- The building must be of architectural interest, local importance, or historically significant.
- The building must be extant so you or I can visit it in person.
- Each building’s name will begin with a particular letter of the alphabet, and I must select one (and only one) for each of the twenty-six letters. This is easier said than done for some letters, whereas for other characters there is a surfeit of worthy candidates (so I’ll be discriminating and explain my choice in those instances).
What is now The Shedd has been a downtown landmark since its initial construction in 1926 for the First Baptist Church of Eugene. Designed by Portland architect F. Manson White in a Georgian Revival (a.k.a. Neo-Georgian) style, the 1926 building is notable for its brick and cast stone detailing, the grand scale of its pedimented portico facing Broadway, its simple massing, and its large sanctuary. The 1960 addition, designed by the firm of Hayslip, Tuft, Hewlett & Jamison (also of Portland) in the manner of the International Style, features similarly plain massing but a different inventory of spaces (classrooms, recital hall, etc.).
Jaqua Concert Hall.
Warren Court
The
architectural contrast between the church's Georgian Revival style and the modernist
design of the 1960 addition posed a unique challenge. Whereas the original building
emphasizes the solidity of its masonry forms with punched windows and
traditional detailing, the 1960 building
subverts this approach by expressing its brick walls as independent planes and
including large areas of curtainwall glass. The original orange color of the
brick on the addition contrasted with the older building’s red brick. In many ways,
the 1960 building tried to appear very much like a neighbor rather than an
addition to the church.
The original appearance of the 1960 Addition's Broadway facade (photo by me).
Jaqua Concert Hall balcony.