Educational Partnerships

Partnership with New Canaan High School Students + Faculty

The cultivation of young talent is central to the mission of The Philip Johnson Glass House.

The collaboration between the Glass House and New Canaan High School (NCHS) began shortly after the Glass House opened to the public. Photography, documentary film and journalism students, with the support of their teachers, began recording oral histories of the architects, craftsmen and homeowners who created New Canaan’s remarkable heritage of modernist residential architecture. By sitting down with and listening to eye-witnesses to these creative pursuits, the students were able to capture first-person stories and learn a great deal about the aspirations, technology, and perspectives of the time, while preserving remembrances of our local community’s history.

During the mid-twentieth century, New Canaan, CT was a vibrant laboratory in which new residential architectural forms were created and executed. Visionary architects and adventurous clients together made New Canaan one of the nation’s most important repositories of modernist residential architecture. Since then, development pressures have claimed several of these important homes and preservationists have stepped in to help the local community more fully understand the unique heritage present in their town. Capturing these histories is of vital importance to the historic record.

ORAL HISTORY FILMS
Landis Gores, Architect: An Interview with Pamela Gores, wife of Landis Gores, focuses on the life and work of a member of the Harvard Five . It also focuses on the Gores Pavilion for the Arts, recently opened to the public by the New Canaan Historical Society in Irwin Park, New Canaan, CT

Port Draper discusses the Glass House and his working relationship with Philip Johnson. Draper was a builder and engineer who worked with Philip Johnson beginning in 1968.

Interview with photographer Pedro E. Guerrero, official photographer to Frank Lloyd Wright and a long-time New Canaan resident. Guerrero relates accompanying Wright on a visit to the Glass House in 1958, where he lunched with Philip Johnson and Alfred Barr, the first head of the Museum of Modern Art.

The life story of 95-year old, Danish-born furniture designer and long-time New Canaan Resident Jens Risom. One of the first to combine simple, well-crafted Scandinavian modernity with streamlined American curves and angles, Risom produced 15 of the first 20 pieces the Hans Knoll Furniture Company launched in 1942. Risom is the recipient of numerous awards and his work has been placed in the permanent collections of The Museum of Modern Art, NY; the Rhode Island School of Design Museum, Providence, RI; and the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, NY.

VISITOR CENTER FILMS
Students, with the support of their teachers, created three short films for the Glass House Visitor Center film installation, each relevant to the history or experience of the Glass House.

The Brick House features photographs taken of the Brick House prior to the structure's closure for renovation.

Day to Night is a time-lapse film of the site in transition from evening to darkness, documenting the site's dramatic lighting at night.

The Farnsworth House documents the notable home, designed by Mies van der Rohe, that was a major source of inspiration for Philip Johnson. The Farnsworth House is also a site of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

PHOTOGRAPHY PROJECTS
Numerous photography projects using the Glass House site as inspiration have been woven into the art curriculum at New Canaan High School. Several of these images have become commissioned products for the Glass House Design Store, sharing this work with thousands of visitors each year. Fifty percent of the proceeds from the sale of items using images from the students’ work will be directed to fund this ongoing partnership.

Photo magnets with images taken by NCHS students on location at the Glass House in October 2010.

Messenger bags featuring student photography printed on leather. Produced exclusively for the Glass House by Insider I, Brooklyn, NY.

Postcards depicting various architectural and landscape elements at the Glass House.

Architectural and landscape photo exhibit taken by students on location at John Johansen’s Bridge House in New Canaan.

The Glass House would like to acknowledge and thank the following project advisors and mentors:
Peter Kingsbury, NCHS Advanced Filmmaking Class
Jeanne McDonagh, NCHS Photography, Advanced Digital Media
Roman Cebulski, NCHS,TV Journalism
Gwen North Reiss, Glass House Special Project Coordinator/Journalist/Interviewer
Meri Erickson, Glass House Project Manager/Community Outreach

The Glass House especially thanks all of the students for sharing their fresh perspective and talent with us. We expect great things in their future.