Dear friends,

It is hard to believe that 2024 is already coming to an end. In this final President’s Column of 2024, I’d like to express my gratitude to all of you – our members, partners, and friends – for your faithful support.

 

Thanks to you:

• We enjoyed a successful symposium in Miami in June, where we learned about local modern traditions and topics prescient in the field of preservation through educational sessions and tours.
• We brought attention to the design legacy of our country’s midcentury corporate campuses, including two special editions of our newsletter dedicated to the topic, thoughtfully edited by MillerKnoll’s Amy Auscherman, and tours of corporate campuses across the country during October’s National Tour Day.
• We travelled with you to Detroit in June and Sea Ranch in October, for deep explorations into the architecture, landscapes, and communities of these extraordinary places and fun conversations we won’t ever forget.
• We continued to advocate for the preservation of threatened modern buildings and landscapes throughout the country.
• We took our annual Modernism in America Awards on the road this year, out of our usual home in New York to Los Angeles, where we celebrated the country’s best preservation projects with award winners, friends, and colleagues.
• And, at our first-ever fundraising gala, we launched the Theo Prudon Fund for Preservation Education to support the education initiatives of Docomomo US and fund scholarships for students in preservation graduate programs across the country each year. We couldn’t be prouder to be able to continue Theo’s commitment to education and advocacy through the support of the educational pursuits of those new to the field. At the time of this writing, we are only $10K away from reaching our goal of $100K for the fund, and I’m a little overwhelmed by the acts of generosity that have enabled the establishment of the fund. We can’t wait to put it to work in the new year.

Of course, even as we reflect on 2024, we are actively planning for 2025. We can’t wait to see you in Boston in March for the Preserving the Recent Past 4 (PRP4) conference, where we will join our friends from HPEF and Boston Architectural College for several days of educational sessions, tours, and other events. We are excited about our annual theme, Places of Worship, which will explore this essential tradition of Modernism in the US and the challenges and opportunities met by stewards of these incredible buildings. And we look forward to traveling with you next year on a number of travel tours, including Cuba in March (there are just a few spaces left, email us at info@docomomo-us.org if you are interested!).

 

Finally, as I write this, I join Docomomo US Executive Director Liz Waytkus and President Elect Meredith Bzdak in Santiago, Chile, for the 18th Annual International Docomomo Conference. Convening with our friends from across the globe reminds us of the international impact of Docomomo and our place in this incredible community of scholars, practitioners, and lovers of Modernism. There is already a little buzz in the air about the 19th Annual IDC, which will take place in Los Angeles in March of 2026. As an Angeleno, I can’t wait for the opportunity to welcome the international Docomomo community and all of you to this city that I love so much.

 

Truly, without you, none of this would be possible, and one of the greatest joys of my position as president thus far has been the opportunity to meet so many of you in person and witness firsthand your dedication to the advancement of our mission.

 

So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for an incredible year! Wishing you all a restful and joyous holiday season, and looking forward to new adventures with you in the new year.

 

Sincerely,