“A multi-generational acknowledgment of our cities.”
That’s how Christine Burdick, president/CEO of the Tampa Downtown Partnership (TDP), describes Tampa Bay Design Week. Other cities around the country — Chicago, New York and Detroit among them — stage Design Weeks on an annual basis, exposing the public to the benefits of enlightened urban design. Tampa’s first such celebration “helps build a design heritage here,” says Burdick. “It raises the bar.”
Organized by the Tampa Bay Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), Design Week promises a rich stew of creativity — a panoply of activities, films, bike tours, lectures and more. Participants include the playful provocateurs of The Urban Conga, the community-minded visionaries of Urban Charrette and TDP, and a film crew sent by the National AIA. Most events are free and all are open to the public. In fact, public involvement is the lynchpin.
“We want to make Design Week accessible to everyone,” says Robin Nigh, manager of art programs for the City of Tampa.
All the action for the first Design Week takes place in downtown Tampa, but a differnt Tampa Bay location will be used next year, according to David Hugglestone, president of the AIA Tampa chapter. “We are creating a synergy of like-minded urbanites and professionals who can act as catalysts to spur change in our area,” he commented.
Here’s the whirlwind line-up. For reservations and more detailed info, go to tampabaydesignweek.com.
Thurs. Nov. 6: Utopia Tampa: Visions for the Future of Downtown Tampa is a multi-media display on the veranda of the Tampa Museum of Art on Thursday night. While checking out this exhibition, visitors can enjoy music from Rock the Park, a free concert in one of our area’s most spectacular public venues, graced with the backdrop of the University of Tampa’s minarets. (6:30-9:30 p.m., Curtis Hixon Park. Free.)
Always splendid, the Tampa Theatre is the site of the architecture community’s premier annual event — Celebrate Design! Inspired by the historic movie palace, attendees are challenged to dress as their favorite star or character. Drinks, food, design award entries and displays will amuse the crowd until everyone moves into the Mediterranean-fantasy auditorium for the awards. (Reception, 6:30 p.m.; Awards, 8 p.m. Tampa Theatre, 711 N. Franklin St. $55, AIA members; $75, non-members.)
Fri. Nov. 7: Do the Local Motion Tours. A lunchtime walking tour explores downtown Tampa’s architectural assets. Led by local architect Angela Hendershot, the walk surveys the best of downtown structures. (Noon-1, beginning at Lykes Gaslight Square Park, corner of Kennedy and Tampa. Free.)
Both bicyclists and walkers are invited to take boutique hotel tours on Friday night. Walkers stop at Aloft, Le Méridien, The Floridan, and The Barrymore (aka Howard Johnson), which is using art as the core of its new identity (5-7 p.m., begins at Lykes Gaslight, $14). Cyclists will take in Aloft, Le Méridien and the Epicurean, which vary dramatically in their styles (5:45-9:45 p.m., begins at Irish 31, 1611 W. Swann Ave.). The architects for all of these hotels will be on hand to discuss their design strategies, with food and drink to ease the evening’s flow.
Massey Park at 1002 N. Franklin Steet near Fly is the setting for Downtown Design Double Feature, a free screening of two amazing documentary films about the power of design in its broadest sense. Design Is One (6:20 p.m.) shines a light on the clever, elegant work of the Italian-born Vignellis. Among the world’s most influential designers, they have created interiors, products, corporate identities and graphics, including the Helvetica typeface.
Who gets to design cities and how could we do better? Urbanized (8 p.m.) looks at the issues and strategies behind urban design and features some of the world’s foremost architects, planners, and thinkers.
Sat. Nov. 8: The weather should be perfect for exploring the Pop-Up Block Party taking place on Franklin Street between Cass and Tyler. Every 15 feet, visitors will have a new experience, as six design teams transform blighted, underutilized space into a lively, active streetscape. Using recycled materials, building materials and projections, this 3-D experience will expand our sense of possibilities for the urban core. A family-friendly event, the block party includes music, tours, and a scavenger hunt. (11 a.m.-5 p.m. Free.)
On Saturday evening we are back to the Kress Building for The Sign Painters Movie, a documentary about the dedicated practitioners, their time-honored methods, and their appreciation for quality and craftsmanship. An admittedly overlooked profession, these artists truly color in our cities’ imagery. Local painters will speak after the screening. (7-10 p.m. Free.)
Mon. Nov. 9: Five years ago, a savvy group of smart people from out of town — the Sustainable Design Assessment Team, or SDAT — came here to look around, talk to the locals and draft a blueprint for Tampa’s future. Monday night, five years after their original report was completed, Gallery AIA is celebrating the anniversary with SDAT: Five Years Realized. Guests include Joel Mills, director of AIA Communities by Design, SDAT Team Leader Wayne Feiden, FAICP, and the Urban Charrette. We’ll look back and see what we’ve accomplished, and look ahead to our next goals. (5:30-7:30 p.m., Gallery AIA, 200 N. Tampa St., Ste. 100. Free.)
Kudos to the local creative class for cooking up such stimulating fare. Let’s hope it becomes a tradition.
This article appears in Nov 6-12, 2014.
