A number of people have asked about my father’s efforts to help his homeland during the liberation war of 1971. This is indeed an important part of his life so I have added a page – titled 1971: Bangladesh Liberation War – to my website http://drfazlurrkhan.com. The text is based on the section “Crisis in Bangladesh” in Engineering Architecture: The Vision of Fazlur R. Khan.
My thanks to everyone who asked about my father’s efforts.
FRK Collection
May 10, 2013
The Ryerson & Burnham Libraries at the Art Institute of Chicago started a Fazlur R. Khan Collection in 1992 when my mother donated some of my father’s papers and slides. There were still other files of his at home, and I looked through these as carefully as I could when I was working on Engineering Architecture. Now that the book is completed, I have decided to donate the rest of his papers so they can all be in one place. I will eventually also donate most of his slides (I want to sort through them and keep personal photos). The Collection does include some personal items, such as my father’s passport from the 1970s, to which a remarkable number of extension pages were added because of his extensive travel, a matted photo of a project given to him by Bruce Graham and signed “Another fine collaboration,” and the transcript of an oral history recording made by him in 1978.
“To Faz, Another fine collaboration,” Bruce” (this image is included in Engineering Architecture on page 255)
Construction’s Man of the Year
January 21, 2013
I have added the full text from Engineering News-Record‘s 1972 article about my father “Construction’s Man of the Year: Fazlur R. Khan” to my website dedicated to him (here is a link).
Cover of Engineering News-Record, February 10. 1972, Construction’s Man of the Year issue
It was during an interview for this article that he discussed his perspective on the role of engineering, saying “The technical man must not be lost in his own technology. He must be able to appreciate life, and life is art, drama, music and, most importantly, people.”
This memorial plaque for the lobby of Onterie Center in Chicago features my father’s statement from the ENR interview
Chicago visit
April 12, 2012
I was in Chicago for my father’s birthday, April 3, and was happy to see that the work at the cemetery has turned out nicely. The groundcover around my parents’ gravestone was very pretty in bloom (a bit more may still be planted on the sides) and the two stones, my parents’ and Bruce Graham’s memorial stone, look perfect together – like partners, each with their own personality.
This felt like a special year. March 27 was the 30th anniversary of my father’s passing.
Bruce Graham's memorial stone was placed next to my parents' gravestone at Graceland Cemetery in such a way that the two stones relate to each other
My parents' gravestone at Graceland Cemetery, April 2012
Fazlur Khan exhibition at Princeton
January 27, 2012
Here are a few photos from the exhibition about my father, “Fazlur Khan: Structural Artist of Urban Building Forms.”
Fazlur Khan exhibition at Princeton
August 31, 2011
The structures class at Princeton has put together an impressive web site to accompany the exhibit on my father and his work. This link is to the section I contributed, which will take you to the web site.
Fazlur R. Khan Distinguished Lecture Series
August 10, 2011
David Billington’s presentation on September 9 will also be the next lecture in the Fazlur R. Khan Distinguished Lecture Series. This series was established by Professor Dan Frangopol as part of the Fazlur Rahman Khan Endowed Chair of Structural Engineering and Architecture at Lehigh University (http://www.lehigh.edu/~infrk/).
Distinguished Lecture Series announcement
September 9 Exhibition Opening at Princeton
August 10, 2011
Last fall I visited Professors Maria Garlock and Sigrid Adriaenssens’s structures class at Princeton to talk about my father (I posted a few photos in March 2011). During the year the students built models of five of his high-rise designs and prepared for an exhibition about my father’s work in the engineering library. I am looking forward to attending the opening next month, which will include a lecture by Professor David Billington about his “Personal and Professional Recollections of Fazlur Khan.”
Engineering Architecture
July 21, 2011
I have just received the Korean translation of Engineering Architecture: The Vision of Fazlur R. Khan. It is a soft cover, and beautifully done.
Viewing the plaque
July 5, 2011
If you are interested in seeing the memorial plaque, it is possible to call the day care center and arrange for a tour. Be prepared for a little heartache, though. The mosaic, which was designed to be seen in a large space, now makes up one wall of a small classroom. And the dedication text cannot be read because strips of paper have been taped to it.
Yasmin Sabina Khan 