Paul Willen

WILLIAMSTOWN, VT – Paul Willen, 93, of the Gardens, and formerly of New York City and Westchester County, NY, passed away on Wednesday, February 2, 2022, at the Central Vermont Medical Center in Berlin, VT.

Born on August 29, 1928, in New York, NY, Paul Willen was the son of Joseph and Pearl (Larner) Willen. He attended elementary school in Larchmont, NY, then Ethical Culture School and Fieldston School in New York City. Paul graduated from Oberlin College in Oberlin, OH, in 1951 and earned an MA in Russian Studies from Columbia University in 1953. He later received a BA in Architecture from the Pratt Institute.

Paul made his home in New York City and Westchester County, NY, before moving to Williamstown, VT, in 2021.

Paul worked as a journalist with Radio Free Europe from 1953 to 1956 before realizing his true passion was architecture. Over his sixty-year career as an architect, Paul worked for Marcel Breuer and Associates, Conklin and Rossant, the Gruzen Partnership, and Daniel Pang and Associates. He was named a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects in 1994. He is best known as the architect and planner of Riverside South, the new neighborhood built along the banks of the Hudson River between 60th and 72nd Streets in New York. His other notable projects include the Trail Creek condominium development at Killington, VT, and the Shanghai Racquet Club in Shanghai, China.

Paul had other interests that he took very seriously. Music was profoundly important to him. In 2003, he wrote a paper linking the work of George Frideric Handel with contemporaneous developments in landscape architecture. Paul was also interested in art, and at the time of his death, was exploring landscapes in Renaissance painting. An enthusiastic skier, he always insisted on staying out until the last chair. Paul traveled all over the world and, in later life, took his grandchildren, grandnieces, and grandnephews on adventures everywhere from Washington, DC, to Venice, Italy. Every five years, Paul oversaw a multigenerational family reunion involving his cousins from all over the country. Paul often reminisced about skipping school to see Joe DiMaggio and the Yankees play in the 1941 World Series.

Survivors include his children Marija Willen (Walter Van Dorn) and Paul S. Willen (Emily Dolbear); four grandsons, Joseph Willen, Marco Willen, Max Van Dorn, and Charles Van Dorn; his sister, Deborah Meier; one niece and two nephews; and his partner of 25 years, Marie Madeleine Saphire.

A service to honor and celebrate his life will be held in the summer of 2022 in Hillsdale, NY, at the home of his sister, Deborah Meier.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Storm King Art Center, 1 Museum Road, New Windsor, NY 12553.