01-13-2011
Mr. Stein's Green
Greening Modernism by Carl Stein - Oculus Book Talk
No, not Ben Stein's money, Carl Stein's Greening Modernism: Preservation, Sustainability and the Modern Movement. The green guru (he's been working with sustainability issues for over three decades) recapped his recently released book about technology, adaptive reuse, and energy conservation (both in construction and usage) to a full house at the Center for Architecture. His lecture was the first in a new series of monthly Book Talk programs sponsored by the AIANY Chapter's Oculus Magazine. Stein argues that for forty-plus years we've known that energy consumption in buildings will be an increasingly poignant issue, environmentally and architecturally, but we have failed to do much about it.
The talk ultimately evolved into an argument against criticism by a "blogger from Rhode Island" who Stein repeatedly referenced but never identified as David Brussat, architecture critic at the Providence Journal. Brussat in his post "Column: Building, Climate and Original Green" shows a penchant for tradition over modernism, and in an earlier post called Stein "bootlicker to the pillars of the architectural establishment." Taking the criticism seriously, but in good humor, Stein countered, "I find the image of a pillar with a pair of boots funny." Basing his presentation as a counter to each of Brussat's conservative charges, Stein declared that modernism cannot be conflated with style, that style does not oppose sustainability, and that technology does not obviate tradition.
Stein has spent the better part of his career researching and advancing sustainable practices and has a long list of credentials. Besides practicing architecture for three decades, he chaired the National AIA Energy Professional Development Task Force, was a consultant for the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. Department of Energy. Consequently, I was surprised that his book talk was not more informative or heavy hitting with the facts, rather than telling the audience to usher in a post-petroleum society by renovating the existing stock of modernist buildings. While the book may address such tactics and statistics, the 25-minute book talk did not.
by James Way
The talk ultimately evolved into an argument against criticism by a "blogger from Rhode Island" who Stein repeatedly referenced but never identified as David Brussat, architecture critic at the Providence Journal. Brussat in his post "Column: Building, Climate and Original Green" shows a penchant for tradition over modernism, and in an earlier post called Stein "bootlicker to the pillars of the architectural establishment." Taking the criticism seriously, but in good humor, Stein countered, "I find the image of a pillar with a pair of boots funny." Basing his presentation as a counter to each of Brussat's conservative charges, Stein declared that modernism cannot be conflated with style, that style does not oppose sustainability, and that technology does not obviate tradition.
Stein has spent the better part of his career researching and advancing sustainable practices and has a long list of credentials. Besides practicing architecture for three decades, he chaired the National AIA Energy Professional Development Task Force, was a consultant for the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. Department of Energy. Consequently, I was surprised that his book talk was not more informative or heavy hitting with the facts, rather than telling the audience to usher in a post-petroleum society by renovating the existing stock of modernist buildings. While the book may address such tactics and statistics, the 25-minute book talk did not.
by James Way