Location:  Stoico/FIRSTFED Grand Reading Room - Claire T. Carney University Library 

Location: Stoico/FIRSTFED Grand Reading Room - Claire T. Carney University Library 

Session Chair: Tim Rohan, Assoc. Professor of Art History, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Presenters: 

• Carla Yanni, Professor of Art History, Rutgers University

• Lydia Brandt, Assoc. Professor of Art History, University of South Carolina

• Eldra Dominique Walker, Assist. Professor of Architecture, University of Massachusetts Amherst

This session offers different perspectives on the history of Brutalism, especially its campus architecture, and how we engage with it today. Lydia Brandt will discuss how to teach the modernist campus to those unfamiliar with it. Carla Yanni will look at the post WW II development of a fundamental typology for the campus: the dormitory. Eldra Walker will consider the impact and effect of Brutalist aesthetics.

AIA Continuing Education Units – 1.5 Elective (must self-report to receive credit)

Location: Stoico/FIRSTFED Grand Reading Room - Claire T. Carney University Library 

Location:  Stoico/FIRSTFED Grand Reading Room - Claire T. Carney University Library 

Session Chair: Anna Dempsey, Professor of Art History, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth

Presenters: 

• John Amodeo, Principal Landscape Architect, IBI Placemaking

• Marisa Brown, Assistant Director, John Nicholas Brown Center for Public Humanities and Culture Heritage, Brown University 

• Elaine Stiles, Professor Historic Preservation, Roger Williams University

For Paul Rudolph, Marcel Breuer, Kevin Roche and other Brutalist architects, landscape design was an integral component of their Modernist vision. The session will focus on how landscape design—and its lack thereof-- has played a major role in framing our experiences of Brutalist architecture and consequently, our sense of place. Speakers will include landscape architects, historians, and preservationists who have extensive knowledge of Modern 20th-century design principles. The goal of this session is to discuss the interconnections between landscape and architecture. In particular, we will elicit new conversations about how these disciplines affect our campus sites and their functions in the future.

AIA Continuing Education Units – 1.5 HSW

Location: Stoico/FIRSTFED Grand Reading Room - Claire T. Carney University Library 

Chandler McCoy, AIA, LEED AP, Senior Project Specialist, Conserving Modern Architecture Initiative at the Getty Conservation Institute, a program of the J. Paul Getty Trust 

Location:  Stoico/FIRSTFED Grand Reading Room - Claire T. Carney University Library 

This presentation will introduce the Getty Conservation Institute and  the Conserving Modern Architecture Initiative (or CMAI). McCoy will discuss the unique challenges of preserving modern built heritage and clarify the role that modern university campuses play as part of this heritage. He will describe some of the threats that endanger modern buildings, focusing on disuse and demolition, and tie this to the important issues surrounding climate change mitigation. With knowledge of how to repair modern buildings and how to make them more energy efficient, we, as stewards of the modern built environment, can make a case for retaining, reusing, and improving these buildings. McCoy will introduce the CMAI’s latest case study book on managing energy and thermal comfort in modern buildings and discuss the lessons learned from these with descriptions of several of the case studies, all of which demonstrate how it is possible to balance historic preservation and energy upgrading.  

Description: This tour of UMass Dartmouth focuses on Paul Rudolph’s unified “urban” plan for a public university:  one which situates expressionistic, modern architecture within a landscape to invoke a sense of place; a place that represents a functional learning environment for students, faculty, staff, and visitors.   To do so, we will focus on Rudolph's singular design for the Liberal Arts (LARTS or "Group I") building, the park-like setting which surrounds it, and the renovated library's "response" to it.

Location: Outside the Library on the Quad.

Chair Session: Rose Mary Botti-Salitsky, Associate Professor/Program Coordinator of Interior Architecture + Design, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth

Presenters: 

• Kelly Haigh, AIA Partner, designLAB Architects

• Whitney Perkins, Principal, Roll Barressi & Associates

• Leslie S. Saul, Leslie Saul & Associates (LS&A)

• Jeffrey Sladen, AIA, LC, MIES Principal, Sladen Feinstein Integrated Lighting

• Ben Youtz, AIA Partner, designLAB Architects

Renovating, preserving and promoting Brutalist interiors will be the focus of this panel discussion. Members of the design team that worked on the renovation of the Claire T. Carney Library, designed by Paul Rudolph and completed in 1972, will share their design solutions for maintaining the integrity of the architecture and fostering an interior that is welcoming of its occupants. Discussions will focus on interior attributes, human occupants, color, light and texture as approaches to humanize the massive concrete attributes that are notorious of Brutalist structures.

AIA Continuing Education Units – 1 HSW 

 Location: Stoico/FIRSTFED Grand Reading Room - Claire T. Carney University Library 

Session Chair: Stephanie McGoldrick, Lecturer of Interior Architecture and Design, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth

Presenters: 

• Jean Carroon, LEED Fellow, Principal - Design, Preservation, and Sustainability, Goody Clancy

• Blake Jackson, AIA, LEED/WELL Faculty, Fitwel Ambassador, CPHC, Sustainability Design Leader – US North East, Senior Associate, Stantec Architecture

• Ludmilla Pavlova-Gillham, AIA, LEED AP BD&C, Senior Campus Planner, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Existing buildings must be adapted to address shifting priorities in today’s built environment.  How can Brutalist buildings be altered to provide adequate indoor air quality, thermal comfort, and acoustics? Do these changes threaten their architectural integrity? Integrating healthy materials should be a consideration, but proper assessment is required to determine their suitability for these interior environments. In this session, panelists will share their approaches to revitalize existing buildings and evaluating design interventions with attention to environmental sustainability, universal design, and occupant well-being.  

AIA Continuing Education Units – 1.5 HSW

Location: Stoico/FIRSTFED Grand Reading Room - Claire T. Carney University Library 

Location:  Lincoln Campus Center, 11th Floor Marriott Center

Location: Lincoln Campus Center, 11th Floor Marriott Center

Session Chair: Shelby Schrank, Neumann Sloat Arnold Architects & UMass Amherst Alumna

Presenters: 

• Paul Gaudette, Civil Engineer at Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates

• Michael Schuller, Structural Engineer and President of Atkinson-Noland & Associates

• Norman Weiss, Professor, Columbia University and Director of Scientific Research, Integrated Conservation Resources

As the practice of concrete conservation continues to evolve, this session will lay out current approaches and techniques for conserving Brutalist structures. The speakers have an extensive knowledge and background in material science and an in-depth understanding of the technical characteristics of aging concrete. The goal of the session is to provide attendees with a brief overview of what the possibilities are for conserving concrete by providing case studies and general methodologies for best practice.

AIA Continuing Education Units – 1.5 HSW

Location: Lincoln Campus Center, 11th Floor Marriott Center

Location TBA

Session Chair: Ludmilla Pavlova-Gillham, AIA, LEED AP BD&C, Senior Campus Planner, Facilities & Campus Services, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Presenters: 

• Christina Bowen, Capital Projects Manager, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth

• Matthew Bronski, Principal, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger

• Jillian Cornelius, Architectural Designer, Ellenzweig

• Elliott Hambrook, Project Manager, Gale Associates, Inc.

• John Mathews, Project Executive, University of Massachusetts Amherst (retired)

• M. Blakey Smith, Assoc. Dir., University of Massachusetts Amherst (retired)

• Theresa Wolejko, Assistant Director, University of Massachusetts Amherst

As owner’ representatives, staff at both Universities strive to properly care for their unique Brutalist structures. This panel brings together personnel from both University campuses who have extensive experience in working with Brutalist structures to discuss some of the challenges that they are facing. Current repair, cleaning and protection options will be discussed alongside how to holistically address issues such as water infiltration and the presence of hazardous materials. The goal of this panel is to provide an opportunity for attendees to ask the tough puzzling questions they might have and gain a professional perspective on solution alternatives Owners have explored and how to approach decision making.

AIA Continuing Education Units – 1.5 HSW

Location: Lincoln Campus Center, 11th Floor Marriott Center

Ana Paula Arato Gonçalves, Research Associate, Conserving Modern Architecture Initiative at the Getty Conservation Institute, a program of the J. Paul Getty Trust 

Location: Lincoln Campus Center, 11th Floor Marriott Center

This talk will present the case study of the concrete repairs at the School of Architecture and Urbanism at the University of São Paulo (FAUUSP) in Brazil. This iconic exposed reinforced concrete building was designed by João Batista Vilanova Artigas and Carlos Cascaldi in 1961. The repair process from 2012 was critically evaluated by a research group from FAUUSP funded by a Keeping It Modern grant from the Getty Foundation with the goal of shifting the maintenance of the building towards a more conservation minded approach. This case study will be analyzed through the lenses of the Conservation Principles for Concrete of Cultural Significance published by the Getty Conservation Institute in 2020. These conservation principles combine best practices in concrete repair and conservation approaches. The lessons from this case study relate to current challenges to conserving concrete in Brutalist buildings and speak to how education and research institutions can contribute to overcoming these challenges.

Session Chair: Henry Moss, Principal, Bruner/Cott Architects

Presenters: 

• Daniel Abramson, Director of Architectural Studies, Boston University

• Mike Boucher, General Superintendent, Consigli Construction

• Sarah Felton, Program Manager, Massachusetts Division of Capital and Asset Management & Maintenance

• Mark Pasnik, Principal, OverUnder

Positive terms such as authentic, bold, iconic, and heroic have been heard as a means of embracing the Brutalist style of architecture, while destructive descriptions such as cold and ugly have gone mainstream. This panel brings together individuals at the forefront of the conversation about the value of Brutalist architecture and how to address its future. The panel will explore the impact of cultural perceptions on the Brutalist legacy and how the public, educational institutions and other communities are responding to conflicting imperatives. The panel will engage in a dialogue with symposium participants on approaches for gaining support for the maintenance, appreciation and care of Brutalist heritage structures today.

AIA Continuing Education Units – 1.5 HSW

Location: Lincoln Campus Center, 11th Floor Marriott Center

Location: Lincoln Campus Center, 11th Floor Marriott Center

Tour Guides: 

• Sam Batchelor, Partner designLAB Architects 

Completed in 1975, Kevin Roche’s landmark project is an uncompromisingly modernist, monolithic concrete facility, consisting of several distinctly different units that in combination form a powerful architectural sculpture.  The complex is home to the Music, Theater, Dance and Arts departments as well as a Museum of Contemporary Arts and the 2,000 seat concert hall of the Fine Arts Center.  The 26,000 gsf Art Bridge - a 600-foot long and 40-foot wide bar of classrooms suspended 30 feet in the air – was redesigned by designLab to accommodate a wide range of fine arts uses, from traditional drawings studios, to a theater rehearsal space, to a state-of-the-art cross-disciplinary recording studio.  The tour of the new facility will show the reorganization of interior space and explore strategies for adaptation to modern uses, improved lighting, wayfinding, collaboration and social spaces, and outline upgrades to the roof and HVAC systems.    

AIA Continuing Education Units – 1 HSW

Location: Bromery Center for the Arts (Fine Arts Center) Southwest Entrance to Art Bridge, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Tour Guides: 

• Margaret Vickery, PhD, Art History, University of Massachusetts Amherst

• Carl Fiocchi, PhD, University of Massachusetts Amherst

• Sean Conlon, FAC, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Since its founding in 1975, The Randolph W. Bromery Center for the Arts (formerly Fine Arts Center or FAC) has been a central force in the cultural, social and academic life of the Town of Amherst, the University, the Five College campuses, and the Pioneer Valley.  This uncompromisingly modern concrete complex of 220,000 GSF consists of several distinctly different units which are combined to form a powerful architectural sculpture.  It was conceived as a gateway to the campus at the south end of the pond and its monumental arcade serves as a pedestrian link between the east and west campus on what was formerly Ellis drive.  The complex contributes to both positive and negative perception of Brutalist concrete buildings and its history is marred with celebrations as well as expressions of discontent.  Faculty will lead attendees on a recreation of the original 1974 tour offered by Kevin Roche, John Dinkeloo & Associates to approximately 100 faculty members in an effort to showcase the spectacular spaces for public performance and teaching music, theater and the visual arts.  (Given the original condition of many of the spaces this tour is limited to participants who do not require universal access). 

AIA Continuing Education Units – 1.5 Elective (must self-report to receive credit)

Location: Bromery Center for the Arts (Fine Arts Center) South Entrance Plaza, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Tour Guides: 

• Timothy Rohan, PhD, Professor of Art History, University of Massachusetts Amherst

• Ludmilla Pavlova-Gillham, AIA, Senior Campus Planner, University of Massachusetts Amherst

The UMass Amherst campus was established under the Morrill Land Grant in 1863.  Today it is the flagship of the five-campus University of Massachusetts system, serving a community of over 36,000 in approximately 13.4 million square feet of buildings.  Its most significant enrollment growth occurred after World War II with over 10 million square feet of space built within 20 years with a change in scale from rural to a more urban campus consisting of dense neighborhoods and towers, based on the 1963 master plan by Hideo Sasaki.  Making UMass a veritable showcase of Brutalism at its zenith, UMass Amherst commissioned the landmark Fine Arts Center (1974) by Kevin Roche and Lincoln Campus Center by Marcel Breuer (1970) as well other key structures by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, Edward Durrell Stone and Hugh Stubbins.  This tour will start at the Lincoln Campus Center (Marcel Brewer, 1970) and walk on the campus grounds, viewing the Dubois Library (Edward Durell Stone, 1972), Fine Arts Center (Kevin Roche, 1973), Herter and Tobin (Coletti Borthers, 1968 and 1972), Whitmore Hall (Campbell & Aldrich, 1967), and Southwest Residential Complex (Hugh Stubbins & Assoc., 1965-68). 

AIA Continuing Education Units – 1.5 Elective (must self-report to receive credit)

Location: Lincoln Campus Center Hotel Lobby, UMass Amherst