The last episode of the New angle: voicean audio documentary series by the Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation (BWAF), celebrates Pride Month with a podcast about pioneering architect Amaza Lee Meredith, a 2009 Virginia African American Trailblazers honoree.
Meredith’s life, which included designing a summer destination for middle-class African Americans in Sag Harbor on Long Island’s East End in 1947, will soon be in the popular space. Actor Laurence Fishburne is producing a new HBOMax series based on Colson Whitehead’s novel, House Harbour.
BWAF Executive Director Cynthia Phifer Kracauer conceived and produced the audio documentaries with noted writer and editor, Alexandra Lange Ph.D., and acclaimed producer, Brandi Howell. The production team traveled to cities in Virginia, Charlottesville, Richmond, and Manassas to interview Baptist preachers and historians who document how Meredith founded a college department, taught art at Virginia State University (VSU), and more.
In 1947, Meredith enrolled at Teachers College in New York City. This time in New York influenced his work. The architect designed his home, which he shared with his partner, in the post-World War I German style known as the International Style.
Azurest South was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993, and National Historic Landmark status is pending. The architect’s work in Sag Harbor includes two residences, including his family’s cottage where Meredith’s drawing board could be found.
In Sag Harbor, Azurest North, which Meredith developed with her sister Maude Terry, is listed as of 2019 as part of the Sag Harbor Hills Historic District, Azurest and Ninevah Beach Subdivisions (SANS).
Meredith’s audio documentary can be found here.
