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In my eternal quest to know about more queer architects, i heard Horace Gifford's name a few times, enough that i added him to the roster of people i hunt for books about in secondhand bookstores. i never seemed to find anything, so i finally looked online (my preference is to stumble across things serendipitously, but sometimes action is required) and discovered the problem: there is a single book about gifford, and despite only being 10 years old it is wildly out of print. like, copies priced at $500 out of print. so, i did the next best thing and requested a copy via ILL.



gifford was active on fire island (primarily in the Pines) for 20 years, throughout the 1960s and 70s. he established a vernacular architecture in a place which previously had been home to modest beach shacks. he was gay, and handsome, and died tragically of complications due to AIDS in 1992. much like in the case of perkins harnly, that we have any record of gifford at all aside from his houses is due to one person's willingness to hold onto his papers. sometimes i think about how many people who died during that era who will surely be forgotten by history and i'm overwhelmed. i'm so glad that horace gifford wasn't one of them.

( fire island modernist is wonderful. )

earlier this month, my coworker who knows of my obsession with architecture sent me a link to a podcast about three women architects. i enjoyed it, looked for more, and discovered that it was actually comprised of excerpts of three longer podcast episodes which were part of a series called New Angle: Voice, which is produced by the Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation, devoted to supporting and highlighting the contribution of women to the american built environment.



they've put out 2 seasons of 5 episodes each of the podcast. i gobbled it up. the basis for each episode seems to be the woman's entry in the BWAF's Pioneering Women website, which is itself a fantastic resource. the podcast, however, is fantastically edited and includes interviews with the architects' colleagues, students, and children, as well as the many people who were personally inspired by their work. i was particularly impressed with the cross-section of women they've highlighted thus far. there's julia morgan, of course, who is something like the godmother of american women architects (she built hearst castle, as well as much of post-quake berkeley), but also norma sklarek, a black woman who is little known outside of architectural circles because she served as a project manager rather than a flashier, fame-making design architect. this was primarily due to the one-two punch of sexism and racism, but--as is mentioned again and again on her episode--she was one hell of a project manager.

the most exciting discovery for me personally was amaza lee meredith, a queer black woman from lynchburg, virginia, who designed the only international style house in the commonwealth. it's very near me and i had never heard of it, or her. i have a book about her in my possession now, so i'm sure i'll be back with more information.

i really enjoyed that they didn't just focus on women like morgan and natalie de blois (who designed major park avenue skyscrapers), but also on people like meredith and anna wagner keichline, who mainly designed houses (keichline also patented several devices, mainly for use in early 20th century kitchens). my architectural interest lies in houses, and as much as i enjoy learning about the work of architects who are under-represented in the field, my heart lies in the house.

i highly recommend the podcast for anyone interested in learning about women architects, but if podcasts aren't your speed, the pioneering women site is fantastic. each entry includes a very well-researched essay, as well as a list of the architect's projects.