OF THE ONTARIO ASSOCIATION OF ARCHITECTS

OF THE ONTARIO ASSOCIATION OF ARCHITECTS
UBRA~
Frampton confronts
the architectural future
Phyllis Lambert
discusses the Storm
Collection with Richard
Landon and Phillip
Oldfield of the Fisher
Library, and GaTTon
Wells, University of
Toronto Archivist.
PER
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NO. 2
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Storm's intricaJe hallmark
Storm Library provides
first hand look at the past
~ Vv' e
Wanr [0 make archirecrure a public concern:'
Phyllis Lambert demonstrated her facility for doing just that
at the dedication of the William G. Storm collection at the
University of Toronto April 19. Speaking to over 100 OAA
members and guests at the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library,
Ms. Lambert emphasized the importance of strong historical
collections as a means of learning about great architects and
their work first hand .
"There is no more fitt ing way to celebrate your lOath
anniversary," said Ms. Lambert, "than by honouring your first
president with the securing of his library."
The founder and director of the Canadian Centre for
Architecture in Montreal said that the Storm library is an
impressive record of the culture of the 19th century.
"It provides invaluable references for books of specific
periods," she said, noting that the collection also contains
imprints from the United States.
Drawing on her own experience during research for the
recently mounted Ernest Cormier exhibition in Montreal, Ms.
Lambert illustrated the importance and vitality of archival
material.
"We studied Ernest Cormier's background, his culture,
through his library," she said. "We found out what was
important to him, and what was not. And like Cormier's,
Storm's library is the library of a working architect. Through
them, we can discover how an architect has been affected by
history."
Historian Stephen Otto, who first informed the OAA of the
existence of the Storm collection, noted that the library
contains 230 titles in 288 volumes.
"It' s the largest collection of such works in the country,"
he said, "and will enrich the work of scholars and architects
alike. "
Richard Landon, director of the Thomas Fisher Library,
thanked the OAA Centennial Committee for its contribution
of the Storm collection, and pointed out that it contains
interesting material covering a variety of disciplines.
The Storm Library was acquired by the OAA from the
Horwood family of Toronto. At the dedication, Jim Horwood
presented the OAA with William Storm's instrument case to
complete the collection.
OAA members interested in researching the Storm
collection can do so from 9-5 Monday to Friday, at the
Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, U of T downtown campus,
(416) 978-5285. A library card is not required.
President's Message...page 2
Convention Awards... page 3
Calendar... page 4
Awards ...page 4
Kenneth Frampton delivered a complex and provocative
message to OAA members attending the ]990 Convention at
The Old Mill in Toronto April /9-21. The eminent Professor
of Architecture at Columbia University's Graduate School of
A rchitecture, Planning and Preservation challenged his
audience with a thesis which addresses the joint issues of
place-making and constructional form.
Frampton contends that both the present and the emerging
future are "a Pandora 's Box, in which ill-related objects are
chaotically proliferated over the face of the Earth. .. In a
global sense, there is very little that the (architectural)
profession can do about this apocalyptic reality. "
The second part of Frampton 's thesis finds some order ill
this current and future chaos, offering hope to the architect
willing to "concentrate more and more on the creation of
significant fragments, ...from which (we can) revisit, however
marginally, the juggernaut of consumerism. "
An architect and architectural historian, Kenneth
Frampton has worked ill England, Israel, and the United
States. His numerous publications include Modern
Architecture: A Critical History, and Modern Architecture
1851 to 1945. His forthcoming books include Labor, Work,
and Architecture and Studies in Tectonic Culture.
Anticipating the impact of Frampton 's presentation,
Perspectives asked Susan Speigel alld Francesco Scolozzi for
their thoughts on his lecture. The intriltuing results follow.
Let the work transmit
By Susan Speigel
B.Arch., Graduate Associate
On the contrary. To suspend your point of view for a moment,
and be attentive, is to see that "something" is happening. And
we don't understand it yet.
Could anyone disagree with Kenneth Frampton's lecture,
or his distinctions between sentimental versions of
appropriated "critical regionalism" and the real thing? No!
Frampton 's 10 urgent thoughts for "future" work made five
very distressing, yet salient points.
If:
(1) Architects mediate in only 10 per cent of all architectural
work done in the U.S.
(2) The delimited, neoclassical city is a lost cause.
(3) We cannot follow impassioned reactionaries (such as
Leon Krier) because they ignote modernism.
(4) We are in ecological trouble.
(5) No one is listening to the reasonable solutions of low
density for suburban housing.
Then:
(6) We must concentrate on strategic urban fragments,
because (7) the stable referential base has been lost.
(see "Speigel" page 4)
Trading spirituality for materialism
By Francesco Scolozzi
M. Arch., OAA, MRAIC
With 1990 marking the last decade of the millennium,
examinations of the direction architecture will take in the
future are becoming more and more prevalent.
This last part of our century has been a stage for great
events, as was the beginning. The thaw in relations between
East and West at one end and the First World War at the other
mark the era of the cybernetic and the industrial revolution.
All aspects of culture and architecture are affected by
socio-economic and media events. At this point, the question
arises: "Is architecture still an art?"
The answer is unclear. I agree with Kenneth Frampton
when he says that today 's architecture has lost some of its
intrinsic qualities. Economic and media factors have indeed
encroached upon the artistic side of architecture. We have
practically lost the sense of craftsmanship, the love and
(see "Seoloui" page 2)
dedication to things well-built.
Plus
"If it is the
bricklayers one
season, it is the
carpenters the
next... "
2
~a
change ...
In the March issue of
Perspectives, I spoke of our
need to adapt to the changes
taking place in our
profession. Most of us
recognize that changes are
really challenges that have
been with us for a long
time, and tbat we must
confront those challenges
forthrightly if the profession
is to survive.
The handwritten minutes
of our association dating
back to 1889 lend credence
to the idea tbat we're still
dealing with the same issues
and challenges. These
minutes tell the absorbing
story of the endless battle
for better professional
training, greater public
recognition, effective
professional practice,
improvement of our
professional organizations
in Ontario and across
Canada, and greater
emphasis on the practical
education of our students.
It is interesting to note a
few expressions of opinion
recorded in the minutes of
tbe Architectural Guild
around 1888.
"Tbe long winters make
tbe building season a busy
one, and because the
summer is short, the
workmen do their worst and
are always striking. If it is
the bricklayers one season,
it is the carpenters the next,
and it is the carpenters' tum
tbis year. Wages are very
high. Thirty-three cents an
hour for briCklayers, the
carpenters getting 25 cents
and wanting 27 cents with
one hour a day less.
"The Guild concerns
itself with several matters of
recurring importance,
notably the conditions
under which competitions
are to be held, the relations
with the press and with
local governments, the
terms of settlement of
current building strikes and
the controversy which has
proven to be recurrent with
the Brickmakers
Association on the size and
quality of bricks ."
In these early days, most
major architectural
commissions were awarded
as a result of design
competitions among several
firms, and concern for
public image was just as
important then as it is today.
Two early concerns of
the association around the
tum of the century were the
requirements for
registration of architects
and the education and
examination of prospective
architects. Of all the issues,
I believe these are two of
the most important
challenges we continue to
face.
The real issue for
architectural education is to
determine the proper market
and social roles for the
architect, and realistically
assess the effect this has on
the universities' curricula.
In his OAA presidential
address of 1909, H.B.
Gordon said:
"As superior education
and general culture become
more common, architects
will require a more
extended education if they
are to occupy their proper
place in society and uphold
the status of the
profession. "
We need graduates wbo
are highly skilled, assertive,
tough-minded and
persevering, yet altruistic.
They must be capable of
aligning tbemselves with
constructors, engineers,
construction technologists
and developers. This is
bitter medicine for a
profession that deliberately
separated itself from the
building industry in the 19th
century . Perhaps this is our
greatest challenge.
There is a continuing
concern over the widening
gap between what the
practising professional
expects of the architectural
graduate, and the views of
some of the schools of
architecture.
The schools and
apprenticeship of our
graduates must serve the
whole profession, not just
certain aspects. As part of
the licenSing requirement,
Canada has now adopted
the National Council of
Architectural Registration
Boards examinations. We
face the spectre of high
levels of failure on these
post-graduate examinations,
unless the schools place
more emphasis on courses
that prepare the applicant to
meet the generally accepted
standards of practical skill
required to engage in the
practice of architecture. For
the same reasons, after
graduation, the learning
experience in the office
must be of the highest
quality. If we do not
continue to improve in both
areas, we will have lost the
challenge.
It is important now, as it
was in the past, that we take
an active interest in the
academic education of
students and the continuing
education and training of
our graduates; that we
maintain the highest
standards of ethical
practice; that we continue to
strengthen our associations
at the provincial and
national levels; and that we
protect the legislated rights
and privileges of a selfgoverning profession that
were created over more than
a century of tireless effort
on the part of those
architects who came
before us.
Douglas Neville
B. Arch., OAA, MRAIC
Letters
The Prince's debate carries on
Sir:
It was a pleasure to study
Eberhard Zeidler's response
to A Vision of Britain
(Perspectives, March 1990).
Special architectural insight
is required to constructively
respond to the challenge put
forward by Prince Charles,
and Mr. Zeidler has risen to
the occasion.
Mr. Zeidler's immensely
successful career allows
him to understand the
market place, human
behaviour, and their
interaction. He can also
analyze, organize, and
conceptualize both
scientific and human
characteristics into a unified
whole.
In May, I spoke to the
Belleville Kiwanis on A
Vision of Britain and
architects' response to it.
Thanks to Prince Charles
for initiating this intense
architectural debate, to
Perspectives for soliciting
responses, and to Eberhard
Zeidler for his valuable
analysis.
William R. White, OAA,
MRAlC, P. Eng.
Belleville, Ontario
Perspectives welcomes letters to the editor.
Letters may be edited, and authorship will be
verified. Letters should be sent to The Editor,
Perspectives, Ontario Association ofArchitects,
50 Park Road, Toronto, Ontario M4W 2N5.
Include a daytime telephone number for
verification.
Scolozzi...
(continued from page 1)
What is more tragic, we have traded our spirituality for
materialism.
The crucial decisions on building projects remain in the
hands of those with no interest in preserving the urban fabric
or the environment in general. The quest for maximizing
profits is paramount. The inadequacy of our urban legislation
often allows permanent scars to be inflicted upon our cities.
The concept that the city is for the common good of the
community at large is almost dead.
It is not overstating the case to say that a very small
proportion oftoday's construction achieves the level of
"architecture". Consumerism is the latest virus to infect an
already weakened discipline.
With the media spreading the notion that fashion is
everything, architecture is in danger of becoming a consumer
product, like cars or clothes. Architecture is losing its
semantic background to become arbitrary, ephemeral, and
meaningless. Regional and national characteristics are
disappearing.
The ultimate conclusion is the loss of cultural identities. In
The Imperial Facade (1924), Lewis Mumford wrote:
"The opulence, the waste of resources and energies, the
perversion of human effort represented in this architecture are
but the outcome of our general scheme of working and living.
Architecture, like government, is about as good as a
community deserves. The shell that we create marks our
spiritual development..."
Post modern architecture has revised classicism, art deco,
and regionalism, with the urge to repudiate the sterility of
modernism. It attempts to find the lost values of our culture
through the past. However, like any revivalism, this transplant
offorms only becomes meaningless, sterile formalism,
without an understanding of the philosophy that produced it.
What many designers have not understood is that an old
philosophy cannot be proposed as such, but only works
through a cathartic process. The gestaltung or semantic of the
form can only be translated into a contemporary expression
through a process of distillation with our contemporary
culture.
Deconstructivism, on the other hani!, is an ephemeral
exercise of dissolution. It is a celebration of fragmentation
and arbitrary expression, a subversion of harmony, order, and
security traded for a precarious insecurity. It all seems to
carry the seeds of nihilism.
Are these ominous premonitions that we are on the eve of
destruction? The 1920 constructivism exhibition in Moscow
anticipated the most baleful events in human history: the
death and destruction of the Second World War. What is
deconstructivism predicting for us?
Does today's pattern of things offer any hope for an
enlightened future? We must turn to our educational system,
and our media, to lead us toward the rediscovery of our
spiritual values. We must seek baukullst, the art of building,
which transcends today's hedonistic approach to life.
As Kenneth Frampton said, " It is not a matter of command
of his craft, that an architect can lay a building into place and
mark the ground." It is the research of our revived spirituality,
to retrace some of our steps, and seek a new point of
departure. In the architecture to come, we must find symbolic
expression which reflects our human needs, aspirations,
sentiments, and values.
1990 Convention Awards
Winners of the Residential Design Awards and their clients: (from left) Lynda Colville-Reeves, Canadian House and Home
Publisher; Ted Wood, John Cowie Architect Inc.; Murray Cornblum, Trivest Development; Roger DuToit, architect; Catherine
Nott, Windward Housing Co-Operative Inc.; Julian Jacobs, architect; Myron Gottlieb, owner Gottlieb Residence; David Day,
owner Day Residence; John Hix, architect; Douglas Neville, President.
Jeanne Arnold, former
Registrar and 1989 recipient
of the Order of da Vinci,
invests the 1990 recipient Irv
Rayman (Past President). The
Order of da Vinci was
established by Past President
Alfred Roberts to recognize
those who have made a major
contribution to the profession.
The medal was designed by
the renowned sculptor Dora
de Pedery Hunt.
j
President Douglas Neville with Graduate Associate Steven
Mannel, who won the Raymore Medalfor the highest standing
in the 1989 Admission Course.
Retired members George
Abram and Martha Leitch
Crase, who, along with
Member Alfred C. Roberts,
were elected Honorary
Members at the Annual
Meeting. Mr. Roberts was out
of the country.
President Douglas Neville congratulates Crescent School
graduate Michael Mercier, winner of the 1989 OAA/Vladan
Milic scholarship awarded for the pursuit of excellence.
Thefirm of Young + Wright,
Architects was honored for
unstinting service to the
profession. Richard Young
and James Wright (Past
President) received the
Association's Certificate of
Appreciation.
At the Annual Meeting, Irv Rayman (past President), Ronald
Hershfield (Past President) and James Jorden (missing from
photo) received Certificates of Appreciation for their service as
retiring Councillors.
3
Appointment
David Hodgson has
been appointed Deputy
Executive Director and
Director of External
Affairsfor the OAA.
In late 1989, OAA
Executive Director Brian
Parks advised Council of
his intention to take early
retirement in 1991, wben
the new headquarters
building is completed. The
Executive Committee felt it
was imperative to have a
successor in place at the
earliest possible date, in
order to provide the
maximum amount of
overlap time and to assist in
the completion of the
building and the OAA' s
move to new headquarters
at 111 Moatfield Drive in
North York.
After an extensive
search, Council is pleased
to announce the
appointment of Mr. David
Hodgson as Deputy
Executive Director and
Director of External Affairs.
Mr. Hodgson is already
well known to many
members of the profession
througb his previous
position as Director,
Buildings Branch, Ontario
Ministry of Housing, which
brought him into frequent
contact witb architects,
builders, and building
officials across the
province. In that position,
he was responsible for the
Ontario Building Code,
initiatives to streamline the
municipal building
approvals process, the
development of a
comprehensive education
and training program, and
the reform of building
legislation. As a member of
the ministry ' S senior
management team, he also
directed programs to
increase the productivity
and efficiency of the
building industry.
David was very active in
the development of national
codes and standards. He
was the chairman of the
Provincial Territorial
Committee on Building
Standards, a member of the
Associate Committee on the
National Building Code,
and the Associate
Committee on Construction
Materials. He was also a
member of the Board of
Calendar
Viewpoints
The Ontario Association of Architects Centennial
exhibition Viewpoints: 100 Years of Architecture in Ontario
will be on show until August 2, 1990 at the Art Gallery of
Algoma in Sault Ste. Marie; Arts Court Gallery August 23 to
September 23, 1990 in Ottawa; Rodman Hall Arts Centre in
St. Catharines, October 5-28, 1990. Watch for 1991 tour
dates in the next issue of Perspectives.
Brampton Design Awards
The City of Brampton is pleased to announce the 1990 City
of Brampton Development Design Awards. Submissions will
be received until Wednesday, August 22, 1990 at the
Planning and Development Department, 3rd fioor, 150
Central Park Drive, Brampton, Ontario L6T 2T9.
Preservation Technology
Preserving for the 21 st Century, Montreal, September 2-9.
The international conference of the Association for
Preservation Technology incorporates specialized training
courses (September 2-5), a conference (September 5-8) and
a symposium (September 7-8). For further information,
contact the association cia Heritage Montreal, 406 NotreDame East, Montreal, Quebec, H2Y lC8, telephone (514)
842-8678, fax (514) 842-8670.
Awards
Residential Design Awards
to the association excellent
communication and
organizational skills. He
holds a degree in economics
from the University of
Western Ontario.
In his new position as
Deputy Executive Director,
he will assist in the overall
management and direction
of the association. In
addition, as Director of
External Affairs, he will
focus on strengthening the
OAA's relations with
government and the
building industry at large.
Speigel ...
(continued from page 1)
This is all true, but as critical versions of why we' re in
trouble, Frampton's unhappy last three points are openings
into the future, rather than precursors of its doom:
(8) There is no longer an avant garde. Those who think of
themselves as avant garde have iost their convincing
innocence, leaving an interior absence.
(9) Architects servicing developers have become media
pawns, practising packaging rather than architecture.
(10) Instantaneous communication, computer technology, and
cybernetics ...
On this last point, Frampton had no position. This is
precisely what leads to his disinterestedness in The New
Work. (see below)
Kenneth Frampton believes that The New Work derives
from a non-belief, an angst that the end has come. Anything
goes until the day of redemption. Progress is a dirty word.
On the contrary. To suspend your point of view for a
moment, and be attentive, is to see that "something" is
happening. And we don ' t understand it yet.
Attaining this attentiveness requires believing that progress
is the onslaught of time, against which nothing can (or ought
to be) done. Progress is a word which describes the movement
of time, both transformations and regressions.
Interior absence, the packaging phenomenon, and
cybernetic spatial vision have meaning, meaning whicb
demands insider comprehension. What is needed is a huge
shift in perception, analogous to that moment after long
labour on a drawing, when one is suddenly propelled "inside",
to walk around as if the drawing were real. This shift to the
actual momentum set by a project does not mean abandoning
one's point of view -- except for the instant it takes to get
inside the work.
The people producing The New Work are young, just
young enough to have been brought up on cyberspace, the
architecture of television. As Lyotard so astutely and
ambiguously described:
"Our task is to cultivate a 'thought of non-control,' which
Jets us emerge from ideas, from associations, from those
images which can look odd, dangerous, certainly disquieting,
but which are true resources of thought. I see our task in
being ' present' ."
The metaview of television channel switcbing constructs
an intriguing "set" of architectures. If we postpone our critical
position in relation to the content of television, and instead
imagine the parade of switching channels as the actual
program we're watching, we will be quiet long enough to let
the work transmit.
To suspend one ' s habitual criticism is to be allowed in.
The New Work
Examples of people (and things) representing The New
Work include:
Neo·modern: Jacques Rousseau. Steven Hall, Ungers,
Tadao Ando.
Deconstructivist: MorphOSiS, Wes Jones, Assymtope,
Co-op Himmelblau, Diller and Scoffidio, Anton Furst.
Techno-theoretical work (Post-Deconstructivist): new
student work, Nintendo.
The 1989190 OANCanadian House & Home magazine
Residential Design Awards were presented at the 100th
Annual Meeting and Convention :
Single-family homes - Julian Jacobs Architects for Myron
Gottleib Residence; Honourable mentions: David Parrish
Architect for David Parrish Residence, Miller Bobaljik
Architect Iuc_ for M. Rollins Residence.
Single-family homes, additions or renovations: John Hix
Architect Ltd. for D.& J. Day Residence; Honourable
Mention: Kathleen Kurtin Architect for Denis Lefebrve &
Bob Sirman Residence.
Conversion of non-residential to residential use, single or
multiple housing: John Cowie Architect Inc. for Cloakwell
Close Developments.
Multiple housing, new, additions andlor renovations:
Honourable Mention, G. Randall Guthrie Architect Inc. for
the Bellair Townhomes, Annau Associates Architects Inc.
for The Balmoral Club Rest Home.
Non-profit housing, Roger du Toit Architects for Windward
Non-profit Homes, Honourable Mention Allen Ensslen
Barrett Architects for St. Nicholas Co-operative Inc.
mnm~mnmnnnn~
AlA Citation for Excellence
Editorial Board:
New York Chapter of tbe American Institute of Architects,
citation for design excellence, Dunlop Farrow Inc.
Architects, Toronto, in association with Ellerbe Becket of
New York City for the CN Real EstatelRoyal Trust
Development at Front and Spadina, Toronto.
4
Directors of the Canadian
Welding Bureau, and the
Canadian Construction
Research Board.
Prior to his career with
the Ontario Public Service,
David was employed at the
municipal level of
government and held the
positions of Deputy Clerk,
Township of King and
Deputy Town Clerk, Town
of Oakville. Along with his
broad knowledge and
understanding of
government affairs and the
building industry, he brings
A PUBLICATION OF THE ONTARIO ASSOCIATION OF ARCHITECTS
Produced by the
Ontario Association of Architects
50 Park Road, Toronto M4W 2N5
(416)968-0188
Editor: Paul Lebel
David P. Lienert, B. Comm., MBA, B. Arch.,OAA
Robert B. Stiff, B.Arch., OAA, FRAlC
James M. Wright, B.Arch., OAA, FRAIC
Articles may not be reproduced without the permiSSion of the OAA.