Adopt an Artifact: Vlastimil Koubek Archive

Vlastimil Koubek, a Czechoslovakian modernist architect who designed more than one hundred buildings primarily in the Washington, D.C. metro region, immigrated to the United States in 1952. He initially worked as a draftsman at Emery, Roth & Sons and later in the U.S. Army’s Army Exhibit Unit. In 1957, he founded Koubek Architects. Over the next fifty years, the firm played a major role in shaping the built environment of the Washington region and contributed to a significant portion of the buildings constructed in the metropolitan core during that period.

In 2025, Koubek’s daughter, Jana, donated his complete professional archive to the National Building Museum. The collection includes photographs, rolled architectural drawings, and approximately 1,600 cubic feet of archival records from the firm’s offices.

Several of Koubek’s buildings remain highly recognizable to residents and visitors of the region. One of the firm’s first major commissions was 1701 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, a 13-story office building located steps from the White House that helped introduce modernist aesthetics into the city’s downtown during the 1960s. Koubek Architects further established its reputation with the Jefferson Building (1225 19th Street NW), the city’s first skyscraper with a column-free interior, and the Barlow Building (5454 Wisconsin Avenue), which was the tallest office building in Washington, D.C., at the time of its completion. Koubek also designed Baltimore’s USF&G Building, Maryland’s tallest building at the time, and a project he considered his personal masterpiece.

Koubek’s firm worked extensively with major national organizations and public institutions. His buildings have housed offices for the American Psychological Association and the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, as well as several municipal agencies, including the DC State Board of Education, the Office of the Attorney General, and the Office of Zoning. The archive provides extensive documentation of the design and construction of these buildings. Making Koubek’s archives accessible for research and public engagement, however, is a substantial undertaking. With more than 100,000 rolled drawings and an untold number of office records, the collection is now one of the largest held by the Museum.

While the materials were carefully preserved by Koubek’s family, they were not always stored in conditions ideal for long-term paper preservation. Many drawings have remained rolled for decades and have experienced environmental fluctuations that caused tearing, creasing, and deformation. Much of the documentation was stored in acidic folders and boxes, leading to yellowing and increasing brittleness. The archive also contains mixed media. Different types of paper and drafting materials can accelerate deterioration when stored in contact with one another. In addition, the entire collection must be organized, cataloged, and rehoused according to museum archival standards so it can be discovered and used by researchers.

Preserving and stabilizing these materials reflects a core responsibility of the Museum. Through professional archival practices and preservation science, the Museum works to ensure that these documents remain stable, legible, and accessible for future generations.

Help us preserve this history!

Click here to Adopt an Artifact and help protect this legacy.

By adopting the Koubek Collection, supporters play a vital role in this preservation effort. Contributions will help stabilize, catalog, and properly house these drawings and documents using archival materials and standards designed for long-term care. Koubek’s work shaped much of the Washington region’s modern built environment, and preserving his archive ensures that this history remains available for study, research, and public understanding.

The National Building Museum is home to the nation’s foremost archive of American architectural and design heritage. The Adopt an Artifact program allows you to directly support the proper care and preservation of objects with critical conservation needs, helping the Museum continue its mission to inspire curiosity about the world we design and build. To support this initiative, click here.