The San Francisco call., 1896-01-01
They Say That Competition for
Public: Buildings Is a
: : 81. Farce. -"
AN OPEN LETTER BY MR. KNoTH.
Method Suggested for the Proper
So. Management of These Contests. !.
: !: = A Legal Fight.

d11ea pIOIDy IoW ONGI anu
methods of procedure in appointing two
architects to prepare plans without calling
for designs. from Others: have. aroused
many Of the local architects to q, discussion
Of. the :old assertion that the present al-.
legged competitive system is a farce lit is
quite certain, too, that the. college conpe-
Triton shall be made a test case and thatit.
may: result in a reconstruction. by Legis-
lature ;of: the law on, architectural compe-
tition.:: =. =: - .-:. :
Is The: following statement IS presented
Through The CALL. byMr Knoth, of*Knoth,
& Behrpd, arehitects: .::: s. -: = :: l..
s. Gentlemen # think the. time is. about ripe
when the sui bject of architectural. eompeti-
=tien" should be openly and fully discussed by
the archite turaI fratern ity> The NATIVITY with
: which architectural competitions are adyer:
tlseq IS gettIn TOO and makes 81 lence
almost criIne:+ =: :. = -
+; : AT time when in Europe the: mos tsplendid1
results aret.o obtained by conSlderate competl-
/ tionl the reckless procedure. in this country,in
which pull, dishonesty: and:stupidity are: the
decisi We factors, causes only loss of time to the
hQnest architect; and what / consider "a crime
against holy spirit OF ART, the. discourage
ment of talent and genins. ~ - =: S.:
+ IN europe NO. architect: w0uld look at @ COM
/ peutlop.1tt not" at leastsoneeha ofthes judges
were chosen out of the architectural fraternity
and idfor- their services: -
L. Who: can. be a .:betterjudge of architectural
work than a n architect ?: - -.
:Wouldit not:be a farce to elect a butcher to
I; pass judgment on a medical: operation? How
less stupidity is 1t to elect brokers and other
people to pass -Judg nj. on:thngs ofWhlch.
@they have. not the slightest understanding 2:
/ nEurope no architect would deigH. to- accept
competition in which the premiums would be
less than 112per cent OF the proposed building.
!: sum = - '..*... 49,: :. J.: %: :
t. This would be al tthe: proposed Affiliated Col
l*leges com petition $4,000, and not $500. Here,
in our: blessed United States, where a. brick
layer earns: S5 per day: The architect, the mas
ter; m n who creates those: splendid struc-
lures, :Warks Tor: a.: poufboire:*. Besides see
THAT for partaklng In-:the Affilia ted Colleges
competitions a bond. Of: $4,000" is. Required.
What for? That:the plans are practicable and
can be executed. Well;ls there not.a commit
I tee to*act as iudge2 Either::thfs committee
+ can Judge plans--tha at is; seleGtthe good ones,
which are; practieable and can: be executed =
I and then the $4,000 bond is s:nOnsense, or the
committee cannot judge plans, and then the
I%committee is:nonsense. :::+r: = 80 go. =.
I..Y on vi wil1ask for a remedy: " Here it. is:
Choose a committee :on: competitions :out of
@the:arc hitectural fraternity This committee
Els to submit*to. any. corporation or persen in
+ tending a. competitions First--A real. .profes-
sional programme in which all necessary in
forma ton is given to the competing architect.
Second The prizes fer: the. best sketches,
f. proposed building sum. :Third.-The accept:
/ ance OF its 1co-opeEatien in: passing judgment
:on@the PLANS: :: :. !:
IF these propositions OF THE architectural.
I mlttee:: are. not accepted then let every
architect Withdraw from. such a acompetition:
:-@ The .splendor. and glory of European compe-
tition was as natural result of these. proposed
measures as THE misery OF our ompetitionS
resulted from i0bbery, @pull and dishonesty:
Let me ubmit as a.proof a few European. COM
petitions; with their prizes: Church IN Aachen.
cost.32Oi 600 marks, priZesfor sketches, IL 900
marks; Lutheran church in Breslau cost $50, ::
O00 ma rks, prlzeS for sketches, II, O00 marks;
I. .cout thouse in DuisblrgE cost 100000 marks
prizes for sketches, Is 600 marks; museum in
Hanover cost SOC, ,000: marks, prizes; for
Sketches: Is 900 marks; courthouse :at"Stutt-
CART cost j, 100000 marks prizes for Sketches,
27,Q00 marks: ;,s: .s..:: = :.
+ Some of the architects yesterday ex-
pressed their: :views.quite freely on the sub
ject. ~: i =: .: s: f.. +.
e.: i We made up my mind never togo into
a competition unless all the architects are
paid. said Swain '.I did go in for COM
petitions in: the past. but found them un-
satisfactory, chiefly because the selection
committee was incompetent or influenced
by pull: did go into one recently for
Mr.. Whittier house, ,:but the three archi-
tects in it: We're. paid, and L. got the: con-:
tract: :-:, -: - -.
0ItwouId go without saying: that the
committee ON selection shouldn be COM
.petitors, because the member would
likely: be prejudiced in favor of their own
work. But l don'tthink it at:all right 10
leave the selection to Iaymen..: A bout the
whole story is told in this open letter, that
/ 1t would be "a farce to elect butcher to-
1 pass Judgment on medical operation.'
:: sit is quite proper and very necessary to.
have a professional programme in conlpe-
titions. In: the case of the Affiliated Col
1egeS the greatest amount OF information
should be given to the architects so that
they might intelligentiy consider plans. L
know from experience when a draughts-
man working ~on plans for: the college
of agriculture of the university, that
there was vast amount of technical
knowledge required before the architect
was able to design the building properly.
*1t is not likely. that the architect would
have technical knowledge to build medi-
cal college or a laboratory Z Building and
hitting them. up requires years of study.
from doctors and chemists For ihustra-
ton, suppose man came to NE and said
Build me furnishing goods store.'* How
could l tell what he wanted? How design
shelves and drawers without full knowl-
edge and instruction from him? The
same thing applies to the colleges, and we
don't know anything about them.
+ "As | understand this college matter,
the regents employed two architects to
travel and get facts concerning most i'm
proved colleges and make q. report to the
board.
THE law provides that the contract shall
be open to competition, and when row
was made recently the regents advertised
for plans to be in by the middle of Janu-
ary. No human being could get plans in
by that time. :.
81 consider that prize of IL per cent
for the competition is fair. We generally
charge per cent of the proposed cost for
preliminary sketches; but in this case the
money has been distributed among num-
ber OF people, SO a per cent is probably
about right.
'I;beleve that the committee of archi-
tects chosen to act as judges should be al
lowed to cooperate with the regents, or
with other committees having control of
public buildings, IN passing Judgment on
the plans, because there are SO many tech
meal points involved about which nobody
but the architect knows anything.
1t is usually the case in competitions
| that the bigger the design or drawing sub
mltted the bigger the men intrusted with
selection Imagine it to be-
Bryan j. Clinch remarked that the agi-
tatlon for competent judges was an old
story Public architectural works ought
TO be judged by experts" said he.
The first condition of an intelligent
composition is that it should be conducted
by intelligent and competent Judges. Who
is to choose the judges? The Legislature,