Henry Hope Reed Jr. (September 25, 1915 – May 1, 2013) was an American

architecture critic Architecture criticism is the critique of architecture. Everyday criticism relates to published or broadcast critiques of buildings, whether completed or not, both in terms of news and other criteria. In many cases, criticism amounts to an assessmen ...

known for his advocacy of

classical architecture Classical architecture usually denotes architecture which is more or less consciously derived from the principles of Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, or sometimes even more specifically, from the works of the Roman architect ...

and his outspoken criticism of

modernist architecture Modern architecture, or modernist architecture, was an architectural movement or architectural style based upon new and innovative technologies of construction, particularly the use of glass, steel, and reinforced concrete; the idea that form ...

Life

Born in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...

, Reed earned a degree in history from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher ...

in 1938. He also studied decorative arts at the

École du Louvre The École du Louvre is an institution of higher education and grande école located in the Aile de Flore of the Louvre Palace in Paris, France. It is dedicated to the study of archaeology, art history, anthropology and epigraphy. Admissi ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

. In 1952, he published his first work critical of modernism, a point of view he held until his death. Reed lectured in the Department of Urban Planning at the

University of Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

, made research on architecture and urbanism, gave walking tours of

’s historic architecture and neighborhoods, and published the book ''The Golden City'' in 1959. Following several books advocating preservation of classical architecture in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

, Reed was named

curator A curator (from la, cura, meaning "to take care") is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the parti ...

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...

in 1966, thus becoming the first curator of NYC parks.Blumenthal, Ralph (January 20, 1966). 2 City Parks Get First Curators; Hoving Names Reed to Be the Overseer of Central Park. ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' Reed co-founded ''Classical America'', an organization committed to a resurgence of classical design, urbanism and architecture. It merged with The Institute of Classical Architecture in 2002. The Henry Hope Reed Award was established in 2005, named in honor of Reed's legacy. It is awarded by the Notre Dame School of Architecture and sponsored by the Richard Driehaus Foundation. The prize is given to an individual working outside the practice of architecture who has supported the cultivation of the traditional city, its

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings ...

and art through writing,

planning Planning is the process of thinking regarding the activities required to achieve a desired goal. Planning is based on foresight, the fundamental capacity for mental time travel. The evolution of forethought, the capacity to think ahead, is c ...

or promotion. It is awarded in conjunction with the

Driehaus Architecture Prize The Driehaus Architecture Prize, fully named The Richard H. Driehaus Prize at the University of Notre Dame, is a global award to honor a major contributor in the field of contemporary traditional and classical architecture. The Driehaus Prize was ...

. Reed died on May 1, 2013 at his home in

. He was 97. Reed's wife, the former Constance Culbertson Feeley, died in 2007. He left no immediate survivors.

Works

Reed authored multiple books, including: *''The Golden City'', 1959 *''American Skyline'', with Christopher Tunnard *''Central Park: A History and a Guide'', with Sophia Duckworth *''The Library of Congress'', with

John Y. Cole John Y. Cole (born July 30, 1940) is an American librarian, historian, and author. He was the founding director of the Center for the Book at the Library of Congress and in 2016 became the first official historian of the Library of Congress. Educ ...

*''The New York Public Library'', with Francis Morrone *''Classical America Series in Art and Architecture'', co-editor *''The United States Capitol: Its Architecture and Decoration'' *''The U.S. Capitol: Its Lesson for Today''

References

External links

Francis Morrone, "How Henry Hope Reed Saved Architecture"Henry Hope Reed
inaugural prize introduction for the Henry Hope Reed Award in 2005 at Notre Dame School of Architecture
Henry Hope Reed, Jr.'s obituary

Henry Hope Reed papers, 1911-1998 Held in the Dept. of Drawings & Archives, Avery Architectural & Fine Arts Library, Columbia University, New York City
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reed, Henry Hope Jr. Harvard College alumni 1915 births 2013 deaths People from Manhattan American architecture writers American male non-fiction writers New Classical architecture