Tag: History

Basílica de la Sagrada Família

Antoni Gaudí’s Basílica de la Sagrada Família is a monumental, unfinished church in Barcelona that has been under construction since 1882. Its fame and prominence have only grown in recent decades as the rate of construction has accelerated with support from technological improvements and a surge in funding from visitor fees. The building is already a central symbol of Catalonia and a major draw for (over)tourism in Barcelona, Spain.

As with the older Gothic Cathedrals found throughout Europe, construction was always expected to take a century or more. Gaudí directed the erection sequence to progress horizontally, with entire facades and towers rising to their final heights before foundations were laid in other sections. This approach allows successive generations to understand the design vision in sections complete to the fine ornamental details, garnering support for ongoing progress toward the eventual completion. A traditional vertical sequence, by contrast, could struggle to maintain interest amidst changing economic and cultural…

Benson Polytechnic High School, 1916 – 2021

I first experienced Benson Polytechnic High School in 2007. I began working on its modernization project a decade later, then the 2017 Portland Public Schools (PPS) bond (partially) funded the reconstruction. As the new design nears completion, and with construction including substantial demolition slated to begin later this year, I have explored the history of the school through its buildings.

1916 Master Plan

Benson fills a six-block campus in inner northeast Portland. Extensive career-technical-education programs present a unique collection of building uses, from manufacturing shops to healthcare-education clinics. The original main building, boiler house, north shops, and foundry building date to 1916. The corresponding master plan envisioned a series of neoclassical brick building “units” separated by courtyards. Single-loaded corridors connected the units and defined a large eastern athletic courtyard.

From PPS Archives: a 1917 construction photograph taken at the southeast corner of the campus shows the original buildings at various stages of completion. From left to…