Ascanio Damian 1914-2005

Architect, professor emeritus, Doctor Honoris Causa of the University of Architecture and Urbanism "Ion Mincu", rugby player, Ascanio Damian is one of the undisputed leading figures of Romanian architecture.

⁷⁷³⁸¹.

In 1943, he won first place for the architecture scholarship at the Fontenay aux Roses School, Paris, but the Second World War prevented him from going to study. During the war, he served in the Aero Pioneers regiment and then in the Passive Defense Command.

Like most of his classmates, he started working as early as college; from 1939 he was a technical draughtsman in various architectural offices. At the beginning, in Octav Doicescu's office, in Nicolae Cucu's office, then at the Romanian Railways. Between 1942-1944, he worked as a diplomatic architect, then as head of the Exhibition Service of the Ministry of Propaganda and ^Information2. Here he realized exhibitions both in the country and abroad.

Between 1948-1950, he worked at the Institute of Construction Design (I.P.C.), from where he moved to the Ministry of Foreign Trade - Chamber of Commerce of the R.S.R., where he worked until 1959. Under his leadership, the R.S.R.³ exhibitions were held in Vienna (1949, 1951, 1952), Poznan (1950), Leipzig (1950, 1952), Plovdiv (1950, 1952), Damascus (1956, 1957), Zagreb (1958), Paris (1959), Moscow (1961), etc.

In October 1945, he was appointed assistant at the Faculty of Architecture. He became a lecturer in 1952, teaching a course in general applied architecture. A 1945 report states that he was "honest, without vices. He has great self-confidence. Hard worker. Honest in his dealings with colleagues, but tactless. Well liked by his colleagues and students. Individualist"^4.

He showed a continuous interest in "the problems of education, its modernization, raising the level of standards"^5. These concerns were visible throughout his teaching career, particularly during his time as Dean (1956-1957) and then Rector of the Faculty of Architecture in Bucharest (1959-1971). He received the title of Professor Emeritus in 1969.

He was vice-president of the Union of Architects, a position from which he resigned in 1985, but he is famous for his 1987 gesture when he deposited his party card.

Achievements

Between 1942-1946 Ascanio Damian designed together with Nicolae Cucu the Gaef villa, Roma Street, and the Pronanoff villa, ^Popovici Alley6. He was part of the design team of such works as the "Gh. Gheorghiu-Dej" (APACA), Aerogara Băneasa - the administrative pavilion (1945-1948), Pavilion H (1949), the Casa Scânteii Polygraphic Combinatul Poligrafic - with a minimal contribution in the first design ^phase7 - (1950-1955), the central pavilion of the EREN Exhibition Complex, the current ROMEXPO (1959-1961), in collaboration with Mircea Enescu, V. Hariton, EREN Exhibition Park, in collaboration with V. Sebestyen, L. Staadecker, the Romanian Embassy in Warsaw (1952) in collaboration with Marcel Locar, Horia Maicu, Ludovic Staadeker, the prefecture of Drobeta Turnu-Severin (1972), in collaboration with C. ^Iurov8.

Ascanio Damian also participated and won various architectural ^{competitions9}.

Ascanio Damian Archive, Diploma project, 1942

NOTES:

1 The great majority of the documents presented come from the personal archive of the architect Ascanio Damian, which is opened for the first time to such an intervention. We thank the architect Marta Niculescu for her kindness.

2 Ascanio Damian - UAR membership card no. 269 of 30. XI. 1953, Romanian Union of Architects Archives.

3 Miruna Stroe, Ascanio Damian, trade fair designer extraordinaire, SITA, Indigenous Aliens, Mediators of Architectural Modernity, volume 2/2014.

4 Referat Damian Ascanio Ascanio, m.d.p. 1945, Union of Romanian Architects Archives.

5 "In recent years, noting some shortcomings of Soviet architecture (such as, for example, decorative excesses), comrade Damian Ascanio adopted a critical stance. Because of his theoretical shortcomings at that time, Dr. Damian extended his criticism beyond the real shortcomings of that architecture, to which he preferred some productions of Western architecture, distinguished by their particularly rational structure. As a result of his practical experience and his theoretical level, tov. Damian Ascanio overcame his confusions and came to understand and to appreciate justly the contribution and qualities of Soviet architecture, as well as the limits within which Western architecture can provide lessons for our architectural practice." Characterization on arch. conf. Damian Ascanio, January 22, 1959, Union of Romanian Architects Archives.

6 Andrei Bârsan, Dicționar al arhitecturii românești moderne (secolele XIX, XX, XXI) literele D-H, 2014, p. 9.

7 Excerpt from the list of works of Prof. Ascanio Damian, Romanian Union of Architects Archive, 1972.

8 Paul Constantin, Dicționar universal al arhitecților, Ed. Științifică și Enciclopedică, București, 1986, p. 83; Alexandru Panaitescu, De la Casa Scânteii la Casa Poporului. Patru decenii de arhitectură în București, 1945-1989, Ed. Simetria, Bucharest, p. 262.

9 We mention some competitions: the competition for a scholarship at the Fontenay aux Roses School, Paris (1942) and participation in the competition for the Aerogara Băneasa - the administrative premises (First Prize), housing for the employees of the former Titan Nădrag factory in Călan, First phase for the State Opera, Bucharest Exhibition Pavilion, Aerogara Otopeni competition, Housing workshops for artists (1972), Extract from the list of works by tov. prof. Ascanio Damian, Arhiva Uniunii Arhitecților din România, Ascanio Damian - fișa de membru UAR nr. 269 din 30. XI. 1953, Arhiva Uniunii Arhitecților din România.

Drawings from the Ascanio Damian archive