February 5, 2016

Richard Brodhead:

Re: Julian Abele memorial

The committee you asked me to convene to consider an appropriate

memorialization of Julian Abeles work on the Duke campus met on January
11 and 22. We understood from the outset that our task was not to decide
whether something should be done, but what. In the end, we suggest that
Duke do several things to permanently commemorate the work of this
remarkable
architect and his enduring impact on Duke University.

1) Several people and events are recognized by bronze plaques in and

around Duke Chapel, but none recognize Abele. We suggest the
university install a large and prominent plaque (hopefully including a
relief portrait of him) near the chapel entrance, so that the thousands
of annual visitors to his most iconic building can know his role in the
development of this campus. Valerie Gillispie has agreed to draft an

appropriate text. It would also be appropriate to engrave both his

name and Horace Trumbauers on the southeast cornerstone of the
chapel. Neither has sufficient recognition on campus for the
remarkable work they did here in the late 1920s.

2) While there has been some work done, and several articles written,
there is no definitive biography of Juilan Abele. Duke should seek to
correct this and facilitate
the publishing of his fascinating story. We also think a major academic
conference celebrating his career would be appropriate.

3) The Odili Odita mural Shadow and Light (for Julian Francis Abele),
inspired by his observation the lines are all Mr. Trumbauers, but the
shadows are all mine, is a temporary installation at the Nasher
Museum, which will be removed in 3 years. Duke should purchase the
rights to this mural and keep it. This should cost about $30,000 (half
of which has already been pledged by a Trustee Emeritus).

4) Duke should consider a commission or a competition for a major piece

of public art, to be placed in the West Campus traffic circle to honor
Abele. His original campus drawings call for an object in the traffic
circle, but none was ever realized. We assume this will be a sevenfigure effort, so funding will have to be identified (perhaps through

philanthropy). There is some sentiment on the committee that Martin

Puryear would be an ideal candidate to do such a piece, but we leave
that selection to others.
5) For a decade, the Black Graduate and Professional Student Association
and the Black Student Alliance have been holding an annual
celebration in memory of Julian Abele and a recognition of black
excellence and leadership on Dukes campus. But no funding is
provided and the student organizers need to raise money each year.
We recommend the university fund this annual event with $25,000.

6) Something of significance should be named for Abele, and preferably

on West Campus (which is his best known work here). Several of the
unnamed buildings on West (Old Chem, Languages, Social Sciences
and Psychology) do not seem important enough for the statement we
are trying to make. The only other candidate is the West Union, which
has been suggested by some. But most of us worry that the major
transformation undertaken by Grimshaw means that this is no longer
Abeles building; almost none of the interior spaces remain as he
designed them; three sides of the exterior do. Those of us in that
camp prefer the renaming of Chapel Drive to Abele Drive as it is the
grand entrance point of all he did at Duke, which really isnt captured
in a single building. We have been in touch with the Abele/Cook family
through Christopher Cook, a current Duke sophomore, and Julian

Abeles great-great-grandnephew, who has discussed our thinking with

his father (the architect Peter Cook who worked with Phil Freelon on the
new National Museum of African American History and Culture for the
Smithsonian), his aunt Susan (who first brought attention to the Abele
story when she was a Duke student in the 1980s), and his
grandparents (who knew Julian Abele). We have learned from
Christopher that the family prefers the Chapel Drive renaming option.

We urge you and the trustees to authorize all of these things. And we
remain convinced that making a large and positive statement about
Julian Abeles contributions to Duke is both important and overdue.

Tallman Trask III

Executive Vice President

For the committee:

Oscar Dantzler, Duke Chapel custodian

Phillip Freelon, FAIA architect (Perkins & Will)
Valerie Gillispie, University Archivist
Alisha Hines, PhD student in History

Michael Marsicano, chair of the Trustee committee on Facilities and

Environment
Keizra Mecklai, DSG President
Michael Norwalk, student member of the committee on Facilities and
Environment
Seth Pearson, Duke law student
Richard Powell, Dean of Humanities and John Spencer Bassett Professor of
Art & Art History
Sarah Schroth, Director of the Nasher Museum of Art
Tallman Trask III, Executive Vice President
Annabel Wharton, William B. Hamilton Professor of Art & Art History