Photography Exhibit Chronicles Lost Paul Rudolph Homes
The show features 15 digital C-prints shot between 2006 and 2007 of Rudolph homes in Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Florida.
Nicholas Tamarin -- Interior Design, 2/18/2010 12:00:00 AM
The Twitchell House, Siesta Key, Florida, 1941-2007; photo by Chris Mottalani
A masterfully poignant new photography show featuring images of abandoned, soon-to-be destroyed homes designed by modernist maestro Paul Rudolph is now on display at Auburn University's Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art. "After You Left, They Took It Apart: Demolished Paul Rudolph Homes," running through April 17, consists of 15 digital C-prints taken between 2006 and 2007 by architectural photographer Chris Mottalini. 
The Twitchell House, Siesta Key, Florida, 1941-2007; photo by Chris Mottalani
The Twitchell House, Siesta Key, Florida, 1941-2007; photo by Chris Mottalani
Mottalini began shooting the homes when an acquaintance at the Paul Rudolph Foundation asked him to shoot the abandoned Micheels residence on Long Island Sound in Westport, Connecticut. Hooked on the juxtaposition of Rudolph's austere modernism and the house's haunting decay, Mottalini went on to shoot two more Rudolph homes in similar shape, right before they were razed: the Cerrito residence in Watch Hill, Rhode Island, and the Twitchell residence in Siesta Key, Florida.
The Michaels House, Wesport, Connecticut, 1972-2007; photo by Chris Mottalani
The Michaels House, Wesport, Connecticut, 1972-2007; photo by Chris Mottalani
Both the Micheels and Cerrito residences were torn down to make way for new homes. Sadly, neither was completely condemnable, and both could have been saved by more activist owners. The Twitchell residence was owned by preservationist Joe King, who is an expert on both Rudolph and Ralph Twitchell, Rudolph's former partner and the home's previous owner. King long dreamed of restoring it, but an extensive investigation found that the structure had deteriorated beyond the point of saving.
The Michaels House, Wesport, Connecticut, 1972-2007; photo by Chris Mottalani
The Twitchell House, Siesta Key, Florida, 1941-2007; photo by Chris Mottalani
The exhibition completes a full circle for Rudolph, who graduated from Auburn when the university was still known as Alabama Polytechnic Institute. He went on to study under Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius as a graduate student at Harvard before becoming one of the foremost practitioners of Brutalism — the substantial-yet-spare style expressed in his most famous project, the Art and Architecture Building at Yale University, where he was the dean of the School of Architecture. Rudolph also originated the Sarasota Modern style of architecture in Florida, of which the Twitchell home is a prime example.
The Twitchell House, Siesta Key, Florida, 1941-2007; photo by Chris Mottalani
Images courtesy of Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art.
Jill and Jennifer - will send some pics your way!
Kimberly Doucette - 2010-02-24 07:44:00 EST
It always makes me sad when people decide to tear down such history
instead of caring and loving these treasures.
Bry - 2010-02-23 13:53:00 EST
instead of caring and loving these treasures.
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