Enright Will Expand on the Work of USC Professor Konrad Wachsmann in Prefabricated Construction

September 11, 2009, Los Angeles The University of Southern California (USC) School of Architecture is pleased to announce that Assistant Professor John Enright is the recipient of a USC Advancing Scholarship in the Humanities Social Sciences Award for his project: Connection Points: The Work of Konrad Wachsmann Reconsidered, Retooled, and Re-represented.

Wachsmann was a pioneer of modern architecture; his research on prefabricated construction combined the philosophical ideals of the modern movement with rigorous attention to physical construction and manufacturing. An educator, engineer, architect and inventor, he examined and explored how complex materials could be joined to create a wide variety of spatial conditions. As digital technology changes how architects design and construct buildings, there has been renewed interest in prefabrication over the past decade, and Wachsmann’s research has seen a re-emergence.

Enright’s project will expand upon Wachsmann’s own two-dimensional models by creating digital three-dimensional virtual studies and then digitally printing them as scaled models of this historically significant work. The project will result in actual physical prototypes of Wachsmann’s more complex designs, allowing the real-time viewing and reassessing of his intricate joinery and connections. Professor Enright will create a physical archive for scholars and students, so that Wachsmann’s highly original inventions can be appreciated and studied further.

John Enright is a founding principal of firm Griffin Enright Architects in Los Angeles. He has been the recipient of numerous awards including the 2005 John Jerde Visiting Professorship at USC, the 26th Annual Interiors Award (2005), finalist for the MoMA/P.S. 1 Young Architects Competition (2004), as well as numerous AIA awards. His work has been published widely locally, nationally and internationally in journals including Architectural Record, Architectural Digest, Progressive Architecture, Interior Design, LA Architect, Praxis, Metropolis, Contract and Architecture magazine. In addition to the USC School of Architecture he has taught at the Southern California Institute of Architecture and the University of Houston. He received his B.Arch. from Syracuse University and his M.Arch. at Columbia University.

The Advancing Scholarship in the Humanities and Social Sciences (ASHSS) research grant program, an initiative of the Office of the Provost, promotes the development of high quality and influential scholarly publications and products in the social sciences, arts, and humanities. Grants will be made to individual faculty members in any academic unit of the University who seek to make important contributions to the scholarship and research programs in these fields.

The USC School of Architecture is located in the heart of Los Angeles, a singular laboratory in which to study and understand urban conditions and their architectural implications. With the appointment of Dean Qingyun Ma the School extends its global reach into new territories, launching new initiatives in cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary discourses, strengthening ties in the community and around the world. Established in 1919, the USC School of Architecture was the first of its kind in Southern California. Educational offerings include architecture, landscape architecture, building science and historic preservation. Among its notable graduates are Conrad Buff III, Donald H. Hensman, Pierre Koenig, and two Pritzker Prize Laureates: Frank O. Gehry (1989) and Thom Mayne (2005).


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September 11, 2009

Jane A. Ilger                  ilger@usc.edu                  213 740 2092