THE EVOLUTION OF COMPATIBILITY by BEJIE DEANN WILSON (Under the Direction of Pratt Cassity) ABSTRACT Currently the largest debate in the Historic Preservation community is over the issue of compatibility concerning new infill and additions to historic buildings and places. Many preservationists are calling for a break from infill design that is tame and traditional, and looking for fulfilling solutions embodied in contemporary design. This thesis will follow the evolution of architectural compatibility within historic contexts seeking to discover a trend over the whole of architecture history, which would inform the direction of the current debate. It will also consider what kind of formal standards address compatibility theory, and how evaluations should be made as to the quality of the infill structure. INDEX WORDS: Authenticity; Compatibility; Infill Architecture; Additions; Contextual Architecture; Contemporary Architecture; Traditional Building THE EVOLUTION OF COMPATIBILITY by BEJIE DEANN WILSON B.D. in Architecture, University of Florida, 2005 A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF HISTORIC PRESERVATION ATHENS, GEORGIA 2007 © 2007 Bejie DeAnn Wilson All Rights Reserved THE EVOLUTION OF COMPATIBILITY by BEJIE DEANN WILSON Major Professor: Pratt Cassity Committee: Wayde Brown Andrew Fox Lara Mathes Electronic Version Approved: Maureen Grasso Dean of the Graduate School The University of Georgia December 2007 iv DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to my daddy, the reason I like buildings in the first place, to my mom who is the sweetest and most encouraging person in my life, and to the rest of my family for their encouragement. I would also like to dedicate it to the Purdy’s and to Laurie Curtis. I love all of you with all my heart and thank you for your consistent love and encouragement. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Pratt Cassity for his encouragement and expertise throughout my time here at the University of Georgia, especially for the time he spend helping the creation of this thesis. I would also like to thank Melissa Roberts for her help and encouragement during the thesis process and my committee members, Wayde Brown, Andrew Fox, and Lara Mathes. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .............................................................................................................v LIST OF FIGURES ...................................................................................................................... vii CHAPTER 1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................1 2 History of Compatibility ...............................................................................................4 3 Formal Preservation Influence .....................................................................................21 4 Preservation Community Discussion ...........................................................................28 5 Case Studies ................................................................................................................49 Carlo Scarpa ............................................................................................................49 Richard Meier ..........................................................................................................61 New Urbanism/New Historicism ............................................................................72 6 Conclusion: Compatibility Today ................................................................................79 REFERENCES ..............................................................................................................................82 APPENDIX: Timeline ...................................................................................................................88 vii LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 1: Belgium: centuries of change in style and similarity in method of construction. ..........18 Figure 2: Milan Duomo: Completed in original style. ..................................................................18 Figure 3: Tempio Malatestiano: reconstructed in the contemporary style. ...................................18 Figure 4: St. Paul’s Cathedral, Christopher Wren, rebuilt in contemporary style. ........................19 Figure 5: All Souls College, Hawksmoor, completed in original style .........................................19 Figure 6: Chiswick House, example of New Historicism ..............................................................19 Figure 7: Houses of Parliament, Pugin, Gothic Revival. ...............................................................20 Figure 8: Danieli Hotel with extension .........................................................................................43 Figure 9: Greater New York Savings Bank 1963: Georgian interpretation ...................................43 Figure 10: Boston Public Library ..................................................................................................43 Figure 11: Schroeder House, Rietveld ...........................................................................................44 Figure 12: Benacerraf House, Michael Graves ..............................................................................44 Figure 13: Center for American Arts addition, Herbert S. Newman Associates ...........................44 Figure 14: Allen Art Museum with Venturi and Ranch’s addition ..............................................45 Figure 15: I.M. Pei’s John Hancock Tower ...................................................................................45 Figure 16: Lafayette Square Project, John Carl Warnecke and Associates ...................................45 Figure 17: Penn Central proposal ..................................................................................................46 Figure 18: St. Peter’s......................................................................................................................46 Figure 19: The Queen’s House and The Greenwhich Royal Naval Hospital ................................46 viii Figure 20: Castelvecchio, Scarpa ...................................................................................................47 Figure 21: Goteborg Law Courts ...................................................................................................47 Figure 22: Maison Carree and The Carre d’Art, Foster Associates. ..............................................47 Figure 23: The Carre d’Art ............................................................................................................48 Figure 24: The Louvre and I.M. Pei’s pyramid .............................................................................48 Figure 25: Rear façade of Canova Plaster Cast Gallery, Scarpa ....................................................58 Figure 26: Interior of Canova Plaster Cast Gallery .......................................................................58 Figure 27: Interior of Canova Plaster Cast Gallery .......................................................................58 Figure 28: Model of Scarpa’s Castelvecchio. ................................................................................59 Figure 29: Castelvecchio: interior of museum ...............................................................................59 Figure 30: Castelvecchio: drawing of window detail. ...................................................................59 Figure 31: Castelvecchio: Cangrande joint. ...................................................................................60 Figure 32: Olivetti Showroom: window layering ..........................................................................60 Figure 33: Olivetti Showroom: exterior façade .............................................................................60 Figure 34: Ara Pacis Museum: designed by Morpurgo .................................................................65 Figure 35: Ara Pacis Museum: context ..........................................................................................65 Figure 36: Ara Pacis Museum: front façade and travertine wall ...................................................66 Figure 37: Ara Pacis Museum: front façade .................................................................................66 Figure 38: Ara Pacis Museum: interior wall .................................................................................67 Figure 39: Ara Pacis Museum: interior altar .................................................................................67 Figure 40: Ara Pacis Museum: exterior relationship to cathedral .................................................68 Figure 41: Ara Pacis Museum: exterior public space ...................................................................68 Figure 42: Ara Pacis Museum: site plan diagram ..........................................................................69 ix Figure 43: Ara Pacis Museum: diagram ......................................................................................69 Figure 44: Ara Pacis Museum: diagram .......................................................................................70 Figure 45: Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art: facade ......................................................70 Figure 46: Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art: diagram .....................................................71