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He began his venture into preservation 40 years ago with a camera and hundreds of rolls of film. A group of Carpenter Gothic Victorian buildings was being razed in an urban renewal program in San Francisco. While the buildings were being torn down, he preserved them photographically.
Burden's first lesson in architectural salvage came as a result of that same urban renewal project, when he rescued the roof of an old Gothic church that stood in the path of the destruction. A self-styled PR blitz saved the roof and the effort was given a Special Commendation Award from the California Heritage Council.
The first project he designed as an architect involved converting an abandoned warehouse into an upscale nightclub, featuring all exposed materials and in interior atrium.
His first book was a self-published work: San Francisco's Wildflower: The Palace of Fine Arts. The book documented the story of Bernard Maybeck's masterpiece, which was built as a temporary structure, and then demolished decades later and reconstructed in permanent materials. The building was a monument of the highest order to preservation.
The first major published work as Living Barns: How to Find and Restore A Barn Of Your Own. Another book on renovation was Building Facades: Faces, Figures, and Ornamental Detail followed by Visionary Architecture: Unbuilt Works of the Imagination and the Illustrated Dictionary of Architecture, Second Edition.
Burden is a frequent speaker at conventions of the American Institute of Architects, the Society of Marketing Professional Services, and the Restoration and Renovation Conference. He also conducts workshops nationwide on professional services marketing and preservation techniques.
Library of Congress subject headings for this publication: Architecture Conservation and restoration Dictionaries, Historic buildings Conservation and restoration Dictionaries