In January 2016, the Rev. Dr. Mark Hargreaves arrived from London to become the new rector of St. James by-the-Sea Episcopal Church in La Jolla. He came with a long-standing interest in architecture and was delighted to discover that the original St James was designed by Irving J. Gill. Dr. Hargreaves became fascinated by the work of Gill, San Diego’s famous, proto-modernist, master architect. This interest led to the publication earlier this year of The Sacred Architecture of Irving J. Gill.

In this lecture Dr. Hargreaves will present Gill’s work in the broader context of the sacred architecture found throughout San Diego.  What makes this regional grouping unique is that the county has outstanding examples of sacred buildings representing every major movement in twentieth century architecture. In fact, one could illustrate the history of modern architecture solely with images of San Diego’s sacred buildings. Leading architects throughout the century designed buildings here of the highest quality. Some of these architects had national reputations, such as Irving J. Gill, Richard Neutra, and Charles Moore, while others, such as Robert Mosher and Rob Wellington Quigley, were locally based – but together they have created a wonderfully diverse collection of sacred architecture.

As Dr. Hargreaves has written: “All buildings speak to us in certain ways, whether they are sacred or not, but sacred buildings particularly are able to speak to the people who are inside … they are designed to communicate.” Join us when Dr. Hargreaves shares his insights into this important aspect of our built environment.

Our lecture will be held in the auditorium at the NewSchool of Architecture and Design at 1249 F Street in downtown San Diego.

Please arrive 10-15 minutes early for coffee, snacks, and catching up with old friends. The event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.  A $5 donation is requested.