Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

Collection is open to research.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Dorothy Alexander Architecture Collection, Ms2008-089, Special Collections, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Va.

Acquisition Information

The Dorothy Alexander Architecture Collection was donated to the IAWA here in Special Collections in 2008.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement and description of the Dorothy Alexander Collection began in October 2008 and was completed in December 2008. Additional materials were added in June 2012.

Biographical Information

Dorothy "Dusty" Baxter Alexander was educated at the McGill University Architectural School in Montreal. She started work for the architect, John Carl Warnecke in February, 1955. She later worked for the firm Wurster, Bernardi, and Emmons before starting her own firm in April of 1961. Her architectural credits include commercial remodelling for the Arriflex Corporation, Lowel-Light Manufacturing, Panavision and the Jack Tilton Gallery. She has also done restoration work on housing, as well as, designed houses and duplexes in the San Francisco area.

Alexander also works as a photographer. In 1981, Alexander became a staff photographer for Skyline, the magazine for the Institute for Architecture and Urban Studies. During the 1980s through the early 1990s, she worked as a photographer for The Writer's Voice, The Academy of American Poets, West Side Spirit, and the Toronto Globe & Mail. Since the late 1980s Alexander worked as a photographer for Oculus, the magazine for the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Alexander's photographs have been the subjects of numerous exhibitions in New York. They focus on urban landscapes, street portraits, and some abstract work. Her work is in the main collections at the Bibliotheque Nationale de Paris and the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC.

Scope and Content

The collection consists primarily of Alexander's works as an architect. This includes building plans and specifications for work done for the Arriflex Corporation, Lowel-Light Manufacturing, and the Jack Tilton Gallery, as well as many other projects. The collection also includes blueprints for building designed by Alexander while working for the architectural firms of Wurster, Bernardi, and Emmons Architects and James Baker and Peter Blake Architects. Other materials include a curriculum vitae, correspondence, and an article about Alexander published in the San Francisco Examiner.

Arrangement

The collection is separated into two series. Series I consists of biographical materials and drawings done by Dorothy Alexander as an independent architect. Series II consists of blueprints drawn by Dorothy Alexander while working for other firms. Drawings and other materials are arranged in chronological order.

Related Material

See also the Dorothy Alexander Photographs, 1974 (0.1 cu. ft.) in IAWA Small Collections Ms2009-054.

Index Terms

Subjects:

• International Archives of Women in Architecture (IAWA)

Adjunct Descriptive Data

See also the Dorothy Alexander Photographs, 1974 (0.1 cu. ft.) in IAWA Small Collections Ms2009-054.