memMOD

Motor Coach Tour

of Modern Memphis Architecture

Docents: Brandon Cunning &

Joey Hagan, AIA

October 29, 2022 | 10am-4pm

Boarding at: Crosstown Concourse

5 LU/HSW

MEMBERS & PUBLIC WELCOME

$50/guest OR $90/2 guests

$30/half day

Includes entry to win Eames Chair from APG.

Refreshments provided by Perkins-Everitt. We will break for lunch at Crosstown Concourse (cost not included in tour).

20% AIA & Corporate Partner

member discount (code emailed)

Note: The tour previously scheduled for October 8 was cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances.

Download the flyer.

“The greenest building...

 ...is one that’s already built.” 

- Carl Elefante, FAIA, 2018 AIA President

Memphis’ mid-century modern buildings are disappearing.

Join us as we learn about the jewels that remain and how we can work to preserve them for a sustainable future. Featuring a foreword by 2018 AIA President, Carl Elefante, FAIA, guests will learn about the inventive ground-breaking design that transformed our city, breathing life into a post-World War II landscape. Brandon Cunning with Meteor Tours will infuse our day with Memphis' rich musical history and is bringing along his guitar for a couple of impromptu music breaks.

See the itinerary below of step-off tours (with additional commentary on countless other buildings - infused with music history - as we drive):

MORNING TOUR (10am-12:30pm)

• Overton Park Shell Backstage Experience Center
  
• Rust Hall (formerly Memphis College of Art)
• First Unitarian Church / Church of the River

LUNCH BREAK (12:30-1:30, Crosstown Concourse)

AFTERNOON TOUR (1:30-4pm)

• Crosstown Concourse (after-lunch tour; morning guests are welcome)
• Idlewild Presbyterian Church (pending)
• Hunter House by Fay Jones (pictured above; see more at AirBNB)

inspired by the 

Surveys of Modern Memphis Architecture 

authored by Keith S. Kays, AIA

Lee H. Askew III, FAIA

Martin E. Gorman, Jr., AIA

& Louis R. Pounders, FAIA

featuring newly-historic legacies by iconic Memphis architects:

Alfred Lewis Aydelott, FAIA

Francis P. Gassner, FAIA

Roy P. Harrover, FAIA

E. Fay Jones

Walk C. Jones, Jr., AIA

Francis Mah, AIA

John Millard, Jr.

Mel O’Brien, AIA

Preservation, at its core, is about reducing the amount of waste that we produce by avoiding the demolition of existing buildings. Additionally, architects and property owners who endeavor to restore these jewels need additional education about environmentally kind interventions that work to mitigate unhealthy materials and systems originally used during construction. Tours will first raise awareness about the building inventory in Memphis that can still be saved and then further emphasize sustainable alternatives to help elevate the properties to current environmental standards.

To learn more about sustainable restoration practices:

• Your Sustainable Mid-century Remodel: Why and How, MidMod West
• Transformed midcentury modern home focuses on sustainability, InHabitat
• Should We Save Mid-Century Modern Icons That Hurt The Environment, Fast Company