William Menking

On February 14, London’s Architectural Association announced its short list of three finalists to be considered for its director position. This short list, the AA claims, came from an initial response of 73 submitted applications that was then winnowed down to a “longlist of 26 candidates, of which…

London’s venerable Architectural Association (AA), founded in 1847, has long stood as a resolutely independent-minded educational institution. But in the last few months, it seems to be going through a spasm of self-doubt about its future, current leadership and independence. The history of the institution suggests that…

The Architect’s Newspaper wants to note the passing of architectural journalist Mildred Schmertz, who was a contributor to the paper. Suzanne Stephens, deputy editor of Architectural Record, has written a respectful obituary of Schmertz, who spent the entirety of her professional career at Architectural Record. She was 92. Schmertz was…

Gavin Stamp, the English architecture historian, died on December 30, 2017 at 69. His Ph.D dissertation at Cambridge was a re-assessment of the career of George Gilbert Scott and he went on to become the leading spokesperson for British architecture. An architectural activist, he lectured, wrote and issued polemical tracts…

John C. Portman Jr., the Atlanta architect and developer has died at 93. The Georgia Tech–trained architect is credited with developing large downtown projects that revolved around the concept of the the atrium, which he turned into large and dramatic enclosed open spaces surrounded by multiple balconies, hundreds of…

The announcement that artist Tim Rollins has died at age 62 has shocked many of his colleagues in the art world. Along with Julie Ault and Félix González-Torres, Rollins co-founded Manhattan-based Group Material in 1979. The collective's East Village gallery questioned curatorial practices with a series of oddball shows…

When Frank Stella moved to New York in 1958 he frequented the Cedar Tavern, a University Place hangout of the Abstract Expressionists and Beat writers. At the same time, he met Richard Meier, and he agreed to let the young architect draw and paint in his painting studio while he…

What’s going at the Canadian Center for Architecture? Is Mirko Zardini, its longtime director, leaving Montreal for a sunnier climate? The Canadian Government has posted a job description for his position, but Zardini says he is not going anywhere. In fact, in a telephone interview with AN, he…

Vito Acconci morphed slowly into an architect from the worlds of art and poetry. His art work moved from audio performances and the written page in the 1970s to installation pieces that were increasingly sculptural objects in space. In these newer works, he was always conscious of the public…

The 2019 Oslo Architecture Triennale has announced its curators of the upcoming event. After a yearlong search, the jury has selected the “transdisciplinary” architecture and engineering practice Interrobang, with its British founder Maria Smith and Canadian associate Matthew Dalziel, British critic Phineas Harper, and Norwegian urban researcher Cecille…

Since its founding, Miami’s Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) has had a series of temporary homes, starting with a 1996 Charles Gwathmey-designed exhibition space and then a repurposed Art Deco office building in the city’s design district. But this week, the ICA, led by a new team helmed by Director…

  Ivan Chermayeff, one of the founders of the modern profession of graphic design, passed away on December 3 at age 85. Born in London to design royalty, his father Serge was a Russian-born industrial designer, author, and architect of the De La Warr Pavilion (with Erich Mendelsohn). Ivan was…