Trailblazing architect missing from ITC’S story
When the State Board of Review approved the 2022 nomination of the Institute of Texan Cultures to the National Register of Historic Places, the focus was on its connection to the 1968 World’s Fair and its brutalist architecture.
But left out of the conversation is a significant part of its building’s story: one of the Mexican American architects who shaped it.
William “Willie” M. Peña is the trailblazer who helped design the Institute of Texan Cultures. While American museum architecture has long emulated ancient Greek and Roman temples, Peña’s design of the ITC building was unique, paying homage to Mesoamerican temples.
Peña, who died in 2018, was one of the most recognized Mexican American architects of the last century. His remarkable influence on postwar architecture and his status as one of a handful of prominent Mexican American architects in the 20th century is a story we should all know.
Peña’s story isn’t the only one missing. It’s estimated that less than 2% of sites on the National Register represent Latino history or heritage. The National Register of Historic Places, a federal program administered in our state by the Texas Historical Commission in coordination with the National Park Service, should represent the history of the American landscape, but it falls short in representing the many contributions Latinos have made to the American landscape.
Born in Laredo, Peña was a gifted student who earned a degree in architecture at Texas A&M University in 1942, joined the U.S. Army as a second lieutenant and began officer training at a time when college and officer school were out of reach for nearly all Mexican Americans.
He served in the military during some of World War II’S most infamous battles, including the Battle of the Bulge.
In 1945, while repairing a communication line, he stepped on a land mine and lost a leg. He received a Bronze Star, Purple Heart and the French Croix de Guerre.
Peña didn’t let that stop him. He returned to Texas A&M, earning an additional degree in architecture in 1948 and joining his professor, William Wayne Caudill, at Caudill Rowlett Scott, or CRS, an architectural firm.
CRS was initially known for designing schools. Its first school was a concept Peña created while he was Caudill’s student. Peña’s visionary work was vital to CRS’ success, leading the firm to become the nation’s largest architecture, engineering and construction corporation in the 1980s.
In the late 1940s, Mexican American architects were rare, but Peña flourished, becoming the fourth partner at CRS. He reportedly declined to add his name to Caudill Rowlett Scott to avoid making it longer, according to the National Register application in 1949, but the reality is that they were worried that adding a Spanish surname would put off potential clients.
By the time Peña retired in 1984, he had directed programming for more than 400 projects in 38 states and 10 countries. He also mentored younger architects and wrote and spoke about architectural practices across the globe.
His groundbreaking work on architectural programming, which focuses on designing a building based on the client’s need, was featured in architecture textbooks, including, “Problem Seeking: An Architectural Programming Primer,” which dubbed Peña the “the father of architectural programming.”
Peña’s contributions deserve acknowledgment and respect.