Ralph Rapson dies
The Star Tribune is reporting that architect Ralph Rapson has died at age 93. I'll always remember the Rapson retrospective at the Weisman Art Museum and Minneapolis Institute of the Arts several year ago. It really opened my eyes to the greatness of Rapson's designs and drawings. From furniture to buildings to rethinking the modern city, Rapson leaves an amazing body of work behind. In Minneapolis, Rapson designed the original Guthrie Theater (1963), Rarig Center (1971) and Riverside Plaza (1973). His most famous furniture design was the Rapid Rapson Rocker, which is "available for a limited time" at Ralph Rapson and Associates. (Photo courtesy of Rapson Architects, Inc.)

Stories about Ralph Rapson and other resources:

• Burl Gilyard's 2002 profile for Minnesota magazine
• Star Tribune obituary
• Star Tribune 2003 video interview
  
• Ralph Rapson Wikipedia entry
• MPR interview with son Rip Rapson
• Afton Society Historical Press, publishers of two Rapson-related books ("Ralph Rapson: Sketches and Drawings from Around the World" and "Ralph Rapson: Sixty Years of Modern Design")
• Marianne Comb's 2005 profile on MPR
• Midwest Home article, May 2007
• Linda Mack's story on the Guthrie Theatre design
• Architecture Week article on Rapson Cube, August 2007
  

Ralph Rapson quotes:

• "I really don't talk well without a pencil in my hand." (Star Tribune video, 2003)
• "I hope they carry me out on my drawing board. I'd like them to pile it up with models ... and put me out on the river or lake or some place and set fire [to it] in the old Viking fashion." (Star Tribune video, 2003)
• On the Walker Art Center's destruction of the original Guthrie: "I’m very disturbed and disappointed that an organization such as the Walker, which obviously has been a great force in the art world, would be so negative about what really is a very significant building." (Minnesota magazine, 2002)

What's your favorite Rapson building? What was Rapson's contribution to modern architecture? Share your thoughts in our "Comments" section.

Worlds Away at Walker Art Center
I thought of the Walker Art Center's Worlds Away: New Suburban Landscapes while listening to a NPR story this morning about an Atlanta couple who moved from the city to the suburbs. Both husband and wife commute more than one hour each way, every day. Gulp.

The Walker Art Center show opened in mid-February and doesn't end anytime soon (mid-August). But the show has already had two architecture related discussions, both of which I missed. Luckily, technology has saved me. It can save you too. You can catch both Drawn Here: Teddy Cruz and Drawn Here: Sean Griffiths of FAT on the Walker Channel, an online video service.

Up next in the Worlds Away series is a panel discussion I'll be hosting. Called Next Exit: The Shifting Landscape of Surburia, the April 24 discussion features Lance Nekar of Metropolitan Design Center, Dan Bergin of Twin Cities Public Television and Michael Lander of Lander Group. (Photo courtesy of Walker Art Center)

Can't get enough of Dwell? If you're addicted to high design, you can get your fix of the monthly magazine on YouTube now. Dwell has uploaded 22 videos to its YouTube channel, including this one, a feature on Della Valle Bernheimer, one of the magazine's "emerging designers." In typical Dwell-style, the video is accompanied by jazzy music from the Bad Plus and an annoying ad for a luxury SUV.

Haven't you always wanted a care-free house?
Imagine never having to paint your house or put on a new roof. Wouldn't that be great? After World War II, Alcoa — the world's third largest aluminum manufacturer — tried to sell America on the idea of living in an aluminum house. The company set up sales offices around the country in an attempt to sell "care-free living." I don't know whether this project was a success (perhaps someone can point me to a few resources), but Sotheby's is trying to sell an Alcoa Care-Free unit in St. Louis Park for $575,000. The house features an "aluminum roof, exterior doors and windows," an open floor plan and "California rambler style living."

Crazy, baby! I love it!

Now, where did I put that cocktail?

Your chance to see the house is on Friday, April 4 at 5:30 p.m., according to Preserve Minneapolis and Sotheby's International Realty. The exact address is 8000 Westwood Hills Drive. Directions are on the Preserve Minneapolis website.

To learn more about the Alcoa Care-Free house, go to Mid-Century Mike's Modern Capital blog. He lives in a similar house near Washington, D.C.

(NOTE: This blog entry was updated on April 3, 2008 to reflect the fact that Preserve Minneapolis is co-sponsoring the open house, not the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota. Sorry.)


(Photos courtesy of sfp237's flickr page)

'I'm walkin' here!'
That line ricochets through my head every time some bozo nearly clips me in a crosswalk. For those of you that aren't movie buffs, "I'm walkin' here! I'm walking here!" was shouted by Ratso Rizzo (played by Dustin Hoffman) in the 1969 film Midnight Cowboy. And a damn, fine film it was. But the reason I bring it up is that Minneapolis is finally getting around to attempting to assert its state-given pedestrian rights. From 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. tonight, the city is hosting a Pedestrian Master Plan Open House at Minneapolis Central Library. People are invited to share their horror stories and make suggestions for how to improve automobile-pedestrian relationships. The Strib weighed in the topic this morning with a story written by a journalism student.

Grand slam for historic preservation
Denny's is known for its hefty "Grand Slam," "French Toast Slam," and its meaty "Lumberjack Slam" breakfasts. In Seattle, one of its former buildings has made news. The Seattle Times reports that the local Landmarks Preservation Board declared that a 1964 restaurant with swooping roof lines and odd-shaped pillars is worth of preservation. The building, which originally opened as Manning's Cafeteria and was later purchased by Denny's, reminded many people of the TV show "The Jetsons." Called Googie, the style is known for its "bold angles, colorful signs, plate glass, sweeping cantilevered roofs and pop culture imagery," according to Googie Architecture Online. (Photo courtesy of Dean Rutz, Seattle Times)