by Anthea M. Hartig
Remembering Lawrence and Anna Halprin
From Boom Spring 2016, Vol 6, No 1.
In the summer of 1966, dance pioneer Anna Halprin and her husband, landscape architect Lawrence Halprin, embarked on a series of experimental, experiential, cross-disciplinary workshops in northern California that blurred the boundaries of architecture, choreography, ecology, music, cinematography, and being itself. That summer, and again in 1968 and 1971, these “Experiments in Environment” brought together artists, dancers, musicians, filmmakers, architects, and environmental designers in provocative, pioneering experiences….
These images are selected from Experiments in Environment: The Halprin Workshops, 1966–1971, an exhibition at the California Historical Society, organized by the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts and the Architectural Archives of the University of Pennsylvania. The exhibition showcases the Halprins’ creative innovations with archival material—including original photographs, films, drawings, and scores—from workshops staged in the streets of San Francisco, on the slopes of Mount Tamalpais, and on the shores and cliffs of Sea Ranch, a coastal community designed by Lawrence.
Driftwood Village—Community, Sea Ranch, California. Experiments in Environment Workshop, July 6, 1968.
Driftwood City, Sea Ranch, California. Experiments in Environment Workshop, July 4, 1966. Pictured: (left to right) Lawrence Halprin, Anna Halprin, and architect Charles Moore.
Driftwood City, Sea Ranch, California. Experiments in Environment Workshop, July 4, 1966.
Ritual Group Drawing, Sea Ranch, California. Experiments in Environment Workshop, July 8, 1968.
Note
All images courtesy Lawrence Halprin Collection, the Architectural Archives, University of Pennsylvania.
