![]() Williams worked his way through university and got a job as a draftsman. ‘Who ever heard of a Negro being an architect?’ he demanded.” But when he told his teacher of his plans, “he stared at me with as much astonishment as he would have displayed had I proposed a rocket flight to Mars. Williams recalled that even as a child he had “an instinctive interest in the design of buildings” and decided to become an architect while in high school. La Concha Motel in Las Vegas designed by architect Paul Revere Williams. There was nothing to warn me that coveted opportunities would be denied me because my face was black.” Las Vegas Park. “Nothing prepared me for the shock of the discovery that someday those children who then accepted me as one of themselves would learn to treat me with a strange admixture of patronage and contempt, intolerance and condescension. ![]() In an essay, “I Am a Negro,” published in American Magazine in 1937, Williams wrote that, as a child, he “played with white children without being conscious of the stigma attached to color. He was the only Black student in his elementary school, Luebbers said. “But they were very devoted to his education.” It’s not clear what the relationship was,” Luebbers said. He was taken in by a woman who was “variously called his foster mother or adoptive mother. Williams Project (), a collaboration of the University of Memphis, the Memphis chapter of the American Institute of Architects and the National Organization of Minority Architects. Williams was born in Los Angeles in 1894 and lost both of his parents to tuberculosis by the time he was 4, said Leslie Luebbers, project director of The Paul R. He created “a very diverse collection of buildings and really thoughtful plans that are far ahead of (his) time.” “He was a trailblazer in the architecture community,” said Dave Cornoyer, who has researched and written about Williams’ work in Las Vegas. Now 41 years after his death, Williams may not be a household name, but many of the homes, churches and other buildings he designed stand as testament to his impact here and in Southern California. (Erik Verduzco / Las Vegas Review-Journal) designed affordable bungalows for first-time homeowners and luxurious mansions for Southern California’s elite, though as a Black man he wouldn’t have been allowed to live in some of the neighborhoods where those mansions were built.Īrchitect Paul Revere Williams also designed some notable Las Vegas buildings and contributed to the valley’s historical landscape by creating homes for middle-class Black residents in the Historic Westside and Black workers in Henderson. Williams designed was the original designer of the hotel lobby. The result was a clientele of happy, wealthy, and powerful influencers who recommended him to their wealthy and powerful friends.The interior of the The Neon Museum, formerly the La Concha hotel lobby, in Las Vegas, on Tuesday, Feb. Because he had taken so many paths on his way to becoming an architect, Paul used his expanded knowledge of varied architectural styles and techniques. Williams didn’t have the luxury of imposing his style onto his clients. While a renowned White architect might present an idea with the attitude of “This is my creation, take it or leave it,” a Black man in a White world had to cater to his client’s wants to a much greater degree. Further helping Williams’ reputation was his client-centric approach to design. As a result, their mindset was such that they wanted to hire the best, and not be constrained by restrictions based on racism. Jewish stars were taking anglicized names (Al Jolson, Jack Benny, Cary Grant), and they too understood discrimination as they made inroads into the White Anglo power structure of Hollywood. Slowly, a changing social dynamic worked in Williams’ favor – Hollywood’s Golden Age was drawing a large Jewish population to Los Angeles and to the movie industry.
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