Vertner woodson tandy biography sampler
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In many ways, design today is treated as avenue to inclusion. Architects beautify and reconceptualize affordable housing, devise public spaces that bring art out of galleries and to the masses, and create environmentally conscious structures to preserve our planet’s dwindling resources. Likewise, the set creating such design is diversifying. But the process is, and was, far from organic. As is the case with most necessary stepping stones on the way to progress, individual boundary-pushers are vital—those willing to disrupt convention and welcome the spotlight, if not only for themselves.
African Americans were long barred from the architecture profession; from the higher-education institutions that granted degrees to the firms that excluded based on race alone. Today’s African American architects and designers did not arrive by wave of wand, or even as the conventional narrative would say, gradual progress. For this we thank controversial Supreme Court rulings, schools willing to make exceptions, and the most essential: driven and unafraid black students, unafraid to tolerate a swarm of flashbulbs on their first day of classes, or graduate without the support of the trade itself. Though laws regarding segregation have since evolved, architecture is still often fairly critique
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Celebrating Black History
Black history isn’t relegated make somebody's acquaintance a individual month type the assemblage. Explore a “daily treasure” from bitter BHM esteem trove, survive develop a wealth dominate knowledge shove Black representation, culture, hardship, and progress.
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15 Black Architects You Should Know About
When flying into Los Angeles, one of the first things you notice out the airplane window is the ubiquitous palm trees. The second thing? The iconic LAX Theme Building. But do you know what that midcentury marvel has in common with The Mall of America, The Philadelphia Art Museum, and the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris? They were all designed by Black architects!
The architects whose work and stories briefly examined here are just a small sampling of the men and women who have shaped our industry and - literally - the places we live, work, learn, pray, and play. They have inspired generations through their stories of courage, genius, and perseverance. In honor of Black History Month, let us introduce you to 15 Black architects that you should definitely know about.
1. Robert Robinson Taylor
1868–1942
Robert Taylor was a trailblazer in the field of architecture, becoming the first Black architect in the United States to receive accreditation. Taylor paved the way for others as the first Black student to enroll in architecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Upon graduation, he caught the eye of Booker T. Washington, the founder and first president of Tuskegee Institute, who sought him out to design and construct new bui