The Joel M. Pritchard Building at the Washington State Capitol campus in Olympia was built in 1957–1958 to house the Washington State Library, which had outgrown its previous location in the basement of the Washington Supreme Court's Temple of Justice.[3] The building's architect, Paul Thiry who also designed the Century 21 Exposition complex in Seattle, used Modern design incorporating the Wilkeson sandstone[4] quarried a few tens of miles away and used in the state capitol and other buildings. It was the last monumental building added to the capitol campus and one of the few departures from the Olmsted Brothers' 1928 campus plan.[5] It was described as "among the most important regional archetypes of mid-century architectural design and thought...a textbook on how Washingtonians looked at the future in the 1950s".[6] It was named for Joel M. Pritchard, a U.S. Congressman from Washington and the state's Lieutenant Governor. Thiry won the American Institute of Architects/American Library Association Library Building Award for the design, the first such award to be presented.[4] The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.
| Joel M. Pritchard Building | |
|---|---|
 Joel M. Pritchard Building, 2020 | |
 | |
| Former names | Washington State Library building, Joel M. Pritchard Library |
| General information | |
| Type | Library, later office building |
| Architectural style | Modern or New Formal[1] |
| Location | Olympia, Washington |
| Country | United States |
| Coordinates | 47°02′04″N 122°54′18″W / 47.0345°N 122.9049°W |
| Elevation | 120 ft (37 m) |
| Current tenants | State administrative offices |
| Construction started | November 5, 1957 |
| Inaugurated | November 15, 1958 |
| Cost | $2.45 million (authorized)[2] |
| Client | Washington State Library |
| Owner | State of Washington |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Paul Thiry |
| Awards and prizes | AIA/ALA Library Building Award |
After the 2001 Nisqually Earthquake, the damaged state capitol building was evacuated,[7] and the library collection and staff were moved out; Pritchard building's main floor became the chamber of the Washington State Senate,[8] and parts were used for other activities.[9][10] As of the 2010s it was occupied by the Code Reviser and other administrative staff.[6][9]
Public art edit
Up to 2.5 percent of the building's construction cost was reserved for public art.[11] The pieces placed at the library immediately after construction included Du Pen Fountain, a sundial by John W. Elliott, a mosaic by James FitzGerald, photographs by Bob and Ira Spring, and murals by Kenneth Callahan and Mark Tobey. It was Tobey's only work on public display in Olympia, while Tobey, a member of the Northwest School "big four", was considered the West Coast's most famous living painter.[a] Washington sculptor and painter George Tsutakawa was in charge of placing the art.[14] The Tobey was moved to Tacoma Art Museum in 2003,[9] but returned to the Pritchard Building in 2008.[citation needed]
Footnotes edit
- ^ The Los Angeles Times 1958 review, cited in Iridescent Light: The Emergence of Northwest Art, p. 39,[12] (chapter reprinted at Historylink[13]) noting the library commission immediately followed.
References edit
- ^ Sleek, Shiny and New: Olympia's Post-WWII Architecture (PDF), Washington Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation, 2010
- ^ Reynolds 2002, p. 56.
- ^ Reynolds 2002.
- ^ a b Reynolds 2002, p. 69.
- ^ Capitol Master Plan, State of Washington Department of Enterprise Services, 2006, p. 5-2
- ^ a b Washington State Library, Olympia, Docomomo WEWA
- ^ Brian Zylstra (March 4, 2016), "When 2001 Legislature had a shake-up", From Our Corner blog, Office of Washington Secretary of State
- ^ David Ammons (December 2, 2002). "Olympia operating without a dome". Associated Press – via Kitsap Sun.
- ^ a b c Sheila Farr (April 1, 2003), "Building makeover puts Capitol mural in tight spot", The Seattle Times
- ^ Walt Crowley (February 22, 2003), "Washington State Library", HistoryLink, Seattle: History Ink
- ^ Reynolds 2002, p. 66.
- ^ Deloris Tarzan Ament (2002), Iridescent Light: The Emergence of Northwest Art, University of Washington Press, ISBN 0295981474
- ^ Deloris Tarzan Ament (February 16, 2003), "Tobey, Mark (1890-1976): The Old Master of the Young American Painting", HistoryLink, Seattle: History Ink
- ^ Reynolds 2002, pp. 71–74.
Bibliography edit
- Reynolds, Maryan E. (2002), The Dynamics of Change: A History of the Washington State Library, Washington State University Press, ISBN 9780874222487
External links edit
- Historic Sites of the Washington State and Territorial Library: 1853 to the present, Washington Secretary of State
- Olympia modernism: a self-guided tour of mid-century buildings hosted by Washington Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation