Founded in 1878, the Candoro Marble Company was the nation’s largest producer of Tennessee pink marble. The Company provided marble for the Smithsonian’s Museum of History and Technology and National Gallery of Art among other renowned buildings. The Candoro Marble Building was built in South Knoxville in 1923 to serve as the company’s showroom and offices. The building was designed in the Beaux Arts style by Charles Barber, with stonework by Alberto Milani of Carrara and ironwork by Samuel Yellin of Philadelphia. The Candoro Marble Building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1996. After being threatened with redevelopment in 2002, the building was saved by a group of preservationists. In 2014, the Aslan Foundation purchased the property with the intent to preserve this significant piece of Knoxville’s architectural history and commissioned Sanders Pace Architecture to provide architectural and historic preservation services.
The first step in the restoration process involved addressing issues with the building envelope. Three areas of focus were identified: the roof, the exterior masonry, and the windows. The roof was replaced immediately. During the replacement, termite damage was discovered that required framing repairs. Code compliant roof insulation was added, ensuring a cooler attic that will serve to prolong the life of the structure.
The second area of focus was the historic and iconic pink marble exterior. A local masonry contractor was hired to clean the exterior masonry using a solution approved through the National Park Service as part of its National Preservation Standards and Guidelines. Several passes were taken to remove years of pollution from the marble surface. The mason also repointed the entire building.
The third area of focus was the restoration of the original steel casement windows. Local craftsmen carefully removed loose paint and rust from the steel frames while Bird on the Wire Studios removed, catalogued, cleaned, and repaired the original bronze window hardware, recreating missing elements by using original components as templates. The windows were then set with period-appropriate glass, glazed, and painted using historical photos to identify the appropriate paint color. Since several original windows were missing, our team tracked down the original manufacturer and had the windows recreated. More information about the process is available through a blog on the Candoro Marble Building website, www.candoromarblebuilding.org.
In late 2020 it was announced that the Candoro Marble Building will be the new home of Tri-Star Arts. The non-profit organization now operates gallery exhibition programing and hosts four Knoxville-based artists in their subsidized-rent studios in the building. The gallery features multiple exhibitions each year with a local, state-wide, and national focus on contemporary visual art.
