With its proximity to the cultural hub of New York City and its quieter suburban and rural landscapes, Connecticut was fertile ground for artists and writers in the period of Modernist movements between 1913 and 1979. Many of these cultural figures are well known through biographical and critical studies. Creative Places seeks to show how place played a significant role in creative work, and how in turn the artists and writers influenced communities in Connecticut.
2626 Albany Avenue, West Hartford
- Beth El Temple of West Hartford
- Elbert Weinberg
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Monumental sculptural group by Weinberg located on the south lawn.
- Description of Significance/Historical Narrative
- The Beth El Temple sanctuary is significant as a modernist building design of the early 1960s by local architect Joseph E. Kane (who also designed the 1955 building). It represents a dramatic use of new technology, including concrete piers and laminated timber arches in a New Formalist style of modernism. The twelve-sided design also recalls the timeless imagery of domed places of worship of earlier periods.
- Date of Construction
- 1953, 1963 sanctuary
- Historic Designation(s)