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456:(AIA) and became its president in 1949. During his two-year presidency he was instrumental in establishing the AIA's College of Fellows which gained approval in 1952. In 1957, on the occasion of the AIA's 100th anniversary, the AIA recognized Walker's extraordinary service to the profession by creating a special award for him, the
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May I say, finally, that I have no illusions of grandeur; quite to the contrary, I am very humble in my knowledge that through forty years of my life my life has been an open book of service to my fellow architects and for the public good. When I sever my connections with the A.I.A. I do so with my
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In 1960, Walker resigned from the AIA after a conflict over professional ethics. The AIA accused a member of Walker's firm of acting in an "unprofessional manner" by taking a contract that already belonged to another firm. Walker was devastated by the controversy and self-published a booklet
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406:'s theoretical drawings exhibited in 1922, Walker created a massive asymmetrical tower set back from its base. The design led the way for a generation of skyscrapers built using the set-back principle. It has also been described as the first
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The architect of the future will have to be a psychologist, because it is as important for the architect to design a building for man to be mentally comfortable in as it is for him to design one in which he will be physically
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skyscraper because of its inventive ornament surrounding doorways and windows and elevator foyers. As a result of the success of the design, Walker made partner in the firm and its name was changed to
296:. After two years had moved up to a design position, paying nine dollars a week. He left during his final semester before graduating, and, in 1913, married Stella Forbes, of Providence. He was a
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292:. The three-year apprenticeship paid one dollar a week for the first year, two a week for the second year and three a week for the third. While working there Walker attended classes at the
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After the completion of the
Barclay-Vesey Building, Walker designed several other buildings using its combination of asymmetrical setbacks and towers with Art Deco ornament, including the
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in 1921, Walker became a lead designer and took McKenzie, Voorhees and Gmelin in a new direction. The
Barclay-Vesey Building is credited as being the first skyscraper to use the New York
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defending his reputation—and including much of the correspondence surrounding the incident – which he sent to all members of the
College of Fellows. He ended the essay with:
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Libraries. They contain correspondence, articles, manuscript essays, speeches, notes and notebooks as well as photographs, project files, sketches, clippings, and scrapbooks.
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own self respect, as a matter of pride and I am sure within your knowledge of my character. I completely scorn the falsifying, the sanctimonious, the cheap and the shoddy.
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Walker retired from
Voorhees, Walker, Foley, Smith & Smith in 1959 but remained active within the profession. Prior to his death, however, he destroyed his AIA award.
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by a working-class family. His father was a construction worker, and he received his love of the arts from his mother, who exposed him to theatre, where he saw
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New York
Telephone Building, 425 West 50th Street, (1930) in 2013 converted to residential condominiums under the name "Stella Tower," named for Walker's wife.
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Skyscraper design was to be the focus of Walker's career, and he was to be influential in determining what they would should look like. He said of it:
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In his first few years with the firm, Walker used his Beaux-Arts training to provide support for the firm's ongoing commissions for projects like the
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434:(1928–31), and several other telephone buildings throughout New York City and the state, including those in Syracuse and Rochester as well as the
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reporting the award dubbed Walker the "Architect of the
Century." To commemorate the event, Walker also wrote and published an autobiography.
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designs have been called "bold, spectacularly dynamic", "radical", "distinctive", "theatrical ... very dramatic", "syncopated and jazzy".
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Verizon
Building (c. 1930s), 212 West 18th Street, in 2012 converted to residential condominiums under the name "Walker Tower."
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In 1919, at age 30, after his return from Europe for his military service, Walker was offered a junior design position with
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as a second lieutenant in the
Camouflage Section, from 1917 to 1918, as did many other artists, sculptors and architects.
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228:(1928–31), but was also involved in numerous other Art Deco telecommunications buildings in the New York City area.
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The skyscraper is the only means of living in this age of machine. It is an expression and reflection of the age.
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AT&T Pavilion, General
Electric Pavilion, Borden Pavilion, Petroleum Pavilion, New York World's Fair (1939)
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neighborhood of
Manhattan, now being redeveloped for residential use under the name "Walker Tower"
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670:"Questionnaire for Architects' Roster and/or Register of Architects Qualified for Federal Works"
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During the 1930s as Art Deco waned, Walker was deeply involved with the planning of the 1933
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Walker killed himself in January 1973, using a silver bullet that he had forged himself.
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1037:"Year 86 – 1946: The Charles Hayden Memorial Library | 150 Years in the Stacks"
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196:(November 28, 1889 – January 17, 1973) was an American architect, president of the
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Walker belonged to several other organizations. He was appointed by President
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in 1926. Befitting his success, Walker moved to the suburbs of New York, to
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and partner of the firm McKenzie, Voorhees, Gmelin and its successor firms
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950:"Ralph T. Walker Papers An inventory of his papers at Syracuse University"
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Charles Hayden Memorial Library, MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts (1946–1951)
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In 1907, at the age of 18, Walker was apprenticed to Providence architect
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Staff. (May 16, 1957) "Architect of the Century: Ralph Thomas Walker"
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Staff. (May 16, 1957) "Architect of the Century: Ralph Thomas Walker"
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Civic Art: A Centennial History of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts
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New York 1930: Architecture and Urbanism Between the Two World Wars
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Washington, D.C.: U.S. Commission of Fine Arts. Appendix B, p.556.
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New York 1930: Architecture and Urbanism Between the Two World Wars
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Walker was called "The only other honest architect in America" by
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Stern, Robert A. M.; Gilmartin, Patrick; Mellins, Thomas (1987).
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Ralph Walker; The American Institute of Architects - 1921 - 1961,
910:"Ralph T. Walker Is Dead at 83; Hailed as 'Architect of Century'"
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Stern, Robert A. M.; Gilmartin, Patrick; Mellins, Thomas (1987).
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are preserved at the Special Collections Research Center of the
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359:. Walker was to remain there for the remainder of his career.
1058:. New York City, New York, USA: Rizzoli International.
610:(1929–1930), now converted to the BellTel Lofts (2006)
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New York Telephone Company Long Island Headquarters,
521:, serving from 1959 to 1963; he was a trustee of the
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Citizen's Housing & Planning Council of New York
858:"Ralph Walker: America's Most Underrated Architect"
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The History and Directory of the College of Fellows
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and later partially converted to residential condos
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1145:Presidents of the American Institute of Architects
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561:(all in New York City unless otherwise indicated)
565:The New York Telephone Company Building, aka the
794:. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2000.
426:Headquarters (1929–30) on West 14th Street, the
220:). Walker is best known for his designs for the
1140:Fellows of the American Institute of Architects
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701:Cohen, Julie (writer & producer) (2014).
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1130:Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni
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277:and other light entertainment. He attended
214:Voorhees, Walker, Smith, Smith & Haines
505:Walker was reinstated to the AIA in 1965.
458:AIA Centennial Medal of Honor (Gold Medal)
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31:
551:National Association of Housing Officials
533:. In addition, he was a president of the
261:Walker was born on November 28, 1889, in
185:Salvation Army Centennial Memorial Temple
1125:Architects from Providence, Rhode Island
1080:"Ralph Walker: Architect of the Century"
1007:. New York: Rizzoli. pp. 567, 571.
814:American Institute of Architects (2007)
370:And of the designer of these buildings:
161:entrance to the Verizon Building in the
142:
745:. New York: Rizzoli. pp. 566–567.
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402:as a design asset. Inspired in part by
303:Walker practiced in various offices in
1115:Architects from Waterbury, Connecticut
1056:Ralph Walker: Architect of the Century
908:Fowle, Farnsworth (January 18, 1973).
603:, 120–130 West 14th Street (1929–1930)
547:American Society of Planning Officials
541:in New York City, and a member of the
591:New Jersey Bell Headquarters Building
436:New Jersey Bell Headquarters Building
294:Massachusetts Institute of Technology
108:Massachusetts Institute of Technology
7:
781:. New York: Oxford University Press.
235:, and "Architect of the Century" by
1135:Military personnel from Connecticut
882:Sheftell, Jason (January 3, 2013).
779:Skyscraper Style: Art Deco New York
703:Treasures of New York: Ralph Walker
452:Walker was an active member of the
210:Voorhees, Walker, Smith & Smith
206:Voorhees, Walker, Foley & Smith
1054:Holliday, Kathryn E., ed. (2012).
137:Stella Forbes and Christine Foulds
25:
445:Exposition in Chicago and in the
1160:Recipients of the AIA Gold Medal
1095:20th-century American architects
846:. New York: Henahan House, 1957.
535:Architectural League of New York
454:American Institute of Architects
247:American Institute of Architects
198:American Institute of Architects
985:Luebke, Thomas E. (ed.) (2013)
856:Drumm, Perrin (April 6, 2012).
626:AT&T Long Distance Building
543:American Institute of Planners
1:
1120:Architects from New York City
628:, 32 Sixth Avenue (1930–1932)
394:(1922–1926), commissioned by
383:, completed in 1924, and the
345:McKenzie, Voorhees and Gmelin
1150:Classical High School alumni
622:, Rochester, New York (1930)
576:Western Union Building, now
519:U.S. Commission of Fine Arts
413:Voorhees, Gmelin, and Walker
333:American Expeditionary Force
329:U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
718:Brooklyn Municipal Building
601:Salvation Army Headquarters
583:Irving Trust Building, now
381:Brooklyn Municipal Building
202:Voorhees, Gmelin and Walker
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569:(1922–26); damaged in the
539:Municipal American Society
447:1939 New York World's Fair
128:McKenzie, Voorhees, Gmelin
243:Centennial Medal of Honor
41:
675:August 13, 2011, at the
525:, Vice President of the
390:With his design for the
385:Brooklyn Edison Building
327:, Walker served in the
283:Providence, Rhode Island
844:Ralph Walker: Architect
775:Bletter, Rosemarie Haag
298:Rotch Traveling Scholar
818:Washington, D.C.: AIA.
567:Barclay–Vesey Building
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477:Ralph T. Walker Papers
400:1916 Zoning Resolution
392:Barclay–Vesey Building
377:
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263:Waterbury, Connecticut
222:Barclay–Vesey Building
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149:Barclay–Vesey Building
69:Waterbury, Connecticut
773:Robinson, Cervin and
620:Times Square Building
608:101 Willoughby Street
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387:, completed in 1923.
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279:Classical High School
257:Early life and career
241:when he received the
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723:May 5, 2011, at the
679:(September 26, 1946)
571:September 11 attacks
531:New Castle, New York
523:Lavanburg Foundation
515:Dwight D. Eisenhower
355:to the one begun by
265:, and was raised in
1110:Art Deco architects
888:New York Daily News
537:, president of the
509:Other organizations
485:Syracuse University
443:Century of Progress
357:Cyrus L. W. Eidlitz
191:Ralph Thomas Walker
88:Chappaqua, New York
55:Ralph Thomas Walker
36:Ralph Thomas Walker
936:The New York Times
830:The New York Times
463:The New York Times
460:. The headline of
417:Westchester County
396:New York Telephone
238:The New York Times
233:Frank Lloyd Wright
188:
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167:
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29:American architect
1014:978-0-8478-3096-1
792:Skyscraper Rivals
790:Daniel Abramson,
752:978-0-8478-3096-1
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557:Selected designs
319:Military service
290:Howard K. Hilton
175:60 Hudson Street
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173:Entrance to
82:(1973-01-17)
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18:Walker Tower
1105:1973 deaths
1100:1889 births
959:November 4,
804:AIA website
587:(1928–1931)
580:(1928–1930)
491:Controversy
325:World War I
267:Connecticut
159:17th Street
96:Nationality
1089:Categories
893:January 5,
867:January 5,
727:on NYC.gov
639:References
549:, and the
114:Occupation
61:1889-11-28
919:April 30,
300:in 1916.
275:operettas
245:from the
134:Spouse(s)
118:Architect
1023:13860977
761:13860977
721:Archived
673:Archived
481:Nachlass
430:Bank at
408:Art Deco
309:Montreal
251:Art Deco
124:Employer
99:American
1048:Sources
777:(1977)
517:to the
331:of the
249:. His
163:Chelsea
1062:
1021:
1011:
862:Core77
759:
749:
597:(1929)
595:Newark
545:, the
479:, his
339:Career
311:, and
305:Boston
212:; and
90:, U.S.
71:, U.S.
939:p.26.
833:p.26.
644:Notes
1060:ISBN
1019:OCLC
1009:ISBN
961:2020
921:2019
895:2013
869:2013
757:OCLC
747:ISBN
707:WLIW
475:The
349:firm
269:and
194:FAIA
147:The
77:Died
51:Born
323:In
281:in
218:HLW
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