Frank Harmon – Native Places

“A Conversation with Esteemed Architect and Special Guest Frank Harmon, FAIA”

August 3, 2020/in Author Events, News/by Kim Weiss

office building Jacobs firm, Arlington, Va

Jacobs in Arlington, Virginia

Jacobs, a global professional services firm, will present “A conversation with Esteemed Architect and Special Guest Frank Harmon, FAIA,” on Thursday, August 6, from 1-2 pm, for its Global Federal Architecture Team.

During this virtual event, Frank will share his book Native Places: Drawing as a Way to See with Jacobs team members across the United States and as far away as Kaiserslautern, Germany; Krakow, Poland; and Seoul, South Korea.

Frank’s talk is part of the firm’s Thursday afternoon Architecture Series that Stephen Wakeman, AIA, Division Vice President and National Design Principal, organizes and conducts from his office in Jacobs’ Arlington, VA, location.

“Frank Harmon has had a long, distinguished career as an award-winning architect, author, illustrator, teacher, public speaker and mentor,” Wakeman writes in his invitation to the international team. “His resume speaks volumes about his remarkable body of work. But when you join us on August 6, you will get an intimate look into who he is.”

Wakeman notes that the Raleigh-based architect and author “is a keen observer of nature and the built environment. His beautiful book is a treasure trove of watercolor sketches and meditations on the places he visits. Frank’s enthusiasm for how humans react with nature through architecture is boundless, and his joy for conveying what he sees and learns is contagious.”

He also calls Frank “a masterful storyteller in a world in need of a good story” and suggests that he “will inspire you to dust off your art supplies and get outside to start sketching, recording, and reconnecting with the world around you.”

Since COVID-19 halted in-person events, Frank Harmon has been in demand for the webinar version of his popular lecture on learning to truly see the world — architecture, landscape, everyday objects, and nature — through sketching. He shares excerpts from his book Native Places: Drawing as a Way to See (ORO Editions, publisher) and answers questions from those in attendance afterward.

For more information on Frank Harmon’s virtual lectures and how to schedule one for your firm or organization, contact his publicist, Kim Weiss: blueplatepr@gmail.com.

Luxe Magazine: “A Modern Raleigh Home All About The Outdoors Is A Leading Architect’s Swan Song”

May 22, 2020/in Frank Harmon Architect, Media Coverage/by Kim Weiss

PHOTO BY BRIE WILLIAMS

By J. Michael Welton

When Raleigh, North Carolina, architect Frank Harmon heard what his client wanted in her new home, it must have sounded like music to his ears. “I told him that light was very important, as was access to the outdoors,” says homeowner Sepi Saidi. “I wanted to feel like I’m living outside, with natural light and greenery that feels like it’s coming right into the house.”

As a graduate of NC State University—the same school where Harmon teaches architecture—Sepi was aware the architect had been pursuing that grail for most of his 50-year career. Striking up a friendship with fellow professor Harwell Hamilton Harris, a former protégé of uber-modernists Rudolph Schindler and Richard Neutra, during his tenure left a lasting impact on Harmon, whose own architecture followed suit. His work has come to rely on living in natural light, merging structures and landscape and integrating spatial volumes—concepts he believes enhance the human experience.

The architect’s design for Sepi in Raleigh’s vibrant Cameron Village was no different. A civil engineer at the height of her career, Sepi requested a home that would center her—a retreat from her busy professional life. “Frank endeavored to create privacy in a very dense urban area,” Sepi says. “And he did: The home is simple, with clean lines, and calming.” READ MORE

Book Talks in the Time of Coronavirus: Frank Harmon Goes Virtual

May 20, 2020/in Author Events/by Kim Weiss

FRANK HARMON, FAIA (photo by William Morgan)

On Thursday, May 21, from 5-6 p.m., Frank Harmon, FAIA, will discuss his book, Native Places: Drawing as a Way to See, and his intent to change the way we observe the world around us, via an interactive webinar sponsored by American Institute of Architect’s Washington, DC. chapter.

Architects will receive LU credits by attending.

The virtual event is open to the public but registration is required. To register, click here then click on the red “Attend” button. Attendance fees range from $10 to $25. How to attend Frank’s talk will be in the confirmation email following registration.

During his talk, Frank will read excerpts from Native Places. He’ll also discuss how sketching influenced his architectural work and taught him to truly “see” and appreciate th vernacular, no matter how ordinary.

The AIA | DC event is part of Frank’s year-long book tour. After traveling to book stores and other venues up and down the east coast and as far west as Tucson, Frank’s tour seemed to stop when the pandemic struck — until AIA | DC proposed a virtual version.

Frank will answer questions from attendees following his talk. He can’t sign books after that, but the AIA |DC host will direct everyone to the “Buy Now” button on the book’s website: nativeplacesthebook.com

For all the details on the event, including the Learning Objectives, go to AIA | DC’s calendar.

“And now for a few minutes with Frank Harmon…”

April 25, 2020/in Author Events/by Kim Weiss

FRANK HARMON, FAIA (photo by William Morgan)

Beginning May 4^th at 3 p.m., Frank Harmon, FAIA, will become a recurring guest on US Modernist Radio: Architecture You Love, the popular podcast hosted by George Smart and Frank King.

Once a month, Smart will introduce the Raleigh architect/author with the tagline “And now for a few minutes with Frank Harmon.” Frank will then read excerpts from his book Native Places: Drawing as a Way to See.

“US Modernist Radio is a bright spot in my day,” Frank said. “What a wonderful way to keep in touch with architects everywhere.

About the Podcast:

George Smart, founder and president of the non-profit organization NC Modernist Houses, created US Modernist Radio to appeal to midcentury modern design enthusiasts. In July 2019, it was included in Dwell magazine’s “Top 9 Design and Architecture Podcasts To Tune Into.”

US Modernist Radio “is both entertaining but informative, and hosts George Smart and Frank King spend each episode interviewing architects, designers, historians, preservationists, advocacy experts, museum curators, homeowners, and others—just about anyone who “owns, creates, dreams about, preserves, loves, and hates Modernist architecture, the most exciting and controversial buildings in the world.” Click here to listen via an assortment of apps. The live shows load at 3 p.m.

For more information on Frank and Native Places, visit nativeplacesthebook.com.

WALTER: “Home Grown – Frank Harmon’s Garden”

March 4, 2020/in Media Coverage/by Kim Weiss

Frank Harmon watches his garden fill with plantings—and memories
by Frank Harmon for WALTER magazine | illustration by Judy Harmon

Every spring a lawn care company tosses a flyer over my garden gate. They promise to make my lawn perfect by using herbicides and pesticides. But I think I’ll keep the lawn just as it is, with scatterings of chickweed, withered starflower stems, and the occasional snakeskin.

I live in a small pink stucco house near N.C. State University. My wife Judy and I designed the house and garden in 1989. We broke ground on Valentine’s Day and moved in a year later. Then we planted the lawn.

We’d put down roots. READ MORE…

Frank Harmon Agrees to Show and Sell Original Sketches Through Two Raleigh Art Vanues

December 4, 2019/in Author Events/by Kim Weiss

BROOKS AVENUE, RALEIGH

For the first time, and after receiving many requests, Raleigh architect/author Frank Harmon, FAIA, is about to make a limited number of his original 5” x 7” watercolor sketches available for purchase — drawings lifted straight out of his personal sketchbooks, many of which are published in his new hardback book, Native Places: Drawing as a Way to See (ORO Editions, publisher).

“At some point during nearly every stop along my book tour this past year, from Charleston to Austin, I’ve been asked when I’m going to sell some of my sketches,” Harmon explained recently. “Friends and colleagues have been asking the same question quite persistently. I’m delighted to finally do so, on a limited basis, through two of my favorite Raleigh art venues.”

VAN GOGH’S WINDOW

Abie Harrie Studio

On Saturday and Sunday, December 7 and 8, from noon until 6 p.m., 10 of his original sketches will be part of a special event in architect/artist Abie Harris’s studio at 222 Hawthorne Road, Raleigh. Harmon’s drawings will be shown and sold alongside original work by four well-known Raleigh artists: Drew Deane, Corey Mason, Bert Sultz, and the show’s host Abie Harris.

Rebus Works

Also on December 8, from 1-5 p.m., Rebus Works in Raleigh’s Boylan Heights neighborhood will display 21 original sketches published in Native Places during the 2019 Boylan Heights Art Walk. Presented in related groups of three, the drawings will remain in the gallery and for sale from the 8th through, and after, an official Opening & Gallery Talk that Rebus Works is planning for January 23rd (details to be announced soon).

NC architect, author Frank Harmon, Native Places

RURAL STUDIO

Quail Ridge Books, Raleigh’s leading independent book store, will make copies of Native Places: Drawing as a Way to See available at Rebus Works throughout the run of Harmon’s exhibition before and after the January Opening. Rebus Works is located at 301-2 Kinsey Street, Raleigh.

And where’s Frank?

That Sunday, Frank Harmon himself will be on hand for the two shows – at one time or another. “It will be very interesting,” he said with a smile. “And I can’t wait to see everyone at both.”

AIA Austin Welcomes Architect/Author Frank Harmon, FAIA, and His New Book “Native Places”

November 5, 2019/in Author Events/by Kim Weiss

Austin Central Library

Frank Harmon, FAIA, a multi-award-winning architect from Raleigh, North Carolina, and the author of the critically acclaimed book Native Places: Drawing as a Way to See, will be in Austin Tuesday, November 12, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. for a lecture and book-signing event hosted by the Austin chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA Austin).

As the architect of the modern, thoroughly sustainable AIA NC Center for Architecture & Design building in Raleigh, he will also address AIA Austin’s plans for a similar structure.

Frank Harmon’s appearance is part of AIA Austin’s “Design Talks” Luncheon Series held in the Lake | Flato-designed Austin Central Library.

“AIA Austin is thrilled to welcome an architecture and drawing master like Frank to Austin,” said Ingrid Spencer, Executive Director of AIA Austin and the Austin Foundation for Architecture. “Because Frank designed the only ground-up Center for Architecture in the country, and we’re striving to create such a place in Austin, we are extra excited for his visit.”

After a brief AIA Austin Annual Meeting, architect and professor Lawrence Speck will introduce Harmon, who will then discuss and read excerpts from Native Places and share his reasons for writing it. One of those reasons is his lifelong belief that drawing offers the opportunity “to transform the way we see” the world around us.

“Sketching allows us to see what we might not have noticed,” Harmon says. “It allows us to be present.”

Frank’s tiny watercolor set sits on the counter with ‘Native Places’

Published by ORO Editions, Native Places: Drawing as a Way to See is a collection of 64 of Harmon’s watercolor sketches paired with brief essays he’s written about architecture, nature, everyday objects, and ordinary places. The pairs first appeared in his popular online journal NativePlaces.org.

The sketches in Native Places, some of which are 30 years old, convey the delight the architect finds in these places and things. The short essays, inspired by the sketches, offer his fresh interpretations of what most people take for granted.

Seattle architect Tom Kundig, FAIA, calls Harmon’s book “a masterful legacy on all levels.” Architect Marlon Blackwell, FAIA, of Fayetteville, Arkansas, offers this:

“Native Places provides a reflective pause in my busy day to consider the humanity of buildings and places. I find my sense of hope and possibility renewed in these simple, evocative drawings and the wisdom that accompanies them.”

BookPeople, the leading independent bookstore in Texas since 1970, will make copies of Native Places available for purchase so attendees can get them signed by the author.

Advance tickets for the November 12 “Design Talks” event are $30 for AIA and Allied AIA members, $15 for Associate members and students, and $40 for non-members. Tickets purchased at the door November 12 will be $40 for AIA and Allied AIA members and $20 for Associate members and students. To register and secure advanced tickets click here.

Austin Central Library is located at 710 West Cesar Chevez Street, Austin, TX 78701 (512-452-4332). For more information on the November 12 event and AIA Austin, visit aiaaustin.org.

For more information on Frank Harmon and Native Places: Drawing as a Way to See, visit nativeplacesthebook.com.

Book Review: “Profoundly relevant observations about life and place”

October 27, 2019/in Media Coverage/by Kim Weiss

by Joel R. Dennstedt for Readers’ Favorite®, Oct. 26, 2019

Sketching is a fine art of suggestibility and essence, and it is not properly relegated only to the physical artist. In writing, sketching is done with quick vignettes, following the same imperatives: Suggesting briefly, catching the essence, engaging the imagination.

In Native Places, a most wonderful compilation and combination of physical and written sketches about life and place, Frank Harmon adds this personal observation: “But if I sketched it, I remembered that place forever.”

…a most wonderful compilation and combination of physical and written sketches about life and place…

Harmon is an architect. As such, he has a keen eye for the manner in which human beings reveal themselves in their buildings, including as equally important the manner in which they “context” these structures within gardens, trees, and other unique local environments. “I learned to trust the particular over the general,” he writes, “in many ways like writers who are more attuned to the particular.”

Frank Harmon’s observational eye is equal to his conceptual one. And in Native Places, he makes profoundly relevant observations about life and place. “Historians usually ignore what we’ve come to know as the vernacular. Yet the motives of the makers of vernacular buildings and places are practical, and the result is often aesthetic.” Chew on that one for a while, and appreciate the power of what Harmon refers to as “ordinariness”.

Spending quality time with the lovely sketches in this book – both physical and conceptual, painted and written – is like attending to daily meditations about spiritual matters, but without the guilt or sense of obligation. What remains is the pure, essential pleasure, if brief, of human celebration.

Book Rating: 5 Star

NCSU College of Design Presents Frank Harmon and “Native Places”

September 12, 2019/in Author Events/by Kim Weiss

Architect Frank Harmon sketching in his Raleigh gardens. Photo by Juli Leonard

The NC State University College of Design is inviting the general public as well as faculty, staff, and students to a special event in Burns Auditorium on Monday, September 23rd. Beginning at 6 pm, architect, author, and professor/mentor Frank Harmon, FAIA, will discuss and read from his new book Native Places: Drawing as a Way to See.

Following his lecture, Harmon will sign copies of Native Places, which will be available for purchase from a representative of Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh. Anyone who already owns a copy is invited to bring it to receive a personalized inscription from the author.

Free and open to the public, Harmon’s presentation is part of the Joint Lecture Series between the College of Design and AIA Triangle. David Hill, head of the Architecture Department, arranged to have Harmon’s event inserted in the Lecture Series.

Published by ORO Editions, Native Places is a collection of 64 of Harmon’s watercolor sketches of everyday objects and places, nature, and cityscapes, paired with brief essays inspired by the sketches. Some new, some 30 years old, his drawings convey the delight he finds in ordinary things. The short essays offer his fresh interpretations of what most of us tend to take for granted.

Harmon’s goal for Native Places is, in fact, to transform the way we see the world, he says. It also promotes his belief that hand drawing is not an obsolete skill but rather an opportunity to develop a natural grace in the way we view the world.

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