Leo
06-13-2003, 02:04 PM
Sad to say but our lot just improved.
Acclaimed architect stricken by spinal infection, paralysis
By: David Campbell , Staff Writer 06/13/2003
A misunderstanding with his medicines appears to have led to tragic consequences for Michael Graves.
Princeton architect and designer Michael Graves is permanently confined to a wheelchair following a severe spinal-cord infection.
According to published reports, Mr. Graves, 68, was stricken by a meningitis-like illness. But Caroline Hancock, director of communications for Michael Graves & Associates on Nassau Street, said that diagnosis seems less likely now.
"The further we get from the situation, the more it appears it was a spinal infection and possibly not meningitis," Ms. Hancock said. "We are only able to say it's a spinal infection that has resulted in this damage."
The spokeswoman said Mr. Graves has fully recovered from the medical illness, but is permanently paralyzed from the waist down and confined to a wheelchair. "It's seen as permanent damage," Ms. Hancock said.
The acclaimed architect and designer is undergoing physical therapy at the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation in West Orange, the same clinic actor Christopher Reeve went to after he was paralyzed in an equestrian accident in 1995.
Mr. Graves is expected to return to Princeton some time this summer from Kessler, where he has lived since April, and plans to conduct business in a nearby office space at 353 Nassau St., which is wheelchair-accessible by ramp and elevator, Ms. Hancock said.
The architect has resumed his design work, and plans to work with the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation in its mission, the spokeswoman said. The foundation seeks treatments and cures for paralysis resulting from spinal-cord injury and other central nervous system disorders, according to its Web site.
Mr. Graves contracted the illness in February while on a business trip in Germany. While abroad, what started as a sinus infection progressed into a virus causing permanent damage to the nerve cells in his spine due to a tragic misunderstanding with his prescription medicines.
The architect had been prescribed two different pills for the infection, a decongestant and an antibiotic. Thinking one was merely a refill for the other, Mr. Graves took daily doses from only one of the bottles - the decongestant - and the illness got progressively worse, Ms. Hancock said.
About five days after his return from Europe, Mr. Graves suffered extreme pain in his back and was taken to the emergency room of the University Medical Center at Princeton, where he experienced a growing numbness in his legs.
The next morning, paralysis had begun to set in, and the architect was transported to New York-Presbyterian Hospital, where he underwent treatments with antibiotics, the spokeswoman continued.
"He was a pretty ill man at the time," Ms. Hancock said. After about six weeks of treatment and recovery, Mr. Graves was moved to the Kessler Institute.
The spokeswoman said the architect's severe illness has been an ordeal for colleagues and staff at the Princeton office as well as for Mr. Graves, who she said is now able to work again and in good spirits given the circumstances.
"We've been dealing with it for a long time as the personal tragedy it is," Ms. Hancock said. "We've been through sadness and relief that he's alive, and relief that his spirits are good again, his mind is clear, and he is able to work."
Adjustments to his lifestyle and working habits will be made. For example, Mr. Graves' residence on Patton Avenue, a warehouse converted in the architect's unmistakable style, is being refitted for handicap accessibility, the spokeswoman said.
Mr. Graves plans to cut back on many lectures he gives annually all over the world, and plans to conduct business with clients in the new Princeton office rather than by traveling widely, which he did until now, she said.
Born in Indianapolis, Mr. Graves has been a force in American design for almost four decades. He has designed more than 200 buildings, including projects in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. He is an emeritus professor at Princeton University.
Some of his best known projects include The Humana Building in Louisville, Ky.; Disney corporate headquarters in Burbank, Calif.; and the Netherlands' Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport in The Hague.
His architectural practice, Michael Graves & Associates, has designed large-scale, mixed-use projects, office buildings, university buildings, libraries, museums, theaters, hotels, apartment buildings and houses. The firm designed the proposed expansion of The Arts Council of Princeton building.
He also has designed several hundred objects such as kitchen appliances, radios, televisions and telephones, many of which are sold by the Target discount chain.
Acclaimed architect stricken by spinal infection, paralysis
By: David Campbell , Staff Writer 06/13/2003
A misunderstanding with his medicines appears to have led to tragic consequences for Michael Graves.
Princeton architect and designer Michael Graves is permanently confined to a wheelchair following a severe spinal-cord infection.
According to published reports, Mr. Graves, 68, was stricken by a meningitis-like illness. But Caroline Hancock, director of communications for Michael Graves & Associates on Nassau Street, said that diagnosis seems less likely now.
"The further we get from the situation, the more it appears it was a spinal infection and possibly not meningitis," Ms. Hancock said. "We are only able to say it's a spinal infection that has resulted in this damage."
The spokeswoman said Mr. Graves has fully recovered from the medical illness, but is permanently paralyzed from the waist down and confined to a wheelchair. "It's seen as permanent damage," Ms. Hancock said.
The acclaimed architect and designer is undergoing physical therapy at the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation in West Orange, the same clinic actor Christopher Reeve went to after he was paralyzed in an equestrian accident in 1995.
Mr. Graves is expected to return to Princeton some time this summer from Kessler, where he has lived since April, and plans to conduct business in a nearby office space at 353 Nassau St., which is wheelchair-accessible by ramp and elevator, Ms. Hancock said.
The architect has resumed his design work, and plans to work with the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation in its mission, the spokeswoman said. The foundation seeks treatments and cures for paralysis resulting from spinal-cord injury and other central nervous system disorders, according to its Web site.
Mr. Graves contracted the illness in February while on a business trip in Germany. While abroad, what started as a sinus infection progressed into a virus causing permanent damage to the nerve cells in his spine due to a tragic misunderstanding with his prescription medicines.
The architect had been prescribed two different pills for the infection, a decongestant and an antibiotic. Thinking one was merely a refill for the other, Mr. Graves took daily doses from only one of the bottles - the decongestant - and the illness got progressively worse, Ms. Hancock said.
About five days after his return from Europe, Mr. Graves suffered extreme pain in his back and was taken to the emergency room of the University Medical Center at Princeton, where he experienced a growing numbness in his legs.
The next morning, paralysis had begun to set in, and the architect was transported to New York-Presbyterian Hospital, where he underwent treatments with antibiotics, the spokeswoman continued.
"He was a pretty ill man at the time," Ms. Hancock said. After about six weeks of treatment and recovery, Mr. Graves was moved to the Kessler Institute.
The spokeswoman said the architect's severe illness has been an ordeal for colleagues and staff at the Princeton office as well as for Mr. Graves, who she said is now able to work again and in good spirits given the circumstances.
"We've been dealing with it for a long time as the personal tragedy it is," Ms. Hancock said. "We've been through sadness and relief that he's alive, and relief that his spirits are good again, his mind is clear, and he is able to work."
Adjustments to his lifestyle and working habits will be made. For example, Mr. Graves' residence on Patton Avenue, a warehouse converted in the architect's unmistakable style, is being refitted for handicap accessibility, the spokeswoman said.
Mr. Graves plans to cut back on many lectures he gives annually all over the world, and plans to conduct business with clients in the new Princeton office rather than by traveling widely, which he did until now, she said.
Born in Indianapolis, Mr. Graves has been a force in American design for almost four decades. He has designed more than 200 buildings, including projects in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. He is an emeritus professor at Princeton University.
Some of his best known projects include The Humana Building in Louisville, Ky.; Disney corporate headquarters in Burbank, Calif.; and the Netherlands' Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport in The Hague.
His architectural practice, Michael Graves & Associates, has designed large-scale, mixed-use projects, office buildings, university buildings, libraries, museums, theaters, hotels, apartment buildings and houses. The firm designed the proposed expansion of The Arts Council of Princeton building.
He also has designed several hundred objects such as kitchen appliances, radios, televisions and telephones, many of which are sold by the Target discount chain.