Art Deco architecture across Canada – sneak peak!

This Sunday afternoon (March 25), Tim Morawetz is delivering an illustrated lecture entitled 'Art Deco Architecture Across Canada' as part of the Roaring Twenties Lecture Series at the Bata Shoe Museum in downtown Toronto.

Ceiling of Marine Building lobby, Vancouver, 1929

During the talk, Tim will showcase several dozen Art Deco buildings from coast to coast, including:

Hambly House, Hamilton, 1939

* Halifax's Bank of Nova Scotia
* Montreal's best Deco Roman Catholic Cathedral
* Toronto's legendary Maple Leaf Gardens
* Hamilton's newly restored Hambly House
* Winnipeg's best Moderne high school
* Calgary's dismantled York Hotel
* Vancouver's spectacular Marine Building

This talk is a chance to preview some of the buildings that will be featured in Tim's upcoming book to be published later this year.

Lecture tickets are $16, which includes Museum admisison and a short tour of the Roaring Twenties exhibition following the lecture (free for Bata Shoe Museum members). Pre-registration is required; call 416-979-7799 x240 or email programs@batashoemuseum.ca.

News from Miami Beach

As you'll see in the Miami Design Preservation League's February 2011 newsletter, the advocacy campaign to protect the historic district's vacant windows from being used for ad space was successful. Also, read about the various activities that made the city's Art Deco Weekend such a great event.

(Miami Beach is the birthplace of the International Congress of Art Deco Societies, the governing body that's responsible for overseeing the bi-annual World Congress on Art Deco® -- the ultimate experience for Deco aficionados. The next one is being held in Rio de Janiero in August 2011.)

Miami Beach, Florida and Napier, New Zealand are two communities that have very effectively leveraged their Art Deco heritage and created ongoing events that celebrate their cultural value while also fostering economic activity!

How Deco helped sell glamour and style

The weekend of January 14 to 16, 2011 is the annual Art Deco Weekend in Miami Beach, Florida, and the theme this year is Selling Glamour & Style.

As usual, the weekend includes a lecture series (highlighting the influences of the Art Deco era on the modern marketing machine),guided historical walking tours, a couture fashion show, furniture exhibit, film series, weekend drive parade and classic car fest.

Click here for details.

Toronto Art Deco book an award finalist!

I'm delighted to announce that my book has been named a 'Finalist' in 2010 Heritage Toronto Awards! 

For info on the awards (or to possibly attend if you're in Toronto!), click here. 

To read about the other finalists, click here.

Note: Another book finalist is Glenn McArthur's A Progressive Traditionalist: John M. Lyle, Architect (Coach House Books, 2009). This excellent book is the 'definitive work' on the life and work of the man who, in my opinion, was English-Canada's premier architect of the first half of the 20th century, and a master and promoter of 'Canadian-themed' Deco architecture.

Hollywood & Art Deco: a classic double-bill

The Art Deco style certainly made itself felt on the movies, both in terms of the sets and costumes of films from the period, as well as in the design of cinemas themselves. In fact, Art Deco cinemas can literally be found the world over, from the smallest towns to the biggest cities.

Fortunately, the city that's intimately associated with the movies – Hollywood –  has its own Art Deco society (Art Deco Society of Los Angeles).

In my opinion, ADSLA is one of the most organized and effective Deco societies, with a full slate of events (walking tours, lectures, movie showings and galas). As well, it monitors preservation issues in that city, as well as around the world.

If and when you travel to LA, be sure you check out ADSLA's website to see if there's an event you can work into your schedule!