Features
The 25 – John B. Tittmann
The work of architect John B. Tittmann, which has been executed over the course of a career that spans nearly four decades, has made a significant contribution to the general revival of the classical style.
A founding partner at Boston-based Albert Righter & TittmannArchitects or ART, Tittmann worked with I.M. Pei in Paris; Allan Greenberg; Skidmore, Owings & Merrill; and Booth/Hansen & Associates before establishing his eponymous firm in 1991 and then ART in 1996.
Tittmann, who has bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Yale, also is an accomplished artist.
“Architecture is the one profession that gathers together all the things I like doing,” he says. “I like making things, and I like knowing how things are put together. I like making buildings and spaces for people to use. And I like art of all kinds. I like being part of expressing our identity as a culture, in all its wide range. I believe that architecture is a noble profession and essential to a healthy society.”
Classical styles, he says, continue to fascinate because they are “timeless and relevant to practice today” and pair well with contemporary technology.
“In our office, we have built Greek Revival houses that are net zero,” he says. “Though times change and technologies change, we humans are still human, and the need for artistic expression is constant.”
Architects, he adds, will play a key role in creating sustainable solutions in the face of climate change.
“Architects are desperately needed, since all the built world we live in is designed and drawn first,” he says. “The field of architecture requires many different kinds of minds and different points of view to address the challenges soon upon us. Our success will depend on a broadly educated and diverse profession.”
And that profession matters, he says, “because architects will harness technology to make a coherent world that is safe for us to live in.
