ARCHITECT E. G. W. DIETRICH PRESENTATION IN NYC!

I am extremely excited that the Victorian Society of New York has invited me to share my research on architect E. G. W. Dietrich (1857-1924) and his work in all five boroughs of New York City and surrounding communities. One of the most prolific and least studied architects of his generation, Dietrich began his career in Pittsburgh, PA in the 1880's where he attracted attention for his eye-catching designs of Shingle style country residences. Finding success on the East Coast, he relocated to New York where he practiced for nearly forty years. Dietrich was an early proponent of the Colonial Revival and Arts and Crafts styles. Through his collaboration with furniture designer Gustav Stickley, Dietrich is recognized as designing the first “Craftsman” house published in Stickley’s magazine The Craftsman in May 1903.

On Wednesday, October 16, 2024 at 6:30pm, I will present an overview of Dietrich’s impressive career spanning from the Shingle Style to Arts and Crafts with a focus on his projects in and around New York City. Drawing from my research documenting more than 450 of Dietrich’s designs, visiting his built projects in six states, and analyzing his archive of architectural drawings and renderings, I will reveal drawings, renderings, and photographs of Dietrich's extant and lost works which exhibit his philosophy of simplicity and straightforwardness in the city. 

The true beauty of art lies in its usefulness. If we accept this fact, then architecture must be the most beautiful and the noblest branch of art; since it protects man from the elements. …(M)y design is intended to meet the wants of those who wish to secure the cottage quality… I have sought simplicity and straightforwardness, trusting that they might tell their own story with little need of words.

‒Architect E. G. W. Dietrich, from his essay “The Cottage Quality”, The Craftsman, February 1903

Wednesday, October 16, 2024 at 6:30pm
The Center at West Park, 165 West 86th Street (at Amsterdam Ave.), NYC

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Watercolor of the c. 1887 William A. and Harriet (Baldwin) Porter house in Flatbush, Brooklyn 

Exterior view of the c. 1905 Robert H. and Sarah (Palmer) Sherwood house
in Bensonhurst-by-the-Sea, Brooklyn