Journal Article About Carlson Terrace Receives State Historic Preservation Award

Photo Submitted

Ethel Goodstein-Murphree, the architectural adviser for 'Clean Lines, Open Spaces: A View of Mid-Century Modern Architecture,' and the film’s producer, Mark Wilcken, second from right, worked with humanities scholars Charles Penix of Cromwell Architects Engineers and Charles Witsell of Witsell Evans Rasco Architects/Planners. (Photo courtesy of the Historic Preservation Alliance of Arkansas)

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Ethel Goodstein-Murphree has received the 2011 Ned Shank Award for Outstanding Preservation Publication from the Historic Preservation Alliance of Arkansas for her article, “In Memoriam, Carlson Terrace, 1957-2007.”

Goodstein-Murphree is associate dean and professor of architecture in the Fay Jones School of Architecture at the University of Arkansas. She was one of 13 individuals and organizations honored by the alliance at its annual preservation excellence awards banquet Jan. 13 at the Arkansas Governor’s Mansion in Little Rock. The alliance is the only statewide nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving Arkansas’ architectural and cultural heritage.

Published in Preservation Education and Research, the journal of the National Council for Preservation Education, her article examines the challenges of preserving mid-century modern architecture through a case study of how this project designed by Edward Durell Stone was lost. Built in three phases between 1957 and 1964, Carlson Terrace offered functional, low-cost housing to accommodate the influx of married students who flocked to the campus early in the post-World War II era.

Designed to provide optimal housing arrangements in minimal space, the complex transformed the European-born International Style to create dwellings that were both affordable and, distinguished by Stone’s signature concrete grilles, fashionable. For 50 years, Carlson Terrace was called “home” by generations of University of Arkansas students. But after falling into disrepair, it was razed in 2007, adding to a growing list of works by the Fayetteville native that have been demolished or irrevocably altered.

Goodstein-Murphree is quick to point out that her article is no ode to a lost cause. Recognized as a scholar of Stone’s work and an advocate for its preservation, she notes that “In Memoriam” was written to confront the stereotypes and traditional architectural values that have prevented the preservation of buildings of the recent past.

Even in Northwest Arkansas, where “mid-century modern is our most compelling architectural legacy,” she argues, the mainstream preservation community has been reluctant to embrace its significance. Although a rich and diverse array of buildings, from Stone’s vanished Carlson Terrace to the “Ozark Modern” expression of Fay Jones and John H. Williams, represent the mid-century modern style, she believes its clean lines and undecorated forms belie the complexity of post-war arts and culture.

“It’s not just about the physical stuff of the building,” Goodstein-Murphree said. “The significance of Carlson Terrace was intrinsically related to 1950s lifestyles reflected in family culture, popular culture and education as well as in the arts — a series of postwar conditions that all influenced the construction of what was a remarkable project.”

Goodstein-Murphree is not alone in her contention that mid-century modern architecture is worth saving and preserving. Clean Lines, Open Spaces: A View of Mid-Century Modern Architecture, a documentary produced by Mark Wilcken for the Arkansas Educational Television Network, focuses on the construction boom in the United States after World War II. Wilcken shows the difficulty of viewing this familiar fabric of Arkansas communities, sometimes considered cold and unattractive, as “historic,” despite the fact that many examples are 50 years old or older.

The alliance honored the 55-minute film with its award for Outstanding Preservation Reporting in the Media. Goodstein-Murphree, the film’s architectural adviser, worked closely with Wilcken and a team of humanities scholars, including architects Charles Penix, of Cromwell Architects Engineers, and Charles Witsell, of Witsell Evans Rasco Architects/Planners, and Brad Cushman, gallery director and curator of exhibitions at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

The film pays homage to Carlson Terrace and highlights several other Fayetteville buildings – the University Fine Arts Center, the Fulbright Building (built as the Fayetteville Public Library), and the Southwestern Electric Power Company Building. A full-length version of the film is available on You Tube.

Recognition of Goodstein-Murphree’s and Wilcken’s work places the preservation of the recent past in a larger context of preserving and protecting places of historical or cultural importance. “The Historic Preservation Alliance is pleased to recognize these wonderful projects from around Arkansas,” said Vanessa McKuin, executive director of the alliance. “An important part of fostering a vibrant local economy includes preserving and revitalizing historic areas and structures. By maintaining and restoring these areas, we are investing in the economic vitality and sense of community that make our towns and cities across the state special places to live.”

Goodstein-Murphree simply hopes that the documentary and her article will, in the future, “cause the stewards of mid-century modern buildings to pause before aiming the wrecking ball.”