March 1, 2009, New York, NY— On April 21, the Lower East Side Tenement Museum will host a fundraiser honoring three individuals whose work has had a remarkable impact on the organization.
The gala, which will be held at Capitale, the historic Bowery Savings Bank building, will honor Gary Handel, founding partner of Handel Architects; Bradford Perkins, founding partner of architecture firm Perkins Eastman; and Enrique Norten, founding principal of architecture and design firm TEN Arquitectos.
Mr. Handel has been a committed member of the Tenement Museum’s board of directors since 2007, offering ideas and support during the planning process for the Visitor Center.
Perkins Eastman has a long history with the Tenement Museum’s properties, having worked with the Museum to stabilize and renovate the historic 1863 tenement building at 97 Orchard Street, our landmarked property. The firm is also designing the Museum’s new Visitor Center, to be opened at 103 Orchard Street in 2010.
Mr. Norten’s firm has shown a vibrant interest in supporting the non-profit cultural arts community through their architectural work. They are currently designing the Guggenheim Guadalajara Museum in Mexico and the Fayetteville Museum of Art in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and past projects include the National School of Theater and the Chopo Museum, both located in Mexico City.
“We could not have opened our landmarked tenement without this team of dedicated architects and restorers, whose foresight and innovative thinking have helped us becomes leaders in the field of historic preservation. Their dedication to the Museum is evident, and we recognize them for all they have accomplished, not only here, but throughout our city,” commented Leslie Milton, director of major gifts for the Lower East Side tenement Museum.
The event will raise funds to support the Tenement Museum’s educational programs, which serve 150,000 visitors every year. In the next two years the Museum plans to open two new exhibits: a recreation of the privy yard in the rear of the tenement, and John Schneider’s Lager Beer Saloon, a restoration of the German pub that operated in the basement of 97 Orchard Street between 1864 and 1886. The Museum also plans to continue construction on 103 Orchard Street, where an expanded Visitor Center and classroom space will accommodate an estimated 25,000 more visitors in its first year, and up to 100,000 per year in the decades to come.
About our Honorees
Gary Handel founded Handel Architects in 1994 and has grown the practice to over 100 architects, interior designers, and LEED-accredited professionals in New York and San Francisco. The firm’s work has received numerous awards from organizations including the American Institute of Architects, the Boston Society of Architects, and the Urban Land Institute. Handel Architects is the Design Architect for the National September 11th Memorial at the World Trade Center, and together with Michael Arad, the memorial’s designer, Mr. Handel has been assisting in coordinating the work of the numerous parties now involved in the rebuilding of Lower Manhattan. He is also a founding board member of Friends of the High Line, where he has been integral in facilitating the transformation of this neglected Chelsea landmark.
Brad Perkins is the founding partner of Perkins Eastman, an architecture and urban design firm, and a former managing partner at Perkins + Will. He has served as a faculty member of the College of Architecture at the City College of New York, is currently a member of the faculty at the University of Hawaii, and has published four books on architecture and design. Mr. Perkins received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the New York Society of Architects and the Platinum Circle Award from the Hospitality Design Association.
Enrique Norten founded architecture firm TEN Arquitectos in Mexico City in 1984, with New York offices opening in 2001. He currently holds the Miller Chair at the University of Pennsylvania and has also taught at Harvard, Yale, and the University of Michigan. Mr. Norten is the recipient of numerous design awards, including the 2007 Legacy Award from the Smithsonian Institution and the 2005 Leonardo da Vinci World Award of Arts from the World Cultural Council.
About the Lower East Side Tenement Museum
The heart of the Lower East Side Tenement Museum is its landmark tenement building, home to nearly 7,000 immigrants from more than 20 nations between 1863 and 1935. Anchored in a neighborhood that has long been home to thousands of poor and working class people, the Tenement Museum is dedicated to using the history of its site as a tool for addressing issues that are still pressing today, including immigration, urban housing and public welfare. The organization celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2008 and is a designated historic site of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, an affiliated area of the National Park Service and National Parks of New York Harbor, and an accredited institution of the American Association of Museums. The Museum was honored with the 2008 Preserve America Presidential Award and the 2008 National Medal for Museum and Library Science.
Contact: Lauren Hlavenka, Handel Architects, 212 595 4112 x352
