Practice and Teaching
Thompson's interest in modernism was balanced by appreciation of older architecture. In the late 1950s, he renovated Harvard Yard's historic dormitories by updating their interior arrangements without visible exterior effect. Shortly thereafter he persuaded Harvard to remodel Boylston Hall (built 1857) rather than demolish it.
During those years, Thompson taught architecture at Harvard University, and served as Department Chairman 1964-1968. His 1966 essay, “Visual Squalor and Social Disorder,” argued for an urban architecture that would encourage, rather than discourage, joy and social life. To this end, in 1967 he proposed reviving Boston's historic markets with food stalls, cafes, restaurants, and pushcarts.
Thompson separated from the Collaborative in late 1966, and started his own firm, Benjamin Thompson and Associates (BTA) in 1967. His five-story, all-glass showcase for Design Research opened in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1968.
He is probably best known for a series of collaborations with the developer James W. Rouse, including the Faneuil Hall Marketplace (1976), Harborplace (1980), South Street Seaport (1985), Bayside Marketplace in Miami (1987), and Jacksonville Landing in Jacksonville, Florida (1987).
Read more about this topic: Benjamin C. Thompson
Famous quotes containing the words practice and, practice and/or teaching:
“Nonwhite and working-class women, if they are ever to identify with the organized women’s movement, must see their own diverse experiences reflected in the practice and policy statements of these predominantly white middle-class groups.”
—Kimberly Crenshaw (b. 1959)
“Like the British Constitution, she owes her success in practice to her inconsistencies in principle.”
—Thomas Hardy (1840–1928)
“May my teaching drop like the rain, my speech condense like the dew; like gentle rain on grass, like showers on new growth.”
—Bible: Hebrew, Deuteronomy 32:2.