Queens

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When you think of cities with stellar examples of bold faced postwar modern architecture, Manhattan is the first place that comes to mind. Queens, Brooklyn, Bronx, Staten Island?  Not so much. However, architectural historian Frampton Tolbert is looking to change that narrative.  He recently spoke of Nicole Javorsky of CityLab,

It's the narrative of Manhattan being the center of the highest of high-style architecture and where wealth was based, where influence was based. (citylab.com: Feb. 4, 2019; date accessed Feb. 11, 2019). 

Mr. Tolbert assembled a comprehensive website, dedicated to upending the story. The website, Queens Modern (queensmodern.com; date accessed Feb. 11, 2019) "...surveys, documents, researches, and promotes mid-century, modern architecture in Queens, New York" (citylab.com; Feb. 11, 2019). His project features a database of Modernist buildings in Queens, drawing from the Queens Chamber of Commerce Building Awards, established in 1926 to recognize achievement in design and construction (queensmodern.com; Feb. 11, 2019). 

Frampton Tolbert received funding for the intial stage of Queens Modern from the New York State Council on the Arts and funding for the second stage came from the James Marston Fitch Charitable Foundation. Mr. Tolbert is also looking to publishing a book and/or mount a future exhibition. 

Ms. Javorsky writes, "As Tolbert contextualizes Modernism with the history of New York City, it becomes clear why they would be such an abundance of Modernist architecture in Queens,... (citylab.com; Feb. 4, 2019). This is why Mr. Tolbert, a Queens resident, decided to focus on Queens. He told CityLab, 

...Because of how New York developed, there was a significant amount of postwar construction in Queens,.... Not all of the architecture was truly modern, some of it was just built in mid-century and was more along the lines of Colonial, Georgian, and Tudor Revival styles....

... Queens had a lot of large sites--farmland, country clubs, race tracks, etc. that were able to be developed as whole new neighborhoods and communities like Rochdale Village, Elechester, and Fresh Meadows. (Ibid)

The Modern Movement in architecture (savingpaces.org; date accessed Feb. 11, 2019) did not come into fruition and take flight until the early and mid-20th century. At that point, Manhattan was already a fully formed city; Queens was just coming into being. 

Nicole Javorsky writes, "The Long Island Railroad, Queensboro Bridge, and the New York City Subway system all connected Queens to Manhattan in the first two decades of the 20th century. According to a 1940s Queens Chamber of Commerce pamphlet, 62 percent of all buildings constructed in New York City from 1930 to 1943 were in Queens" (citylab.com; Feb. 11, 2019). Further, between 1940 and 1970, "The population of Queen also rose an average of 20 percent each decade..., while Manhattan, the Bronx, and Brooklyn's populations declined or remained steady" (Ibid). 

In most cases, prize-winning buildings from this period were largely ignored. Mr. Tolbert decided to do something about it. He said,

I realized there were a lot of these buildings in Queens and I wondered,many are these buildings here? No one's talking about them.  There.s no documentation on them. (Ibid)

One of Mr. Tolbert's favorite buildings is an industrial building in Long Island City (queensmodern.com; Feb 11, 2019).  The 1958 building was designed for Barkin, Levin & Co. by Ulrich Franzen (Ibid). Industrial buildings are common in the Queens neighborhood, and like period religious buildings, they are the types of Modernist building that are very vulnerable. One industrial building listed on queensmodern.com, in Long Island City was demolished and replaced by a hotel (queensmodern.com; Feb. 11, 2019).

Mid-century Queens hotels have also met the wrecking ball. Frampton Tolbert explains,

A lot of the hotels that were built around the airport have been lost over time just as tastes have change,... So a lot of those really space age--and at the time very cool, hip hotels--have long been lost. (citylab.com; Feb. 11, 2019)

On the website, Mr. Tolbert described the 1962 Church of the Transfiguration as,

...one of the most unique and striking structures honored by the Chamber of Commerce during this era.  Nestled within a compact reside tha part of Masoeth, the A-frame church incorporates traditional Lithuanian symbols into a definitively modern structure. (queensmodern.com; Feb. 11, 2019).

Frampton Tolbert has received good feedback from not only architects and aficionados of Modernism; also from Queens residents wanting to learn about he architectural history in neighborhoods. Over the past two years, Mr. Tolbert has led tours in Forest Hills and Rego Park, showcasing modern architecture.  Nicole Javorsky reports, "People who lived in these neighborhoods showed up and said they wanted to know more about getting buildings on their home turfs" (citylab.com; Feb. 11, 2019). 

Mr. Tolbert acknowledged that residents often share with him that they recognize buildings from their childhood and wonder what became of them.  He told CityLab,

Part of my work,..., is to make people aware, both documenting these buildings before they're lost and then...hopefully get people to be interested and appreciate these buildings before they're gone. (Ibid)