She wasn't an architect, but she was beloved to many in the local design community and a steward of some of the city's most important architecture. Marjorie Bruckner Belluschi, widow of the great architect Pietro Belluschi, passed away in her home--the Burkes House that her husband designed--on February 24.
During World War II, she served for four years in the Women's Army Corps. A year after peace broke out in 1945, Marjorie went to work as a secretary at the Massachusetts Institute of Tenchology and was, five years later assigned to Pietro when he became dean of the school of architecture. It was another 14 years before they married in 1965, and in 1973 they moved from Boston to Portland.
As mentioned in a Sunday Oregonian obituary, Marge "was well known as a reference and resource to the many inquiries about Belluschi designs, buildings and projects. She often welcomed individuals and groups into her home for tours, discussions and meetings. She was generous in sharing her knowledge about the historic and anecdotal details of various Belluschi buildings."
I was one of those people. Last year when Marge and Pietro's grandson, Jeff Belluschi, brought me by the magnificent Burkes House, Marge was there to say hello and share a variety of stories about the home and its history, even though she wasn't in the best of health.
Memorial donations in Marjorie Belluschi's name may be made to the Pietro Belluschi Professorship at the University of Oregon. A lot of people have surely made contributions to the professorship in Pietro's name, and deservedly so. But I like the idea of a part of that endowment representing Marge as well.
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