Boston Public Library 2012–2013www.bpl.org/buildingboston

A citywide celebration of Boston’s public spaces

Building Boston

Building Boston is a citywide celebration of Boston’s public spaces – the architectural and cultural cornerstones that have provided a place for generations to build and share community.

Throughout the city’s long history, our gardens, sports arenas, libraries, courthouses, public transportation centers, and memorials have represented some of the most distinctive and well-known elements of the cityscape. Building Boston explores the stories behind the creation of these iconic public venues, examining the conceivers, constructors, chroniclers, and ever-changing set of users who call these spaces their own.

The People’s Own: the Construction of the McKim BuildingOctober 9, 2012 – January 31, 2013 Rare Books Lobby

From 1885 to 1895, the sounds of construction and the shouts of laborers filled Copley Square. Passersby leaned out of trolley cars to get a better look and curious pedestrians stood in wonder in front of Old South Church as the new Boston Public Library slowly took shape. Designed by Charles Follen McKim of the architectural firm McKim, Mead, and White, the McKim Building – as it is now known – opened its doors in February of 1895 at a cost of $2.5 million. The People’s Own features historic photographs, dating primarily from August 1888 to December 1889, that document the library’s construction. These photographs provide a pictorial narrative of the McKim Building, from the first shovels of earth to the beautiful edifice that stands today.

Exhibitions Central Library in Copley Square

Palaces for the People: Guastavino and America’s Great Public Spaces September 28, 2012 – February 24, 2013 Changing Exhibits Gallery

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Boston Public Library partner to present the first major exhibition on the Guastavino Company and its architectural and historical legacy. Rafael Guastavino – Spanish immigrant, innovative builder, and visionary designer – and his son Rafael Jr. contributed to the design and construction of structural tile vaulting in more than 1,000 major buildings across the United States, including the Boston Public Library, Ellis Island, and Grand Central Station. Palaces for the People features original drawings from the company’s archives; large-scale, contemporary photographs of Guastavino construction; a half-scale model vault showcasing the firm’s building techniques; and historic artifacts, photographs, and manuscripts. This exhibition is funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Exhibitions

An Elevated View: The Orange Line October 19, 2012 – January 19, 2013 Wiggin Gallery

Twenty-five years ago, the MBTA relocated the Orange Line, dismantling the elevated rail that had long defined Boston’s Southwest Corridor. Two years prior to the project, the private nonprofit agency URBANARTS organized, on behalf of the MBTA, a program called Arts in Transit. The project paired photographers with photography students to document the corridor in transition from Forest Hills to Dover Station. In the fall of 1985, the students and their teachers began photographing the Orange Line and its architectural and social surroundings. An Elevated View features more than 65 photographs from the project held by the Boston Public Library Print Department.

Boston During the Gilded Age: Mapping Public PlacesNovember 16, 2012 – March 17, 2013 Norman B. Leventhal Map Center

The Gilded Age in the late 19th century was a period of transformation in Boston. Ingenious engineering projects allowed the City to expand, and a devastating fire led to swift and progressive redevelopment of the commercial district. Documenting Boston’s radically changing geography, this exhibition uses maps and other graphics from the Boston Public Library’s special collections to focus on the evolving street pattern and emerging park system. The story begins with the Boston Common and Public Garden, moving west to examine the growth of open spaces in Back Bay, then south to Frederick Law Olmsted’s Emerald Necklace, finishing with the development of Copley Square.

Boston Sports Temples November 17, 2012 – May 31, 2013 Johnson Lobby

Boston Sports Temples showcases Boston’s beloved sports venues – most notably the Boston Garden, Fenway Park, Braves Field, and Suffolk Downs – and their unique roles in the hearts and daily lives of generations of New Englanders. Featuring the Boston Public Library’s outstanding collection of historic sports photography, the exhibition follows the creation and evolution of these four great public venues; their varied and changing roles, functions, and communities of users; and their powerful connections with millions of devoted fans who have filled their seats night after night, season after season. This exhibition is sponsored by the Boston Public Library Foundation.

Special Tours Central Library in Copley Square

Guastavino at the BPL ToursThrough February 23, 2013 Thursdays and Saturdays at 2:00 pm

Guided tours of the gallery exhibition Palaces for the People: Guastavino and America’s Great Public Spaces will be followed by a special library tour featuring examples of Guastavino vaulting throughout the building. The hour-long tours are free and open to the public. No reservations required. Meet in the Palaces for the People exhibition, located in the Changing Exhibits Gallery.

David Macaulay Thursday, October 11, 2012 6:00 pm

From the pyramids of Egypt to the skyscrapers of New York City, the human race’s great architectural and engineering accomplishments have been demystified through David Macaulay’s elaborate show-and-tells. Born in 1946, David Macaulay moved from England to New Jersey at the age of eleven and began to draw seriously after graduating from high school. He published his first lavishly illustrated book, Cathedral, in 1973. Following in this tradition, Macaulay created other books – including City, Castle, Pyramid, Mill, Underground, Unbuilding, and Mosque – that have provided the explanations of the architectural how and why in a way that is both accessible and entertaining. His detailed illustrations and sly humor have earned him fans of all ages, and five titles have been made into popular PBS television programs. His many awards include the Caldecott Medal and Honor Awards, the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, the Christopher Award, and the Washington Post-Children’s Book Guild Nonfiction Award. In 2006, he was awarded a prestigious MacArthur Fellowship.

Lowell Lecture Series: Common Ground Rabb Lecture Hall, Central Library in Copley Square

Built around the theme “Common Ground,” distinguished speakers in the 2012–2013 Lowell Lecture Series will discuss the creation and evolution of public spaces — both historical and contemporary.

This series is generously sponsored by the Lowell Institute, established in 1836 with the specific mission of making great ideas accessible to all people, free of charge.

Robert Campbell and Peter Vanderwarker Tuesday, November 13, 2012 6:00 pm

Boston Globe architecture critic Robert Campbell and photographer Peter Vanderwarker co-authored Cityscapes of Boston: An American City through Time (1994), which explored Boston past and present and the rise, fall, and evolution of urban centers. Campbell received the 1996 Pulitzer Prize for Criticism for his writing on architecture. He has been in private practice as an architect since 1975 and has served as a consultant to cultural institutions and cities. He received the 2004 Award of Honor of the Boston Society of Architects, “in recognition of outstanding contributions to architecture and to the profession.” Peter Vanderwarker is a freelance photographer and author whose work interprets both natural and man-made environments. He is the author or co-author of four books, including The Big Dig: Reshaping an American City. Vanderwarker holds a degree in Architecture from the University of California at Berkeley and served as a Loeb Fellow at Harvard University in 1996 and 1997.

Justice Stephen Breyer and Judge Douglas WoodlockTuesday, November 20, 2012 6:00 pm

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer has always had a special interest in architecture: he helped oversee the design and construction of the John Joseph Moakley United States Courthouse and harbor park in Boston and wrote the foreword to Celebrating the Courthouse: A Guide for Architects, Their Clients, and the Public. He currently serves as a jury member for the prestigious Pritzker Architecture Prize. In 1980, he was appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit by President Carter, becoming Chief Judge in 1990. In 1994, he was appointed a Supreme Court Justice by President Clinton. Douglas P. Woodlock was appointed a United States District Judge for the District of Massachusetts in 1986. He was a charter member of the Space, Facilities and Security Committee of the Judicial Conference of the United States, developing design standards for federal courthouses nationally. In 1996, he received the Thomas Jefferson Award for Public Architecture from the American Institute of Architects.

Maya LinThursday, January 24, 2013 6:00 pm

Maya Lin has created a remarkable body of work that includes large-scale site-specific installations, intimate studio artworks, architecture, and memorials. Her artwork has been shown in museum and gallery exhibitions in the United States and around the world.

A committed environmentalist, she is also at work on her last memorial, What is Missing?, a multi-sited artwork that raises awareness about the current crisis surrounding biodiversity and habitat loss.

Lin graduated from Yale University receiving a BA in 1981 and an MA in 1986, and has maintained a professional studio in New York City since then. She is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Barack Obama in 2009.

John OchsendorfWednesday, December 5, 2012 6:00 pm

John Ochsendorf is Associate Professor of Architecture and Civil and Environmental Engineering at MIT, where he researches the mechanics of historic monuments and the design of more sustainable buildings. He is the author of Guastavino Vaulting: The Art of Structural Tile (2010).

Ochsendorf directs the Guastavino research project at MIT and is the curator of Palaces for the People: Guastavino and America’s Great Public Spaces, the first major exhibition celebrating the Guastavino Company and its architectural legacy, on view at the Central Library through February 24, 2013. Ochsendorf has received numerous international awards, including a Rome Prize from the American Academy in Rome, the Edoardo Benvenuto Prize in Mechanics and Architecture from Genoa, and a MacArthur Fellowship from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

Lowell Lecture Series: Common Ground

Janet Marie SmithThursday, March 7, 2013 6:00 pm

Janet Marie Smith served as Senior Vice President of Planning and Development for the Boston Red Sox from 2002 to 2009, overseeing the preservation of historic Fenway Park and leading the program that placed this significant landmark on the National Historic Register. In 2012, the Boston Baseball Writers honored Smith with a Special Achievement Award for her work at Fenway Park. Smith previously worked for the Orioles from 1989-94 as Vice President of Planning and Development during the design and construction of Oriole Park at Camden Yards. In August 2012, Smith joined the Los Angeles Dodgers as Senior Vice President of Planning and Development to oversee upgrades and enhancements to Dodger Stadium.

Panel Discussion: Orange Line PhotographersThursday, November 1, 2012 6:00 pm Commonwealth Salon, Central Library in Copley Square

In the fall of 1985, the Arts in Transit project paired photographers with photography students to document Boston’s elevated Orange Line rail system and its architectural and social surroundings prior to the elevated’s demolition in 1987. David Akiba and Lou Jones, two photographers involved with the project, will discuss their photos and their experiences capturing neighborhoods in transition.

The Friends of the Public Garden: Four Decades of Public-Private Partnership Thursday, November 1, 2012 6:30 pm West End Branch

Speaker Elizabeth Vizza is the Executive Director of the Friends of the Public Garden, a nonprofit partner with the City of Boston Parks Department. Since 1970, the group has been dedicated to caring for Boston’s first public parks: the Boston Common, Public Garden, and Commonwealth Avenue Mall. Vizza has served on many nonprofit boards and public agency task forces dealing with the creation, protection, and enhancement of urban public space and historic landscapes. This program is presented in partnership with the Friends of the Public Garden.

More Programs & Lectures

Lego Building Class: Create Your Own Public SpaceFridays: November 9, 16, 23 and 30 3:30 pm Fields Corner Branch

Tuesdays: January 8, 15, 22, and 29 3:30 pm Tierney Learning Center

This is a four-week class where children will create and construct a public space, a park, a subway station, or a sports stadium using Legos. Please register in advance with one of the Boston Public Library locations listed above. This program is a partnership with the Children’s Technology Workshop Boston.

The Grandest Boulevard: Commonwealth Avenue MallThursday, December 13, 2012 6:00 pm Commonwealth Salon, Central Library in Copley Square

Commonwealth Avenue Mall is a grand allée of shaded trees forming the central axis of the Back Bay and connecting the Public Garden to the Back Bay Fens. From its inception in 1856, the Mall has been a vital and beautiful amenity for both residents and visitors; Winston Churchill praised it as “the grandest boulevard in North America.” Speaker Margaret Pokorny moved to Back Bay in 1980. Her thesis for the Radcliffe Seminars program in Landscape Design was a history and master plan for the Commonwealth Avenue Mall. Pokorny has served on the boards of the Friends of Copley Square, the Friends of the Public Garden, the Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay, the Garden Club of the Back Bay, and the Esplanade Association. This program is presented in partnership with the Friends of the Public Garden.

Boston Neighborhoods: People, Place, and PlanningWednesday, January 9, 2013 6:00 pm Orientation Room, Central Library in Copley Square

An exploration of how people, place, and planning interacted throughout history to create the Boston of today, including the “eras” of Boston’s history shaped by these forces. James Madden is a co-creator with MIT professor Tunney Lee of “Boston: People, Place, and Planning,” a web-based, comprehensive, and accessible history of Boston’s urban development.

Annual Druker Lecture: Celebrating Art and DesignSaturday, January 12, 2013 3:00 pm Abbey Room, Central Library in Copley Square

Elizabeth Diller is a founding principal of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, an interdisciplinary design studio that integrates architecture, the visual arts, and the performing arts. DS+R’s projects include the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston, the Lincoln Center expansion and renovation in New York, the Museum of Image and Sound in Rio de Janeiro, the Blur Building in Switzerland, the Broad Museum in Los Angeles, and the Columbia University Business School. DS+R are recipients of the MacArthur Foundation “genius” award, the National Design Award from the Smithsonian, the Brunner Prize from the American Academy of the Arts and Letters, and numerous AIA awards. Diller is a Professor of Architecture at Princeton University.

Incombustible Construction: Guastavino’s Fireproof Vaults in ContextTuesday, January 15, 2013 6:00 pm Orientation Room, Central Library in Copley Square

Rafael Guastavino’s floor and ceiling vaults are celebrated for their beauty, but they were introduced originally for a very practical reason: to protect buildings from fire. This lecture will present the history of systems of fireproof floor construction used in the United States and illustrate how Guastavino’s system compared with the alternatives when it was introduced. Speaker Sara E. Wermiel is an independent scholar, historic preservation consultant, and teacher. Her specialties are the history of nineteenth-century American technology, industrialization, and urbanization.

Joe Gallo & Public ArtMonday, February 11, 2013 6:30 pm Adams Street Branch

Tuesday, March 5, 2013 6:30 pm Faneuil Branch

Tuesday, April 23, 2013 6:30 pm South End Branch

Boston is home to some of the most extraordinary public art in North America and features works by such famed sculptors as Daniel Chester French, Katherine Lane Weems, George Aarons, and Augustus Saint-Gaudens. Joseph Gallo, author of Boston Bronze & Stone Speak To Us: A Guide to Public Sculpture in Boston, will present a slide show highlighting notable monuments throughout the city and will also discuss various social and ethnographic patterns that emerge in Boston’s public art.

More Programs & Lectures continued

Boston’s Chinatown: Beyond Stereotypes, Food, and BoundariesWednesday, February 13, 2013 6:00 pm Orientation Room, Central Library in Copley Square

Boston’s Chinatown started on Harrison Avenue around 1880 to serve as the center for the Chinese in the Greater Boston area. Today, Chinatown has evolved into an active residential neighborhood and a vital commercial and services center for Greater Boston. Speaker Tunney Lee was born in Taishan, Guangdong, China; grew up in Boston’s Chinatown; and attended the Quincy School and Boston Latin. Professor Lee is retired from MIT’s Department of Urban Studies and Planning and the Department of Architecture at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

A History of Fenway Park Wednesday, March 6, 2013 6:30 pm Adams Street Branch

Richard A. Johnson serves as the curator of the Sports Museum at TD Garden. He has authored and edited numerous books on a variety of sports topics, including histories of each of Boston’s four major sports franchises as well as the Boston Braves, Boston Garden, Boston Marathon, and a century of Boston sports. During his lecture, Mr. Johnson will discuss the history of various Boston sports temples, such as Braves Field, Fenway Park, and the Boston Garden.

More Programs & Lectures continued

The Harbor Islands: Boston’s Unique NeighborhoodWednesday, March 13, 2013 6:00 pm Orientation Room, Central Library in Copley Square

One of Boston’s most noted archaeologists presents the history of this unique area and explains why it can be considered a neighborhood. Speaker Ellen Berkland is the former Boston City Archeologist and currently serves as the Archaeologist for the Department of Conservation and Recreation.

The West End: From Early Immigration to Urban Excess Wednesday, April 10, 2013 6:00 pm Orientation Room, Central Library in Copley Square

James Campano and Duane Lucia of the West End Museum will present a broad look at an important American urban neighborhood from the seventeenth century to the present time. The West End Museum is a neighborhood museum located at 150 Staniford Street on the ground floor of West End Place. The museum is dedicated to the collection, preservation, and interpretation of the history and culture of the West End of Boston. James Campano is Founder of the West End Museum and Duane Lucia is the Executive Director.

The Memoir Project: Recording the Memoirs of Boston’s SeniorsWednesday, May 8, 2013 6:00 pm Orientation Room, Central Library in Copley Square

Since 2008, Mayor Thomas M. Menino and Boston’s Elderly Commission have partnered with a local nonprofit, Grub Street, to produce the Memoir Project. The project has gathered senior citizens from Boston neighborhoods to write down their personal memories, an important part of the great history of the city. This landmark project guides participants in sharing their stories through writing their memories in bound journals for their families and future generations to learn from and remember. Project staff will describe how the partnership came about and explain the techniques they use for gathering and writing oral histories.

Images courtesy of the Boston Public Library Print Department, including photos by Russ Adams, David Akiba, and Leslie Jones. Map detail courtesy of the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center at the Boston Public Library. Other photos courtesy of Michael Freeman, Gina Perille, Walter Smith, and Peter Vanderwarker.Design by Neva Corbo-Hudak

City of BostonThomas M. Menino, Mayor

Boston Public LibraryAmy E. Ryan, President

Board of TrusteesJeffrey B. Rudman, ChairEvelyn Arana-Ortiz, Vice ChairZamawa ArenasCarol FulpPaul A. La CameraDennis LehaneByron Rushing

www.bpl.org/buildingboston

www.bpl.org

700 Boylston StreetBoston, MA 02116

10.2012