Phyllis Lambert | |
|---|---|
| Born | Phyllis Barbara Bronfman (1927-01-24)January 24, 1927 (age 99) Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
| Spouse | |
| Parent(s) | Samuel Bronfman (father) Saidye Rosner Bronfman (mother) |
| Relatives | Edgar Bronfman, Sr. (brother) Charles Bronfman (brother) |
| Awards | Order of Canada National Order of Quebec Golden Lion,Venice Biennale of Architecture |
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Phyllis Barbara LambertCC GOQ FRAIC FRSC RCA (néeBronfman; born January 24, 1927)[1] is aCanadianarchitect,philanthropist, and member of theBronfman family.
Born inMontreal,Quebec, she studied atThe Study, a premier independent school for girls, and was educated at the liberal artsVassar College (A.B. in 1948). At the age of nine she was already committed to sculpture and her drawing skills were commented upon as remarkable early on in life. And at eleven she began exhibiting in annual juried exhibitions at the Royal Academy of Arts and the Société des Sculpteurs du Canada.[2] While reading architecture history in New York she became engaged with the connections of art and architecture which would last a lifetime.[3] Her family is ofJewish background.[4]
On 17 May 1949, in Montreal, she married Jean Lambert, a French-German[5] economic consultant and the only son ofAdolphe Lambert ofElmhurst, Queens, New York.[6][7][8][9] The couple divorced in 1954.[5] After the divorce she decided to remain in Paris, living and working alone in a studio on her art and sculpting.[10]
In 1951 Lambert's fatherSamuel Bronfman establishedCemp Investments, a holding company for his four children, in which Phyllis was given a 22% ownership stake. It controlled the family's distilling empire,The Seagram Company Ltd., which over time controlled billions of dollars in liquor, real estate, oil and gas, and chemical companies.[11]
While Lambert was living inParis, theSeagram Company Ltd was planning a new headquarters inNew York City under her father's instructions. During her time in Paris, she had come into contact with the newest artistic and architectural movements of the time. She was vehemently against the building that had already been designed for the plot by Pereira and Luckman Architects. In an eight-page letter to her father (dated June 28, 1954), the 27-year-old Phyllis managed to convince him to re-think the initial project. She was given the mandate to find a suitable alternative and after an extended research lasting six weeksMies van der Rohe was brought forward as the new candidate. He received the project and became her mentor supporting her in her wish to become an architect.[2] From 1954 to 1958, she was immersed in the process of designing and building theSeagram Building on Park Avenue in New York City. Though she enrolled at theYale School of Architecture in 1958, she then changed to theIllinois Institute of Technology, which she felt better suited to what she wanted to learn.[10][2]
Lambert later became the consultant to theSeagram Building, entrusted with its maintenance including the supervision and the curation of all exhibitions and collections, until 2000.[2]
After she obtained her master's degree in 1963, her family commissioned her to design an arts centre in Montreal to be known as theSaidye Bronfman Centre, in honor of her mother. Lambert designed a ‘Miesian Structure’.[12]
After the demolition of theVan Horne Mansion on Sherbrooke Street in 1973, 23 citizen groups formed Sauvons Montréal. Lambert became one of the advocates in the efforts to revitalize the strugglingShaughnessy Village district.[12]
In 1975, she founded the heritage preservation groupHeritage Montreal.[13] (She served as its first president until 1983.[1])Héritage Montréal raised funds so that conservation groups could take action. Their tools to stop demolition included marching in the streets, publishing ads and booklets and working with residents. They developed Canada's largest non-profit cooperative housing renovation,Milton-Parc.
Lambert also savedShaughnessy House from demolition by buying it. In 1989 the 19th century mansion became part of theCanadian Centre for Architecture (CCA).[12]
She considered an investment in renovating low-to medium-income neighbourhoods as important as the conservation of monuments or building anew. Since 1997 she held the Fonds d’investissement Montréal (FIM). It achieved in bringing private sector investment to communitarian housing beyond the limits of government programs.[12]
In 1979, she founded theCanadian Centre for Architecture (CCA), an influential museum and research centre in Montreal'sShaughnessy Village neighbourhood, and donated 750,000 shares of Seagram to help fund the Centre. It houses extensive collections of architectural drawings, books, photographs, and archival materials. The guiding belief of the CCA is that "architecture is a public concern," and its collection and activities "are driven by a curiosity about how architecture shapes—and might reshape—contemporary life."[14]
She served on the board of directors of Cemp's subsidiary, Cadillac Fairview for which she later picketed the offices of project developer. Again she suggested working withMies and supported what was to be known as theToronto-Dominion Centre.[15]
Her work also includes serving as developer on the restoration of theMillennium Biltmore Hotel inLos Angeles by architectGene Summers (architect).
In 1990 she received an honoraryDFA in Architecture from thePratt Institute. In 1992, she was made Officier of theOrdre des Arts et des Lettres de France. She holds honorary degrees from some 26 universities in North America and in Europe.
In 1985 she was made a Member of theOrder of Canada, promoted to Officer in 1990, and promoted to Companion in 2001. In 1985, she was made a Knight of theNational Order of Quebec and was promoted to Grand Officer in 2005.
Lambert was awarded theVincent Scully Prize by theNational Building Museum in 2006. Executive director Chase Rynd stated, "The Museum is honored to present its 2006 Scully Prize to Phyllis Lambert for a lifetime of outstanding achievements in the design of the built environment. From theSeagram Building to the CCA, to her work as a preservationist and educator, Phyllis Lambert has deeply enhanced the world we build for ourselves."[16]
In 2007,Citizen Lambert: Joan of architecture, a documentary film about Lambert was directed byTeri Wehn-Damisch.
Lambert was the recipient of the Golden Lion at the 14thVenice Architecture Biennale.[17] In 2016, she was awarded theWolf Prize in Arts.[18]
AlongsideBlanche Lemco van Ginkel,Cornelia Oberlander andDenise Scott Brown, she is one of four prominent female architects profiled in the 2018 documentary filmCity Dreamers.[19]
In 2023, Phyllis Lambert was awarded the Ada Louise Huxtable prize for her contribution to the wider architectural industry.[20]
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