Abraham Rogatnick passed away in Vancouver yesterday. Big respect to the man they call Abe, the man that studied under Walter Gropius at Harvard and did so much for Vancouver’s arts & architecture commuity. He was such a smart man with a gentle demeanor and cheeky wit. We were lucky enough to have spent a day with Abraham and he gave us the goods on the story of Modernism, believe me it goes deeper than you think. We shot over three hours of tape with Abe and will cherish every minute. Our thoughts go out to all that knew him along with a toast.
This video was shot after our interview with Abraham. Shot with my point and shoot still camera, Abe talks about how BC Binning moved away from a Southern Californian colour palette to a more appropriate North West palette. We already miss you Abe.
Abraham Rogatnick from Coast Modern on Vimeo.
Some of Binnings “California Colours”.
Abe was such a great, great person, so smart, so kind, and a relentless supporter of younger artists and architects. It’s so lucky for us that you managed to record him on film – and Julius Shulman too – before they died. Vancouver was so lucky to have Abe.
I think we need to start an official archive of these tapes. Precious, precious footage.
The good news is not only did you manage to record him in time, but that he was so alive, alert, and perceptive that you have captured an enduring legacy of the man. Thanks for sharing this excerpt.