March 26, 2015
NEW YORK, New York, March 26, 2015 – The Landscape Architecture Legacy of Dan Kiley, a traveling photographic exhibition organized by The Cultural Landscape Foundation (TCLF) will open at the Center for Architecture on March 26, 2015 at 6:00 pm. The exhibition will be on view through June 20, 2015.
The opening of The Landscape Architecture Legacy of Dan Kiley will kick off Landscape Architecture Month. During April, the Center for Architecture will also present an exhibition of the winners of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) New York Chapter 2015 Awards. These exhibitions will be complemented by a series of public programs on related topics.
Dan Kiley (1912-2004) worked with renowned architects including Eero Saarinen, Louis Kahn, and I.M. Pei, to create internationally-acknowledged Modernist icons. His design legacy is substantial, influential, and, like the broad swath of our Modernist-designed landscapes, ephemeral. The exhibition honors Kiley and calls attention to the need for informed and effective stewardship of his work – and by extension Modernist landscape design.
The Landscape Architecture Legacy of Dan Kiley prompts questions and discussions about responsible stewardship, which is central to TCLF’s mission. While some Kiley designs are dying quiet deaths, others are extremely well maintained or require only modest attention to achieve their brilliance once again. The exhibition features dozens of recent photographs by noted artists such as Marion Brenner, Todd Eberle, Millicent Harvey, and Alan Ward that document the current state of 27 of Kiley’s more than 1,000 designs, including New York projects like the Ford Foundation and Rockefeller University. Ward, whose photographs of three sites are in the exhibition said of Kiley’s work: “I am challenged to render the subtle beauty of these landscapes in photographs and, at the same time, inspired as a landscape architect.”
What the exhibition cannot illustrate are Kiley’s designs that have been lost or severely altered, such as New York City’s Lincoln Center and Dulles Airport, outside Washington, DC, which architect Jacquelin Robertson says was, “in some ways the most lyrical piece of large-scale landscaping that I know of in this country.” “When the 100th anniversary of Kiley’s birth in 2012 came and went – and nothing happened – The Cultural Landscape Foundation decided to mount a tribute to this great Modernist landscape architect,” said TCLF President and CEO Charles A. Birnbaum. “This exhibition and gallery guide are an introduction to Kiley’s life and work, not an exhaustive survey – that would take far longer than the eleven months in which this project was organized.”
A companion 72-page gallery guide, available for purchase online, includes exhibition images, brief site descriptions and site plans, and excerpts of recently-gathered personal recollections from colleagues. More extensive information about Kiley’s life and legacy is available at TCLF’s website. The exhibition received the ASLA 2014 Award of Excellence in Communications, the organization’s highest award in this category.
Complete list of sites and photographers:
• Agnes R. Katz Plaza, Pittsburgh, PA, photography by Richard A. Stoner
• Art Institute of Chicago, South Garden, Chicago, IL, photography by Tom Harris
• Banneker Park (originally Tenth Street Overlook), Washington, DC, photography by Frank Hallam Day
• Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, IN, photography by Jeffrey A. Wolin
• Cudahy Gardens, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI, photography by Tom Bamberger
• Cummins Inc. Irwin Office Building (originally Irwin Union Bank and Trust Company), Columbus, IN, photography by Matthew Carbone
• Currier Farm, Danby, VT, photography by Peter Vanderwarker
• Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, TX, photography by Alan Ward
• Donald J. Hall Sculpture Park, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, photography by Gwen Walstrand
• East Farm (Kiley Home and Office), Charlotte, VT, photography by Aaron Kiley
• Ford Foundation, New York, NY, photography by David Leventi
• Fountain Place (originally Allied Plaza), Dallas, TX, photography by Alan Ward
• Hamilton Garden, Columbus, IN, photography by Millicent Harvey
• Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, St Louis, MO, photography by David Johnson
• John F. Kennedy Library, Boston, MA, photography by Alan Ward
• Kenjockety (Shapiro Phelan Residence), Westport, NY, photography by Todd Eberle
• Kiley Garden (originally Nations Bank Plaza), Tampa, FL, photography by Maria Bevilacqua and Frederick Pirone
• Kimmel Residence, Salisbury, CT, photography by Neil Landino Jr.
• Kusko Residence, Williamstown, MA, photography by Paul Warchol
• L’Esplanade du Général de Gaulle, La Défense, Paris, FR, photography by David Bacher
• Miller House and Garden, Columbus, IN, photography by Millicent Harvey
• Milton Lee Olive Park (originally Central District Filtration Plant), Chicago, IL, photography by Aaron Kiley
• National Gallery of Art, East Building, Washington, DC, photography by Lynn Silverman (catalog only)
• North Christian Church, Columbus, IN, photography by Matthew Carbone
• Oakland Museum of California, Oakland, CA, photography by Marion Brenner
• Patterns (du Pont Residence), Wilmington, DE, photography by Roger Foley
• Rockefeller University, New York, NY, photography by Benjamin Dimmitt
• United States Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, CO, photography by Brian K. Thomson
The Landscape Architecture Legacy of Dan Kiley was made possible by the generous support of the following sponsors:
Patron
SOM
Sponsor
ASLA-NY
Supporters
Joanna Pertz Landscape Architecture
Nancy Owens Studio
About the Center for Architecture
The Center for Architecture is a destination for all interested in the built environment. It is the public-facing affiliate of the American Institute of Architects New York Chapter, which provides resources to both the public and building industry professionals. Through exhibitions, programs, and special events, the Center aims to improve the quality and sustainability of the built environment, foster exchange between the design, construction, and real estate communities, and encourage collaborations across the city and globe. As the city’s leading cultural institution focusing on architecture, the Center drives positive change through the power of design. For more information, please visit www.aiany.org.
About The Cultural Landscape Foundation
The Cultural Landscape Foundation (TCLF), founded in 1998, is a non-profit foundation that provides people with the ability to see, understand and value landscape architecture and its practitioners, in the way many people have learned to do with buildings and their designers. Through its Web site, lectures, outreach and publishing, TCLF broadens the support and understanding for cultural landscapes nationwide to help safeguard our priceless heritage for future generations. TCLF makes a special effort to heighten the awareness of those who impact cultural landscapes, assist groups and organizations working to increase the appreciation and recognition of cultural landscapes, and develop educational tools for young people to better connect them to their cultural landscape environs.