Architecture Sarasota’s 10th MOD Weekend celebrates Victor Lundy and a decade of tours

Jay Handelman, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
Updated ·6 min read
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Between the Sarasota Art Museum and a Taco Bell on U.S. 41 stands a non-descript round building that for many years was home to a Vision Works store.

It looks nothing like what Sarasota School of Architecture legend Victor Lundy designed in 1959 for the Galloway’s Furniture store, with its glass windows showcasing the products sold inside.

For the first time in decades, architecture lovers will get a behind-the-scenes look inside the building and efforts to study what remains of the original during the annual Sarasota MOD Weekend.

Victor Lundy created a round showroom for Galloway's Furniture in 1959. Much of the distinctive nature of the building was later covered up in a renovation that turned the building into a Visionworks optical store.
Victor Lundy created a round showroom for Galloway's Furniture in 1959. Much of the distinctive nature of the building was later covered up in a renovation that turned the building into a Visionworks optical store.

Architecture Sarasota marks the 10th anniversary of the popular weekend of trolley, walking and kayak tours of significant and iconic buildings, panel discussions, parties and more while also celebrating the 100th birthday of Lundy, one of the original members of the Sarasota School.

It’s the second time that Lundy has been recognized during MOD weekend.

“He turned 100 on Feb. 1 and he’s the only original Sarasota School member who is really still with us,” said Morris “Marty” Hylton, the organization’s president. “This time we’re looking at his work primarily after Sarasota, but we’re definitely talking about his early projects here and the antecedents that were later manifested in other buildings."

There are numerous Lundy buildings still standing in Sarasota, including the Blue Pagoda, which was designed in 1956 for the Sarasota Chamber of Commerce; Alta Vista Elementary School, the Warm Mineral Springs Hotel and St. Paul Lutheran Church, which marked his final Sarasota building.

Architect Victor Lundy, one of the leaders of the Sarasota School of Architecture. He designed many buildings in the Sarasota area before expanding his work across the country.
Architect Victor Lundy, one of the leaders of the Sarasota School of Architecture. He designed many buildings in the Sarasota area before expanding his work across the country.

Discussing Lundy and Sculptural Modernism

The church also will be the site of the “Victor Lundy and Sculptural Modernism Symposium,” at 8:30 a.m. Nov. 4. Christopher Wilson, scholar in residence at Architecture Sarasota, will moderate a panel that includes Christopher Domin, associate professor of architecture at University of Arizona, Susanneh Bieber, assistant professor of architecture at Texas A&M University and Eeva Liisa Pelkonen, professor of architecture and assistant dean at Yale University.

The program includes a screening of the General Services Administration film “Victor Lundy: Sculptor of Space.”

An interior view of the Blue Pagoda, designed by Victor Lundy. It opened in 1956 as the home for the Sarasota Chamber of Commerce near the Sarasota Municipal Auditorium.
An interior view of the Blue Pagoda, designed by Victor Lundy. It opened in 1956 as the home for the Sarasota Chamber of Commerce near the Sarasota Municipal Auditorium.

Though Lundy may have been overshadowed for attention and prominence by fellow Sarasota School architect Paul Rudolph, who became dean of the Yale School of Architecture, he created buildings across the country, including many for the federal government.

“One of the experts will be talking about his experimentation with inflatable architecture which was previewed for the first time at the 1964 World’s Fair in Flushing Meadows,” Hylton said. "Another scholar will be talking about that general strand of modernists who were taking a very sculptural approach to their work. We’re hoping to put Lundy’s work in a larger context from the 1960s into the 1980s.”

In 1958, Victor lundy was hired to create a campus of three buildings for St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Sarasota. The Fellowship Hall opened in 1969 and won an award of merit.
In 1958, Victor lundy was hired to create a campus of three buildings for St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Sarasota. The Fellowship Hall opened in 1969 and won an award of merit.

Uncovering Galloway’s Furniture store

It also ties into the new exhibition “Victor Lundy: Infinite Span, Architecture Beyond Sarasota,” that opens with the MOD weekend and continues through March 1 at the organization’s home in the McCulloch Pavilion, 265 S. Orange Ave., Sarasota.

Galloway’s Furniture will be a key stop on the four trolley tours offered at this year’s event. The building is now owned by the Sarasota Art Museum of Ringling College, which used it for offices before the museum opened. Hylton said there has been very early, preliminary talk about possibly restoring the building. “It’s more about dreaming,” he said. “The first step would be to do a proper assessment and understand what’s there. The next step would be a feasibility study about appropriate uses for the building if it’s restore.”

Hylton said he has worked with a professor from Howard University who uses digital technologies to see behind the walls of buildings to determine how much of the original structure is still in place. “We have a proposal to digitally document the former Galloway’s and strip away all the changes made in the 1980s as a base point to discover what remains,” he said.

The opening night party at the Sarasota Garden Club at The Bay, will mark 10 years of MOD. Hylton joined the organization last year, but he was involved in a public workshop in 2013 that was part of the impetus that led to the MOD Weekend that began in 2014. “We’re celebrating where we’ve come from and where we’re going.”

An interior view of the Bee Ridge Presbyterian Church in Sarasota.
An interior view of the Bee Ridge Presbyterian Church in Sarasota.

Moderns That Matter

The organization also is seeking public input for its Moderns That Matter program. Since April, Architecture Sarasota has surveyed 500 properties. “One of the first rules is you can’t preserve what you don’t know is there,” he said.

The organization has updated lists first put together in 1997 and 2019, including all the known buildings associated with the Sarasota School. “The public part of this campaign is asking anyone who lives here or cares about Sarasota to nominate their favorite building,” he said.

The deadline is Jan. 31 at architecturesarasota.org/moderns-that-matter. Next March, a list of the top 100 buildings will be released from hundreds of nominations.

“Sarasota is undergoing a remarkable period of growth and change. I’m not sure we’ve had this concentration of change since the Sarasota School came into existence in the 1940s to the 1960s. With all that change, we’re asking people, 'Let’s take a pause, look at where have we been, which are the spaces we want to make sure remaining and where we’re going,'” he said.

Arts Newsletter: Sign up to receive the latest news on the Sarasota area arts scene every Monday

Lundy in Sarasota: Architect Victor Lundy turns 100. See seven of his landmark Sarasota buildings

Meet Morris ‘Marty’ Hylton: Architecture Sarasota’s new leader is a mid-century Modern champion and preservationist

Mold has been identified in the 1960s-era Pei dorms at New College.
Mold has been identified in the 1960s-era Pei dorms at New College.

New College Challenge

Two weeks after MOD Weekend, Architecture Sarasota will host a program revealing the designs from participants in the Reimagining Pei competition. Two years ago, six schools and six different design studios began exploring what the New College of Florida campus would look like ahead of its 100th anniversary in 2060. “One of the real questions for everyone is what’s going to happen to the I.M. Pei dorms. They’re no longer occupying them and they’re not in the best conditions,” Hylton said. The college is putting some students up in nearby hotels because of mold and other issues in the dorms.

After the college put aside $1 million to demolish the dorms, Architecture Sarasota, in conjunction with New College, launched a competition “to find a bold, new innovative solution for adapting and repurposing them.” The three finalists will reveal their recommendations at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 15 at Mildred Sainer Pavilion, and the winning recommendation will be revealed on Nov. 17.

“This demonstrates that we don’t have to demolish everything and start over again,” Hylton said. “Look at the Sarasota Art Museum, what a beautiful adaptive use that is. We’re hoping this will be another one of those amazing success stories.

The competition predates the transformation of New College that began earlier this year, but Hylton said the school “has been very supportive and we’ve worked closely with them to launch them.”

For a schedule of MOD Weekend activities and more information about Moderns That Matter and the Reimaginging Pei program, visit architecturesarasota.org

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This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Architecture Sarasota marks 10 years of its popular MOD Weekend