Faculty publishes "Between Elastic Modernism and Iconic Simplicity" in Docomomo_us
November 9, 2025
BY Emily capdeville
Andrew M. Liles, Instructor in Architecture, has published a new article with docomomo_us’ Special Issue: Places of Worship, Volume 2 titled “Between Elastic Modernism and Iconic Simplicity” in which he parses the divergent paths of two mid-century modernist New Orleans chapels.
Liles explores the concept of “architectural elasticity” via a comparison of two Mainline Protestant churches near the campus of Tulane University—the Chapel of the Holy Spirit and the NOLA Wesley Campus Center. Liles is especially interested in the divergent reinventions of these campus ministries as they’ve evolved–or not–over time. He notes that the chapels, “built within four blocks and ten years of each other, demonstrate what it looks like for a religious structure to stay and another to adapt.”
Through an examination of historical and social pressures and changes, Liles examines how the current state of the buildings, along with the practices that take place within them, demonstrate adaptive strategies within the built environment. Work such as this highlights the ways in which New Orleans continues to serve as a vibrant site of investigation for the TuSABE community.
The full piece can is available on the Docomomo US website: “Between Elastic Modernism and Iconic Simplicity.”
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