Architect: Humphries Poll Architects
Architectural Style: Post-Modern Year Built: 1998
Photo Restrictions: No
Structure
The original William Havu Gallery was started in Aspen, Colorado, in 1973. The gallery, as we know it today, moved to its 1040 Cherokee Street location in 1998. The 1,230 square-foot lot was designed specifically as an art gallery and was the very first of its kind in Denver. The structure is a wonderful example of post-modern architecture, and it’s floor spans 5,055 feet. Post-modernism began as an international style in the 1950s as a response to the starkness of modern architecture. Form was no longer to be defined solely by its functional requirements or minimal appearance, and architects added ornamentation, color, decoration, and human scale to buildings.
Robert Venturi, born in 1925 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is considered the father of Post-Modern Architecture. Michael Graves, who was well known for being one of the New York Five, designed the Central Denver Public Library in the 1990’s is part of the group of post-modern architects. Denver boasts multiple post-modern buildings.
Architects
Humphries Poli Architects (HPA), located at 2100 Downing Street, has been in business for 22 years. The firm was founded on April 4, 1994 by Dennis Humphries and Joseph Poli, and they now have several offices and many employees. In 2016, HPA worked on over 35 major projects, including the design of new construction, additions, or renovations. The firm helped with the restoration of the State Capitol Dome, and they were involved in projects at the Sheedy Mansion, the Skyline Park Pavillion, the McNichols Civic Center Building, and multiple public libraries and schools across Colorado.
Community engagement and advocacy are very important to HPA. In 2016, members of the firm attended several conferences in Colorado and across the country, and they were invited on many occasions to present on certain topics. Please look forward to more HPA presentations in 2017.
The Gallery
The William Havu Gallery has seven exhibitions a year, and it offers particular consideration for mid-career, established artists of exceptional maturity and quality. The gallery frames art for clients and is available for rent for private events. Checkout the gallery daily between 10:00am and 6:00pm.
References
www.williamhavugallery.com; www.hparch.com; www.nytimes.com/1996/02/11/books/architecture-view-a-little-book-that-led-five-men-to-fam.