Moderns That Matter

100 places that give Sarasota its character and distinct sense of place organized chronologically across 10 use categories.

7 Out-of-Door Academy

Established in 1924, The Out-Of-Door Academy college-preparatory school is the second oldest private school in Florida. www.oda.edu

33 Sarasota High School - 1960

“Through decades, many Sarasota High students and teachers have spent countless hours in these classrooms and halls. The library was located in this building, as well as the chorus and band rooms - where many lifelong friendships were formed.” Adapted from nomination by Mary McCurry

34 Sarasota Sailing Squadron - 1969

“Began in the 1930s, the Sarasota Sailing Squadron has been in its current location since 1953. A hub for sailing enthusiasts, the squadron symbolizes Sarasota’s maritime heritage.” Adapted from nomination by Leslie Townsend

45 Pei Dorms of New College of Florida - 1965

“An ancient Greek motif of the Four Winds inspires this brutalist landmark.” Adapted from nomination by Grant Balfour

65 Pine View School for the Gifted - 1992

“Pine View School was designed in a ‘U’ shape to be an open campus, allowing students to come and go freely with multiple entry points on campus…It was a design that was conducive to free thinking…Pine View’s campus provides exposure to Florida’s natural landscape and is conducive to students’ wellbeing and academic performance.” Adapted from nomination by Lauren Schinnow

85 Elling Eide Center - 2015

The Elling Eide Center is located on a 72-acre preserve along Sarasota Bay. The 17,000 square foot building houses the Eide Asian and American art collection and the Elling O. Eide Library with a large archive of Asian literature.

86 Alfred R. Goldstein Library - 2017

“The library creates a vibrant locus for learning at the heart of its expanding campus… Open and transparent, the library’s ground floor is a hub of activity, revealing the life within. A series of outdoor terraces on the upper floors offer views and vantage points of the campus…” www.sweetsparkman.com

96 Marie Selby Gardens - 2024 (1973)

“Founded in 1973, Marie Selby Botanical Gardens is the only botanical garden in the world dedicated to the display and study of epiphytic orchids, bromeliads, gasneriads, ferns, and other tropical plants. The downtown campus also creates and hosts rotating exhibitions of horticultural and garden displays some tied to works by well-known artists. Since the Gardens opened, the property has more than doubled in size. In 2024, a new Jean Goldstein Welcome Center opened, and the Living Energy Access Facility, that will house parking, a gift shop and a garden-level restaurant is near completion.” www.selby.org

7 Out-of-Door Academy

Established in 1924, The Out-Of-Door Academy college-preparatory school is the second oldest private school in Florida.  www.oda.edu 

444 Reid Street, Siesta Key

The Catherine Gavin Memorial Library - 1932

Theater Building - 1935-1936

Architect: Ralph Twitchell

The Library and Theater are rare examples of Ralph Twitchell’s environmentally sensitive work. Since the early 1930s, Twitchell explored the possibility of developing architecture more responsive to the geography and sub-tropical climate of Southern Florida’s Gulf Coast. Although relocated, these rustic buildings, situated amid native vegetation, continue to reflect the concept of architecture more integrated with its natural surroundings.

Image Courtesy: Out-of-Door Academy Archives

33 Sarasota High School - 1960

“Through decades, many Sarasota High students and teachers have spent countless hours in these classrooms and halls. The library was located in this building, as well as the chorus and band rooms - where many lifelong friendships were formed.” Adapted from nomination by Mary McCurry

Architect: Paul Rudolph

Restoration Architects: SOLSTICE Planning and Architecture; Harvard Jolly Architects

2155 South School Avenue, Sarasota (North-east of intersection of Bahia Vista Street and Tamiami Trail South)

“The second Sarasota High School was a move from clear form, from clear structure, from lineal structural elements defining space to the organization of planes in space. It depends much more on the space and the handling of light, which really meant planes rather than linear elements, which in turn commenced my inves- tigations into scale... I’m affected by everything I see. I make no bones about it. I haven’t invented anything in my life. For instance, the entrance to the Sarasota High School can be traced directly to Corbusier’s High Court Building in Chandigarh.” Paul Rudolph, quoted in John Wesley Cook’s Conversations with Architects, 1973, p. 95

Image Courtesy: Library of Congress

 

34 Sarasota Sailing Squadron - 1969

“Began in the 1930s, the Sarasota Sailing Squadron has been in its current location since 1953. A hub for sailing enthusiasts, the squadron symbolizes Sarasota’s maritime heritage.” Adapted from nomination by Leslie Townsend

Architect: Edward “Tim” Seibert

1717 Ken Thompson Parkway, City Island

Image Courtesy: www.marinas.com

45 Pei Dorms of New College of Florida - 1965

“An ancient Greek motif of the Four Winds inspires this brutalist landmark.” Adapted from nomination by Grant Balfour

Architect: Ieoh Ming Pei

I. M. Pei was among nine nationally and internationally known architects considered for the commission to develop a master plan for the newly formed college. Pei was known for his modernist architecture and educational and institutional design. New College’s Architect Selection Committee unanimously selected Pei in 1963. Architecture Sarasota Archives

In 2023, Architecture Sarasota coordinated with the New College of Florida on Reimagining Pei, a design competition devised to honor the unique work of renowned architect I.M. Pei by boldly transforming the iconic Pei Dormitories on New College’s East Campus. In the spirit of the process that originally awarded Pei the dorm design commission, this competition invited practicing architects to adaptively use the dorms through designs that now reflect the plans for recreation, entertainment, and athleics on the East Campus.

Image Courtesy: Architecture Sarasota Archives

65 Pine View School for the Gifted - 1992

“Pine View School was designed in a ‘U’ shape to be an open campus, allowing students to come and go freely with multiple entry points on campus…It was a design that was conducive to free thinking…Pine View’s campus provides exposure to Florida’s natural landscape and is conducive to students’ wellbeing and academic performance.” Adapted from nomination by Lauren Schinnow

Architects: Carl Abbott and W. Frizell

1 Python Path, Osprey

Image Courtesy: Carl Abbott, In/Formed by the Land (2013)

85 Elling Eide Center - 2015

The Elling Eide Center is located on a 72-acre preserve along Sarasota Bay. The 17,000 square foot building houses the Eide Asian and American art collection and the Elling O. Eide Library with a large archive of Asian literature.

Architect: Guy Peterson OFA

8000 South Tamiami Trail, Sarasota

Photo: Ryan Gamma Photography

86 Alfred R. Goldstein Library - 2017

“The library creates a vibrant locus for learning at the heart of its expanding campus… Open and transparent, the library’s ground floor is a hub of activity, revealing the life within. A series of outdoor terraces on the upper floors offer views and vantage points of the campus…”  www.sweetsparkman.com 

Architect: Shepley Bulfinch

Design and Construction Administration: Sweet Sparkman Architecture & Interiors

1228 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Sarasota

Photo: Jeremy Bittermann Photography / Estero Studios

96 Marie Selby Gardens - 2024 (1973)

“Founded in 1973, Marie Selby Botanical Gardens is the only botanical garden in the world dedicated to the display and study of epiphytic orchids, bromeliads, gasneriads, ferns, and other tropical plants. The downtown campus also creates and hosts rotating exhibitions of horticultural and garden displays some tied to works by well-known artists. Since the Gardens opened, the property has more than doubled in size. In 2024, a new Jean Goldstein Welcome Center opened, and the Living Energy Access Facility, that will house parking, a gift shop and a garden-level restaurant is near completion.”  www.selby.org 

Architects: Overland Partners

1534 Mound Street, Sarasota

Photo: Zachary Timmons