Hawai‘i Preservation in Practice Training Seminar:
Identifying & Documenting Character-Defining Features
Historic Hawai‘i Foundation, in partnership with the Department of the Interior’s National Park Service, will offer a free seminar on identifying and documenting the character-defining features of historic properties.
Date: Wednesday, October 26, 2022
Time: 10:00 – 11:30 a.m. HST
Cost: Free
Virtual Webinar via ZOOM
VIEW THE VIDEO REPLAY AND PRESENTATION BELOW
Additional Resources
Click on the image at left to view the Seminar PowerPoint. See slide 70 for additional resources.
Click the image above to view the ILLUSTRATED GLOSSARY OF ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS OF STYLE
Based on American Architecture, an Illustrated Encyclopedia, by Cyril M. Harris.
“If eyes are the windows to our souls,
then windows are the eyes into the soul of a house.”
~ Rose Tarlow
The seminar provides training to members of the public, private or government sectors who own, manage, steward or are interested in preserving historic buildings, structures, objects, sites and districts.
Identifying & Documenting Character-Defining Features
Date: Wednesday, October 26, 2022
Time: 10:00 – 11:30 a.m.
This seminar has been approved for certificate maintenance credits through the American Planning Association (AICP) and the American Institute of Architects (AIA).
ABOUT THE COURSE
Every historic property is unique, with its own identity and its distinctive character. “Character” refers to all those visual aspects and physical features that comprise the appearance of every historic building, structure, object, site and district. Character-defining elements include the overall shape of the building, its materials, craftsmanship, decorative details, interior spaces and features, as well as the various aspects of its site and environment.
This seminar will illustrate through presentation and example, a methodology that can be used to identify those materials, features and spaces that contribute to the visual character of a building. These “character-defining features” then form the basis of the preservation plan and selected treatments. Regional styles and adaptions specific to Hawai‘i will be highlighted.
Course content will include an overview of the three-step process to identify visual character based on the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties, which are the national standards that promote best preservation principles.
Through the training attendees will learn:
• The different types of character-defining features;
• Assessment of the character-defining features of a historic property based on the Secretary of the Interiors Standards;
• Best practices to identify the overall visual aspects of a building;
• Assessment of visual character at close range;
• Assessment of the visual character of interior spaces, features and finishes;
• Documentation methods including the Architectural Character Checklist for use when assessing historic properties;
• How to incorporate assessment and documentation into a preservation plan and select appropriate treatments.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
• Public, private and nonprofit entities that own or manage historic and potentially historic properties in Hawai‘i;
• Government agencies and elected officials responsible for the protection of historic properties;
• Design professionals, including planners, architects, engineers, landscape architects, historians and architectural historians;
• Community organizations or individuals with stewardship responsibilities for historic properties;
• Other members of the public or organizations interested in preserving historic sites.
PRESENTERS
Dr. Elaine Jackson-Retondo, Region Preservation Partnerships and History Programs Manager, Interior Regions 8, 9, 10 and 12 in the National Park Service Pacific West Regional Office, earned her Doctorate in Architectural History and Masters of Architecture from the University of California, Berkeley and her Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana. She has worked in the National Park Service since 2002.
Jackson-Retondo’s current and past work has included the National Park Service’s American Latino Heritage Initiative, Asian American Pacific Islander Initiative, Japanese American confinement during World War II, Cesar Chavez and the Farm-worker Movement, the National Park Service’s Mission 66 Program, and 19th century carceral institutional landscapes.
Kiersten Faulkner is the chief executive of Historic Hawai‘i Foundation and oversees all aspects of its preservation programs, strategic planning, business lines and operational matters. She holds a Master of Arts in Urban and Environmental Policy from Tufts University and is a member of the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Certified Planners (FAICP).