Monday, Feb 24
6:00pm
Utah Valley University – Room CS404
Zoom Livestream: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82164310025
Within the African American community, there exists a myth that Classical and Traditional Architecture is a legacy of oppression and racism. While there is a negative association of this tradition to the plantations of the Old South, there is a positive reality to Classicism and the African American diaspora, particularly, in Charleston, South Carolina. The historical architectural record of Charleston is defined by remarkable structures that exemplify the very best of American Classicism. From Georgian to Beaux Arts, buildings such as The Old Exchange Building, Charleston City Hall, Trinity United Methodist Church, and The U.S. Customs House. These buildings serve as examples of well proportioned, durable architecture that have stood the test of time against fire, flood, and war. More importantly, virtually every structure in the city constructed before 1865 was built, detailed and to an extent designed entirely by the enslaved of Charleston. There was a deeply rooted understanding of building in relation to the human scale that derived as early as the great structures of Egypt. Centuries before arriving in British North America, Africans from various regions of the continent had developed building practices utilizing locally sourced materials including stone, mud, and wood to create communities. It was this knowledge, in addition to published Western European architectural treatises, that informed the creation of the City of Charleston as loved in the present day.
Philip Smith: “Reclaiming the Classical Legacy: African American Contributions to Charleston’s Architectural Heritage”
Time: Feb 24, 2025 06:00 PM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
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Meeting ID: 821 6431 0025
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82164310025
Phillip Smith is Assistant Professor of Classical Architecture at the American College of the Building Arts, in Charleston, South Carolina. Architectural Designer and Project Manager for Innova Architecture. Mr. Smith holds a Master of Architecture from the University of Notre Dame and a BA in Historic Preservation and Community Planning with a minor in Art History from the College of Charleston. He is a Board of Trustees member for The Charleston Museum and is Vice Chair of the State of South Carolina Review Board for the National Register of Historic Places. Phillip is also a Community Advisory Board Member for the Carolina Lowcountry and Atlantic World Program, Georgia Tech Academy of Medicine Lecturer, and an expert architectural docent for the Preservation Society of Charleston Annual Fall Home and Garden Tour.
classicistutah.org 