Julian Clarence Levi architectural drawings and papers, 1895-1963
Collection context
- Creator:
- Levi, Julian, 1874-1971, Gottscho, Samuel H. (Samuel Herman), 1875-1971, Taylor, Alfredo S.G., and Beck, William G.
- Abstract:
- The Julian Clarence Levi collection documents the life and activities of a twentieth century American architect and philanthropist. The collection consists of watercolor study drawings developed while Levi was a student at Columbia University and the École des Beaux Arts; architectural drawings, photographs and records for architectural projects designed and developed in association with his partner Alfred S. Taylor from 1907 until 1962; professional papers from various committees and societies Levi was associated with; personal papers and photographs, including documentation on his family and office, his academic and professional recognitions, public events, travels and social gatherings as a former Columbia alumnus; and various prints and photographs of buildings and European artists collected by Levi throughout his life.
- Extent:
- 16 manuscript boxes, 14 print boxes, 29 rolls, 33 folders flat-file, and 1 box card storage-file box
- Language:
- English , French , Spanish; Castilian .
- Scope and content:
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The collection is a good resource for researchers interested in studying student drawings and architectural visualization at the end of the nineteenth century in the United States and at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. The collection also documents Georgian revival residential design in New York, New Jersey, Virginia, and the New England region. Due to the fact that Taylor & Levi designed many houses in Norfolk, Connecticut, the Levi collection is also a noteworthy source for the town's own history and development. The collection is also useful for researchers interested in New York's architectural, economic, and social transformations during the 1920s and 1930s. The collection also documents how organizations like the A.I.A. New York Chapter, the Architects Emergency Committee, and A.I.A.'s Foreign Relations Committee operated internally and engaged internationally in France and countries in Latin America.
The collection is also an important source of Samuel H. Gottscho photographs, as most of the residence project records consist of photography by Gottscho depicting interior and exterior spaces.
The collection is divided into five series.
- Biographical / historical:
-
Julian Clarence Levi was a New York-based architect, watercolorist and philanthropist. Levi was born in his family's home in New York City on December 8, 1874. Between 1895 and 1897 he studied at Columbia College and at the School of Architecture, before travelling to Paris to continue his education at the École des Beaux-Arts. At the École, he was recognized as a gifted student, winning numerous awards for his designs and drawings. Upon graduation, he returned to New York in 1905 and began an architectural practice working in association with architect's Helbert D.Hale and Francis H.Kimball. In 1907 he founded Taylor & Levi, an architectural partnership with Alfred S.G. Taylor that remained active until 1954, producing a broad range of building, mainly focusing their practice on luxury residential projects in the New York and New England region.
As a longtime member of the American Institute of Architecture (AIA) and other institutions, Levi became very active in various exhibitions, committees, and congresses around the world. In 1921 he organized various exhibits on American Architecture that traveled across Europe, and became part of a special program led by the French government for the reconstruction of schools in France. He was the founder and chairman of the Architects Emergency Committee in 1930, a venture that helped create jobs for American architects after the Great Depression. In 1937 he collaborated as technical advisor for the US Building Pavilion at the Paris "International Exposition of Arts and Technics in Modern Life", and worked on the design of the Romanian House at New York World's Fair in 1939. As a two times Chairman of Foreign Relations at the AIA, he traveled across the world - especially Latin America- attending many Pan-American congresses representing the United States architects. Also affiliated with the AIA New York Chapter, he contributed to the restoration of one of Chartres Cathedral's glass lancet, a task for which he became, in 1955, the only non-French person to receive the medal of "La Compainie des Architects en Chef des Monuments Historiques." For his philanthropism and public service work, Levi received many medals and recognitions.
Throughout his life, Levi also became a noted planner and theorist about the city, writing many articles for major magazines and newspapers such as the New York Times, the NY Herald and the Architectural Review. In his writings, he espoused a philosophy about architecture in the approaching age of the skyscraper, promoted regulations within the built environment, proposed the renewal of different parts of the city, suggested new transportation systems and speculated about the creation of new public spaces. He advocated for the use of color in building's facades and recommended the erection of "sub-air terminals" above the city piers for use by small aircraft between airports and towns. During his times at the Emergency Committee, he promoted a competition for the renewal of the Bryant Park, a project won by architect Simpson and whose design was then adopted by Robert Moses from the Park Commission for the park's final layout.
Levi died in 1971, the same year he received a Certificate of Distinction from Columbia University. Called a "Renaissance man" in his New York Times obituary, Levi was also known as an avid collector, treasuring priceless paintings from the Renaissance, French, English and Italian antiques, oriental rugs, and a myriad art objects; many of them held in museum and institutions such as the Cooper Hewitt and the Metropolitan Museum.
Access and use
- Restrictions:
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This collection is available for use by appointment in the Department of Drawings & Archives, Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, Columbia University. For further information, please email avery-drawings@library.columbia.edu.
- Location of this collection:
- Before you visit:
- Researchers are encouraged to request materials at least one month in advance. You will receive an email from the department within 2-3 business days confirming your request and currently available appointment times. Requests are limited to 8 boxes per day (or equivalent), with a maximum of 5 boxes for off-site materials, 5 folders of drawings, or 5 rolls or tube boxes.
- Contact:
- avery-drawings@columbia.edu