Esoteric Survey

Wall sculpture and Cado "butterfly" shelves by Poul Cadovius.  I just now figured out where Cado shelves got their name.  The tray has this label. You know I love a good obscure little start-up from back in the day. Neal B Gregg and his wife, Patricia Lee Gregg, established Gregg Industries in 1953. They were operating out of a small industrial space in Van Nuys, CA. The venture must have been short-lived. By 1955 there was a new business operating out the space. Besides this piece and and the fictitious business name posting in the paper, all I found was the following mention about Neal...  A USC and Valley guy. Source: The Independent, Oct. 27, 1963 Interesting Soleri bells.  It rattles.

The Mesa Laboratory of the National Center for Atmospheric Research by I.M. Pei (1967),  in collaboration with landscape architect Dan Kiley.  The complex sits on the redundantly-named Table Mesa, at the foot of the Flatirons rock formations in Boulder, Colorado. It's surrounded by a 565-acre nature preserve. Pei was inspired by Puebloan cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde. The structures are built from poured-in-place concrete, mixed with local red Lyons sandstone aggregate to match the rose-pink color of the surrounding hills. A large model of the planned complex is on display. Some of the buildings seen here were never realized. The surfaces were bush-hammered to create that rough texture. I was under the impression that the surface was combed (when wet) like they do when putting in the grooves on concrete highways.  However, here is a slightly smaller example of the chisel they used. I love that they had to point that out. I'm guessing one of the scientists working at the f...

Slim pickings in Denver...weed pots and a Brazilian display table.  Travel size = no need for checked luggage.

 Denver Public Library by Michael Graves (1996) It was my first time in the Mile High City. I don't think it's known as a hotbed of modern architecture but I was pleasantly surprised. The library is adjacent to the Civic Center Park and next to The Denver Art Museum. Graves was awarded the project after the firm won a design competition. The seven-story addition  was a 390,000 SF expansion and also included a 147,000 SF renovation of the existing library.   Source: Michael Graves The 1955 library was designed by Burnham Hoyt.  Source: Denver Public Library Special Collections The new and old library buildings. Source: Richard W. Longstreth via Society of Architectural Historians There was a recent renovation that included adding what they call the " Grand Staircase". Special Collections and Archives are on the fifth floor. The Graves sculpture, titled “Symbol of the West”, is constructed of reclaimed beams from a Western sawmill.  It's held together with wo...