Alden B. Dow

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Alden B. Dow (b. April 10, 1904, Midland, Michigan – d. August 20, 1983) was an American architect; he was the son of Herbert Henry Dow (founder of the Dow Chemical Company) and Grace A. Dow.

Dow is known for his prolific architectural design. His personal house in Midland, the Midland Center for the Arts, as well as the current building for the Grace A. Dow Library (named in honor of his mother) are examples of his work based in his hometown.

Contents 1 Biography 1.1 Education 1.2 Early Career 1.3 Growth 2 Selected Works 3 Awards 4 References 5 External links

[edit] Biography

[edit] Education

Alden B. Dow attended the Midland Public Schools district, and following the custom of the day was sent to the University of Michigan to study engineering in preparation to enter his father's company. After three years, Dow became a student of architecture at Columbia University, and graduated in 1931.

Dow was married to Vada Bennett in 1931. Bennett, a daughter of Earl Bennett (an employee at the Dow Chemical Company), had three children with Dow: Michael Lloyd Dow, Mary Lloyd Dow, and Barbara Alden Dow.

After a year and a half of working with the architectural firm of Frantz and Spence in nearby Saginaw, Michigan, Alden and Vada studied with Frank Lloyd Wright at Taliesin in Spring Green, Wisconsin for the summer in 1933.

[edit] Early Career

Following his apprenticeship with Frank Lloyd Wright, Dow opened his own studio in 1934. Dow designed his office space himself, blending the surrounding environment with his architecture under the principles "honesty, humility and enthusiasm."^[1] In his early career, Dow concentrated on residential design using his signature style of Unit Block construction.^[2] In this patented method, Dow designed using white unit blocks, which, though they appeared to be a cube, were actually six-sided rhombuses which gained strength as they were stacked together.^[3]

Dow described his own philosophy of design as "Architecture is more than the front face of the building. It is the location of the building. It is the plan of the building. It is the construction of the building. It is the heating and cooling of the building. It is the furnishing of the building. It is the landscaping of the building. It is, in its entirety, the manifestation of wholesome living."^[3]

He received the Diplome de Grand Prix at that 1937 Paris International Exposition for best residential design in the world, partly for his own home and design studio and also for his work on the John Whitman residence.^[4]

In 1941, Dow officially incorporated his business as Alden B. Dow, Inc. The following year, Dow was tasked with designing a town in Texas to house those who worked at his father's Dow Chemical Company's site near Freeport, Texas. With his brother Willard and Dow Chemical Company executive A.P. Beutel, he chose a site west of Freeport that was formerly the site of the Abner Jackson Plantation. Dow designed the town, which they named Lake Jackson to hold 5,000 people. The layout was notable for its lack of straight streets; Dow felt that the winding roads would provide "something of a surprise around each turn."^[5] The streets were given whimsical names, including "This Way", "That Way" (which intersects This Way), and "Winding Way." Dow also provided the six designs used to build houses within the newly created town. The first residents arrived at the end of 1943.^[5]

[edit] Growth

The name was changed again in 1963 to Alden B. Dow Associates Inc. as the business grew and more people joined the firm. Dow designed the Fleming Administration Building at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, completed in 1968. The building houses the offices of the University's president, and its narrow windows (all located above the first floor) and fortress-like exterior led to a campus rumor that it was designed in the wake of the student activism of the 1960s to be riot-proof. Dow denies these rumors, claiming the small windows were designed to be energy efficient. Dow was purportly offended by the rumor.^[6]

As time passed, Dow began to delve into other areas of architecture, designing many commercial and community buildings, especially in and around his hometown of Midland, Michigan.^[1] Dow relinquished the chairmanship of his company in 1974 to Jim Howell.

As the crowning achievement of his 50-year career, Dow was named the architect laureate of Michigan in 1983. He died shortly after receiving that honor, on August 20, 1983.^[4] That title has not been bestowed on anyone since Dow. The company name changed one final time after Dow's death. Alden Dow's company survived over six decades and is now known as Dow, Howell & Gilmore Associates Inc.^[4] and is owned by its' employees.

Six years later, in 1989, Dow's home, with its internationally-recognized design, was designated a National Historic Landmark.^[7]

[edit] Selected Works

• Alden Dow House and Studio, a National Historic Landmark (Midland, Michigan)
• Ann Arbor City Hall (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
• Ann Arbor Library (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
• Ann Arbor Community Center (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
• Chemical Bank and Trust Company (Midland, Michigan)
• Dow Chemical Company Administrative Building (1937, Midland, Michigan)
• Dow Center Complex (Midland, Michigan)
• Grace A. Dow Memorial Library (Midland, Michigan)
• Greenhills School (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
• Henry McMorran Auditorium and Sports Arena (Port Huron, Michigan)
• Kalamazoo Nature Center (Kalamazoo, Michigan)
• Midland Center for the Arts (Midland, Michigan)
• MidMichigan Medical Center-Midland (Midland Hospital), built in 1943 around a courtyard garden. (Midland, Michigan)
• Phoenix Civic Center and Art Museum, (Phoenix, Arizona), with Blaine Drake
• University Microfilms Building (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
• Fleming Administration Building (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
• Muskegon Community College, (1967,Muskegon,Michigan)

[edit] Awards

• Diplome de Grand Prix at that 1937 Paris International Exposition for best residential design in the world, partly for his own home and design studio and also for his work on the John Whitman residence
• Received honorary degrees from Albion College, Hillsdale College, Michigan State University, Northwood University and the University of Michigan.
• In 1957 became a Fellow in the American Institute of Architects (AIA).
• Awarded The Michigan Society of Architects Gold Medal for 1960.
• The Northwood University Alden B. Dow Creativity Center was founded in 1978 to honor and perpetuate his commitment to quality and innovation.
• First recipient of the Frank Lloyd Wright Creativity Award in 1982.
• In 1983 named Architect Laureate of his home state of Michigan.
• The Alden B. Dow Museum of Science & Art in Midland, Michigan is named in his honor.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Alden B. Dow Home & Studio
• Dow Howell Gilmore Associates Inc