Hilyard Robinson

Hilyard R. Robinson was a renowned African-American modernist architect known for his work in designing public housing.

Infobox Architect
name=Hilyard R. Robinson
nationality=American
birth_date=1899
birth_place=Washington, D.C., U.S.
death_date=June 29, 1986
death_place=Washington, D.C., U.S.
significant_buildings=Langston Terrace
Ralph Bunche House|

Life

A native Washingtonian, Robinson studied at the prestigious M Street High School, Philadelphia's School of Industrial Design, the University of Pennsylvania School of Architecture and the University of Berlin. He earned a B.A. and M.A. in architecture from Columbia University. In 1924 he joined the faculty of Howard University's School of Architecture. Interested in housing design that followed the social and aesthetic principles of modernism, Robinson traveled widely through Europe and conferred with Modernist architects including Marcel Breuer, Walter Gropius and Mies van der Rohe. Robinson once commented that " [T] he wrecked continent [of Europe] …serve [d] as a laboratory" for future projects that he would build on behalf of African America. He was also a member of the International Housing Association of Frankfurt, Germany and the Regional Planning Association of America.

Public HousingRobinson's significant buildings include the Langston Terrace Dwellings, built in 1936. Considered the first public housing project for African Americans, the project was placed on the National Register of Historic Buildings in 1987. Other housing projects he designed include Cedar Gardens in the Anacostia neighborhood of Washington, DC and other housing projects in Baltimore, MD, Lyons Homes, Sparrow's Point, MD, Hampton, Virginia and Ypsilanti, Michigan.

Although primarily known for his design of public housing projects, Robinson designed a number of residences for fellow faculty members at Howard University, including the Nobel Peace Prize winner Ralph Bunche and Rayford Logan. Both residences are located in the historic Brookland neighborhood of Washington, DC. The Ralph Bunche House completed in 1941 is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Other significant projects include the Tuskegee Army Air Field for the infamous Tuskegee Airmen. Robinson also built many educational buildings including Slowe Hall and Cramton Auditorium at Howard University in Washington, DC and buildings at Hampton Institute in Hampton, Virginia, Jarvis Christian College in Jarvis, Texas, and Livingston College in Salisbury, New Jersey.

Robinson is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha, the first inter-collegiate Greek-letter organization established for African Americans. [http://www.mulambda.org/page.php?parent_id=&page_id=15983]

Legacy

As a long-time professor of Architecture at Howard University, Robinson influenced many architects, including Ralph Vaughn and Paul Revere Williams.

Robinson was married to his wife Helen. He is buried at National Harmony Memorial Park, in Largo, Maryland.

The Helena and Hilyard Robinson Auditorium at Howard University is named after the architect and his wife.

Timeline of Works

All dates refer to the year work commenced
*1935 - Langston Terrace, Washington, DC
*1935 - Aberdeen Gardens, Hampton, VA
*1940 - Tuskegee Army Air Field, Tuskegee, AL
*1941 - Frederick Douglass Dwellings, Washington, DC
*1941 - Ralph Bunche House, Washington, DC
*1942 - Slowe Hall, Washington, DC
*1943 - Flanner House, Indianapolis, IN
*1956 - Ernest Everett Just Hall Howard University - Washington, DC
*1960 - Communications Building, Hampton Institute, Hampton, VA
*1961 - Cramton Auditorium, Washington, DC

ee also

* African-American_architects

References

"The Wrecked Continent of Europe as Laboratory for Hilyard R. Robinson: Toward a History of African American Modernism in the United States and Abroad" by Kelly Quinn

External links

* [http://www.culturaltourismdc.org/info-url3948/info-url_show.htm?doc_id=204981&attrib_id=7978 Cultural Tourism DC - Langston Terrace page]
* [http://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/wash/dc93.htm Ralph Bunch House - National Register of Historic Buildings]
* [http://www.greatbuildings.com/architects/Louis_I._Kahn.html Great Buildings Online - Louis I. Kahn]
* [http://www.flannerhouse.com/1946history.htm History of Flanner House in Indianapolis, IN]