September Meeting: The Post-War Legacy of Carl Kemm Loven, Phase 2

Join Architects League of Northern New Jersey on Wednesday, September 17 at the Coronet Showroom for ALNNJ’s September meeting, featuring Builder of Dreams, Phase Two: The Post-War Legacy of Carl Kemm Loven’s Residential Architecture presented by Xiomara Paredes, AIA, and Kathleen Walter.

Agenda

Social Hour: 6:00 – 7:00 PM
Dinner & Presentation: 7:00 PM

Course Description (1 LU Submitted)

This course explores the second phase of architect Carl Kemm Loven’s work, focusing on the post–World War II period through the early 1960s. As American residential architecture shifted toward more simplified and affordable home types, Loven responded with designs that balanced functional needs with distinctive features. Participants will learn how Loven transitioned from elaborate, storybook-style homes to Cape Cod and split-level houses, while still incorporating signature elements such as dovecotes, masonry details, and mixed materials. The presentation also emphasizes the importance of recognizing and preserving the architectural value of these homes as part of the region’s built history.

Speakers

Xiomara C. Paredes, AIA, is the Principal of Paredes-Grube Architecture in Glen Rock, New Jersey, and a Registered Architect in New York and New Jersey. As an undergraduate, she earned the Bachelor of Architecture in 1979 from the Universidad Central de Venezuela in Caracas. As a graduate student, she won the Thesis Prize and earned her Master of Architecture in 1983 from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

After ten years of experience at two northern New Jersey firms, Xiomara started her architectural practice in 1994 to focus on residential design. Her firm’s large portfolio demonstrates architectural solutions for older homes – including a number of original Karl Kemm Loven designs – where attention to period style and historic detail is combined with modern construction materials and technology.

Xiomara joined the Glen Rock Historical & Preservation Society in 2008 after learning about Loven in 2005 when she designed the renovation of and addition to his former home in Glen Rock. In 2009, she worked with the Glen Rock Historian to preserve and archive 345 sets of Loven’s drawings donated to the GRHPS. As the Archivist for the Loven collection, Xiomara continues to assist the GRHPS in locating and documenting remaining Loven homes in and around Bergen County. Her lectures aim to raise public awareness of Loven’s work with the goal of preserving these architectural gems.

Kathleen Walter earned her B.A. in Political Science and History from the University of Massachusetts and completed her M.A. in American History at Montclair State University. She has lived in Glen Rock since 1996 and has taught history at Glen Rock High School since 2007, succeeding longtime faculty member Al Deatte.

Before returning to the high school, Kathleen served as HSA President at Central School and contributed to local education programs such as Colonial Day and the Tick-Tock program. She developed curriculum projects like the “Glen Rock Heroes” program, engaging honors students in research that connects local residents’ stories to major events in American history, including World War II, Radio City Music Hall, the invention of the Magic Fingers Bed, and the Apollo missions.

Kathleen serves on the Board of Trustees of the Glen Rock Public Library and was appointed Borough Historian in 2024. Her husband, Kevin Walter, is active in the community as a recreation coach and president of the Glen Rock Fire Department.