Ada Louise Huxtable

Ada Louise Huxtable and the Shape of New York

Mon, 06 May 2013 17:22:02 GMT

Source: archleague.org --- Monday, May 06, 2013
Ada Louise Huxtable receiving the Architectural League of New York’s 2008 President’s Medal Ada Louise Huxtable and the Shape of New York Stanton Eckstut, Donald Elliott, and Lynne Sagalyn Moderated by Hilary Ballon 1.5 AIA and New York State CEUs This program is organized by The Museum of the City of New York and co-sponsored by the Architectural League. This panel discussion celebrates Ada Louise Huxtable’s impact on New York City. Pulitzer Prize-winning architecture critic at The New York Times and, later, The Wall Street Journal , Ada Louise Huxtable (1921 – 2013) wrote for nearly fifty years on the moral, social, political, and economic factors at play in the development of New York City and its architecture. Huxtable’s balanced interest in historic preservation and contemporary design excellence produced thoughtful and, at times, sharp criticisms of the changes in New York’s buildings, neighborhoods, and urban landscape. She energized and drew attention to the debates over controversial projects such as the demolition of Penn Station, Co-op City, and the (re)development of the World Trade Center. Hilary Ballon , moderator, is Professor of Urban Studies and Architecture and University Professor at New York University. She is also Deputy Vice Chancellor of NYU Abu Dhabi. Stanton Eckstut is Principal at Perkins Eastman Architects. Donald Elliott was Chairman of the City Planning Commission under Mayor John V. Lindsay. Lynne Sa ...

Remembering Architecture Critic Ada Louise Huxtable

Wed, 09 Jan 2013 19:24:58 GMT

Source: blog.preservationnation.org --- Wednesday, January 09, 2013
The built environment lost one of its pillars this week when renowned architecture critic and ardent preservationist Ada Louise Huxtable passed away Monday at age 91. As the first full-time architecture critic for a daily American newspaper, Huxtable won the first Pulitzer Prize ever awarded for distinguished criticism in 1970, seven years after she joined the New York Times staff in 1963. In recent years, her writing appeared in the Wall Street Journal . “Ada Louise Huxtable was one of the earliest and most consistent champions of preservation and the need for humanity in architecture,” says National Trust Executive Vice President and Chief Preservation Officer David J. Brown. “Her thoughtful perspective, along with her witty and sometimes sharp tongue, made her a force to be reckoned with in the field of planning, urban design, and preservation -- and a must-read for New Yorkers. She will be missed.” Known for not only her pointed critiques but also her passion for practical preservation, Huxtable condemned the demolition of architectural treasures such as New York’s Penn Station and San Francisco’s 1915 Palace of Fine Arts and argued for sensible architecture that considered social and humanitarian needs. As the New York Times put it in a January 7 obituary (our emphasis added): “ At a time when architects were still in thrall to blank-slate urban renewal, Ms. Huxtable championed preservation -- not because old buildings were ...