ABOUT CHARLES GOODMAN
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Charles M. Goodman, FAIA (1906–1992)
Charles Morton Goldman was born in November 26, 1906, in New York City, New York. He attended school at the University of Illinois from 1925-1928, and the Armor Institute’s School of Architecture, now part of Illinois Institute of Technology, where he graduated with a degree in architecture in 1934. Also around 1934, he changed his name from Goldman to Goodman, and moved to the Washington, DC, area. Goodman retired in 1986, and, on October 29, 1992, he died from lung cancer in Alexandria, VA, survived by his wife and daughter. Goodman started his professional career designing for the U.S. Public Buildings Administration, now the General Services Administration, then under the U.S. Department of the Treasury. He started private practice in 1946, and switched his primary focus from government structures to residential spaces. Goodman worked in the field of architecture for over 50 years and was influenced by the American modernist movement of the era. He is known for extensive use of glass facades and simple, functional spaces with flat or slightly pitched roofs, geometric shapes, natural settings, and open floor plans. Goodman would become a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (FAIA) and a prominent MCM visionary who’s designs span across the U.S., though most abundant in the Washington, DC, Maryland, Virginia (DMV) area. |
When Goodman began designing the community of Hollin Hills in the late 1940’s, he was already emerging as one of the most exciting architects of his generation — a tough-minded idealist who believed that postwar America needed a radical new approach to housing.
Calling Hollin Hills his “architectural laboratory,” Goodman threw out the traditional approach to suburban housing and began using open-plan layouts, walls of glass, unusual siting of homes into the land and other modernist innovations. He used light new designs and modular production techniques to make the houses affordable to everyone.
His aim, he said, was nothing less than “civilized architecture” that would allow people to live “as dignified human beings.”
Goodman’s ‘modernism for the people’ designs won numerous awards and tens of thousands of his houses were built across the country. His impact on American architecture “can scarcely be measured”, noted Richard Guy Wilson in The Making of Virginia Architecture. Yet Goodman’s work had fallen into obscurity by the time of his death in 1992, and his legacy remains relatively unknown.
Living Modern–Building Community will allow attendees to immerse themselves in the world of Charles Goodman. Attendees will see his work, framed within the larger mid-century modern movement; explore his techniques and innovations that arose from the time period; discuss issues of preservation and livability of his homes; and be afforded the opportunity to see his work firsthand, at the event venues and via tours of his neighborhoods.
Calling Hollin Hills his “architectural laboratory,” Goodman threw out the traditional approach to suburban housing and began using open-plan layouts, walls of glass, unusual siting of homes into the land and other modernist innovations. He used light new designs and modular production techniques to make the houses affordable to everyone.
His aim, he said, was nothing less than “civilized architecture” that would allow people to live “as dignified human beings.”
Goodman’s ‘modernism for the people’ designs won numerous awards and tens of thousands of his houses were built across the country. His impact on American architecture “can scarcely be measured”, noted Richard Guy Wilson in The Making of Virginia Architecture. Yet Goodman’s work had fallen into obscurity by the time of his death in 1992, and his legacy remains relatively unknown.
Living Modern–Building Community will allow attendees to immerse themselves in the world of Charles Goodman. Attendees will see his work, framed within the larger mid-century modern movement; explore his techniques and innovations that arose from the time period; discuss issues of preservation and livability of his homes; and be afforded the opportunity to see his work firsthand, at the event venues and via tours of his neighborhoods.
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Some of Goodman’s notable projects include:
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Source: AIA Virginia Record, July-August 1982. https://usmodernist.org/AIAVA/AIAVA-1982-07-08.pdf
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Some of Goodman’s awards include:
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Find out more on Goodman and his work:
- Hollin Hills Journal – https://hollinhillsjournal.com/the-architecture
- National Building Museum – https://www.nbm.org/charles-goodman-project/
- Library of Congress – https://www.loc.gov/search/?in=&q=%22charles+m.+goodman%22&new=true
- George Mason Special Collections Research Center – https://scrc.gmu.edu/
