Six mid-century modern architecture buildings dat ain't der no mo

quote:

---

The Rivergate Convention Center, originally known as the International Exhibition Facility, was completed in 1968 and was regarded as one of the city’s most innovative and modern structures. The Expressionist-styled building featured six barrels of thinly sculpted, arched concrete in its vaulted roof. Spanning a range of 253 feet, the roof was record setting and engineered with a thickness of only five inches. A tunnel was built underneath the Rivergate to use as an expressway, but it was never put into use. The Rivergate was designed to be a bastion of tourism for the city’s burgeoning hospitality industry before its contested demolition in 1995.

---

quote:

---

The historic Phillis Wheatley Elementary School was completed in 1954. The structure was raised a full story off the ground, providing shade underneath the building for students and recreational activities. The building became an internationally recognized flagship of Regional Modernism; its design incorporated open corridors, cross ventilation and bilateral lighting in direct response to place and climate. The raised design also protected the building from extensive flood damage during Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

---

quote:

---

The St. Frances Cabrini Church was designed by Curtis & Davis and completed in 1963. The structure received a Merit Award from the Louisiana Architects Association and an honorable mention from the Church Architectural Guild of America. In addition to the high praise for the thin-shelled concrete roof and unique Regional Modernist design, the commissioned marble altar was a large, masterfully carved import from Italy. The steeple of the church extended down through the roof, splintering in curved pillars that encap­sulated the altar area. St. Frances Cabrini Church was demolished in 2007, following extensive flood damage incurred from Hurricane Katrina

---

quote:

---

George Washington Carver High School opened in 1958 and operated for 53 years prior to its demolition by the Recovery School Dis­trict in 2007

---

quote:

---

The Circa 1966 Olivetti Building was designed by New Orleans-based architect Charles Colbert. The structure, located at 1900 Canal St., was cre­ated to be a showroom for the Olivetti Typewriter Company. Colbert incor­porated structural elements that featured oil field pipes of different heights topped by Olivetti-Underwood typewriters. Colbert is credited as having cre­ated an “International Style jewel box.” Olivetti, an Italian-based company renowned for its corporate philosophy on design, exclusively hired critically acclaimed modern architects to design its showrooms and offices. Colbert’s plan is considered to be his most opulent and intricate. Adriano Olivetti, who ran the company during the Modernist era, espoused design as “…a question of substance, not just form…but a tangible reflection of a way of being and op­erating.” It was cleared as part of the wholesale demolition of Lower Mid-City for the University Medical Center between 2008 and 2010.

---

quote:

---

The International Longshoremen Association Building was constructed in 1959 by the Lawrence and Saunders architectural firm. At the time of the building’s construction, the Longshoremen of New Orleans were segregated by race, and the structure was home to the Black Longshoremen’s Union.

---