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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 4, 2008

GAINESVILLE, Fla. —Mid-century architecture and design will be the focus at the Harn Museum of Art this week, when two of Florida’s most celebrated and influential architects are scheduled to speak. Allan Shulman and Alfred Browning Parker will lecture about their professional experience and current Harn exhibition, Promises of Paradise: Staging Mid-Century Miami.

Shulman, a renowned Miami architect, will speak during Museum Nights on Nov. 6 at 6:30 p.m. He will discuss his curatorial role in Promises of Paradise and what it meant to be modern in Miami post World War II. Shulman has 20 years of experience in the fields of architecture, urban design and historic preservation. He holds a bachelor’s degree in architecture from Cornell University and a master’s degree in architecture from the University of Miami. Shulman is also a research assistant professor at the University of Miami School of Architecture. As principal of Shulman + Associates, he has focused primarily on hotel planning and design; new single- and multi-family housing projects, historic preservation and research consulting; and urban design work. The firm’s award-winning projects merge modern design with a strongly contextual approach, finding inspiration in local surroundings and often incorporating and adapting historic buildings.

Shulman is also an author, editor and curator, most recently editing an anthology titled “Miami Modern Metropolis: Paradox and Paradise in Mid-Century Architecture,” being published in late 2008 by Balcony Press. Once released, the book will be available for purchase in the Harn Museum of Art store.

Internationally renowned modernist architect Alfred Browning Parker will give the story behind the art when he presents a gallery talk on Nov. 9 at 3 p.m. A reception in the Galleria will follow.

During Parker’s 75-year career, he has designed and built more than 6,400 projects, many of which are located in south Florida. Parker received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida School of Architecture in 1938. His work has been featured in numerous architectural magazines at both the local and national level, and four of the houses he has designed were chosen as National House of the Year by House Beautiful magazine. Parker’s unique style of modernism embedded into the local vernacular, creates unique dwellings that embrace their local environment, blurring the boundaries between building and landscape. Some of Parker’s most influential work is featured in Promises of Paradise.

Promises of Paradise: Staging Mid-Century Miami, a groundbreaking exhibition devoted to the architects, designers and urban planners of mid-20th-century Miami, showcases the architectural designs, furniture, textiles and decorative arts of some of South Florida’s most talented and innovative designers, such as Alfred Browning Parker, Morris Lapidus, George Farkas, Frederick Rank, Ken Treister and Kay Pancoast. The works included illustrate the mid-century experience and the collective vision of artists who shaped the indoor-outdoor lifestyle for which Florida is known today. The exhibition is organized by the Bass Museum of Art, Miami Beach, and is made possible by the National Endowment for the Humanities. The exhibition is sponsored locally by ERA Trend Realty. The exhibition is on view through Jan. 25, 2009.

Both events are co-sponsored by the Historic Preservation Program. Additional support for the Shulman lecture is provided by the UF School of Architecture and University of Florida Student Government.Admission to the Harn Museum of Art is free.

For more information, call 352-392-9826 or visit www.harn.ufl.edu.

Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art
The Harn Museum of Art at SW 34th St. and Hull Rd. is one of the largest university art museums in the country with nearly 7,000 works in its collection focusing on African, Asian, modern and contemporary art and photography. The museum enhances the activities of the University of Florida and serves a culturally diverse audience through educational programming. Admission is free. Museum hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. Parking is free on weekends. The Camellia Court Café is open seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The museum and café are open until 9 p.m. Thursdays for Museum Nights during the UF Academic calendar due to the generous support of UF Student Government. For more information call 352-392-9826 or visit www.harn.ufl.edu.

Media contacts:
Tami Wroath, Director of Marketing and Public Relations
352.392.9826 x116
twroath@harn.ufl.edu