project team: Katie Horak, Andrew Goodrich, Micaela Torres-Gill, Paul Turner, Robert Clossin, Catherine Presmyk, Todd Pitman, Elyse Sanchez
Special Award of Restoration Excellence: Unity Temple
Original architect: Frank Lloyd Wright
Restoration team: Harboe Architects, Project Management Advisors, and Berglund Construction Co.
