Join us for a public lecture by Richard (Rip) Rapson, the president and CEO of the Kresge Foundation in Detroit and the son of designer Ralph Rapson. Richard Rapson is the former president of the McKnight Foundation in Minneapolis. He was a legislative assistant to U.S. Rep. Don Fraser (MN) and served as Minneapolis’ deputy mayor. He was also named a senior fellow at the University of Minnesota’s Design Center for American Urban Studies.

Ralph Rapson (1914-2008) attended the Cranbrook Academy of Art. While there, he was greatly influenced by the work of Eliel Saarinen, as well as his fellow students, including Harry Bertoia, Eero Saarinen, Florence Schust Knoll, and Charles and Ray Eames. Ralph Rapson went on to become the dean of the School of Architecture at the University of Minnesota. Among his accomplishments are the designs of the Gutherie Theatre in Minneapolis, the U.S. embassies in Stockholm and Copenhagen, and the Rapson Rapid Rocker for Knoll Furniture. He received many awards, including a Gold Medal from the Minnesota Society of Architects, AIA/ACSA Topaz Medallion.

The lecture is free and open to the public.

When: Thursday, April 14, 2016, 5-6 p.m.

Where: Wayne State University, McGregor Memorial Conference Center, room J
495 Ferry Mall Detroit, Michigan 48202
Parking is available at the WSU Parking Structure 1, located at the corner of Cass and Palmer.

The Yamasaki Legacy Project is sponsored by the Irvin D. Reid Honors College at Wayne State University. The group’s mission is to celebrate the work of master architect Minoru Yamasaki (1912-86), who, in addition to designing buildings worldwide including the World Trade Center, designed four buildings and several reflecting pools on Wayne State’s campus. Visit us on the Web at http://yamasaki.wayne.edu/.