If you grew up in Baton Rouge, you may recall your parents pointing out homes throughout the city made by a “Mr. Town.” For “The Enduring Architecture of A. Hays Town” curator Lauren Davis, this is exactly the case.
“For me to get a chance to delve into his work and learn more about him, why he did the things he did and just his love of South Louisiana, in particular,” Davis said. “I think that was really fun.”
The exhibit, which celebrates the work of the deceased southern architect, will run in Louisiana’s Old State Capitol until Sept. 5. Town’s style is recognized as a quintessential element in the architectural identity of Baton Rouge — with his professional portfolio of more than 1,000 buildings having a heavy concentration in the city, according to the exhibit.
The exhibit features a collection of personal items used by Town, himself, and loaned to the Old State Capitol by his granddaughter, Leslie Gladney, such as his personal art supply box and T-Square used for drafting. Also included are models built to exemplify Town’s style of architecture such a rustic fence made from Cypress wood and salvaged scraps of flooring.
Blueprints and paintings that Town created are on display and depict familiar buildings such as the Steele Burden Memorial Orangerie located at the LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens and the Phi Mu and Delta Delta Delta sorority houses on West Lakeshore Drive.
Also on display are photographs from “The Louisiana Houses of A. Hays Town” by Cyril E. Vetter with photography by Philip Gould — a book created to honor the legacy that Town’s left behind. The color photographs depict numerous homes designed by Town throughout the South, including his own home located off of Stanford Avenue.
Town is known for both his variety of commercial projects, and embracing the vernacular styles of South Louisiana in his residential designs.
His commercial work throughout the region ranges from one of the first modernists buildings in downtown Baton Rouge, the Union Federal Savings and Loan Association building (1956), to the more traditional Classical Revival style seen in First Baptist Church (1955) on Convention Street, according to the exhibit.
Town’s residential designs evolved from American Colonial and Georgian architectural styles to French Colonial and Acadian architecture — thus “Louisiana Colonial Revival” was born, according to the exhibit.
“He has a lot of traditional creole aspects to his work” Davis said. “Things you would have seen traditionally in houses built in the 18th and 19th century.”
These traditional Creole aspects include outdoor staircases, spacious porches, lots of shutters, french doors and a special emphasis on courtyards.
But, it was not just Town’s respect for southern tradition that put him on the radar — he happened to be the first architect to utilized saved portions of buildings and recycled material in his work.
“Because he did that, he created this special style that they call the ‘Town’ style,’” Davis said. “Now, everybody wants it.”
Over the span of his life, Town received many awards honoring his work as an architect, such as the Arthur Ross Award for preserving and advancing classical tradition and the very first Medal of Honor from the Louisiana Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.
You can reach Zoe Geauthreaux on Twitter @ZoeGeauthreaux.

Gallery • 5 Photos

Zoe Geauthreaux

A Faberge-style egg sits on display on Wednesday, July 29. 2015, in the Louisiana's Old State Capitol's exhibit on southern architect A. Hays Town, titled "The Enduring Architecture of A. Hays Town".