image Open in Lightbox

As part of the opening celebrations for Design Agendas: Modern Architecture in St. Louis, 1930s – 1970s, co-curators Eric P. Mumford and Michael E. Willis, will be in conversation with Sabine Eckmann, William T. Kemper Director and Chief Curator. Mumford and Willis will discuss topics related to the history of modern architecture in the context of St. Louis, highlighting this period of urban renewal projects amid racial segregation and displacement. Learn about some of the key architects, planners, artists, and activists in the civic work that shaped the design and building history of St. Louis.

Free and open to the public.

American Sign Language interpretation can be arranged for public events upon request. This service is free, but we ask for two weeks’ notice. Requests can be made by contacting kempereducation@wustl.edu

This event is part of the Sam Fox School Public Lecture Series.

Watch the video recording.

About the speakers

Eric P. Mumford is the Rebecca and John Voyles Professor of Architecture at the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis. He is a historian focusing on modern architecture and urbanism, and his publications include Designing the Modern City: Urbanism since 1850 (2018), Defining Urban Design: CIAM Architects and the Formation of a Discipline, 1937–69 (2009), and The CIAM Discourse on Urbanism, 1928–1960 (2000). He is also an advisor to the Humanity’s Urban Future Committee of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, and holds courtesy appointments in the Departments of History and Art History & Archaeology in Arts & Sciences.

Michael E. Willis, FAIA, NOMA, founded MWA Architects Inc. in 1988, where he served until retirement at the end of 2016. Since 2017 he has been a design consultant, and has taught at his alma mater Washington University (BA1973/M Arch 1976/MSW 1976), most recently during the Spring 2020 semester. MWA Architects has created master plans for mixed-income affordable housing projects in San Francisco, Oakland, Portland, and post-Katrina New Orleans. Willis has facilitated planning studies in St. Louis’s Downtown, North Central, and JeffVanDerLou neighborhoods.

He was a principal on the International Terminal at San Francisco Airport, Terminal 2 at Oakland International, and the new Central Subway Yerba Buena/Moscone Station in San Francisco. Willis was principal architect of the El Sobrante and Upper San Leandro Ozonation Facilities, the North Richmond Water Reclamation Plant, the Joseph Jensen Water Treatment Plant, and currently the rebuild of San Francisco’s major Southeast Wastewater Treatment Plant adjacent to a historic Black neighborhood. He is a Distinguished Alumni at the University, Architecture, and the Brown School of Social Work.

Related Events

Kemper Art Museum members and WashU faculty, staff, and students, are invited to preview the exhibition at 4:30 pm prior to the Q&A. The public opening follows the Q&A from 6:30 to 8 pm.

Parking

Free parking is available in the East End Garage after 5 pm. Enter at the intersection of Forsyth Blvd and Wrighton Way. View a map and complete parking information here.