“For over 30 years the design and preservation communities have struggled with how to address the vast, uneven and sometimes profoundly troubling legacy of Post-War high rise construction.  These buildings – mostly clad in aluminum and glass curtainwall, these structures were erected globally both as expedient solutions to build quickly and as aspirational icons of modernity.  As this trend continues to grow – the community responsible for sustaining and enhancing these modern resources continue to provide innovative solutions to make them more comfortable, environmentally friendly, and better urban neighbors. 

With Preserving Modernism: Post-War Curtain Wall Renewal Uta Pottgiesser and Angle Ayon have produced, an astute, compelling and highly useful compendium of 20 of the best examples of these renovation projects.  Organized by design/technical approach into the categories of Rehabilitation, Overcladding and Replacement the illustrated include both work of architectural distinction such as James Stirling’s Leicester Engineering Building, and more typical (largely American) examples or large scale OEM – Ordinary, Everyday Modernism - such as the Goldman Sachs building in Lower Manhattan.  The book is rich with technical details and illustrations and is framed by an excellent Introduction that trace this history of the use of metal and glass in buildings back to the 18th century.  The development narrative is unflinching in dealing with the downsides of many of these buildings and serves as a reminder that real usefulness of this book will be to enlighten our industry as to the possibilities for these repair strategies to maximize the impact these changes can have on both the building and its setting.” — David Fixler, FAIA, FAPT, LEED | Harvard Graduate School of Design