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Vann Molyvann dies at age 90 in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Vann Molyvann was a Cambodian architect. During the Sangkum Reastr Niyum regime (1955–1970) Prince Norodom Sihanoukenacted a development policy encompassing the whole kingdom with the construction of new towns, infrastructure and architecture. Vann was the foremost of a generation of architects who contributed to the unique style of architecture that emerged during this era and that has been coined New Khmer Architecture.

RIP. I seem to recall he was reported to have died earlier this year, but maybe I was thinking of the White Building or something. Was that one of his creations?

No, from de PPP: The recently demolished White Building was also built as part of his project to beautify the Tonle Bassac riverfront area, though he did not design it himself.

Vann Molyvann was a shining star for Cambodia and hopefully will be an example of talent and vision for the next generation. Sad that he was not appreciated enough in his lifetime, but that is often the case.

Molyvann was born in 1926 to poor parents. He studied in Phnom Penh before receiving a government grant to study in Paris in 1946.

http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/b ... em-reap-90
Even diminished, his legacy remains.

RIP.

He was a fine and creative man ...

... but he was born in the wrong kind of country at the wrong sort of time - his spectacular and grandiose Olympic Stadium was built at a time
when many provincial hospitals had no bed-frames, linen, drugs or surgical instruments.

Last tribute to Vann Molyvann.
1 October 2017
Vann Molyvann's cremation ceremony was held today at Siem Reap. Very moving.
May he RIP.






https://kohsantepheapdaily.com.kh/article/170685.html

Feature article on Molyvann's legacy in Phnom Penh, including some nice photos of his buildings and their location,from the Post Weekend:

The mark of a master: Revisiting Vann Molyvann’s Phnom Penh
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/post-weeke ... phnom-penh

Damn, I loved his work. Some of the most beautiful reinforced concrete buildings in the world. I always wondered how the Khmers managed to do this but read recently that Molyvann used Japanese construction companies to do his building.
I always regretted never meeting him, I thought he was a genius. I should have had a house design done by him in reinforced concrete, my game.

I hope they save those Art Deco villas in Kep. There is a few orgs that are trying.
There is also the National Bank of Cambodia in SHV down near Queenco, which is a beautiful Art Deco building.

Hommage to Vann Molyvann in yesterday's Guardian:

Vann Molyvann obituary
17 October 2017
Architect often described as ‘the man who built Cambodia’ and who transformed Phnom Penh into an elegant city
The architect Vann Molyvann, who has died aged 90, was often described as “the man who built Cambodia”. In the 1960s he transformed Cambodia’s capital, Phnom Penh, from a colonial backwater into one of the most beautiful and innovative of south-east Asian cities. Drawing inspiration from the ancient bas-reliefs and designs of the Angkor Wat temple complex, Vann’s style, which came to be known as New Khmer architecture, blended Khmer tradition with the modernist principles he had mastered during studies in Paris.

Full article: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesig ... n-obituary