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OAS Celebrates Centennial of House of the Americas with Exhibit on Architect Paul Philippe Cret

The Organization of American States (OAS) will commemorate the Centennial of the House of the Americas, its headquarters building, with, among other events, an exhibit that will offer unique perspectives on the origin of a monumental architectural structure, including blueprints and sketches never before displayed in Washington, DC. The exhibit will be open to the public at the Art Museum of the Americas and the House of the Americas from April 29 to July 3.

The House of the Americas, previously the Building of the Pan American Union, is the location of the principal decision-making bodies of the OAS and the setting for various historical achievements in the scope of hemispheric cooperation. It was built in April 1910 with the objective of hosting political dialogue, the debate on the promotion of peace, unity and cooperation in our continent.

The Centennial celebration of the OAS building, at a time when the continent persists in its struggle to strengthen democracy and make progress toward development, will be an opportunity to renovate the commitment of the Organization with the principles of peace, democracy, justice and prosperity in the region. Also present is the ideal of contributing to the promotion of security, cooperation, friendship among peoples of the region, and respect for shared values, principles that are reflected in the rich structure of its headquarters building.

Throughout these one hundred years, the House of the Americas has been the setting of several of the most important political and economic events of the region. It served as the center of operations and planning of conferences, seminars and meetings of member states. Many presidents and prime ministers of the continent have delivered speeches in the Hall of the Americas before representatives of other nations, and it also has provided a framework for the signing of agreements and declarations that have impacted the lives of millions of people in the continent.

“This building has been witness to one hundred years of a history that involves millions of men and women in our continent. Here, in its halls, is where the great problems of our peoples have been debated, and are debated. It is therefore a silent witness to our successes and failures,” Secretary General Insulza said.

Architecturally, the building located at 17th Street and Constitution Avenue in Washington, DC, is a unique structure, and the first great project of the French-born architect Paul Philippe Cret, who brought together diverse cultural elements to create a harmonious whole, creating a distinctive feature in the urban landscape of the United States capital and launching his own reputation to international fame.

The exhibit, titled, “The House of the Americas Turns 100: Paul Philippe Cret and the Architecture of Dialogue,” which opens this Thursday, April 29, is a Collection of Cret’s original plans and drawings, as well as photographs and other two- and three-dimensional representations of the building. The exhibit, which begins in the House of the Americas and continues in the Art Museum of the Americas, displays a number of original artifacts, including documentation of all entries in the competition for the building’s design.

“This is a very distinctive building,” said Tom Mellins, an architectural historian and writer who is the curator of the exhibit. “This is a building with very much its own character. The way it relates to the other buildings in Washington I think on the one hand it stands out in terms of decorative motifs, its courtyard, but at the same time it’s very much of a good neighbor. It relates well to its surroundings, to the monumental architecture of Washington. It doesn’t call attention to itself at the expense of its neighbors and yet it is very distinctive.”

The commemoration of the 100 years of the House of the Americas is an opportunity to renovate the great commitments of the inter-American community, and in this context, the Secretary General of the OAS, José Miguel Insulza, has invited numerous personalities representative of the society of the Americas to a celebration on April 29.

For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-139/10