Roamings of a Leo: September 2015

Monday, September 28, 2015

Atlanta, Georgia and the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site

While visiting friends in Atlanta, I had the opportunity to Uber over to the Martin Luther King National Historic Site on "Sweet" Auburn Avenue near downtown Atlanta. The Site includes the National Park Service Visitor Center with exhibits from King's life including the simple horse drawn wooden wagon that carried his body in a casket to his funeral and burial. It also has movies on his life. I signed up for a guided tour of the King home where MLK was born and saw the restored homes on Auburn Avenue built in the 1890's. These upper middle class and working family homes became the center for the affluent African Americans from 1909 when Martin's grand parents moved there. It has been restored to the time of MLK's childhood in the 1930's and 40's.

The original Ebenezer Baptist Church where Martin was co-pastor with his father has also been restored. A new, large, modern new sanctuary and community center has been built across the street adjacent to the Visitor's Center. Finally The King Center houses the Freedom Hall, Dr. and Mrs. King's Tomb and Eternal Flame. It also has a gift store.

The visiting was moving and inspirational...setting in the pew of the old church where MLK and his father preached and where his funeral was held...re-hearing the "I have a Dream" speech and the "Mountain Top" speech given the night before he was killed, was very moving. I remember the night of April 4th 1968 seeing the announcement of his killing on T.V. while I was living in New Orleans. I was fortunate to see Dr. King give a moving speech to 15,000 Luther League-rs at the Miami Beach Conference Center in 1960. To see and hear his speeches again reminded me that he was gifted orator and leader who came forward when our country needed him. He helped to inspired changes that we needed and still need in race relationships.

Here are a few photos of my visit:

One of the buildings of the King Center with posters referring to the Freedom March to Washington D.C. and the "I have a Dream" speech in 1963.

Another view of the building.

A view of the MLK National Historic Site building.

"I Have A Dream."

The Ebenezer Baptist Church

"Behold," 1990 by Patrick Morelli. The sculpture reflects the ancient African ritual of lifting a newborn child to the heavens and reciting these words: "Behold the only thing greater than yourself." The sculpture commemorates the heroic principles that guided the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Inside the Church

The new Ebenezer Baptist Church across the street.

The Community Center next to the new church.

"The Mahatma," Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, 1869-1948, by Kam Sutar of New Delhi, India.
Donated by The Indian Council for Cultural Relations, India. Dedicated on January 24, 1998 by Honorable Andrew J. Young, civil rights leader, ambassador to the United Nations, Mayor of Atlanta. Dr. King met with Gandhi and studied with him to learn about the principles of non violent protests.

Civil Rights Walk of Fame.

Historic Fire Station No. 6

Historic Residential Area, "Shot Gun" Houses.

Historic Residential Area on "Sweet Auburn Avenue."

"King Birth Home." January 15th 1929.

"The Eternal Flame serves as a reminder of the King's undying commitment to their beloved community."

The reflecting pool surrounds the tombs of Dr. and Mrs. Martin Luther King Jr..

I then Ubered over to the Civil Right Museum near the Coke Museum and the Aquarium. This relatively new museum takes the visitor through the civil rights movement in the U.S. such as the the Jim Crow Laws, and the leadership from the Black community to seek freedom and justice in this country. The bus boycott and the lunch room sit-ins were covered well as was the voters rights as recently scene in the movie "Selma."

The museum also covers the struggles for civil rights through out the world including China, Russia, Africa, and the dictators that led the movements that deprived people of their rights such as Hitler, Idi Amin, Pinochet, Stalin and others. Below are photos taken outside the museum and one photo of the memorial to the four girls killed in a bombing of the congregation of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama on September 16, 1963: Addie Mae Collins, Denise McNair, Carole Robertson, all age 14, and eleven-year-old Cynthia Wesley. Addie's sister Susan survuved, but was permanently blinded.

Wednesday, September 16, 2015

Members opening at LACMA's Frank Gehry Exhibit

We enjoyed a members reception at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art on Sunday evening for the opening of retrospective of the works of L.A.-based architect Frank Gehry. The exhibit consisted of videos, mounted LED screens with photos of his work as well as drawings and models. This is a very large exhibit and demonstrates the amazing career of the 86 year-old architect. Gehry grew up in Toronto, Canada and moved to Los Angeles to begin his career. In a PBS interview he said that he would not call most buildings architecture because they are just boxes. He said his buildings stand out because everything around them is bland.

Gehry graduated with a degree in architecture from the University of Southern California in 1954 and later studied city planning at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. He aligned with a group of L.A. artist including Larry Bell, Ron Davis, Robert Irwin, Ed Moses, Ken Price and Ed Ruscha as well as East Coast artist Robert Rauschenberg, Claes Oldenburg and Jasper Johns. He received the coveted Pritzker Architecture Prize in 1989. He adaped Computer Aided Three-Dimensional Interactive Application, CATIA, a software tool used in the aeronautics and automobile industries in order to facilitate the construction and engineering of his most radical designs.

Here are photos of my favorite pieces in the exhibit.

"Gehry Residence," model, 1977-78. The photos above and below show the model of Gehry's own house in Santa Monica where he still lives. Wrapped a 1922 Dutch Colonial house with materials he says everyone hates: corrugated metal and chair link fencing, leaving the original house basically in tact.

"Tract House Development, study model, 1979-82 (unbuilt). The description states that Gehry invented a style based on interrelation, which can be seen on this model.

"Indiana Avenue Houses," final model, 1979-81, Venice, California

"Winton Guest House," presentation model, 1982-87

"House for a Filmmaker," presenatation model, 1979-81, Santa Monica, CA.

"Smith Residence," final model, 1979-81 (unbuilt)

"Chiat\Day Building," final model, 1985-91, Venice, CA.

"Schnabel Residence," 1976-1989

"California Aerospace Museum and Theater," model, 1982-84, Los Angeles, CA.

"Sirmai-Perterson Residence," study model, 1983-88, Thousand Oaks, CA.

"Lewis Residence," design model, c. 1995 (unbuilt). In a video describing this design, it was said that although it was never built, Gehry used the design concepts seen here in many future projects.

"Guggenheim Museum Bilbao," final design development model, 1991-97

The Bilbao Guggenheim model viewed from the other side.

Guggenheim Museum Bilbao

"Walt Disney Concert Hall Competition Model,"

"Walt Disney Concert Hall 1989-2003"
The description states that Gehry's focus on interstitial spaces led to a fascination with tension and attraction. "The architect created contradictions, clashes, abrupt changes, and conflicts that referenced the heterogeneous nature of the city. His pursuit of an architecture in which the negative space among buildings intensifies the city's energy found one of its most powerful expressions in the Los Angeles Philharmonic's Walt Disney Concert Hall."