Thursday, January 15, 2015

Building Bridges

Reports of the demolition of Ray Bradbury's former home have gone viral over the last day or two, with many news outlets and bloggers picking up on the original reports which appeared on File770. The news reports have resulted in hundreds of comments, some of them motivated by sadness, anger or disbelief. The architect Thom Mayne - reportedly the purchaser of the house on Cheviot Drive, Los Angeles - has been the target of some hostile reactions from Bradbury followers, but to my knowledge has not yet been drawn into commenting on reports of his plans and intentions.

Jon Eller - Bradbury's literary biographer, author of Becoming Ray Bradbury and Ray Bradbury Unbound, editor of The Collected Stories of Ray Bradbury, and director of the Center for Ray Bradbury Studies - has taken a more philosophical view on the demolition. According to KRCW's Design & Architecture blog, Eller believes that both Bradbury and Mayne are futurists, whose view of the transformative power of architecture show parallels. Eller hopes to draw Mayne into dialogue, so that the reported family-home construction planned to replace the Bradbury house will be in some way informed by Bradbury's legacy.

KRCW has recorded an interview with Jon Eller, and is planning to interview Thom Mayne. The Design & Architecture blog promises that these interviews will be heard in an upcoming episode.

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