16th Annual McKim Lecture with John Simpson

Cocktail Reception at 6:15 pm, Lecture at 6:45 pm, Optional Dinner to Follow

The Institute of Classical Architecture & Art (ICAA) is proud to partner with the University Club and the One West 54th Street Foundation to present the Annual McKim Lecture – named in honor of renowned architect, Charles McKim. John Simpson will deliver the 2017 lecture, entitled “TheTimeless Language of Classicism,” on Wednesday, March 1 at the University Club. In this lecture, Mr. Simpson will consider how we, in the 21st Century, have come to admire, adopt, and develop the classical language of architecture and its varied ornament and decoration as practiced for over two millennia. The revival of classical design, its application and adaptation to create new types of buildings since the Renaissance, has endowed us with a rich legacy of buildings and public spaces.

John Simpson is at the forefront of a growing movement and is one of the practitioners who designs and builds the widest range of building types, many of which are of a public or semi-public nature. With buildings across the world responding to this tradition, including recent work in New York, examples of Simpson’s work can be seen at Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace, The Defence and National Rehabilitation Centre, various Cambridge and Oxford colleges, Eton College, and the new School of Architecture at the University of Notre Dame. Simpson’s work also includes masterplans, chapels, pavilions, concert halls and museums.

Mr. Simpson ESQ. C.V.O. BSC (HONS) DIP ARCH RIBA is the founding partner of John Simpson Architects. The firm’s work revolves around the notion that architecture is a public art where each and every building façade forms the character and shape of the public realm - the streets, the squares and the major civic spaces that we all use. Since 1990, the firm has shown how a sustainable urban alternative to the conventional suburban housing estate can work and is featured in government guidance on best practice in urban design in the UK. Simpson’s architecture can be explained as a language of building that is recognizable and by necessity, draws on our collective cultural experience—the inherited language that each and every one of us can relate to, enjoy, and understand. Whether incorporating sustainable technology or acoustic engineering solutions, he creates buildings that function well and are, without a doubt, timeless.

The Architecture of John Simpson: The Timeless Language of Classicism, by Dr. David Watkin, (Rizzoli) was released October, 2016. Some of Mr. Simpson’s more recent awards include the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors Award for Building Conservation 2013; Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors Award for a building providing a major Community Benefit 2013; Georgian Group Award for the Restoration of a Georgian Garden/Landscape 2012; Georgian Award for Best New Classical Building 2010; Philippe Rotthier European Prize for Architecture 2008; Award of Excellence from the Society of American Registered Architects 2008; and the Arthur Ross Award from the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art in 2008.

The McKim Lecture will be held in College Hall at the University Club, One West 54th Street, New York, NY 10019. The cost of attendance is $85 per person for the cocktail reception and lecture only, and $175 for the cocktail reception, lecture, and dinner. To make a reservation, call (212) 730-9646 ext. 109, or register online.

The Annual McKim Lecture is a collaboration between the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art (ICAA) and the One West 54th Street Foundation. The One West 54th Street Foundation is a not-for-profit organization established to preserve the architectural integrity and design of the University Club, a New York Historic Landmark building. The Foundation also provides scholarship to students, including those at the ICAA enrolled in its full array of programmatic offerings. The ICAA is the leading national nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing the practice and appreciation of the classical tradition in architecture and the allied arts through education, publications, awards, and advocacy.