Recap: “Preservation vs. Performance” ICAA Panel in the Boiler Room
At the end of October we hosted our first Institute of Classical Architecture and Art (ICAA) of New England panel discussion, with principles able to speak freely and sometimes, with a penchant for drama and comedic timing. It was a great night. Here’s a recap.
We’re now in the double-digits concerning how many conversations—panels, presentations, just two people talking—we’ve hosted in the Boiler Room. Last month’s ICAA-NE three-person panel on “Preservation vs. Performance” struck a nerve unlike any before. This led to such an outpouring of requests for the recording that we fast-tracked it into our podcast feed as “Episode 16: ICAA ‘Preservation vs. Performance.” What’s impressive about this is that much of the subject matter revolved around insulation, windows, and HERS ratings—topics that could have been deadly technical in the wrong hands.
Baiting the panel, Kevin, acting as moderator, set the tone of the evening’s discussion with what he qualified as a “controversial” statement: “I truly believe it is better for a house if it’s not insulated at all.” ICAA New England board member Stephen Payne, founding partner of Payne | Bourchier Fine Builders, took the bait, eventually saying, “If it’s not comfortable to live in, then it’s not worth preserving.”
Nick Schiffer, founder/owner of NS Builders, riffed on Kevin’s sentiment, stating that “I think most homes—the way they are insulated—would be better off if they weren’t insulated.” Thus began a volley of back and forth that was sometimes heated, much of the time technical, but always rendered contextualized so it could be easily understood. Passions were tempered by the building science, allowing for a truly unique evening of discussion. The audience fell in line, engaging the panel even before they officially started with a question about our heckling policy, an inquiry lovingly posed, allowing for Kevin to recall that he once heard Steve’s version of heckling and realized, “This is my guy.”
Special thanks to Chapter Director Sarah MacDonald, along with President Nancy E. Berry. These women were a joy to work with and are invaluable ambassadors to the mission of New England’s Chapter of the ICAA. We are grateful for hosting the event and so very much look forward to the next one, in what’s feeling like an inevitable “part two.”
If you missed this, seek out the episode wherever you get your podcasts and subscribe to The KCB Boiler Room Podcast.
And for the record, Kevin loves insulation and uses it on all of our projects.
