The Architectural Research Group (ARG) was an association of mostly young architects in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, established in 1932 by

Louis Kahn Louis Isadore Kahn (born Itze-Leib Schmuilowsky; – March 17, 1974) was an Estonian-born American architect based in Philadelphia. After working in various capacities for several firms in Philadelphia, he founded his own atelier in 1935. Whi ...

and Dominique Berninger "for the group study of Housing and Slum Clearance." Berninger acted as its president during the whole of the group's brief existence, 1932 to 1935. Until 1932, both founders were employed by the Philadelphia firm of

Zantzinger, Borie & Medary Zantzinger, Borie and Medary was an American architecture firm that operated from 1905 to 1950 in Philadelphia. It specialized in institutional and civic projects. For most of its existence, the partners were Clarence C. Zantzinger, Charles Loui ...

, with Kahn working on their U.S. Department of Justice Building in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Its members were interested in the ideas of the European

avantgarde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or 'vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical D ...

and a populist social agenda.Louis Isadore Kahn (1901–1974) – Philadelphia Architects and Buildings
/ref> Uncommissioned, most of the ARG's significant project output was left unbuilt, including Kahn's public housing scheme submitted to the Public Works Administration. However, Kahn soon took a job with the Philadelphia City Planning Commission, while Berninger continued his practice with Carswell, Berninger & Bower."Questionnaire for Architects’ Roster and/or Register of Architects Qualified for Federal Public Work
"Dominique Berninger - G. Harold W. Haag - Paul d/Entremont (firm)"
June 25, 1946.

References

{{Louis Kahn Architecture organizations based in the United States Organizations established in 1932 Organizations disestablished in 1935