tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75338337699226971492024-02-17T20:31:21.632-05:00ArchiTalkA personal commentary on architecture in Boston and beyondTodd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.comBlogger104125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-44236096117901289712024-02-17T20:30:00.005-05:002024-02-17T20:30:34.370-05:00A Flower's Seasons<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdTImAuOOxitKc8XnkHD0QMSnQyjMFrurURXVSETVqlg5wUUB0wN-DxsOyuVjMTN42_IwnMST59G_XSm4es0QidLZKZMtm3F8ht6bUmsX3GmZk7o7W5Hahnr8uOpcV65Dwo8OoE4xQ9GNJkHxS6Lm5LuNTt5VIXwzLomBZgI9_jPpdDAlkgOzR5ZorJ8g/s494/Flower%20petals.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="304" data-original-width="494" height="394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdTImAuOOxitKc8XnkHD0QMSnQyjMFrurURXVSETVqlg5wUUB0wN-DxsOyuVjMTN42_IwnMST59G_XSm4es0QidLZKZMtm3F8ht6bUmsX3GmZk7o7W5Hahnr8uOpcV65Dwo8OoE4xQ9GNJkHxS6Lm5LuNTt5VIXwzLomBZgI9_jPpdDAlkgOzR5ZorJ8g/w640-h394/Flower%20petals.png" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">A flower's petal<br />Starts to settle<br />Early in the fall.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY-h0LGx1ACQriBzOHZofJwRH3OPp3HkSrXtKo2EKndOHgyw7K5TX3uJYc6BhpDJJTRNOMAUXXfAGmRs-GJpn6p6qgH86riqyjsOaqFfPg5WrONl1WJMmocfsMvtP3iHeEJEb0tWzmOxABEfBkwLEq7l_9WVcDwQAxE8YzPFuwI3NMZaEEAdRXms8snQ4/s373/Flower%20mud.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="248" data-original-width="373" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY-h0LGx1ACQriBzOHZofJwRH3OPp3HkSrXtKo2EKndOHgyw7K5TX3uJYc6BhpDJJTRNOMAUXXfAGmRs-GJpn6p6qgH86riqyjsOaqFfPg5WrONl1WJMmocfsMvtP3iHeEJEb0tWzmOxABEfBkwLEq7l_9WVcDwQAxE8YzPFuwI3NMZaEEAdRXms8snQ4/w640-h426/Flower%20mud.png" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">A flower's bud<br />Escapes the mud<br />With the robin's call.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoGAKeh1H5dqYuaYFdlmO9hMROMUU2vyqyuIwaUSc3KgOh2x_ju0tIeDjKsUmPOjR3zlavbJ3hydBdJL6Qn0uiqDK6luFMZtKIdtank5IH1YzNjtsQeICg-XEJFMsQnFkDOm3n-wPs_suyWCXuV6yCMldhyXE-xT0JJ8VkoNR3NJTr3GTkK-IXJBSa1iA/s238/Flowers%20sleeping.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="212" data-original-width="238" height="570" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoGAKeh1H5dqYuaYFdlmO9hMROMUU2vyqyuIwaUSc3KgOh2x_ju0tIeDjKsUmPOjR3zlavbJ3hydBdJL6Qn0uiqDK6luFMZtKIdtank5IH1YzNjtsQeICg-XEJFMsQnFkDOm3n-wPs_suyWCXuV6yCMldhyXE-xT0JJ8VkoNR3NJTr3GTkK-IXJBSa1iA/w640-h570/Flowers%20sleeping.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">A flower's blossom<br />Plays opossum<br />On a summer night.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtVj0iB18MWnX231paeQ3anRGWqfUeJW5nXtxXVUlv5DnHh0Eh6STXQbrT3bB5_ueifLHbyHuAVolyXjcJXRUaZ5yXRp6MZAJNIzMF8tZwDgt65Y10gdFCMGTO2baa7dNeN39oC8O1VC3oOizqgLXhq2JRAqVd73y0zFFkx-WYST68MuKjqON_yM7zH0Q/s1280/Flower%20pistils%20in%20winter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="853" data-original-width="1280" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtVj0iB18MWnX231paeQ3anRGWqfUeJW5nXtxXVUlv5DnHh0Eh6STXQbrT3bB5_ueifLHbyHuAVolyXjcJXRUaZ5yXRp6MZAJNIzMF8tZwDgt65Y10gdFCMGTO2baa7dNeN39oC8O1VC3oOizqgLXhq2JRAqVd73y0zFFkx-WYST68MuKjqON_yM7zH0Q/w640-h426/Flower%20pistils%20in%20winter.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">A flower's pistil</span><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;">Shines like crystal</span><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;">In the winter light.<br /><br /></span></span><b style="font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-size: large;">Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</span></i></b></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-3039381085927650782024-02-17T19:56:00.001-05:002024-02-17T19:56:29.331-05:00The turn in the road<p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGGElq0YnFlQFBCi_JfwePMRyd0PW6V9In8xymHI6ImgkEthbeTdBRUkg-n7xJweXb9Qu2Zp7hQgUHjyn896rnZaXCrJmxRH9Ib-ChcfojZmw4ZsYSvQqDbE43WiLrkpnBbDvLbhrDkbab3yFUBIyio-OThMoWLJb-fBj2rh2w2p__c1zn_wqcGfY5iRw/s3364/Turn%20in%20the%20Road%20by%20Paul%20Ce%CC%81zanne.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2778" data-original-width="3364" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGGElq0YnFlQFBCi_JfwePMRyd0PW6V9In8xymHI6ImgkEthbeTdBRUkg-n7xJweXb9Qu2Zp7hQgUHjyn896rnZaXCrJmxRH9Ib-ChcfojZmw4ZsYSvQqDbE43WiLrkpnBbDvLbhrDkbab3yFUBIyio-OThMoWLJb-fBj2rh2w2p__c1zn_wqcGfY5iRw/w400-h330/Turn%20in%20the%20Road%20by%20Paul%20Ce%CC%81zanne.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">This is my meditation on Paul Cézanne's 1881 painting "Turn in the Road" at Boston's Museum of Fine Arts. </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">It exemplifies Cézanne's passion for complex juxtapositions of diverse spaces and shapes that challenge our view of the world. For instance, the bend in the road leads us into a deep space while maintaining its simple flatness. </span><div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Enjoy.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The turn in the road signified community. Encompassing a pleasant peninsula of mature trees and mossy rocks in a gesture of sempiternal circular movement, it piqued my anticipation that a cul-de-sac lay ahead of it, one that forged a close-knit, friendly community among disparate dwellings with an embracing cloak of greenery. The <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DX3o1O8ZsTw" target="_blank">Creedence Clearwater Revival</a> classic blasting on my Bluetooth encapsulated my reverie immaculately:</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>You can ponder perpetual motion,</i></span></div></div></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Fix your mind on a crystal day,</i></span></div></div></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Always time for a good conversation,</i></span></div></div></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>There's an ear for what you say.</i></span></div></div></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Come on the risin' wind,</i></span></div></div></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>We're going up around the bend...</i></span></div></div></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote><div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">However, once I <i>was</i> up around the bend, the settlement ahead spoke a colder language. The bite in the air of the late April wind-chill factor and the diffusion of gray-white light from broken clouds seemed to intensify the cold shoulder that the high fence, the helter-skelter houses, and their tree-screened windows were turning toward me. All was quiet in the little village, but a silence of the unfriendly nature, as if the houses were disappearing into the rock of their surroundings and fossilizing the humanity they once contained within their stucco walls and clay-tiled roofs. Yet their three-dimensionality, popping out in all directions like crystalline rock shimmering in the sun, suggested that a livelihood lurked therein after all.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Questions crossed my mind: <i>Is this a gated community? Or can I enter freely? Does anyone there have any time for a good conversation? Could I offer one? Is there an ear for what I have to offer? Who lives there, anyway?</i></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJn1Q45rRpCZO0JavD1l5D6mj2PiXR8ladl5Nc48eWds9CKhP8o3jRRCKGOWVk5QzwIYye9_kV7Ndl9VpHyoDo9kM03vHU560e6hzpDgbBqSgNc_EJyeuKW7EK6kukFGDU67wLbNhFxibRN_YmltwVNH8Re-9TD-BgPtEN92V8EmU8lzXfqTgKtvJ6Vnc/s644/Man%20in%20a%20Room.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="644" data-original-width="461" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJn1Q45rRpCZO0JavD1l5D6mj2PiXR8ladl5Nc48eWds9CKhP8o3jRRCKGOWVk5QzwIYye9_kV7Ndl9VpHyoDo9kM03vHU560e6hzpDgbBqSgNc_EJyeuKW7EK6kukFGDU67wLbNhFxibRN_YmltwVNH8Re-9TD-BgPtEN92V8EmU8lzXfqTgKtvJ6Vnc/w286-h400/Man%20in%20a%20Room.jpg" width="286" /></a></div>Undaunted by the fence's lining of the road with the perpetual message of <i>rester en dehors, </i>I winded along, an end in sight for to see. It turned out that my perspective was distorted; the fence seemed to give way to an old dirt road that opened right up to the village, as if spreading a welcome mat yet warding off my entry with the intimation of poverty or decadence.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Since only one house was turning its door and windows my way, the brown terrain was leading right up to its entry, and it was open, that seemed like a logical place for me to begin to unravel the mystery of this village. I ventured inside. It was barren, with that just-moved-out look. The paucity of windows lent a cavernousness to the interior. Suddenly a figure stepped into the light the open door was granting to the foyer.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></span></div><div><div><p></p></div></div></div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-44381795074262273322022-06-23T11:26:00.022-04:002022-06-24T15:57:49.595-04:00Hidden history<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Sfoskett">Stephen Foskett</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">What is commonly called "the historic North End" and "Boston's oldest neighborhood" has been branded as such by virtue of its 17th-century origins, winding and narrow street patterns from those days, and tidbits of colonial antiquity sporadically spotted along the familiar Freedom Trail: the Paul Revere House (1680), the Pierce-Hichborn House (1711), St. Stephen's Church (1802-04, Charles Bulfinch), the Ebenezer Clough House (1715), Old North Church (1723, left), and </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Copp's Hill Burying Ground (1659-1850s). Those</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> are but fractions of what would have earned the North End true "historic" distinction had more of its Colonial, Federal and Victorian buildings survived as depicted in these 19th-century images before its turn-of-the-20th-century renewal changed its face forever.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Archival photos courtesy of the Boston Public Library.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Hanover Street, North End. Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Ingfbruno">Ingfbruno</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>).</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Largely rebuilt in brick to house extended Italian immigrant families as per updated building, fire and occupancy codes, the North End cannot be called "historic" i</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">n the Beacon Hill, South End or Back Bay sense. Yet a few more vestiges of its vintage than meet the sightseer's eye can be seen if you eye acutely as you blaze the Trail.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">First Universalist Church / Samaritan Hall</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_qSN60SxHQ1WW72vyH-vxgD_2kJxV8YBpuvXLrKZ5lPdy4Loe75ze8Q1LoPgnYPb55fujuFOTtluinQN0Ys1pxsuQQ2ppMvB2yiUGLqjzf6-Q-Z9jgjTTF9euzyPB277p9Ez5cD9noBc/s1600/First+Universalist+Church+332+Hanover+St..jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="459" height="446" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_qSN60SxHQ1WW72vyH-vxgD_2kJxV8YBpuvXLrKZ5lPdy4Loe75ze8Q1LoPgnYPb55fujuFOTtluinQN0Ys1pxsuQQ2ppMvB2yiUGLqjzf6-Q-Z9jgjTTF9euzyPB277p9Ez5cD9noBc/s640/First+Universalist+Church+332+Hanover+St..jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">As the coronavirus pandemic has swollen the new patients intake at the North End Waterfront Health clinic at 332 Hanover St., no doubt most of them have overlooked the rich history that the clinic's brick façade, Greek Revival form and vestigial cupola are very telling about. Built in 1838 for the congregation that originated when John Murray brought Universalism over to these shores from England and established a church in Gloucester, Massachusetts, in 1772, </span><br />
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<span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">350-352 Hanover Street</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxM7pic5z5uZwfvBeK1To6e_N_J1dCwmTz1StEkRJF82TacJ3xEu-uBRQXm-b5wrWMyXaT9ssmAcAyHETCzWH2Qi2EDGw0jdSC1-62NqdM7yOGlUNtKB9G0Qzjc9XqVHub-Ljx32IkZBk/s1600/20160704_191127-1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="1120" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxM7pic5z5uZwfvBeK1To6e_N_J1dCwmTz1StEkRJF82TacJ3xEu-uBRQXm-b5wrWMyXaT9ssmAcAyHETCzWH2Qi2EDGw0jdSC1-62NqdM7yOGlUNtKB9G0Qzjc9XqVHub-Ljx32IkZBk/s640/20160704_191127-1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjghdNlSmshWIkXQGT3JKPBBHctEcVhcgxInOx-gHHNkDXAVLalrqC373UydbNsxbdCZDkgtHUSooKYKCh_elM8Uc4MbhpEdRvfO-F1qel4aWnlozkfaiXsHM8PZecnMyiy_-EMmvK794A/s1600/20160704_191310.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="276" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjghdNlSmshWIkXQGT3JKPBBHctEcVhcgxInOx-gHHNkDXAVLalrqC373UydbNsxbdCZDkgtHUSooKYKCh_elM8Uc4MbhpEdRvfO-F1qel4aWnlozkfaiXsHM8PZecnMyiy_-EMmvK794A/s320/20160704_191310.jpg" width="157" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjxo1QQkiqJKXmXs5gyi4oJrlKFLTev-p-Sh8sFWdeIl9Y2Iam1OeJvISL0mF21UmInDpH8M_UcyxJIrNoMc5raKzZGSw3ouUWc6zdgA8WLZuN8llmiKuo684kwbBmujWMZ_FZrg-Mi7M/s1600/20160704_191212.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="261" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjxo1QQkiqJKXmXs5gyi4oJrlKFLTev-p-Sh8sFWdeIl9Y2Iam1OeJvISL0mF21UmInDpH8M_UcyxJIrNoMc5raKzZGSw3ouUWc6zdgA8WLZuN8llmiKuo684kwbBmujWMZ_FZrg-Mi7M/s320/20160704_191212.jpg" width="132" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">For starters: Behind these protruding storefronts—tacked on at an angle to their building to parallel Hanover Street—is an overlooked exemplar of early 18th-century brick construction in Boston, dating from about the time of the restored Clough House (below), and built according to an archaic street pattern predating Hanover Street's 19th-century widening. These close-up shots reveal construction techniques of that era: Flemish bond brickwork the peeling paint is exposing, and an S-tie securing an iron floor-joist rod to a side wall. (Speculation that Paul Revere was born here is unsubstantiated.)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Cockerel Hall</span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIIhFxcjZN0qnk6U2oo4zrL5592vsZg8iqIImOU-NHtJdZBN_ZKICK4YH5ABa0oBtRrpY95B26SZSQ-I6b-sv8tEu9khTjFXIWwU98XLVK3VbiOJzf8ZGYKRpsiSd9u4_Ujgrl-rmXp3s/s1600/Cockerel+%2528New+Brick%2529+Church.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="407" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIIhFxcjZN0qnk6U2oo4zrL5592vsZg8iqIImOU-NHtJdZBN_ZKICK4YH5ABa0oBtRrpY95B26SZSQ-I6b-sv8tEu9khTjFXIWwU98XLVK3VbiOJzf8ZGYKRpsiSd9u4_Ujgrl-rmXp3s/s320/Cockerel+%2528New+Brick%2529+Church.jpg" width="254" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtWCYcmiZCMpLQ8tnR_Rw2-ZLObbo2VmrxzsjR1MHLiAVPu6AfR1wqA4FIg1_r2E2hNHLJwY3pimPBdktWw2AiREF4p-S1ryKS2avBkd5ZD-9cTRdVCctTh0L017aVTforUUGMqUPQJhw/s1600/Cockerel+Weathervane.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtWCYcmiZCMpLQ8tnR_Rw2-ZLObbo2VmrxzsjR1MHLiAVPu6AfR1wqA4FIg1_r2E2hNHLJwY3pimPBdktWw2AiREF4p-S1ryKS2avBkd5ZD-9cTRdVCctTh0L017aVTforUUGMqUPQJhw/s200/Cockerel+Weathervane.jpg" width="133" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Across Hanover Street is Cockerel Hall, an 1870s Victorian Gothic building with a high mansard roof and a peaked corner tower honoring its historic site of the Cockerel Church, or New Brick Church (left). Built in 1721 by parishioners who had seceded from Rev. Peter Thacher's New North Meeting House, the Cockerel Church received its cognomen from its brass rooster weathervane (right) alluding to Peter's betrayal of Jesus as the cock crowed.<br /><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br />Cast by Shem Drowne, who created the banner vane for Old North Church and the grasshopper vane for Faneuil Hall, the cockerel vane now tops the First Church in Cambridge in Harvard Square. </span>The Cockerel Church was made most famous in Esther Forbes' novel <i>Johnny Tremain </i>as the parish where Johnny's silversmith master Ephraim Lapham was a deacon:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>He took his time blessing the meal. He was a deacon at the Cockerel Church and very pious... Of course, on Sunday the shop would be locked up all day, the furnace cold. Mr. Lapham would as always escort his household, dressed in Sunday best, to the Cockerel Church and after that back for a cold dinner. Whether they went again or not to afternoon meeting, the master left for each to decide. He himself always went... Johnny, Dove, and Dusty were apt to steal off for a swim, although Mr. Lapham had no idea of it. He thought they sat quietly at home and that Johnny read the Bible out loud to them. (pp. 8, 28)</i></span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #7f6000; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">5 Tileston Place</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJWgfMXpjiFb4zGIBR2G3z03vPJtcu72rVgZIQaOM-Xi1DF3QMZ_wuO5ciHGES5XnCTbND5BMp1HkmBVbWS8LGmEj0rIpWh1SN_6oWYtIsx93mVx4IUgzxOx8Qm7NxgwBvrGGId87ayOU/s1600/Tileston+Street+2.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="566" data-original-width="968" height="374" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJWgfMXpjiFb4zGIBR2G3z03vPJtcu72rVgZIQaOM-Xi1DF3QMZ_wuO5ciHGES5XnCTbND5BMp1HkmBVbWS8LGmEj0rIpWh1SN_6oWYtIsx93mVx4IUgzxOx8Qm7NxgwBvrGGId87ayOU/s640/Tileston+Street+2.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQPTBgoP1cmYNHsfJHE_pGKs8uy0IJjyxsBKZUH3dZ8Fr_TtJNw9K6bPtSkuOOq3lTK8u6aKHyNTCLwfb3KB6RmBapyVWfFyeWelch4PYSFeHf16_-bu2crLobQLNh7c_Msu544cjfpQE/s1600/5-Tileston-Pl-North-End-Boston-Home-cast-iron-gate-to-private-entrance.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="268" data-original-width="286" height="374" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQPTBgoP1cmYNHsfJHE_pGKs8uy0IJjyxsBKZUH3dZ8Fr_TtJNw9K6bPtSkuOOq3lTK8u6aKHyNTCLwfb3KB6RmBapyVWfFyeWelch4PYSFeHf16_-bu2crLobQLNh7c_Msu544cjfpQE/s400/5-Tileston-Pl-North-End-Boston-Home-cast-iron-gate-to-private-entrance.jpg" width="400" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">One narrow alleyway where Johnny Tremain and his fellow apprentices could have made a narrow escape to the harbor for a swim unseen by their master might have been Tileston Street. Originally Love Lane, it was renamed after John Tileston, director of the public North Writing School on the lane. </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Off the street through a fancily scrolled cast-iron gate is another of the North End's best-kept secrets from John and Johnny's era...</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhADzj-erY-6gQx3HFEOtWcS52S-puwve1hfFHAN7EU-RriaRv9b2DaUeNDb3pEbDrOPRX6Zb3rNXbExijYk-MiJAvB3B8qEW10mm5Nn3QHHmTKSfVoR4Nbmf9hsx8gTvOadl_PQOjioCo/s1600/5-Tileston-Pl-North-End-Boston-Home-access-by-walkway.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="210" data-original-width="136" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhADzj-erY-6gQx3HFEOtWcS52S-puwve1hfFHAN7EU-RriaRv9b2DaUeNDb3pEbDrOPRX6Zb3rNXbExijYk-MiJAvB3B8qEW10mm5Nn3QHHmTKSfVoR4Nbmf9hsx8gTvOadl_PQOjioCo/s320/5-Tileston-Pl-North-End-Boston-Home-access-by-walkway.jpg" width="206" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfA4YL8334NBSFxnZDpUSIwJwHNn0lDrPZ8j8yiR7wpFfzzTHqX22vd0Ca70YQGNdUlAIu0Rnpb0QCdWM7pJZ6054T00xu2DHcbxJzZSlDMvVf_YIPRVK3wV7tSBKy_MN-bjq0MSPwpro/s1600/5+Tileston+Place.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="225" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfA4YL8334NBSFxnZDpUSIwJwHNn0lDrPZ8j8yiR7wpFfzzTHqX22vd0Ca70YQGNdUlAIu0Rnpb0QCdWM7pJZ6054T00xu2DHcbxJzZSlDMvVf_YIPRVK3wV7tSBKy_MN-bjq0MSPwpro/s320/5+Tileston+Place.jpg" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...5 Tileston Place, a rare remnant of the North End's pre-code wood clapboard building phase, dating from the late 18th century. And its obscurity from the public eye was its saving grace: it narrowly escaped the mass demolition of several blocks to pave the way for the Paul Revere Mall (aka "the Prado") in the 1930s.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLGy2-156Sd9zWcVusXZBnUmFsLJpUQtbs9-19Rm7wwLbbUTEAXQxyCNNyq6E0h2mYgTKxuwPYT3DhxjH-1lhOKWzzR5_Tvn3FMtgY1N6UHhH2PK11YvVGqRnMkZyMi28AKq9bqFvKzXw/s1600/Hartt-House-Hull-St-2008-05-29-at-12-23-41.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1078" data-original-width="1600" height="134" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLGy2-156Sd9zWcVusXZBnUmFsLJpUQtbs9-19Rm7wwLbbUTEAXQxyCNNyq6E0h2mYgTKxuwPYT3DhxjH-1lhOKWzzR5_Tvn3FMtgY1N6UHhH2PK11YvVGqRnMkZyMi28AKq9bqFvKzXw/s200/Hartt-House-Hull-St-2008-05-29-at-12-23-41.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcWRaPXL9HVQxeXe9sp-DjG5vUGAd0xHS7pVMUsgyokHAQkyFvuMfNjzV8Gd8HBQudzJtAh5eJTRP5Y6tHOA8akFL7TQgslEWAviB-IYEveIe1KCI2vG-ougrbAacgIYZpvwNbcpn19Rw/s1600/Hart-House-Copps-Hill-Edmund-Hart-the-original-owner-built-the-ship-Constitution-2008-05-29-at-12-32-41.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1199" data-original-width="1600" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcWRaPXL9HVQxeXe9sp-DjG5vUGAd0xHS7pVMUsgyokHAQkyFvuMfNjzV8Gd8HBQudzJtAh5eJTRP5Y6tHOA8akFL7TQgslEWAviB-IYEveIe1KCI2vG-ougrbAacgIYZpvwNbcpn19Rw/s200/Hart-House-Copps-Hill-Edmund-Hart-the-original-owner-built-the-ship-Constitution-2008-05-29-at-12-32-41.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The house typifies the high gambrel and erratic ell extension of some 18th-century North End houses, including the long-gone Copp's Hill home of Edmund Hartt, builder of the <i>USS Constitution</i> ("Old Ironsides").</span><br />
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Mariners House</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4V4dDyKqT53rLNGzC7rPjEhPTZU4RRog9itX-LK99GrQH7x4Si3_7fCU7YSZR5Fmwpp7LD9AWdi_LZUdp8LGeU_mlTPmmLeqlubeE4sF1ASJzq-trCaIugMgczQbbwA1o7mNI_R6vOGw/s1600/Mariners%2527_House%252C_11_North_Square%252C_Boston%252C_Massachusetts+by+Beyond+My+Ken.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1360" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4V4dDyKqT53rLNGzC7rPjEhPTZU4RRog9itX-LK99GrQH7x4Si3_7fCU7YSZR5Fmwpp7LD9AWdi_LZUdp8LGeU_mlTPmmLeqlubeE4sF1ASJzq-trCaIugMgczQbbwA1o7mNI_R6vOGw/s400/Mariners%2527_House%252C_11_North_Square%252C_Boston%252C_Massachusetts+by+Beyond+My+Ken.jpg" width="338" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Mariner's House (1847), North Square. Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Beyond_My_Ken">Beyond My Ken</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Paul Revere and Pierce-Hichborn houses are such a draw in North Square that few notice Mariners House a few doors down. It was built by the Boston Port Society in 1847 in the Greek Revival simplicity of a flat brick facade with granite post-and-lintel first floor and crowned with an octagonal lookout cupola to watch for incoming sailors, whom the </span>Boston Seaman's Aid Society<span style="background-color: white;"> and Port Society chaplain </span>Father Edward Thompson Taylor would lodge there, room availability pending. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Today, <a href="http://www.marinershouse.org/">Mariners House</a> serves as an affordable hotel ($65-$110 per night, including full breakfast) for mariners on active duty or retired after 20 years of full service.</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Dearborn's Reminiscences of Boston</i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> (1851) described Mariners House as follows:</span><br />
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<i><span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This is a noble edifice of 4 stories, erected by the Boston Port Society, and leased to the Seamans' Aid Society : it contains 40 rooms over the basement story : the building is 40 feet square, with a wing extending 70 feet of three stories; in the basement is a storage room for seamens' luggage, kitchen; laundry and bathing room: in the wing, is a spacious dining hall for seating an hundred persons </span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">: it has a chapel for morning and evening services arid where social, religious meetings are held every Wednesday evening under the care of Rev. E. T. Taylor : a reading and news room, with a good library to which accessions are daily making; and a store for the sale of sailors' clothing: the building and land cost about $38,000, and it has been furnished at a cost of about $21,000, by the generous contributions of the Unitarian Churches of Boston and vicinity; a good supply of water is on the estate, and two force pumps supply each of the stories with hot or cold water, as required.</span></i></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Seamen's Bethel / Sacred Heart Italian Church</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiOWdnIegcjgxSYGc7w_Rs4G3f7RPlumsvUwV8RlZY8eSss9pRbqnIzMl-RK4VTUdXyuJPro0cHWsYXE6vr-eKC4c4kfJdnI20gGKFjxilHOr8QduAWZwKV4Imq2_35_Z6xd-zsaR89LU/s1600/Sacred+Heart+Church.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="270" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiOWdnIegcjgxSYGc7w_Rs4G3f7RPlumsvUwV8RlZY8eSss9pRbqnIzMl-RK4VTUdXyuJPro0cHWsYXE6vr-eKC4c4kfJdnI20gGKFjxilHOr8QduAWZwKV4Imq2_35_Z6xd-zsaR89LU/s400/Sacred+Heart+Church.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Across North Square is Sacred Heart Italian Church, built as Seamen's Bethel in 1833 by the Boston Port Society in this location so sailors would spot it as they docked at the wharves, as a lure to come and worship. "I set my bethel in North Square because I learned to set my net where the fish ran," said Father Taylor, its Methodist preacher. His guests included Charles Dickens, Jenny Lind, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Walt Whitman, and Herman Melville, for whom Father Taylor inspired the character of Rev. Mapple in <i>Moby Dick</i>. </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Following his death in 1871, Seamen's Bethel was acquired by the St. Mark Society, a Catholic Italian immigrant group, in 1884, rechristened Sacred Heart Italian Church in 1888, and reclad in the spirit of the Southern Italian basilicas of their home country in the mid-1920s. Below is Seamen's Bethel c.1860:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Skinny House / Spite House</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Rhododendrites">Rhododendrites</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Occupying the approximate site of Edmund Hartt's house (see above) on Hull Street by Copp's Hill Burying Ground is the Skinny House, aka the Spite House, which earned the distinction from both <i>The Boston Globe </i>and the Boston Landmarks Commission as "the narrowest house in Boston." And no wonder: it was built in the 1870s with a 10.4-foot-wide streetfront, tapering to 9.25 feet wide at the back. This yields lateral interior wall distances of 6.2 feet to 8.2 feet, only five inside doors, mostly floor-through spaces on the four levels (a rare instance of being simultaneously open-concept and closed-in), entrance through a side alley surpassing colonial standards in wiggle-room deficiency, and a decidedly "vertical life," as its 2005 owners told <i>The Boston Globe.</i> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Skinny House has been the stuff of lore regarding the rationale for its diminution. One legend has it that two brothers inherited land, and while one was in the service, the other built a house so big it left his brother with little land to build on. Miffed at this, the returning brother built the Skinny House to block his brother's light and views. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">According to another story reported by the <i>Globe </i>in 1997, an unidentified builder erected this sliver of a shanty </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">to obstruct light and air from the house of an ornery neighbor he was fighting with. Regardless of which story you buy, the Skinny House has been proven over time to be a good buy, by virtue of its open-concept spaces, its sale prices under $1 million so far (until the next sale, of course), its access to the best of Boston, and, above all, its place in history—Boston's and its own.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">St. Mary's Church</span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><br /></span></span>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">This piece of North End history is hidden from view in a different way than any of the above buildings. Read on and you'll see why.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">The Church of St. Mary of the Sacred Heart was built in 1877 in a subdued Romanesque design by Patrick Charles Keely, architect of many notable Catholic and Protestant churches in New England and beyond, including the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in the South End. Keely designed most of his churches to reflect the architectural character of their neighborhoods and the heritage of their parishioners. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">He fashioned St. Mary's in brick to blend with the predominantly brick residences in the neighborhood, and with just enough Romanesque trim and ornamentation to recall the Irish and Italian basilicas the residents remembered from their homelands. Thus the churches signified their sacredness, but in an inviting, not overbearing, way.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">Bereft of its baroque belfries following hurricane damage and tarnished in its trim from decades of dirt, St. Mary's looked like this when I came here with my boys' choir at the Cathedral Church of St. Paul in Boston in 1976 to record some music for a record we were going to make, but never finished. Our choirmaster, renowned organist Thomas Murray, chose this as our venue because he had recorded organ music by César Franck for the Nonesuch label on the church's famed Johnson & Son organ and thought highly of its acoustics. I vividly remember the words he spoke to us as we were about to enter, imparted with the solemnity of Ephraim Lapham and Father Taylor:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><i>This church is almost one hundred years old. But by the time you get back from camp, it won't be here. A lot has been done to it already. The pews have been removed. But the organ has been saved. It will be reinstalled in a church in Minnesota. Now I think you'll find the acoustics splendid in here. But I must tell you that every noise you make and every word you utter carries a long echo in this big space. So please go in quietly, and please show respect. This is a very sacred place.</i></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">Sacred, indeed! The relative simplicity (and sordidness) of the exterior hardly prepared me for the heavenly baroque extravaganza of Corinthian columns, springing arches, stained-glass windows, marble statues, intricate frescoes, polychrome trim, and innumerable other artistic articulations of God's creation that permeated the barrel-vaulted hall, culminating at the most richly adorned chancel I had ever seen. It seemed sacrilegious to reduce this masterful artistry to the dust from which man had crafted it as God had sculpted Adam and Eve out of the clay He had created. But, sure enough, the pews had been ripped out of the marble floor and piled at the sides, awaiting the Dumpster. And rubble and debris were scattered about—prompting some choirboys to capitalize on the acoustics by jettisoning pieces from our choirloft down into the sanctuary to hear gunshot booms report and reverb throughout the space as they struck the stone.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfVXvoTkiVyUt5Qg7VFqx-SGDVCmn37IdgUw1UdVxPQM92PsjpiYWHOeYpju8tlb1ksCv1JHYHw_4xPr5FmRE_Vu4pBpAfMxzfkul7ob1etQZOsJW9QPe2elJ8qmzBjM8AI__0HFJ3PgI/s1600/St.+Mary%2527s+altar%252C+1958.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1358" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfVXvoTkiVyUt5Qg7VFqx-SGDVCmn37IdgUw1UdVxPQM92PsjpiYWHOeYpju8tlb1ksCv1JHYHw_4xPr5FmRE_Vu4pBpAfMxzfkul7ob1etQZOsJW9QPe2elJ8qmzBjM8AI__0HFJ3PgI/s400/St.+Mary%2527s+altar%252C+1958.jpg" width="338" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">Uninclined to such shenanigans, I enjoyed the acoustics sensibly. I was stunned as we concluded our renditions of Gustav Holst's "Lullay my Liking" and Henry Purcell's "Rejoice in the Lord Alway," heard our harmonies fade to a whisper in that hallowed hollow of a hall, then paused in silence for six seconds before Mr. Murray said, "Cut"—which was also a cue for the kids to cut <i>up </i>with fake flatulence and other infantile tomfoolery. Despite </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">all that, there was something that forged perfect visual harmony with the sonority of our seraphic singing: the altar (right), an ornate display of angels, columns, arches, scrolls, and the Virgin Mary and Jesus, all painstakingly wrought by richly carved old-school craftsmanship. </span><div><div><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0e3cHC6M1Nyqj3nnkI4JqMR5xM92-0QfcxeN8U63CDL8LGMdVrKI3qS6agW3xE89hBfZhSgv_zBBMy4dgDbXnGE77fEN4jjvu6pI2s3e-M_pSL-WwnQ-oSMgxUD39brGSJ1Xp0v8vlqGz0MIgvZHbKtHwzR8RtceFfkRCoh3hqqZwBOi2vYMLf-46/s604/St.-Marys-Church-being-demolished-with-Christ-on-the-cross%201977.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="515" data-original-width="604" height="341" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0e3cHC6M1Nyqj3nnkI4JqMR5xM92-0QfcxeN8U63CDL8LGMdVrKI3qS6agW3xE89hBfZhSgv_zBBMy4dgDbXnGE77fEN4jjvu6pI2s3e-M_pSL-WwnQ-oSMgxUD39brGSJ1Xp0v8vlqGz0MIgvZHbKtHwzR8RtceFfkRCoh3hqqZwBOi2vYMLf-46/w400-h341/St.-Marys-Church-being-demolished-with-Christ-on-the-cross%201977.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Nobody seems to know what became of the altar when the church finally met its Maker in 1977, but one of my fellow choirboys reported that it had been "chopped up into ashtray-sized pieces," as this newspaper image of the church's demolition suggests. Which was shocking but not totally surprising, given the clergy's rush to tear it down ASAP before it could be landmarked. </span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3GheSyWPz5HCt7rnTFSpubNs6FgUYFIS2Wpd2gCJ5_wlBtoMrJ3EUclsmkdNF3W-1CH-c0cO_DNs5FgVK1WS0JZKfG1j3A9kkLKKQNSfvGOmlrNN9aaOlgRaSURRaOdikGYdCEJ1DryU8kxbYN2XuotFM0LZhZk8dy5uELMY8QgAmGI3mcrCCDyku/s595/St.-Marys-School-1962.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="408" data-original-width="595" height="274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3GheSyWPz5HCt7rnTFSpubNs6FgUYFIS2Wpd2gCJ5_wlBtoMrJ3EUclsmkdNF3W-1CH-c0cO_DNs5FgVK1WS0JZKfG1j3A9kkLKKQNSfvGOmlrNN9aaOlgRaSURRaOdikGYdCEJ1DryU8kxbYN2XuotFM0LZhZk8dy5uELMY8QgAmGI3mcrCCDyku/w400-h274/St.-Marys-School-1962.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>That cause, of course, was furthered when the newly formed Boston Landmarks Commission rejected the church's landmark designation by an 8-1 vote (the sole dissenter being noted preservationist and historian <a href="https://obituaries.newburyportnews.com/obituary/pauline-chase-harrell-772628851" target="_blank">Pauline Chase-Harrell</a>). </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">The reasons for the decision were mainly economic, as expressed by a local blogger – "Maintenance costs were prohibitive" – despite the very good condition the church was in at the time they started degrading its condition.</span></div><div><div><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwm3IkttUy9_zJD0NHlXpY94946tI7_P4-HozrUi-DBzuMGrH6fTZwZMTBUTNOjqXZpgq_yjcwPhUZdVsUkZKRaVLKu10GeKq3cxYhY8hwWTTCFO2A66P6XRkIipKVgNOUDeNj3tF3uLTKLXWDKQPCGwwXdjY-rhlI6A2KUnhbT8wedSryrB75g6OK/s952/St.%20Mary's%20site%202.png" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="437" data-original-width="952" height="294" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwm3IkttUy9_zJD0NHlXpY94946tI7_P4-HozrUi-DBzuMGrH6fTZwZMTBUTNOjqXZpgq_yjcwPhUZdVsUkZKRaVLKu10GeKq3cxYhY8hwWTTCFO2A66P6XRkIipKVgNOUDeNj3tF3uLTKLXWDKQPCGwwXdjY-rhlI6A2KUnhbT8wedSryrB75g6OK/w640-h294/St.%20Mary's%20site%202.png" width="640" /></a><br /></span></span><div><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This bland piece of housing sits on the site now, superficially blending with its neighborhood with the use of brick, forever erasing all memories of the magnificence of St. Mary's, which itself was but a tiny chapel "tucked into the corner of the ground floor of Casa Maria Apartments on Endicott Street," in <i>Boston Globe</i> columnist Kevin Cullen's words, until it closed in 2010, thoroughly obliterating all ghosts of the grandeur of its predecessor.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">More to come...</div></span></div></div></div></div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-31072810155836953992021-09-11T22:17:00.005-04:002021-09-12T14:36:22.447-04:00Twenty (and fifty) years after<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitA3GQSWR4rI2wPPpSYwE9hgQiK5I5_V-lferQ7FvHvFXVeGG-2pvYGbrDj1Kd-4DBblO6wLyrbhQq9WnoVBHUEVJhNUGAjBqET9CaECR9YeJv2bYVacabCnMlolDJlVIB1zecXPdx3Oc/w640-h480/Twin+Towers+9-11-2001+by+Evan+Giniger.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Attack of the World Trade Center, New York City, September 11, 2001. Photo by <a href="https://www.sarj.org/worldtrade/index.htm" target="_blank">Evan Giniger</a>.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhEpUioXIP31pwfAtesiuqZmKusEx09VBDXLCuRPitqbz5BYYAp9CIHCbOKV1kXMbsxV3EAm2R_i5RURV0OQvE13DedTv5FxeE-9yUn5Jtb7571gM16ay83ss0b36xtUwa0l1w8QZIxvk/s2048/September_17_2001%252C+U.S.+Navy+photo+by+Chief+Photographer%2527s+Mate+Eric+J.+Tilford.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1638" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhEpUioXIP31pwfAtesiuqZmKusEx09VBDXLCuRPitqbz5BYYAp9CIHCbOKV1kXMbsxV3EAm2R_i5RURV0OQvE13DedTv5FxeE-9yUn5Jtb7571gM16ay83ss0b36xtUwa0l1w8QZIxvk/w400-h320/September_17_2001%252C+U.S.+Navy+photo+by+Chief+Photographer%2527s+Mate+Eric+J.+Tilford.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122; text-align: start;">Remains of </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_World_Trade_Center" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); color: #0645ad; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" title="Six World Trade Center">6</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122; text-align: start;">, </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7_World_Trade_Center" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); color: #0645ad; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" title="7 World Trade Center">7</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122; text-align: start;">, and </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_World_Trade_Center#Original_building_(1971%E2%80%932001)" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); color: #0645ad; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" title="One World Trade Center">1</a><span class="nowrap" style="background-color: white; color: #202122; text-align: start; white-space: nowrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122; text-align: start;">WTC on September 17, 2001. <br /></span><span style="color: #202122;">U.S. Navy photo by Chief Photographer's Mate Eric J. Tilford.</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table>On this 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 devastation of New York's World Trade Center by terrorist-hijacked airplanes, I'm sure the minds of all who were around back then and not too young to remember that cataclysm that claimed 2,606 lives (plus 125 in the Pentagon attack and 44 in the diverted plane crash in Shanksville, Pa.) still explode with stories so diverse and numerous they'd fill all the gigabytes in all the digital archives in the world.</span><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8aji9jXRXanQ-YQBWU7yN1R5xcwrB18X6rb24nw16Omq-wFJg6zCF1dppKWscICfNxM5HN0vmlqXjCtswgJ_HWoxgRSipqi4kpM9XNT0zEqXegBF5Z2iF353HMtCdjpCCSZNEwhZeCzA/s1183/Wtc_burning_on_9-11+by+Ken+Walker.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="627" data-original-width="1183" height="341" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8aji9jXRXanQ-YQBWU7yN1R5xcwrB18X6rb24nw16Omq-wFJg6zCF1dppKWscICfNxM5HN0vmlqXjCtswgJ_HWoxgRSipqi4kpM9XNT0zEqXegBF5Z2iF353HMtCdjpCCSZNEwhZeCzA/w640-h341/Wtc_burning_on_9-11+by+Ken+Walker.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">September 11, 2001. Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/14481478@N00/13643978" target="_blank">WalkingGeek</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a>).</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBS59u53OVRDOgsmwXOPHJI-bUn3kumnaZyx2Br7WZSWUXDhMlMOek65ZCZv50UsVbcve2D5_frcRoISjXFmGZGLwBjCPTVNNYuW8ZbOZ9uewdNHo6lGrMZtTqR_o95gipZvr2umr2R-c/s2048/From_the_pier+by+NewAndrew.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBS59u53OVRDOgsmwXOPHJI-bUn3kumnaZyx2Br7WZSWUXDhMlMOek65ZCZv50UsVbcve2D5_frcRoISjXFmGZGLwBjCPTVNNYuW8ZbOZ9uewdNHo6lGrMZtTqR_o95gipZvr2umr2R-c/w400-h300/From_the_pier+by+NewAndrew.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">September 11, 2001, taken from a rooftop in Brooklyn and from the Brooklyn waterfront. <br />Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/37102902@N00/2085647726/" target="_blank">Andrew Lynch</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a>).</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Many (myself included) remember just where they were and what they were doing when the news hit them by TV, car radio, phone, Internet, word of mouth, etc. Which is not surprising; due to the advanced communication and information technology we were fortunate to have by then (and without which the passengers of Flight 93 wouldn't have been able to prevent their hijackers from doing more damage), the impact of this "shot heard [or seen or felt] 'round the world" was far more far-reaching, time-halting and panic-inducing than the others throughout history, including John F. Kennedy's 1963 assassination, the 1883 volcanic eruption on Krakatoa heard 3,000 miles away, and, of course, the initial musket-fire of the 1775 Battle of Lexington and Concord that gave rise to that locution in "Concord Hymn," Ralph Waldo Emerson's 1837 tribute to that historic start of the Revolutionary War.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVaKy5yvoFwRT0gOS-O9HZmJwz7SQIrc41v31AuPtkSKeSXNvZSQr3ol11yF9cPmELIlqTpPMYJ2M4F5osC_Hkz0oLDG4yyJKawEKSlHIeXEcZ7Ainr-GHDAtdIPwNzcgLDR7Gtw2Q1KA/s1149/Empire+and+WTC+lights.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1149" data-original-width="900" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVaKy5yvoFwRT0gOS-O9HZmJwz7SQIrc41v31AuPtkSKeSXNvZSQr3ol11yF9cPmELIlqTpPMYJ2M4F5osC_Hkz0oLDG4yyJKawEKSlHIeXEcZ7Ainr-GHDAtdIPwNzcgLDR7Gtw2Q1KA/w314-h400/Empire+and+WTC+lights.jpg" width="314" /></a></div>My history with the World Trade Center goes back a good 50 years when I lived in New York and was first learning, to my chagrin, that a new skyscraper project was going to cop the "World's Tallest" title from a building that made me proud to be a New Yorker as I gazed in awe at my bronze souvenir model of it. My treasure was emblazoned in bold block lettering on each side of its base as follows: on one side, "1,472 FEET"; on another, "WORLD'S TALLEST"; and on another, "EMPIRE STATE BUILDING." In fact, </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">that year (1971) my father decided to take my family to visit this prized icon of Superman single-bounding and King Kong colossus and gawk at its cityscape views before it lost its Royal Highness crown to the new World Trade Center the city was all abuzz about.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>To be continued...</i></span></div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-51286257853018127932021-08-18T14:57:00.000-04:002021-08-18T14:57:10.479-04:00Victorian foresight<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpWkXRBj37eJ5N4IRu-rCcztnxMVYdQvwtn637uImg6XhqLds0-694YXacHoEmYex9blQgVe-cq2J5_5r8UJjc_h03i6l83oMcE3moB8oPC1zT6CgP3g0QDxPvfAfdbr7U-WiqLYyaX9ya/w640-h480/House+%25231+ext..jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">A recent open-house tour with an architecture buff friend of mine who sought a Brookline, Massachusetts home for his relocating cousin, while getting his fill of Victorian grandeur for the week, was an eye-opener for me regarding how adaptable these 19th- and early-20th-century homes are to the demands of today's homebuyer—as if the Victorians sensed what future generations wanted all along. They certainly prefigured the form-follows-function modernism to come, as the exterior of this 1902 Queen Anne / Shingle Style hybrid shows. Its deep stoop-raised porch, large windows, bulging bay window, cantilevered second floor, and gabled roof truly reveal the vast generosity and quirky geometry of space and light inside.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR_lBhXgh-lOaPS5u927cQNaB7Ir-GT7aV0zmZjy8Te5n4qr2MQwpYR21c0hSrzXb-_vW3q8w2J9VnjGQIQSV8pySyjT6O0uVvdcSSYIAYDH9NA3c975pGgjz9ym8U20qhzaXbO4Rf4XCH/w640-h480/House+%25231+LR.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">This is what greets us the moment we step inside. The bay window seems to grow bigger and broader, expanding the space and light into an open-concept feel, supplemented by the oversized side window, both close to the floor-to-ceiling windows virtually every new skyscraper condo boasts. Wall-height bookcases flank the entrance, true to a Victorian wise-space-use tradition still widely practiced today. (This is despite ebooks and phone-reads being the new normal—but, hey, they're of no use for impressive housewarming or home-staging, because your household has to <i>appear</i> well-read, even if you've never touched those Dickens and Thackeray tomes on your shelf.)</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAUSYIH1S84wT9zRrJ-Z9TM-hV1U29IZXoN5240H64CIPd9Dn6lLkzjctQJctx9uvpdvg4th29QnNY-L2bRGvIvPFl_MpmI65LgXJ6-cu_SIqSftBq38twCDTguY8YP95aIhuv8npRS5Uv/w640-h480/House+%25231+DR+into+LR.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Victorians certainly conceived the beginnings of the taste for open concept that's prevalent in today's new construction. A wide doorway grants passage from the living room to the dining room, never letting dinner-party guests lose sight of the bay window that beckons them back when the feast is finished.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBqekvwRxIoZxQSsaomIoj-yzN3wkEqJoT3uw6rHQqRwcJCSrtbewvEDvMB1OdChN0nEcNZCY67F17ld-4m8q85eEeMCyI_g2FABJ9yRmH8sMg-ODzo1WtMBd_nOtVS4Fx_3HwYVsm45rg/w640-h480/House+%25231+DR.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Because of this open concept, the dining room offers ample elbow-room, as well as a fluid connection to the kitchen, once again showing Victorian foresight for the open floor plan today's homebuyers love. The first floor is actually on a traditional foursquare plan, with the foyer, living room, dining room and kitchen each constituting one "square," but all are interconnected and lead us back to square one (the foyer), for the easy navigation we crave today.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRGgZ7z_M9FQtawMxYduXIbq4D6aKrOdxcQ-BTnjdDgVcrBcpE7OPdYbMuIg4nkZN9JyJ86YBgBpOSFGwoCV7ogTyvq8hcOgQ6gDZvqlH_q3b2ISMq0PHrkv_IGEKzYjXFxlsF4y5BDgVC/w640-h480/House+%25231+bedroom+3.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">The cantilevering of the second floor provides for bedrooms that have not only the size but also the versatility we seek, allowing them to double as home offices for remote working.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9t88hON2__tsaBzxEAAE_ahThiiiv4p3Q27PvcNn35h0HUM7fs5H9Mhh_LqKcEiEk-wvapw8htQu-3rns5E0L_dTTqLwOtjDa6Khz9xiVoO-nsLHb0YcL_LdsOSXO8b8mPD8fic4bp6v3/w640-h480/House+%25231+bedroom+2.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Similarly, the breadth of the gable debunks the myth of the attic as a cramped, dark storage nook, providing instead two garrets for very sizable side-to-side bedrooms. This one reinvents the 19th-century tradition of built-in shelving or storage units below the gable-slant, as an entertainment center for a flat-screen TV, once again demonstrating how the Victorians thought of everything.<br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1T5AUtieNGFPZZ04FSr_txEqjgHX0V4yRA2hzqPmM3-UbHFc8xlMZuQ6pw_eJOpJqR5LuEhAuyfxkrsisw0fZlyssIcrldZiItFRakNbaQytumyZCRywlp6SEBRW_6fVQZolrJs0DbRvE/s2048/House+%25231+bath.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1T5AUtieNGFPZZ04FSr_txEqjgHX0V4yRA2hzqPmM3-UbHFc8xlMZuQ6pw_eJOpJqR5LuEhAuyfxkrsisw0fZlyssIcrldZiItFRakNbaQytumyZCRywlp6SEBRW_6fVQZolrJs0DbRvE/w480-h640/House+%25231+bath.jpeg" width="480" /></span></a></div><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">The more cramped spaces in the dormer gables offer their benefits, too, in the form of a cathedral touch in the primary bathroom. A soaking tub was made to fit gingerly in-between the dormer's side walls, and the soar of the gable provides breathing room during a bath, offering it the effect of coziness and cathedral-space simultaneously. The basketweave pattern of the marble-tile floor brings back some of the space's Victorian luster.<br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGExK7ZqkzK-omRLx9hEEo02vxmvR7pXPuROBneFLziqz-MO1yuJDkGy2ILJV3HNu91aQOSElbxtKkVrdtkNGrLx5jmAeCgz79io9D4QPiVcUeKqSuwnte8aaB5gBPwYfHzC1vFekFodZ5/w640-h480/House+%25231+basement+gym+1.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">The raised first floor and its stooped porch denote a substantial basement below, roomy and ready for renovation into the versatile home gym you see here...<br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGlFCAgKXxPT2O5c9SgBtMQ-FFnI1I6dEUs6NoFL0iGz7p_J5V-9AJMAbnEoAH4iOUGaE5h3CDPXOOzZL462lc9FiV-d7cqnzdj31Fq1w-A7igd5MuG1klU_g9A0Isqz8SYS3kpXXFu8GD/w640-h480/House+%25231+basement+gym+2.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">...with room to spare for a game room, complete with shelves that can accommodate a microwave, satisfying today's demand to make space in every space.<br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwOtH_Q2Qr9N6Ak4s6bBEbG8NEfjoh4591KE8Ph0uQZfHeZHbT-RpqgjtCIFAkb1DqYyJ5IXXTaoCGxvPJePAvphyphenhyphenYFykwrvVK-WUMCrkCy8c5vPL-q2IwB_0tUDzx8RJ2L2XP-SuL3Kkg/w640-h480/House+%25232+ext..jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">This second house on our tour was pre-Victorian, built in 1823, but later updated with a Victorian verandah and compatible interior details. It is known as the Joseph Sewall House, the 20th house built in Brookline and the second in what would become the town's Pill Hill historic district (so named because it was a doctors' mecca). A partner in the Boston-based Sewall & Tappan shipping company, Joseph was a progeny of Salem Witch Trial judge Capt. Samuel Sewall. After its 1970s condo conversion, its residents included novelist Gary K. Wolf, author of <i>Who Censored Roger Rabbit?, </i>the basis for the 1980s hit film <i>Who Framed Roger Rabbit? </i>Like its Victorian successors, this house was forward-looking in its use of oversized windows and large spaces, suitable for today's light-filled, flexible floor plans.<br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbsM4M2CKGKcfM5mK6oNXrVVkWaUz3t7I_gx84o6hlhadYHXghHRDK-JX6z36BweBNNxdjK-TtRR2uyQyugeJSKs9vQPKUFa5dNgfHpn-jXrKX2DJqBv2NdHoQx7nszdiISTDxzKmJTsKX/w640-h480/House+%25232+lobby.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Yet its condo chop-up ran its space into some roadblocks. Here the stair to the upper-level units is awkwardly placed, which causes its turned-baluster rail to run up against the wall and be denied its logical continuity (and safety provision) up the stair. But at least the sinuous double columns and the rosette-studded beam of this Victorian lobby decoration agreeably offset that flaw.<br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWxtlFV0tuGjRPuyFX1x894Q5IO-lYCSw9_bDa4pi-1FiNkPZJOJUlFVR6DIQnwaMex6g0S44oAOFCA-B0kqpWljBeBXr4Kho4v7kCIiiEvxrN9fwD9_lmHwCwtWdAZpCAbUGSRhZBMVG7/w640-h480/House+%25232+LR.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3sevsJ8p5-jAGQJap5Payt7ciIGKqUnYISA2NvZQli6Sm_Oe61rHLIOCLmCt3eXVCNpmSwTdp9Nb6JihQcnKCm99XgHKGq0lVDMGird5CURD3AJsf_2GAAIHvXUa-Y22qIfYwzovRPvlF/s1567/House+%25232+LR+fireplace+cropped.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1342" data-original-width="1567" height="343" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3sevsJ8p5-jAGQJap5Payt7ciIGKqUnYISA2NvZQli6Sm_Oe61rHLIOCLmCt3eXVCNpmSwTdp9Nb6JihQcnKCm99XgHKGq0lVDMGird5CURD3AJsf_2GAAIHvXUa-Y22qIfYwzovRPvlF/w400-h343/House+%25232+LR+fireplace+cropped.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">One of the building's original floor-to-ceiling windows—a prototype for what today's skyscraper condos call for—affords the living room generous light and an expanded sense of space, supplemented on a more intimate level by the original pocket-shuttered side windows that mark the home's Greek Revival period. The black marble fireplace mantel in-between the windows does the same, touting the era's emphasis on ornamental simplicity with its unadorned, unfluted Tuscan columns and simple central panel. Contrasting this is the bas-relief complexity of the cast-iron surround, apparently a Victorian addition, boasting side images of the Roman god Mercury with his snake-twined caduceus, a central bust of the Roman goddess Minerva, and geometric designs typical of Victorian leaded glass flanking her. But the Roman origins of the god images and the Tuscan columns are compatible across the styles and eras.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg89b8zO1IyNO-83LJSfnkAEwfOC7pjIL6pciqDD7MSvQ99Udh6-TbClZk9kYWVVY4RjDNgbnIS8oKyygUMuFjOXOQ_ZltnQYPnIEChPbs4IMrGO4NtgJFVWNAJ9MU2IAq28-af4BJtQO-T/w640-h480/House+%25232+kitchen.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The eat-in kitchen gets plenty of light from two original pocket-shuttered windows, but it certainly shows its '80s age with square terra cotta tile floor and backsplash, hump-paneled wood cabinetry and black-colored range, though the granite counters would still hold up today, in a fresher design context. (How curious that we call those styles "dated" but not the much older Victorian ones. Perhaps it's because of the artistry that was put into the latter, that we can still appreciate today, as opposed to the streamlined and fabricated way '80s décor like this was manufactured, which gives it a chintzy, commonplace look that's easy to tire of and replace with a contemporary style, hence call "dated.")</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5vzYngP1jxXC5TzNa4ErymWXXdR1FduG_S6x2LQrXrR7pRPzmFHFSChVyBqv99u2RZfAeP1PhkYJ0UtZsB6mWFCFXa6zdwcbf0EHnqTedpPSPovJTBSf4MKsfskoBYeBWBIFxLRwp19pc/s2048/House+%25232+BR.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5vzYngP1jxXC5TzNa4ErymWXXdR1FduG_S6x2LQrXrR7pRPzmFHFSChVyBqv99u2RZfAeP1PhkYJ0UtZsB6mWFCFXa6zdwcbf0EHnqTedpPSPovJTBSf4MKsfskoBYeBWBIFxLRwp19pc/w150-h200/House+%25232+BR.jpeg" width="150" /></span></a></div></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpLUk7V-naW11jDmZnKwiMMsiRgYVD21tqi4qx33L5CYgc_zuVsKg6G2vdDbuPMulvE5hm3zB1wULTeUNs5f8PO0qs9SggvDkhslfAw11Oye59pPcwadc16e4gyEqVRYqZz0-pJXeBL2sR/s2048/House+%25232+BR+2.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpLUk7V-naW11jDmZnKwiMMsiRgYVD21tqi4qx33L5CYgc_zuVsKg6G2vdDbuPMulvE5hm3zB1wULTeUNs5f8PO0qs9SggvDkhslfAw11Oye59pPcwadc16e4gyEqVRYqZz0-pJXeBL2sR/w200-h150/House+%25232+BR+2.jpeg" width="200" /></span></a><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The house's generous expanse of space allows this unit two sizable bedrooms, one strong on wall area (left), the other on light, courtesy of its two windows (right). Yet one wonders if the first bedroom's long wall space and singular window are out of proportion with each other, since they yield uncomfortable dark corners in the room. Still, the window is reasonably well placed to shed light on one corner for a workstation there.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw4XWhA9ZidIWdJCPoRGmiEZQyKzJCLlgeGh4VsKWKMMMOh8tKlSTY24HZeyD-_F5RWWrIjtsURgUQxaxl2QDZGJxbmcKrEOYgPB4Y4jYAgiL4V3A3ecY_07qBsRmGLaOVzn8wX2yr2V9T/s2048/House+%25232+bath.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw4XWhA9ZidIWdJCPoRGmiEZQyKzJCLlgeGh4VsKWKMMMOh8tKlSTY24HZeyD-_F5RWWrIjtsURgUQxaxl2QDZGJxbmcKrEOYgPB4Y4jYAgiL4V3A3ecY_07qBsRmGLaOVzn8wX2yr2V9T/w147-h197/House+%25232+bath.jpeg" width="147" /></span></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjawZaCQ93Ylz70WxTtdUbo4RIKX1b29TVLl8BKR5TCz-E6Ac84RBQLM-no9jWl-m7BPstShLBMa4V5rHlAWdtux1gc5xz5B7Phq1VXBp2VpWMUcM8ZzfCftgFfFwGtS_yAMnQ2PdeGRPEl/s768/House+%25232+bath+2.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="510" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjawZaCQ93Ylz70WxTtdUbo4RIKX1b29TVLl8BKR5TCz-E6Ac84RBQLM-no9jWl-m7BPstShLBMa4V5rHlAWdtux1gc5xz5B7Phq1VXBp2VpWMUcM8ZzfCftgFfFwGtS_yAMnQ2PdeGRPEl/w130-h195/House+%25232+bath+2.jpg" width="130" /></span></a></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The primary bathroom (left) makes the most of its constraining L shape, but its vertical-windowed alcove leaves little room for a tub substantial enough to soak in, except for bathing a child. A shower stall would have been best. Also, the bathroom's limited space forces the vanity to nearly bump up against the tub, making it vulnerable to water damage and leaving less egress for the bather. </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">The second bathroom (right) does better, fitting a sizable shower in its galley space and a just-big-enough all-porcelain pedestal sink that isn't susceptible to shower-spray damage.</span></div></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="1024" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyuHb_kFHMFtsQJ_Zf2NlZvRnBuC0NBxxPs117jUvg_NWqx7RIL2xHxvHYBKOGhz4_Rk84qycjBIWObgVIyxfTfoIsIuQKbCdFpuHZelPKL6njUaxyq78d80kra3iA5uO-HnOdvOgtgo-z/w640-h424/House+%25232+side+and+rear.jpg" width="640" /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Joseph Sewall House's broad front and side expanses and spacious ell addition certainly gave it space for multiple condo units, but its immense footprint hardly hints at the unevenness of the spaces inside, due to haphazard floor planning for the condo conversion. So, unlike the Queen Anne / Shingle Style house we saw, this one scores on historical preservation and significance but falls short on exterior veracity about its interior offerings, as well as consistency of interior comfort, because the condo planner didn't heed the original architect's foresight about what the house could offer future generations if left alone or given a more sensitive renovation. Quite a contrast there.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6O4YptnYfreoHwjTk8t2nPgX4YRfgwlnCd9IrHMqPQjFHU5KsKJe10Dm9CtbLN7VbcQod1nsy86fXHPQtiF08x6QFXXo8Cy6nD55a8qyqjs2MCGFW5ah4-ySouc4HNXGUvwR2r3uYSdP4/s2048/House+%25233+ext..jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6O4YptnYfreoHwjTk8t2nPgX4YRfgwlnCd9IrHMqPQjFHU5KsKJe10Dm9CtbLN7VbcQod1nsy86fXHPQtiF08x6QFXXo8Cy6nD55a8qyqjs2MCGFW5ah4-ySouc4HNXGUvwR2r3uYSdP4/w480-h640/House+%25233+ext..jpeg" width="480" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The final open house on our tour presented a contrast to both of the others. Like the Sewall House, the façade of this much-rebuilt 1900 two-family home belies its interior, but in a different, and more satisfying way:</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5BJY_XirsIhd8KY5yxOrWtDpNVETPPiuZWpTjodt24vn_6VhqS0gyLuEApO2ztQQg82h3lqvEZsA0OdveItVBh-peMETX5XwUA6ycvlwL-D-zQrjwxDUehmd4GSYL68xJpBUy6pohk___/w640-h480/House+%25233+great+room+2.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Whoa! What a gargantuan open floor plan you walk into, which offers even more flexibility in living-dining arrangement than either of the other homes, owing to a removal of the wall between the living and dining spaces to create a multipurpose great room.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1757" data-original-width="2048" height="550" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdrEU6UTsNy_1RObrIjgQk_k3ZugJc_o9OtoPAI15bRltxlio14u9SqSY_dndQnYLJckWnrKISrQnhgRiwPvT7xvKgW_IJFfQi0KbyIv-6bYwKB8gPDUl5Fnr3oNYwNxead7k5Fry7wBqg/w640-h550/House+%25233+great+room.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">As you can see, the great room keeps itself open to the kitchen, turning all common areas into one humongous entertaining arena, in a way that emphasizes the oneness of the dining and living rooms with the kitchen for faster food service and a larger dinner-party/cocktail space. The dining and living realms are demarcated by a ceiling beam and a wall post, and the living room is further defined with a bay window that expands its space and light, harnessing Victorian and contemporary spacemaking traditions simultaneously.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwwwSDA42wbyKtNK_yyc91PZJ4OEKsMjtEnySWl2sll6NcWS1gaKDRmxr_UYEqaaS2M6rUC8nixO5Bwoysu726GS8TH2hJt658TTzyIKEQiVQtMrg4mMmOny9e2PheXbyzovH3hsRfQ5wR/w640-h480/House+%25233+great+room+and+stair.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">This studio-style openness extends to the stair...</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1NoQbBvjkCQ4zU2xcjnia3_3dm_WJmepWrhIolnsjscEmYBEZgc7Ir0uvehmq6rZu9z-IkH5TQVhB8ZJBT3EOSlgrao13InLIqBhVVywjktVfx0G5Omhvj9Wo1BZK5dtSbyremN5DTf_p/w640-h480/House+%25233+bedroom+or+music+room.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">...to the bedroom level, where another sweep of space awaits, able to accommodate a king-size sleeping area, a home office, and a myriad of other amenities—including a baby grand piano! (Yes, that's a good measure of the adequacy and efficiency of a living space: how well it could accommodate a grand piano, physically and acoustically, plus a concert/recital audience. An upright piano or spinet would be less good a measure, for those were invented as space-savers and fitters into tighter spaces.)</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5zE-hLM8UGNmdtd8z_HqnlPGHYZvHQJbN4mdp2wbZBhfVQ7tXvrvJygCJ_WSz6byJqMCo08frjg3xm0H8LFPD_ozrwY0UJgQwELOrL8t_UFHgmM_lSGN5qK5ZKfgQn2nq3PQ0oKoE26VT/w640-h480/House+%25233+bedroom+2.jpeg" width="640" /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Here the quirky angles of the roof gables do their stuff again to add drama to the space without making it feel atticky...</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcz8PWB97dHMp22wZ2ybaYTW1qN-0B8DqLXWR7f9Si34f15xWgbfQ19b7x5yYJ4UMWbXT9WhekbPtYCQm1nEsUnpjbDK534Z8-sfgpKJf-l1x2pZx40jFuXj17OnIQOj2oe6UC01i4c5q6/s2048/House+%25233+bath.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcz8PWB97dHMp22wZ2ybaYTW1qN-0B8DqLXWR7f9Si34f15xWgbfQ19b7x5yYJ4UMWbXT9WhekbPtYCQm1nEsUnpjbDK534Z8-sfgpKJf-l1x2pZx40jFuXj17OnIQOj2oe6UC01i4c5q6/w480-h640/House+%25233+bath.jpeg" width="480" /></span></a></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">...leaving ample room for a good-sized primary bathroom that lines up its tub and shower laterally along one wall for the sake of spatial economy and inclusion of bathroom luxuries as well as necessities.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Even though my friend's cousin said nay to all three homes, that open-house tour presented a good variety of examples of how Victorian-era homes can serve contemporary households, depending on how punctilious the planning of the interiors were. The first one demonstrated how well existing spaces could fit the bill, the second one cautioned us about the consequences of sometimes-haphazard floor-planning, and the third one showed how adaptable a turn-of-the-20th-century house was to today's open-concept living by careful renovation.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><i><span style="font-family: georgia;">Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</span></i></b></div></div></div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-37130978507529970102021-07-11T23:16:00.000-04:002021-07-11T23:16:56.268-04:00Bath to nature<div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjEuX8IRfOeuocN6qUUTCq0kpitgwwD_obqxMP_JB4DEdCCJTzagMilKIIs9FqmmLpT1nk7XRKuIVwRFcJIy70Zzlj2q-g9tkwNMJ_EqiZstntxrzZXf6B_wjjdcVtnA-m4IrlAAc2_s6N/s612/Bathroom+with+plants.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="459" data-original-width="612" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjEuX8IRfOeuocN6qUUTCq0kpitgwwD_obqxMP_JB4DEdCCJTzagMilKIIs9FqmmLpT1nk7XRKuIVwRFcJIy70Zzlj2q-g9tkwNMJ_EqiZstntxrzZXf6B_wjjdcVtnA-m4IrlAAc2_s6N/w400-h300/Bathroom+with+plants.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>"When nature calls" is our standard summons to go use the facilities. But is nature really calling us, design-wise? What does "bathroom" bring to mind, regarding the materials we see, touch, and clean when another nature calls (mold and mildew)?</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">That's easy: Tile. Enamel. Iron. Steel. Chrome. Brass. Glass. Granite. Marble. Quartz. Plastics.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOoCXkbOjElGrsFPhAH2U8DDc38dVu8gGu8AFAzBnnOScH2BkTpjXp4YZ1QLE4XDFxHhSkFejqVMBbJn36TN-0r2iszFl6q9eTGVJifKnIkfYtuQ6hYHLba9uyNaTcLlPVBjwRqmg8jwc/s498/Tub+and+windows.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="339" data-original-width="498" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOoCXkbOjElGrsFPhAH2U8DDc38dVu8gGu8AFAzBnnOScH2BkTpjXp4YZ1QLE4XDFxHhSkFejqVMBbJn36TN-0r2iszFl6q9eTGVJifKnIkfYtuQ6hYHLba9uyNaTcLlPVBjwRqmg8jwc/w400-h272/Tub+and+windows.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>All but the last are indeed natural (unless you chemists consider polymers nature-based). And granite and marble do lend natural touches to your routine. But they are so factory-honed they feel more ritzy than natural. These two bathrooms with plants and green views are good starts toward a "bath to nature," but are still too fabricated to truly be.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqNENGwDPyjUm0t-JtYXHc9f7eoNKJzTcdGPEWCoidUcGA5jHjumjp0kq1EwH7Zy4kiY_hi9LSyJAGskJxXygC65DhJo4x5bvGP_tgQsQ1NludpDVGDBc3chfb_zMC3ATbJnwM22RjmNk/s1000/Nature-harmonized+bathroom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="800" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqNENGwDPyjUm0t-JtYXHc9f7eoNKJzTcdGPEWCoidUcGA5jHjumjp0kq1EwH7Zy4kiY_hi9LSyJAGskJxXygC65DhJo4x5bvGP_tgQsQ1NludpDVGDBc3chfb_zMC3ATbJnwM22RjmNk/w320-h400/Nature-harmonized+bathroom.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Here's an even better start, courtesy of <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/civilengineeringdiscoveries/" target="_blank">Civil Engineering Discoveries</a>: a bathroom assimilating some of the colors and materials of nature to blend with the trees outside of the clerestory window. The bathroom harmonizes with this nature by abstracting its chromatic and sometimes material essentials into its design. Reddish-brown wood is used for the vanity, towel-rack, door-frame and shower-shelf. Green tilework in the shower directly complements the tree-view. The chaotic nature of clouds, leaves and soil are expressed in the wall and floor. In this way the bathroom draws upon Japanese home design tradition of emphasizing the wood frame and the screen surface to simplify it enough to blend it with nature.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtMxUCAbGlcy0WEaIatwZNR7gGSHqImnACxDeoaJpJgd9xVW2WyxiHQrmqgYYmIaWesmR5VvcjmOJ_Ezp9Jrepu7YQU20_vgeDIWSmSenllBQ4ihIX9LH8pfsvFXdtOSTxnnUUfsewUK0/s1000/Wood+slats%252C+wood+shelves.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="800" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtMxUCAbGlcy0WEaIatwZNR7gGSHqImnACxDeoaJpJgd9xVW2WyxiHQrmqgYYmIaWesmR5VvcjmOJ_Ezp9Jrepu7YQU20_vgeDIWSmSenllBQ4ihIX9LH8pfsvFXdtOSTxnnUUfsewUK0/w160-h200/Wood+slats%252C+wood+shelves.jpg" width="160" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJObbJXcI3yGTo4gQJIYczqgoT1fpLLVL-SRiPSRgJQE_0xauJwOhgCFSUhw3YDxQt3bmNo4E8pOJ6IGoEfvIRLqAe1Hom0CLDpDVAqMPYrU5V7PbucJLzo8-VEQ2CNO_e4b_3KiW7RLg/s1000/Slatted+panel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="800" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJObbJXcI3yGTo4gQJIYczqgoT1fpLLVL-SRiPSRgJQE_0xauJwOhgCFSUhw3YDxQt3bmNo4E8pOJ6IGoEfvIRLqAe1Hom0CLDpDVAqMPYrU5V7PbucJLzo8-VEQ2CNO_e4b_3KiW7RLg/w160-h200/Slatted+panel.jpg" width="160" /></a></span><span style="font-family: georgia;">These bathrooms push the nature-blend a bit farther, spreading the wood onto the walls and beyond with mounted wood-box shelves, a wood-framed mirror and a lower wood shelf (left), and a plant-accented wood-cased vanity complemented with the rustic stains and veins of quartz wainscoting (right)</span></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRBPGTkR3gvC_c8hQSvQ0dp0Yu_pEnJxxUwhb8zyz920dYD-4WhLd9_zigyEmYrxGAl-QH8YyyC_G4GiCFoeuJ07MA6R7bJzONgNCZd6yJdTk7GwIUXY7DrIn9owPSbuQxWIBmz_ofJXs/s612/Bathroom+with+wood+siding+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="428" data-original-width="612" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRBPGTkR3gvC_c8hQSvQ0dp0Yu_pEnJxxUwhb8zyz920dYD-4WhLd9_zigyEmYrxGAl-QH8YyyC_G4GiCFoeuJ07MA6R7bJzONgNCZd6yJdTk7GwIUXY7DrIn9owPSbuQxWIBmz_ofJXs/w640-h448/Bathroom+with+wood+siding+3.jpg" width="640" /></a> </div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiZTnKp7CXrNSnj33tFEiYEDKmJ6FuP1O4lnIyzZyxJ4gbnpQokBAjLQVnRdiDrACgZ5S8b9g1geYOiITO-jZu9R3Pb34Lst_LvDh0TcnHeKx2IPJHk5-vVXHy0StQ6DWHt8LepjbslGQ/s612/Bathroom+with+wood+siding+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: Times; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="428" data-original-width="612" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiZTnKp7CXrNSnj33tFEiYEDKmJ6FuP1O4lnIyzZyxJ4gbnpQokBAjLQVnRdiDrACgZ5S8b9g1geYOiITO-jZu9R3Pb34Lst_LvDh0TcnHeKx2IPJHk5-vVXHy0StQ6DWHt8LepjbslGQ/w640-h448/Bathroom+with+wood+siding+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></div><div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">These bathrooms edge away from the rather ritzy slickness of the previous ones with more rustic wood-plank walls that reflect the organic graininess of wood, as a fine complement to the gray tones, which complement the calming characteristics of the wood with a neutralization of the spaces.</span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></div></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ17wto9F25yaaTvI_yONuwN_424Nps6_VBYfMFeOlxldL9-k1xuRCPT4rzk0z_54C5lPmZghM4VX5sDgPbYtNNb8QzUVfLAlbnvqCEGdo58dP0F7cKuX2cudScgR7ldsk5dpehNGFEEU/s879/Natural+wood+vanity.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="879" data-original-width="800" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ17wto9F25yaaTvI_yONuwN_424Nps6_VBYfMFeOlxldL9-k1xuRCPT4rzk0z_54C5lPmZghM4VX5sDgPbYtNNb8QzUVfLAlbnvqCEGdo58dP0F7cKuX2cudScgR7ldsk5dpehNGFEEU/w364-h400/Natural+wood+vanity.jpg" width="364" /></a></div>Here's even more of a nature-assimilator: a bathroom that proudly shows off nature's gnarly, knotty nature. The vanity was apparently formed from a twisted tree-limb that was honed with an ax to rough out its rusticity to the max, leaving room at the bottom for storage of a few toiletries. The mirror is presented as an organic globule that boldly defies formality as it reflects the complementary wood post and beam. How'd you like to wake up to this every morning?</div></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4vlmbYjoFV-QlCcuLtLq0xDJC_JLt9wYX3kQTnKRYAxdCym9yqpNck4X_vh9i486KkxWidwVajy1u-E-gytd2Kn81ftvqxdoYpiu3LQNO5cXUIQUHFGNrxZEzjh2NxzsJ6yNTXa28TbM/s612/Norwegian+bathroom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="406" data-original-width="612" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4vlmbYjoFV-QlCcuLtLq0xDJC_JLt9wYX3kQTnKRYAxdCym9yqpNck4X_vh9i486KkxWidwVajy1u-E-gytd2Kn81ftvqxdoYpiu3LQNO5cXUIQUHFGNrxZEzjh2NxzsJ6yNTXa28TbM/w640-h424/Norwegian+bathroom.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This one really roughs it as best as possible to offset the upscale formality of the bowl-sink, the oval egg tub and the back-straightening commode. This was built in 2013 by a Norwegian family as the bathroom for a sustainable off-grid house on Sandhorney Island, North Norway, in the Arctic Circle. That back-to-nature approach is certainly reflected in the hand-hewn post, the workbench-like vanity, and the textured stucco finishes all around, not to mention the green-grown view.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div></span></div><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2l_aO_u5UyHg9Y7HVAfLSwcaHvBNODpeDC8x937UCfLzPSULbT_GDz57MxbLDVUqkrPzW_X69ia-aP7KUS4KzUvw8RU3GVIjTLHcc9QImq1LSgBoM4o3Ha5ulyQ3AEkBXHEGJEo23IcI/s1600/Frank_Lloyd_Wrights_Pope-Leighey_House_Bath_by_Cliff.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2l_aO_u5UyHg9Y7HVAfLSwcaHvBNODpeDC8x937UCfLzPSULbT_GDz57MxbLDVUqkrPzW_X69ia-aP7KUS4KzUvw8RU3GVIjTLHcc9QImq1LSgBoM4o3Ha5ulyQ3AEkBXHEGJEo23IcI/s1600/Frank_Lloyd_Wrights_Pope-Leighey_House_Bath_by_Cliff.jpg" width="300" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Cliff, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Frank Lloyd Wright had a similar idea for the baths in the Usonian Houses he designed as back-to-nature, back-to-basics homes for his less well-to-do clients. This bath at the 1941 Pope-Leighey House in Alexandria, Virginia (for which Wright reduced his fee when the construction costs jumped), is also reduced to functional and spatial essentials. But the added touches of red brick, </span><span>Tidewater red cypress finished in clear wax, and a concrete floor painted in Wright's trademark Cherokee red (radiant-heated by hot water pipes) give the space a warmer, friendlier, more nature-calming experience than the antiseptic, metallic impersonality of Gropius' lavatories. Yet Wright's finishes are still simple enough not to tempt the eye to gawk at the beauty, follow the details-within-details, and detain the bather.</span></span><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span><br /></span><div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh24rAfnHz980cD1pxJ2V3xV-hMwzvsq1_31B4Xus0vZ9gvX2wNmh7F1-SMd_vIuGORKh4luhtXemCdfBZd36qge0wrrBi7v9I6uU4g_lBdSVux4h8wul5cMaVLFoWr3zCNOe5WlWoGx5M/s1600/Bath%252C+rustic.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh24rAfnHz980cD1pxJ2V3xV-hMwzvsq1_31B4Xus0vZ9gvX2wNmh7F1-SMd_vIuGORKh4luhtXemCdfBZd36qge0wrrBi7v9I6uU4g_lBdSVux4h8wul5cMaVLFoWr3zCNOe5WlWoGx5M/s1600/Bath%252C+rustic.jpg" width="283" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Sadly (or happily?), many of today's baths snub the Masters' minimalism to become comfort castles overflowing with enough eye-grabbing aesthetics and body-bounties to make you never want to leave the lav. </span><br /><br /><span>Yet some still want to feel natural, like this one, which flaunts the knots in its pine, the beams in its ceiling, the stones in its stairs and floor (and fireplace!), the wood-finish in its water-jet hot-tub, and the calculated window-view of evergreens and mountain ranges to make your bathing experience seem back to nature — though Mother Nature has fooled you this time by not providing these materials for free like in days of old. For the chandelier gives away the wealth spent on this, as does the gas fireplace that warms your towel-down after you (finally) get out of the tub.</span><br /><br /></span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRj9St5VLFVmqtZvBfAxqAZU_MAh1TEDZO4jwhB8ESIHU79UY-yXDiZtbvJmxPr-PP195J9O-MqwlION7ubRI9JpUoLS9S5l6JB__bLhOZGvb9uIZ4yDH_oQ3suT7x5EcqHLn-XRCGoz0/s1600/Bath%252C+log+cabin+-+photo+by+Don+Cochran%252C+courtesy+of+Holmes%252C+King%252C+Kallquist+%2526+Associates.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRj9St5VLFVmqtZvBfAxqAZU_MAh1TEDZO4jwhB8ESIHU79UY-yXDiZtbvJmxPr-PP195J9O-MqwlION7ubRI9JpUoLS9S5l6JB__bLhOZGvb9uIZ4yDH_oQ3suT7x5EcqHLn-XRCGoz0/s1600/Bath%252C+log+cabin+-+photo+by+Don+Cochran%252C+courtesy+of+Holmes%252C+King%252C+Kallquist+%2526+Associates.jpg" width="306" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Don Cochran, courtesy of Holmes, King, Kallquist & Associates</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Abraham Lincoln could never dream of this kind of log-cabin luxury, which gives the rich the illusion of roughing it. </span><br /><br /><span>Here the logs are more ornamental than structural and functional, never letting you lose sight of the "natural" wonder of those ringed cross-sections, hatchet-hews and bark-scars as you water-jet yourself soft and clean in the soaking tub, which is simply crafted so as not to distract from the subdued natural effect. </span><br /><br /><span>The </span><span><span>variegated brown floor and shower tiles continue the woodsy, cavernous feel into the </span>shower, but in a way that removes you further from Lincoln's struggles for survival, especially when you step into the shower's vast glassed space and turn on the massaging showerheads and steam-jets.</span><br /><br /></span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglcVb59MOny5aSth713vpLFxSFgtQXOyErabUOHxP5qSwUIqRti9eAqGEU3R6T3QZYErADJRdFRBYCU-fnxlrlZF3kTPXKqbyzwd7EfHAPXGfGC7InyN-rZSWWK7L0rSmBd9_OsmvXsyU/s1600/Bath,+stone+++glassblock+Found+on+plumbingplus.net.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglcVb59MOny5aSth713vpLFxSFgtQXOyErabUOHxP5qSwUIqRti9eAqGEU3R6T3QZYErADJRdFRBYCU-fnxlrlZF3kTPXKqbyzwd7EfHAPXGfGC7InyN-rZSWWK7L0rSmBd9_OsmvXsyU/s1600/Bath,+stone+++glassblock+Found+on+plumbingplus.net.jpg" width="266" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Photo courtesy of <a href="http://plumbingplus.net/">plumbingplus.net</a></span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Here's an attempt to reconcile Wrightian naturalism with modern functionalism. </span><br /><br /><span>This bath combines the rustically erratic stacked fieldstone of the former (making rock's natural contours your steppingstone to your bath!) with the factory-processed glass block of the latter. </span><br /><br /><span>The conventional floor and wall tile smooths out the composition as a mediator between these nature-vs.-machine polarities while providing a compatible contrast of its own: good old black-and-white.</span><br /><br /><span>However, opposites do have commonalities here. The wobbly texture of the glass bricks is simpatico with the rugged roughness of the stone, and the grays of the aluminum and the stones do jibe agreeably. And the common theme of the grayscale throughout the bath is the ultimate unifier here.</span><br /><br /></span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3RHphBip8p7rQlX4bbxoM9yXIqlhMQeMZSV8gF6tPyKIjQBMx-slXgqnX4RB9xkcDZVurGy1SmwUK1PkchqS4Irv219hOPghjMO3KMCKt7_mZ0xRWX953nuWGmS365p4vQ1h1JJVGakw/s1600/Bath,+ground+rock+Found+on+themetapicture.com.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3RHphBip8p7rQlX4bbxoM9yXIqlhMQeMZSV8gF6tPyKIjQBMx-slXgqnX4RB9xkcDZVurGy1SmwUK1PkchqS4Irv219hOPghjMO3KMCKt7_mZ0xRWX953nuWGmS365p4vQ1h1JJVGakw/s1600/Bath,+ground+rock+Found+on+themetapicture.com.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Photo courtesy of <a href="http://themetapicture.com/">themetapicture.com</a></span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>This takes the stone a step further, organically evolving the tub and shower out of existing ground-rock, bringing them back to their tidal-pool and swimming-hole roots. The wood-plank ceiling is a fine curvilinear complement to the contours of the rock-tub, keeping the scene natural and fluid, like the water and the rock it shaped over eons.</span><br /><br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: right;"></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE1qge6zfcoNDh_vcltlqqZmjxsmUrLwQR8X5dl9pnkqBcsFLuOsu3D9yCVsB69sH9Iknmr6zEHh590US-Ydk_Btqa4c62fuHElIeiJslGjD13LHCDyBZsNxGr1kvn979jHpDIKa1boUc/s1600/Bath,+natural+waterfall+zillow.com.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" height="262" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE1qge6zfcoNDh_vcltlqqZmjxsmUrLwQR8X5dl9pnkqBcsFLuOsu3D9yCVsB69sH9Iknmr6zEHh590US-Ydk_Btqa4c62fuHElIeiJslGjD13LHCDyBZsNxGr1kvn979jHpDIKa1boUc/s1600/Bath,+natural+waterfall+zillow.com.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Photo courtesy of <a href="http://zillow.com/">zillow.com</a></span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>This bath "rocks" with nature, reframing the shower as the rain and the waterfall that were its origins. The stacked stones evoke nature's erosion of ancient ruins. The<i> </i>nature views (through one-way glass, hopefully) bring the real thing into the picture, so "it's like taking a shower in Ireland," as Irish Spring Soap jigged on the radio in the '70s.</span><br /><br /></span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8qi3mBmxY73LBGAQaUN4KPQC2iFkRhENvz10mwJvA_0yli0fkhNfPB06oIUl7assm6_hClSLUA3wJMpit84m60N1riKXf_DzDsjPWL4I_njLekivx6tD0FFvkq2Rgr8cy-yod2QAEQ-I/s1600/Bath,+galley+out+to+nature+Found+on+homesdir.net.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8qi3mBmxY73LBGAQaUN4KPQC2iFkRhENvz10mwJvA_0yli0fkhNfPB06oIUl7assm6_hClSLUA3wJMpit84m60N1riKXf_DzDsjPWL4I_njLekivx6tD0FFvkq2Rgr8cy-yod2QAEQ-I/s1600/Bath,+galley+out+to+nature+Found+on+homesdir.net.jpg" width="266" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Photo courtesy of <a href="http://homesdir.net/">homesdir.net</a></span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span>Totally dissolving its picture window, this one brings us one step closer to nature, the way it "</span><span>throws open its walls like curtains to admit a plenitude of fresh air, daylight and sunshine" to the point of giving the bather the ultimate "public bath," hence a risk of embarrassment upon emerging from the tub should hunters or horseback riders happen to approach from afar. </span><br /><br /><span>The white porcelain bowl-tub theme repeats itself admirably as twin bowl-sinks designed to appear detached. The knotty wood vanity brings more nature inside, while the mirror-doors on the medicine cabinets expand the effect of the box-burst into "light, space and greenery" of nature beyond the galley confines of the bath.</span><br /><i><span><br /></span></i><span>The result is a balanced compromise between nature and manufacture, neither one upstaging the other.</span></span></div></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5trqfuTIBjhdTyL3lhTuqfLxK86x4neQ2WEzp1p7B7ix68EV-JRJMjFDnoqIfkuIlgHPkL1645vyCR8V324to7znfFWj-CfPXq4milGRCPqJDc5j48dyhhavPrUZcnEI3qMy6s-ZEaec/s612/outdoor+tub.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="408" data-original-width="612" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5trqfuTIBjhdTyL3lhTuqfLxK86x4neQ2WEzp1p7B7ix68EV-JRJMjFDnoqIfkuIlgHPkL1645vyCR8V324to7znfFWj-CfPXq4milGRCPqJDc5j48dyhhavPrUZcnEI3qMy6s-ZEaec/w640-h426/outdoor+tub.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>But when nature <i>really</i> calls and you <i>really</i> want a "bath to nature," take this nature connection a giant leap further and go soak in your outdoor hot tub...</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiahIE7IkNBGgHccw-Von1ht2IO_mYFt4u4eqoG3ZosV9_1TPMWOX0ygRBBz_HpOWMqmvAUgDvSc46mJoahb24PKOlxky2uerIoQieUdNDZSH6MFBplzv4zG2Q1ghjrw1yJlyCWEkQNYtg/s612/swimming+pool.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="408" data-original-width="612" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiahIE7IkNBGgHccw-Von1ht2IO_mYFt4u4eqoG3ZosV9_1TPMWOX0ygRBBz_HpOWMqmvAUgDvSc46mJoahb24PKOlxky2uerIoQieUdNDZSH6MFBplzv4zG2Q1ghjrw1yJlyCWEkQNYtg/w640-h426/swimming+pool.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />...or jump in your backyard swimming pool! (Hey, it's summer, right?)</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></span></span></div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-5343064961391933552021-07-11T18:53:00.009-04:002021-09-22T16:07:36.487-04:00Of the hill<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRQLa7son3kx46QgMEXPE1u8oD7uAtZYQB9HbxIIEyYCk2zeR_9khqdguEOjhHQlEBk1Qr_R882RCRhW8A50nriOPiQdm147QMU3KgJ7OmosPhYJ5U0W3h8TlhLjr-Awk1JZVw3AiJgdM/s1200/Norman+Lykes+House+by+William+Hoffmann+Pinterest.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="799" data-original-width="1200" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRQLa7son3kx46QgMEXPE1u8oD7uAtZYQB9HbxIIEyYCk2zeR_9khqdguEOjhHQlEBk1Qr_R882RCRhW8A50nriOPiQdm147QMU3KgJ7OmosPhYJ5U0W3h8TlhLjr-Awk1JZVw3AiJgdM/w640-h426/Norman+Lykes+House+by+William+Hoffmann+Pinterest.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx65IG3X56cgEHNdu15GFP8hZbZhGP4y1Sdl_ltvtTuJkL4TnlgDloE3W8ZdUU4dzYobm-TfMOy9KE41TPGybgm3BsW8uZT_UMFWkNnXeuSaN1UZGpfuXyCgOz11s-UcMjNGW043-8pBo/s640/Norman+Lykes+House+James+Brendan+Butler+Pinterest.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="359" data-original-width="640" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx65IG3X56cgEHNdu15GFP8hZbZhGP4y1Sdl_ltvtTuJkL4TnlgDloE3W8ZdUU4dzYobm-TfMOy9KE41TPGybgm3BsW8uZT_UMFWkNnXeuSaN1UZGpfuXyCgOz11s-UcMjNGW043-8pBo/w400-h225/Norman+Lykes+House+James+Brendan+Butler+Pinterest.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Norman Lykes House, Palm Canyon, Phoenix, Arizona, 1959, Frank Lloyd Wright.<br />Upper photo courtesy of <a href="http://Toptenrealestatedeals.com">Toptenrealestatedeals.com</a>. Lower photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/steve_hoge/" target="_blank">Steve Hoge,</a> courtesy of Flickr.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia;"><div style="text-align: left;"><i>I knew well that no house should ever be on a hill or on anything. It should be of the hill. Belonging to it. Hill and home should live together each the happier for the other.</i></div></span><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">— <a href="https://flwright.org/researchexplore/wrightbuildings/taliesin" target="_blank">Frank Lloyd Wright</a></span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">In his lifelong quest for an organic architecture that did not dominate the land as its Classical, Gothic and Victorian precursors did but integrated itself with it to become one with the Mother Earth that originated its materials, Wright combined site with structure in many of his designs. This allowed each to benefit from the other. The building mirrored and abstracted its environment's natural forms in its architecture while conserving its site to preserve nature's ecosystems and offer the picturesque natural views many a homebuyer would desire.</span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaaiQAES9qjbxPWx1O8EFYN1SN2fA5JHrmwc0yBTZw31WhmuxgpKlPEn1M-elBYOJJa2xx2esuKR9u2OnZbmSsDeTufw850bEdnfZTmdIBOV5yF0cMxTAm5Nzf503tR31O4d5tjcK-4uQ/s1200/maison-norman-lykes-house-frank-lloyd-wright-photo-02+L%2527autre+carnet+de+Jimidi.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaaiQAES9qjbxPWx1O8EFYN1SN2fA5JHrmwc0yBTZw31WhmuxgpKlPEn1M-elBYOJJa2xx2esuKR9u2OnZbmSsDeTufw850bEdnfZTmdIBOV5yF0cMxTAm5Nzf503tR31O4d5tjcK-4uQ/w400-h300/maison-norman-lykes-house-frank-lloyd-wright-photo-02+L%2527autre+carnet+de+Jimidi.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photos courtesy of <i><a href="https://autrecarnetdejimidi.wordpress.com/2016/03/15/norman-lykes-house-frank-lloyd-wright/" target="_blank">L'autre carnet de Jimidi</a></i>.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span>The Norman Lykes House near Phoenix, Arizona, realizes his goal fully. Begun before his death in 1959 and completed in 1966, it seems to hibernate in the hill, curve with its contours, crag with its cliffs, and swoop with its sweep, affording its owners a wraparound panorama of Palm Canyon's mountainous desert country while providing fluid spaces that reflect human circulation patterns.<br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwc4cAHtlr6UJKkTren28zu_ZquGR5arA7iWqpphnNNw5QRZZU12kJ5Ng-HontvMf_JYovwubOfhTiBgOtQPNfikxv-MR0_jFW3BpyNhmiYxurET4MOyaRbfCbVjPf8eNKqx0gTJ5JL3w/s2048/norman-lykes-house-franck-lloyd-wright-1959-69-phoenix-le-figaro-immobilier-mars-2016-photo-08+L%2527autre+carnet+de+Jimidi.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1323" data-original-width="2048" height="414" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwc4cAHtlr6UJKkTren28zu_ZquGR5arA7iWqpphnNNw5QRZZU12kJ5Ng-HontvMf_JYovwubOfhTiBgOtQPNfikxv-MR0_jFW3BpyNhmiYxurET4MOyaRbfCbVjPf8eNKqx0gTJ5JL3w/w640-h414/norman-lykes-house-franck-lloyd-wright-1959-69-phoenix-le-figaro-immobilier-mars-2016-photo-08+L%2527autre+carnet+de+Jimidi.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU7ZgFFoeeEYZDbF-v7vwH5Dzhi1TrijOtp54vsl84GreiC25wcbFlpdlX3M3uqLW-3pD6cS6A8ZLcgwKd5uG8mxAvfnKBsrX_-wR2szbn-qqfqONAZv_YPV_XGA3knQuQiyg0shkbnAc/s2048/norman-lykes-house-franck-lloyd-wright-1959-69-phoenix-le-figaro-immobilier-mars-2016-photo-04+L%2527autre+carnet+de+Jimidi.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1323" data-original-width="2048" height="259" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU7ZgFFoeeEYZDbF-v7vwH5Dzhi1TrijOtp54vsl84GreiC25wcbFlpdlX3M3uqLW-3pD6cS6A8ZLcgwKd5uG8mxAvfnKBsrX_-wR2szbn-qqfqONAZv_YPV_XGA3knQuQiyg0shkbnAc/w400-h259/norman-lykes-house-franck-lloyd-wright-1959-69-phoenix-le-figaro-immobilier-mars-2016-photo-04+L%2527autre+carnet+de+Jimidi.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><span>In the following images the house is so "of the hill" that it resists the urge to be "king of the hill." It defers to the hill's earthly dominion by not only letting its pool-users and porch entrants enjoy hill views but also not letting them forget the nature that originally created the house, as if it were a logical continuity of the hill.</span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq1zoD-SSqmuHyr6JezUqnJi-tn5JIpIjho9KMRT-DrONl6UnIElY9ivCqIc51w4OCU2e5S3sF0OjO6EufKXbvBGGpMrpAUtmJsKjejr_4XP05bLcFo2cfd9XxR_QCIOW51Mh8bpOXXiA/s1000/Norman+Lykes+House+porch+courtesy+of+Pinterest.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="1000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq1zoD-SSqmuHyr6JezUqnJi-tn5JIpIjho9KMRT-DrONl6UnIElY9ivCqIc51w4OCU2e5S3sF0OjO6EufKXbvBGGpMrpAUtmJsKjejr_4XP05bLcFo2cfd9XxR_QCIOW51Mh8bpOXXiA/w640-h426/Norman+Lykes+House+porch+courtesy+of+Pinterest.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo courtesy of </span><a href="https://www.pinterest.com/AlexDL99/_saved/" style="font-size: x-small;" target="_blank">Alexandru Luca of Pinterest.</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXT6bmsaO43ffXgZvogClMstovzpOg06ZCyplLoGdz8aalCW_U7SQnJNcM5_1O7l8wPX5mGih2GpPNPYnB72Nq-uv_9-hUbKX3aTU2ACVUpVQ0SLpVZI469wAPZ1z9Rj6ETvU9Y_0O2SQ/s2048/maison-norman-lykes-house-frank-lloyd-wright-photo-07+L%2527autre+carnet+de+Jimidi.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXT6bmsaO43ffXgZvogClMstovzpOg06ZCyplLoGdz8aalCW_U7SQnJNcM5_1O7l8wPX5mGih2GpPNPYnB72Nq-uv_9-hUbKX3aTU2ACVUpVQ0SLpVZI469wAPZ1z9Rj6ETvU9Y_0O2SQ/w400-h300/maison-norman-lykes-house-frank-lloyd-wright-photo-07+L%2527autre+carnet+de+Jimidi.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo courtesy of <i style="text-align: right;"><a href="https://autrecarnetdejimidi.wordpress.com/2016/03/15/norman-lykes-house-frank-lloyd-wright/" target="_blank">L'autre carnet de Jimidi</a></i><span style="text-align: right;">.</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span>Notice how "on the hill" its neighbor is compared to the "belongingness" of the Lykes House. The neighbor diverts our attention from the nature onto itself with a white façade that counters the warm earthtones the Lykes House borrows from its rocky environs. Also, the neighbor's linear geometry, clearly man-made, clashes with the nature-made feel of the Lykes House's organic curves.</span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW_WcxVu-x2MEO34l4uAr0WvYsBQh_sGI_oEhRhImp6Aq1dlo6aJKoOqSE02jPu1wnPafF3srbkj6DeamjAX5gfepwFkvmnvBOdsHGfyJ3whhy5hoUvQpjGy1zXkcCYVjDVsFMmClJacY/s1000/Faroe+Islands%252C+Denmark.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="800" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW_WcxVu-x2MEO34l4uAr0WvYsBQh_sGI_oEhRhImp6Aq1dlo6aJKoOqSE02jPu1wnPafF3srbkj6DeamjAX5gfepwFkvmnvBOdsHGfyJ3whhy5hoUvQpjGy1zXkcCYVjDVsFMmClJacY/w320-h400/Faroe+Islands%252C+Denmark.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>But Wright did not originate the "of the hill" ideal. <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/civilengineeringdiscoveries/posts/?feedView=all" target="_blank">Civil Engineering Discoveries</a>, a New York-based "learning platform for all over the world," often posts images of hill-bound housing from all over the world that show us how diverse cultures have used the hill and mountain to best advantage for views, natural resources, health, remoteness, and unification of their homes with nature's majesty.</span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;">For example, these one-level houses on the Faroe Islands, a constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark, have roofs sodded like the grass of the hill they stand on, bringing them closer to the ground than the Danish tradition of earth-hugging low-scale homes. This also enables the peaked gables to pay homage to the peaked mountains in the distance.</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><span style="background-color: white;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfJXZ95tM0aG85aP3QlzlXxTwSGoYSVdXOmSDAd6n-zFBxzdqo8RBhOva4XtQ-Yl4bGaSDvhFQZ2D28vQ_nVWkCQKOfb-r_-P2ePc98EASkxIqnz3x7VmteB7iIEZkkym4PeO_oxp3BC8/s793/Amazing+House+in+Wales.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="757" data-original-width="793" height="381" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfJXZ95tM0aG85aP3QlzlXxTwSGoYSVdXOmSDAd6n-zFBxzdqo8RBhOva4XtQ-Yl4bGaSDvhFQZ2D28vQ_nVWkCQKOfb-r_-P2ePc98EASkxIqnz3x7VmteB7iIEZkkym4PeO_oxp3BC8/w400-h381/Amazing+House+in+Wales.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>An earthier example: a Welsh house that reprises the Faroe Islands' sodde</span></span><span style="background-color: white;">d roof and one-story stature but takes its belongingness to the hill a step further by mimicking the hill's contours. It slopes up from the ground and slants slightly down to become more hill-like, allowing for a patio and hot-tub, though that mars the "eyelid" effect that would have made the house even hillier. But the fieldstone walls augment the house's earthiness by honoring its natural resources.</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheig5YzEoy96Bo7_EvVw50hCP99hc7OCTg4spKAIY6VM6Bmlf6z8Qu4jfsq8imFP-T4yqawGgogjuZ2AKMye44_Odffbk5RciaYRDmDCskYWddqTmJ0vLWOV5JjD4Pcwt1blNxp-fcuRI/s992/Amalfi+Coast%252C+Italy.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="992" data-original-width="800" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheig5YzEoy96Bo7_EvVw50hCP99hc7OCTg4spKAIY6VM6Bmlf6z8Qu4jfsq8imFP-T4yqawGgogjuZ2AKMye44_Odffbk5RciaYRDmDCskYWddqTmJ0vLWOV5JjD4Pcwt1blNxp-fcuRI/w323-h400/Amalfi+Coast%252C+Italy.jpg" width="323" /></a></div>This residential community on the Amalfi Coast in Italy is arguably on the hill, built in the Classical, Italianate and Renaissance architectural traditions that Wright deemed notorious for counteracting nature's spontaneously organic fluidity with monumentally manmade pretension. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Yet I think they're <i>of </i>the hill in their own way. For one, they sit precariously on a steep elevation, mirroring the craggy rocks of the adjoining cliffs, appearing just as vulnerable to nature's meteorological disruptions as nature is itself. But this siting is beneficial, too, stacking them down the cliff, which affords generous sun and sea air for all concerned. Also, their wide variety of colors reflect the diversity of flora that grows in those parts. </span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6DZ25weygxAIFVdUvir6W1bPr1wD3HyXgnUd0hdCLuswRA6JWo2s9qd0TpFJDULTk3xv9gbC_9NVIHRYTkWGudTaUwSQbGmhwNGsHelKLTnu6tAsyfQic5Zhu0Smk1WHQ16JOswSJ-kk/s999/Gangi+%252CSicilia+%252CItaly.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="999" data-original-width="800" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6DZ25weygxAIFVdUvir6W1bPr1wD3HyXgnUd0hdCLuswRA6JWo2s9qd0TpFJDULTk3xv9gbC_9NVIHRYTkWGudTaUwSQbGmhwNGsHelKLTnu6tAsyfQic5Zhu0Smk1WHQ16JOswSJ-kk/w320-h400/Gangi+%252CSicilia+%252CItaly.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Here is a more unified example of Italian hillside development, in Gangi, Sicily. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Here the rowhouses are of a more uniform design and are more consistent in height, and the slate roofs are colored to reflect the terrain of the neighboring mountains. This makes them even more "of the hill" than the previous example. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Furthermore, the variations in the roof heights seem to imitate the unevenness of natural mountain curves and undulations, while the roofs resemble the unified hue of the mountains, and the steep slope of their hill allows all of the houses the generous sunlight that pours onto the mountains, baking them into a golden brown.<br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQprIbl3OCcfOnooBpez61zYGmQdSg5iVbo7vphAsMvaWttaZ9i0NO-gn2z87AQf6T6XV50NHheHUsR7dep0QujOGmAgIknCBwnZJ_HjOB7if6u1FCZq0gsg3LYvCOwxNML-TKGwdytSY/s2048/Hobbit_holes_reflected_in_water.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQprIbl3OCcfOnooBpez61zYGmQdSg5iVbo7vphAsMvaWttaZ9i0NO-gn2z87AQf6T6XV50NHheHUsR7dep0QujOGmAgIknCBwnZJ_HjOB7if6u1FCZq0gsg3LYvCOwxNML-TKGwdytSY/w640-h426/Hobbit_holes_reflected_in_water.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Hobbiton, Matamata, New Zealand, built for Peter Jackson's <i>The Lord of the Rings </i>and <i>The Hobbit</i> films. Photo by <a href="http://Jackie.lck">Jackie.lck</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a>).</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN3PFbBGxNCZAJSZndGQ0wGPMILbP2FoYib2966O8lZd9C1WQHCT_Z39KCWlYjx-jqaVkuVgV9ibMLMrtu9YpLfTlmvHvVeDEWWJzzFwLx6O60q-Trc96z9urjibznG3H2WLKPtV_Y25o/s2048/Hobbiton%252C_New_Zealand.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1356" data-original-width="2048" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN3PFbBGxNCZAJSZndGQ0wGPMILbP2FoYib2966O8lZd9C1WQHCT_Z39KCWlYjx-jqaVkuVgV9ibMLMrtu9YpLfTlmvHvVeDEWWJzzFwLx6O60q-Trc96z9urjibznG3H2WLKPtV_Y25o/w400-h265/Hobbiton%252C_New_Zealand.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Bilbo Baggins' hobbit-hole, Hobbiton Movie Set. Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/tom_hall_nz/15189132237/" target="_blank">Tom Hall</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a>).</span></td></tr></tbody></table>What would most delight Wright regarding of-the-hill habitation would be Hobbiton in Middle-earth (as constructed in Matamata, Waikato, New Zealand, as a movie set for Peter Jackson's <i>The Lord of the Rings </i>and <i>The Hobbit </i>films), the location of Bilbo Baggins' earth-tunneled hobbit-hole,<i> </i>as J.R.R. Tolkien himself described it in <i><a href="file:///Users/toddlarson/Documents/BLOGFOOD/ARCHITALK/OF%20THE%20HILL/The%20hobbit%20by%20J.R.R.%20Tolkien%20(z-lib.org).pdf" target="_blank">The Hobbit</a></i>:</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-small;"><i>The tunnel wound on and on, going fairly but not quite straight into the side of the hill—The Hill, as all the people for many miles round called it—and many little round doors opened out of it, first on one side and then on another. No going upstairs for the hobbit: bedrooms, bathrooms, cellars, pantries (lots of these), wardrobes (he had whole rooms devoted to clothes), kitchens, dining rooms, all were on the same floor, and indeed on the same passage. The best rooms were on the left-hand side (going in), for these were the only ones to have windows, deep-set round windows looking over his garden and meadows beyond, sloping down to the river.</i></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG7T4XDfBRXaenUNmPNZaW8q7-EvdrkDVFytdfwmmsM74c9udNR25ZzgePgXZWhcEePKowYjwZoFLgSVgathlB0GX6aWQm7lIfXuaKH6c5vixumqU33sOEWX_GLkX7HmfPoFLKXu58On4/s2048/Baggins_residence_%2527Bag_End%2527_with_party_sign.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG7T4XDfBRXaenUNmPNZaW8q7-EvdrkDVFytdfwmmsM74c9udNR25ZzgePgXZWhcEePKowYjwZoFLgSVgathlB0GX6aWQm7lIfXuaKH6c5vixumqU33sOEWX_GLkX7HmfPoFLKXu58On4/w400-h266/Baggins_residence_%2527Bag_End%2527_with_party_sign.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Now that's hill and home living together, each the happier for the other—and for Bilbo, to whom this marriage granted the luxury of one-level living and, as far as the earth could stretch, mansion-quality space he didn't have to build high on the hill to attain. Happy, that is, until the day Gandalf appeared at his perfectly circular green door...</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></span></div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-61911290427658686292021-07-11T12:23:00.000-04:002021-07-11T12:23:14.956-04:00Beauty in economy<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2vM9Jx28dnKy71_1APknsdg5FFdXxU5vvibC_qaXh6kk0CpEoFbBVOItyaq8cR2OtNSS22sM4aJlGoHlcyC2ZAr1mdcoTaqzIjOFFRuvXysOn5RPMAF5rdCItIChTv65lIMLe058U4cEs/s982/Bathroom.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="982" data-original-width="800" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2vM9Jx28dnKy71_1APknsdg5FFdXxU5vvibC_qaXh6kk0CpEoFbBVOItyaq8cR2OtNSS22sM4aJlGoHlcyC2ZAr1mdcoTaqzIjOFFRuvXysOn5RPMAF5rdCItIChTv65lIMLe058U4cEs/w326-h400/Bathroom.jpg" width="326" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">This <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6819933331845627904/?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomment%3A(activity%3A6819933331845627904%2C6820000654447181824)" target="_blank">LinkedIn post</a> from <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/civilengineeringdiscoveries/" target="_blank">Civil Engineering Discoveries</a> is the image of beauty in economy. This bathroom's restraint of space, finishes and fixtures radiates the cleanliness one gets from a good shower, shampoo and shave without hogging space from other rooms or dressing up in needless knickknacks.</span><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The cantilevered sink, shelf and mirror are mounted on the shower's side, consolidating all cleansing stations and simplifying the plumbing. Similarly, the commode is right beside the shower, and the shower's off-the-floor step-in design has no threshold to trip on. This turns all daily necessities into one-stop shopping, hastening your toilet to help you get going in the morning.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Which is complemented—and expressed—by simplicity of design and décor. The glass door's black border exemplifies the clean lines of Mondrian modernism. The lighting around the simple square mirror nicely contrasts the black with white while complementing the white sink. The woodgrain of the vanity and shelf offset the shower door's industrial geometry with organic rustic richness, while the black metal faucet complements the door-frame. The shower's textured tilework suggests a showerhead's waterfall cascade in a way that isn't sculpturally pretentious but is still soothing.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQvl549EIA2xq1HmjyNbNufgCBwJVdNbzGwRV2BofkopB6Hy_l6_GtbdbhaMzTdwcqts3tZ3GPQGwOp75nDesrmVXuf3p9SDCm_Zf1AJGRlfYQjLd4cF5o7yqctzaCaf1p9Vd0pcBLq1Fu/s612/man+and+woman+in+tub.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="459" data-original-width="612" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQvl549EIA2xq1HmjyNbNufgCBwJVdNbzGwRV2BofkopB6Hy_l6_GtbdbhaMzTdwcqts3tZ3GPQGwOp75nDesrmVXuf3p9SDCm_Zf1AJGRlfYQjLd4cF5o7yqctzaCaf1p9Vd0pcBLq1Fu/w400-h300/man+and+woman+in+tub.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">This is living proof that you don't need a bathroom like a palace to have something luxurious to step into, steam up in and stride out of for your daily routine...unless, of course, you seek a soak in a tub. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">But, aside from hating baths as a kid, I frankly find tub-bathing unnecessary and time-consuming, especially when it makes you not want to leave the warmth of the water, the caress of the jets, the scent of the soap, the balm of the bath oil, the sudsy softness of the Mr. Bubble, and whatever other luxuries surround you. For that is how the tub usurps your valuable time as much as the square footage it requires robs the rest of your home of valuable space—and ups your renovation, installation, plumbing and water-and-sewer expenses in the process. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglAkjpmEmqXWryHqvSnJXMFjk-MVTxw3bjMw1jNjXq3ld7Tahg3xc8AVliR6eOYqXfOEI8bMTkk8UF7pSDQiCtjaW13qPfL63Aq2lH2yFeyzdwJZpooz0DxGV4_E8dxKORoglFZcOtGt8n/s743/Primary+bath+shower.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><img border="0" data-original-height="495" data-original-width="743" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglAkjpmEmqXWryHqvSnJXMFjk-MVTxw3bjMw1jNjXq3ld7Tahg3xc8AVliR6eOYqXfOEI8bMTkk8UF7pSDQiCtjaW13qPfL63Aq2lH2yFeyzdwJZpooz0DxGV4_E8dxKORoglFZcOtGt8n/w640-h426/Primary+bath+shower.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">So a douche from a shower (that is, a tightly vertical one-person one kept to the spatial limits of one showerhead, <i>not</i> a multi-headed haven with the elbow-room of a walk-in closet, like this stall here) does the trick for personal sanitation, spatial salvation, and time management in the morning. That should make the first image you saw in this post a model for economical yet elegant bath design.</span></div></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><i><span style="font-family: georgia;">Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</span></i></b></div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-40434234309154983682021-04-29T22:47:00.001-04:002023-11-27T19:15:25.623-05:00Reconcilable differences<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="532" data-original-width="800" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8ay_7NHgoEhZS3iJXfd1YPq6jmjXy53Zu08_ZBTXJBiZ6a8bijOb0O3Df3kftIIzHMrVjaIBKNFVxNJ2EP23OjGK8bFejqIfsNLklDxrkDgjJdRy0lqWKhcmKxVW4vE7A3QLa1Ax0NyY/w640-h426/Du%25CC%2588sseldorf_Schauspielhaus.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Schauspielhaus (1970, Bernard Pfau), Düsseldorf, Germany, 2005. Photo: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/25943802@N00" target="_blank">Joe Shoe</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a>).</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8ay_7NHgoEhZS3iJXfd1YPq6jmjXy53Zu08_ZBTXJBiZ6a8bijOb0O3Df3kftIIzHMrVjaIBKNFVxNJ2EP23OjGK8bFejqIfsNLklDxrkDgjJdRy0lqWKhcmKxVW4vE7A3QLa1Ax0NyY/s800/Du%25CC%2588sseldorf_Schauspielhaus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;"></span></a></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Np53lnHXjNmUkKYurDsUDhG7Pl805eBOyhvwK5-ST8CWVjeLUwh5JnuaQCZLoep1IvU3ZoCCZHXLlydAXcMMtx_X9f2cqz6Ym84yrrtrXqVk0TmbJo_FYgK8OrGRtD6fSxv4Rw-GVn8/s2048/Schauspielhaus_004_aussen_FotoSebastianHoppe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1365" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Np53lnHXjNmUkKYurDsUDhG7Pl805eBOyhvwK5-ST8CWVjeLUwh5JnuaQCZLoep1IvU3ZoCCZHXLlydAXcMMtx_X9f2cqz6Ym84yrrtrXqVk0TmbJo_FYgK8OrGRtD6fSxv4Rw-GVn8/w266-h400/Schauspielhaus_004_aussen_FotoSebastianHoppe.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Schauspielhaus, 2012. Photo: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Schauspielhaus_004_aussen_FotoSebastianHoppe.jpg" target="_blank">Sebastian Hoppe</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/de/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 3.0 DE</a>).</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Few Modernist architects were as diametrically opposed to each other in architectural philosophy, design and construction as Le Corbusier and Frank Lloyd Wright. The former conceived architecture as the generator of a "machine for living," while the latter shaped his designs organically in a way that reflected the forms, contours and substances of nature. </span></div><div><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></p></div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-27288241052889792022021-02-19T22:45:00.002-05:002021-02-19T22:45:18.844-05:00A great leap forward in ARCH-itecture<span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqXCGRgdqknRx0ZYxkvQUwc6LUuvE_P6lqbc3a74XxyJwuXd1sh8YPG5NRIYJB2gPtPRd-2f8evwqSczKerkSVBMKFE8ljPTJXd0Rf4HkMRAstdUjMpOoqh1iDZEDW-3JvEepSDB25kF4/s3531/STL_Skyline_2007_CROPPED.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="891" data-original-width="3531" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqXCGRgdqknRx0ZYxkvQUwc6LUuvE_P6lqbc3a74XxyJwuXd1sh8YPG5NRIYJB2gPtPRd-2f8evwqSczKerkSVBMKFE8ljPTJXd0Rf4HkMRAstdUjMpOoqh1iDZEDW-3JvEepSDB25kF4/w640-h162/STL_Skyline_2007_CROPPED.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="text-align: left;">Gateway Arch (1965-68, Eero Saarinen), St. Louis, Missouri, as seen from Mississippi River. Photo by </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Buphoff" style="text-align: left;" target="_blank">Buphoff</a><span style="text-align: left;"> (</span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en" style="text-align: left;" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 3.0</a><span style="text-align: left;">).<br /></span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Streamlined in a space-age sheen of stainless steel, the Gateway Arch in St. Louis springs 630 feet high and wide across the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Park in a seamlessly soaring hyperbolic arc, calling to mind the path of Superman leaping tall buildings in a single bound or a model rocket launching, leaping and landing in one fell swoop.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNb1QlaH_OgWcBnNGdJhuxYrfDperofjW6brG2z_w2-ZI6U8j25aYomGp5JJpAl0jnadBW39FMikwr8zLP04kFzxy7OzvM1Crq4gAr-dV2fU6Ad2tUhP3kXQiKCyD7gBJZ7kgh5nD5DF4/s525/GatewayElevator2.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="525" data-original-width="350" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNb1QlaH_OgWcBnNGdJhuxYrfDperofjW6brG2z_w2-ZI6U8j25aYomGp5JJpAl0jnadBW39FMikwr8zLP04kFzxy7OzvM1Crq4gAr-dV2fU6Ad2tUhP3kXQiKCyD7gBJZ7kgh5nD5DF4/s320/GatewayElevator2.jpg" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjfVY6D1XOnFrwdRlJhCPkAmAN6RaqFFrpgk_XO5L3MCiePWRREtZjJgQJg09K1achNiykq5xHLng5Zz4IpHzn3wVn2jqHXOorU2ufpBOyiPG36vQzsea_GnSVB1-hYqSbHJo-RuY3mSk/s1200/Gateway_Arch_tram_car+by+Robert+Lawton.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjfVY6D1XOnFrwdRlJhCPkAmAN6RaqFFrpgk_XO5L3MCiePWRREtZjJgQJg09K1achNiykq5xHLng5Zz4IpHzn3wVn2jqHXOorU2ufpBOyiPG36vQzsea_GnSVB1-hYqSbHJo-RuY3mSk/w213-h320/Gateway_Arch_tram_car+by+Robert+Lawton.jpg" width="213" /></a></span>And you'll be going on your own space odyssey as you take a ride in a spaceship-like tram car, comfortably equipped with buttock-contoured bucket seats, upward through the innards of the concrete-reinforced steel arch...</span><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9Glr-yzeMlJGE_Y2h6pWBN-2EqxEM9YTVGCUynBU4RAC_vuK0wlu-08k_pi_GiGJwU3D-yox0WkgGSNjI3VsM5Pi1xGnOYBC_eyNphLr7JeLOLYjwg_uNNJpuX8Eg8Tbbh4y42yxX-L4/s2048/JNEM_Observation_deck+by+Daniel+Schwen.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9Glr-yzeMlJGE_Y2h6pWBN-2EqxEM9YTVGCUynBU4RAC_vuK0wlu-08k_pi_GiGJwU3D-yox0WkgGSNjI3VsM5Pi1xGnOYBC_eyNphLr7JeLOLYjwg_uNNJpuX8Eg8Tbbh4y42yxX-L4/w400-h266/JNEM_Observation_deck+by+Daniel+Schwen.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Tram car photo (left): <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Rklawton" target="_blank">Robert Lawton</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 2.5</a>). Deck photo: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Dschwen" target="_blank">Daniel Schwen</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>).</span></td></tr></tbody></table>...and dock at its summit observation deck, where you'll feel like the Man of Steel as you gaze down at the breathtaking, far-reaching vistas of...</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUjRK4QBZke-T7kSq1kHjsg3PxVO-4qv9BGMLg8QsDPr29loFExNusjC13kvOZ2fw3sRMIceQXuHWx9OCk6rA6AGaYbAuRe40bfVzTrhCbhDRIhj39iVMGTRcGpJHyzMHM609pSdamu68/s3374/DowntownStLouis+from+Gateway+Arch+by+Kelly+Martin.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="932" data-original-width="3374" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUjRK4QBZke-T7kSq1kHjsg3PxVO-4qv9BGMLg8QsDPr29loFExNusjC13kvOZ2fw3sRMIceQXuHWx9OCk6rA6AGaYbAuRe40bfVzTrhCbhDRIhj39iVMGTRcGpJHyzMHM609pSdamu68/w640-h176/DowntownStLouis+from+Gateway+Arch+by+Kelly+Martin.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Kelly Martin (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>).</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">St. Louis City and County to the west... </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8URnJEhkuQyPhMSIAQIa9mmy9UoSj5qaxM4BxK9C8ii-uPBNVrXWVkvQtyRJ1LSA9ZB54NIvl9FL5lJlYp-T780Lku6SjkJKR29tHJvdd_zpsh2VeBuUWI8wYRKjAo_blOEZPtupV3tE/s1200/Mississippi+River+from+the+Gateway+Arch.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="1200" height="336" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8URnJEhkuQyPhMSIAQIa9mmy9UoSj5qaxM4BxK9C8ii-uPBNVrXWVkvQtyRJ1LSA9ZB54NIvl9FL5lJlYp-T780Lku6SjkJKR29tHJvdd_zpsh2VeBuUWI8wYRKjAo_blOEZPtupV3tE/w640-h336/Mississippi+River+from+the+Gateway+Arch.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo courtesy of <a href="https://familyattractionscard.com/views-top-gateway-arch/" target="_blank">STL Family Attractions Card</a>.</span></td></tr></tbody></table>and the Mississippi River and southern Illinois to the east—a 30-mile view on a clear day. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk_Wu67zBTc2oHBAnI5mZX8iysJuC0IdaDhB5aLA1D2r7QbUp01grMaNSNzkJfgNjRio2t7JkQ15teCBBaN3ycuMU_RoLluwgT-_tvpfKCSDFa5mhyphenhyphenNY1eU9XAOvnMyrETOvNpWBbvlkQ/s2048/Boy_looking_out_observation_window+by+Paul+McDonald.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk_Wu67zBTc2oHBAnI5mZX8iysJuC0IdaDhB5aLA1D2r7QbUp01grMaNSNzkJfgNjRio2t7JkQ15teCBBaN3ycuMU_RoLluwgT-_tvpfKCSDFa5mhyphenhyphenNY1eU9XAOvnMyrETOvNpWBbvlkQ/w400-h300/Boy_looking_out_observation_window+by+Paul+McDonald.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Paulmcdonald" target="_blank">Paul McDonald</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>).</span></td></tr></tbody></table>"Since you can't see the base of the arch, you think you are floating," an observer wrote of his childhood visit to the Gateway Arch in 1968, the year of its dedication, on the now-defunct AAA website aaatravelviews.com.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYbsNerO8bv5eiDdZLwR1qkWREhzIRsUMtlO2WLGaWGppNUgGwG363FUimA59E1WFzuXYJeyv6BlVdbC77OGznvrjajLbc1Z7w6oI-SVzkRFmqm6aZaRUDdyAu_MUQ7F3Y_B8E_lf6woE/s1960/Gateway_Arch_from_air.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1824" data-original-width="1960" height="373" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYbsNerO8bv5eiDdZLwR1qkWREhzIRsUMtlO2WLGaWGppNUgGwG363FUimA59E1WFzuXYJeyv6BlVdbC77OGznvrjajLbc1Z7w6oI-SVzkRFmqm6aZaRUDdyAu_MUQ7F3Y_B8E_lf6woE/w400-h373/Gateway_Arch_from_air.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo courtesy of the U.S. Air Force.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Comprising a pair of identical equilateral triangular legs tapering from 54 to 17 feet per side as they rise and meet at the top, this mathematical masterpiece was designed in 1947 by Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen and structural engineer Haanskarl Bandel as a memorial to the Westward Expansion of the United States, as initiated by President Thomas Jefferson's 1803 Louisiana Purchase from France, St. Louis's resulting establishment as America's first civil government seat west of the Mississippi, and Lewis & Clark's 1804 expedition to the mouth of the Columbia River on the Pacific Ocean.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><p style="font-family: Times;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcyc7wO5fSIZPRpxlSpKugw4AWPKZ5FamIatCCLVcI2FgY8zMnSsDdkLzrCrdCP8fwdCOnfdH-NtsuVqVg_Ap0V492n7XTiMzadsMC9r7AZd7LCbqQl1kK-q0n_lWxh_Ib1bBtib6mQM4/s1280/St_louis+by+Becherka.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcyc7wO5fSIZPRpxlSpKugw4AWPKZ5FamIatCCLVcI2FgY8zMnSsDdkLzrCrdCP8fwdCOnfdH-NtsuVqVg_Ap0V492n7XTiMzadsMC9r7AZd7LCbqQl1kK-q0n_lWxh_Ib1bBtib6mQM4/w400-h300/St_louis+by+Becherka.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Becherka, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St_louis.jpg" target="_blank">Wikimedia Commons</a></span></td></tr></tbody></table>Situated in a 91-acre park on the city's original riverfront settlement site on a central axis with the domed Old Courthouse—where Missouri slave Dred Scott's case to live as a free man in free states across the river was rejected in 1857—the arch is a direct "Gateway to the West," symbolizing our great leaps forward in national growth, social progress, technological development, and architectural evolution, classical to modern. </span></p><p style="font-family: Times;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkPxiSKgm2-YS4pV3V8h5A-x-x6vgN4sn9ReZBFs3fXKyjs2V4tmo7q4HhzgS5R2TU3rQg-yNjs4xMeCkAeDmKleIfFNiOEmlbRxM9CcEb4KGWc71O6Mky3dkXXNLEBYR_OxhPtjUqkbU/s1138/Missouri_quarter%252C_reverse_side%252C_2003.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1138" data-original-width="1137" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkPxiSKgm2-YS4pV3V8h5A-x-x6vgN4sn9ReZBFs3fXKyjs2V4tmo7q4HhzgS5R2TU3rQg-yNjs4xMeCkAeDmKleIfFNiOEmlbRxM9CcEb4KGWc71O6Mky3dkXXNLEBYR_OxhPtjUqkbU/w200-h200/Missouri_quarter%252C_reverse_side%252C_2003.png" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Gateway Arch is Missouri's tallest publicly accessible structure and the nation's tallest commemorative monument, surpassing Texas' 570-foot San Jacinto Monument by 60 feet and Washington D.C.'s 555-foot Washington Monument by 75 feet.</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Thus the Gateway Arch has become St. Louis's signature iconic image, earning a central appearance on the reverse of Missouri's state quarter in 2003.</span> </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><p></p></span><br /></div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-23509696373311145472021-02-17T12:07:00.001-05:002021-02-17T12:07:30.913-05:00Now you see it...<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Scollay Square, Boston, c.1920. Photo courtesy of the Boston Public Library Print Department.</span></td></tr>
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Scollay Square, Boston, 1920-1962. Always somethin' doin' in these business-bustlin' blocks. Here, soldiers and sailors got prissily pinpricked at a tattoo parlor, sexually soaked at a brothel, tippled and totaled at a tavern, film-fixated at the Olympia, hotdog-hungry at Joe & Nemo's, sensually satiated by Sally Keith at Crawford House, and court-martialed for having abandoned ship too long.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix_QtqSF4GU3IVrIQKZ0y6xreqY1YdGFkmsbuStBlwPbYhAYguDIZCTYFT3v8QnM1foge_0dr8jd1ws9a1Cb-98XVPYqc5SSegFqHG9RkAfBKMk3lrLXmu6njjqPcv-UME0zhwggOBH2c/s2048/1962_Cornhill3_Boston_byCervinRobinson_HABS_MA787.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1446" data-original-width="2048" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix_QtqSF4GU3IVrIQKZ0y6xreqY1YdGFkmsbuStBlwPbYhAYguDIZCTYFT3v8QnM1foge_0dr8jd1ws9a1Cb-98XVPYqc5SSegFqHG9RkAfBKMk3lrLXmu6njjqPcv-UME0zhwggOBH2c/w400-h283/1962_Cornhill3_Boston_byCervinRobinson_HABS_MA787.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Cornhill, Scollay Square, 1962. Photo by Cervin Robinson, Historic American Buildings Survey.</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Here, students and statesmen, councilors and commoners could buy bargain books at the Brattle Book Shop on Cornhill (right), chow down on Chinese cheap-eats at Lun Ting's, take tea at the sign of the Steaming Tea Kettle, purchase prescriptions for pulling all-nighters at Epstein's Drugstore, palaver on politics over Pickwick Ale, talk turkey at The Tasty, and stay out of harlots' way if they could help it.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivwmSwnQSaXzCk-ugyFbNvrnlvxYoT0snLqGeylRc3qUKDcz4bdbhZ4GGodhDnvgfwUlNHNiPQyAcscAN_K0idPY-bwpVOE9R3PrHm81mjhhkoCcntzTHjSLMuZXb55JdnJcShXBsjZe8/s428/Old+Howard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="428" data-original-width="368" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivwmSwnQSaXzCk-ugyFbNvrnlvxYoT0snLqGeylRc3qUKDcz4bdbhZ4GGodhDnvgfwUlNHNiPQyAcscAN_K0idPY-bwpVOE9R3PrHm81mjhhkoCcntzTHjSLMuZXb55JdnJcShXBsjZe8/w344-h400/Old+Howard.jpg" width="344" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">The Old Howard, Scollay Square, early 20th century.</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Elsewhere, newsboys shared the latest scoops at the "Canada Point." William Lloyd Garrison published his anti-slavery newsletter, The Liberator, here in 1831 (and was tarred and feathered for it). Thomas Edison conceived the automatic vote-counter in 1868. Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone here in 1875. The Marx Brothers, Abbott & Costello, and Phil Silvers made pre-movie/TV splashes at the Old Howard (left). Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy browsed through books at the Brattle while at Harvard...</div>
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But (no) thanks to 1960s urban renewal frenzy and the impulse to consolidate all government bureaucracies into one nucleus...</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">...now you don't!</span></div>
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Otherwise, City Hall Plaza is but a cumbersome cut-through to your latté at Faneuil Hall Marketplace, your business meeting at Exchange Place, your gelato in the North End, your Guinness at The Kinsale, your Freedom Trail footwork, or your wonder-wander before you know where you're going.<br />
<br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEideAmvBOUllt6DGmMUGkZRVGrjUp3j8NzCRsvGfhs5NsU-G81ucPYuFo298XVh1g6BuN7V3Scl2ZtHAVygCbZasWh4rOkMApHkwTMwziJklUuZF0S5QFsCAFnwGSwhemQO1bs5xFgBPao/s1600/CityHallPlaza_Boston_1973_US_National_Archives_cropped.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEideAmvBOUllt6DGmMUGkZRVGrjUp3j8NzCRsvGfhs5NsU-G81ucPYuFo298XVh1g6BuN7V3Scl2ZtHAVygCbZasWh4rOkMApHkwTMwziJklUuZF0S5QFsCAFnwGSwhemQO1bs5xFgBPao/s400/CityHallPlaza_Boston_1973_US_National_Archives_cropped.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Government Center, Boston, 1973. Photo courtesy of the U.S. National Archives.</span></td></tr></tbody></table>True, master planner I.M. Pei and City Hall architects Kallmann, McKinnell & Knowles tried to solve the latter problem by giving more vista visibility to Faneuil Hall (right), Old North Church (left) and the Custom House Tower (below, right) than Scollay Square had done. But the square itself was too chock-full of history to be worth the sacrifice, especially for...<i><br /></i></div>
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...the aggrandization of the New City Hall the plaza rolls out a red carpet to. Hence, as you're just-passin'-thru the plaza, you can't <i>not</i> notice its namesake giving you the eagle-eye and the eagle wingspread, affirming that you not only can't fight City Hall, but can't banish it from your sight.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiN9wk1kzfpHS7AgL7woG8oqtb2sLtODDftYQDtZBLfBrPKcYaazU2ytyTEJgVlp16pjQRWxrdnLhJi-WFGZKmu5FD2AW_8wWvjirQEE1y-TJJqnEiPqiS6fY5uqCDTpSwpKDUwnjh13g/s1600/la-tourette.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiN9wk1kzfpHS7AgL7woG8oqtb2sLtODDftYQDtZBLfBrPKcYaazU2ytyTEJgVlp16pjQRWxrdnLhJi-WFGZKmu5FD2AW_8wWvjirQEE1y-TJJqnEiPqiS6fY5uqCDTpSwpKDUwnjh13g/s400/la-tourette.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Erected in the concrete-brutalist modernism of Le Corbusier's 1957 La Tourette Monastery in Lyon, France (right), City Hall adapted its model's upper-level cantilevering, precast plank columns, variegated fenestration and shadow-sheltered open entrance to express the vigilance of city government over the people it represents yet its democratic accessibility to that citizenry. Protecting yet providing, sheltering yet sharing, overseeing yet open.<br />
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Each set of fenestration architecturally expresses a separate division of city government. The large double window over the entrance signifies the Mayor's office, as well as the Mayor's watchful eye over the public. The row of five double windows to the left is the School Committee, and the incrementally cantilevered upper layers of windows are for the larger City Council.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Hall of Fame?</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQzuxhYJEn8f8MTv5dUZvHmiOU170HGcGNaOZD33CRz7mScF0AsboODrYMrGdYU3TeqyWnxdZkDs2Wj_1VfPD2hLg3BNjbXsCRJ169JUDMsVmao268NrDhYkyXQ-W2WnP3hGW1nsrx0KY/s1600/1981_BostonCityHall_byLebovich12_HABS_MA1176.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQzuxhYJEn8f8MTv5dUZvHmiOU170HGcGNaOZD33CRz7mScF0AsboODrYMrGdYU3TeqyWnxdZkDs2Wj_1VfPD2hLg3BNjbXsCRJ169JUDMsVmao268NrDhYkyXQ-W2WnP3hGW1nsrx0KY/s640/1981_BostonCityHall_byLebovich12_HABS_MA1176.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">City Hall, Boston, 1981. Photo courtesy of the Historic American Buildings Survey</span></td></tr>
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The splendid acoustics and open public accessibility of City Hall's main lobby made the organist and choirmaster of St. Paul's Cathedral Choir of Men and Boys, of which I was a proud member in the '70s, much obliged to accept Mayor White's invitation to give a Christmas carol concert there — a prime opportunity to pique our prestige in the public eye.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjimoYtRsqQOATyLFY-SnlB2zu6uWoZgHUYXSsoOiyTMR43CAg-w2YUrb-xIcuB-TzqDJAi2jhdkbiCyZdvf4Ywvdql_KbPxHLxItHTpLfw3_JCEJM2w6PM1J7QLyBWzuT0cCgBd_CF-2g/s2048/2010_Boston_City_Hall_5213.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjimoYtRsqQOATyLFY-SnlB2zu6uWoZgHUYXSsoOiyTMR43CAg-w2YUrb-xIcuB-TzqDJAi2jhdkbiCyZdvf4Ywvdql_KbPxHLxItHTpLfw3_JCEJM2w6PM1J7QLyBWzuT0cCgBd_CF-2g/w400-h300/2010_Boston_City_Hall_5213.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>But with fame came fury. We were promised a piano, but waiting for us at centerstage was a cheap little electric organ—without the extension cord needed to turn the organ around so our director could conduct us while playing it. But the City Hall bureaucracy so outlandishly expressed in the architecture couldn't be bothered to do the simple favor of fetching us a cord.<br />
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So the organ was relegated to the role of a pitch pipe, and we were forced to sing our entire repertoire <i>a cappella,</i> which got pretty embarrassing when long passages that cried out for harmony had to be rendered in unison, rendering us amateurish. Which lent credence to that profound proverb from Boston's favorite son, Benjamin Franklin:<br />
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<span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA2EOOrjckELYRUQqJckFLsO0GBzTRjxSLd6rcSBj-F4r7msb_ewmdGBEHaLXA13vkUNPHOgBNZnHMmJjh166fDyjvdHzJn9H4NCk8F9Nq9zKBY952DKYHKtxJYueSV616UcwlAmSJUQA/s2048/Benjamin_Franklin_1767+by+David+Martin%252C+displayed+in+the+White+House.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1629" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA2EOOrjckELYRUQqJckFLsO0GBzTRjxSLd6rcSBj-F4r7msb_ewmdGBEHaLXA13vkUNPHOgBNZnHMmJjh166fDyjvdHzJn9H4NCk8F9Nq9zKBY952DKYHKtxJYueSV616UcwlAmSJUQA/s320/Benjamin_Franklin_1767+by+David+Martin%252C+displayed+in+the+White+House.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Benjamin Franklin in London, 1767. <br />Painting by David Martin, displayed in the White House.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: x-small;">A little neglect breeds mischief:</span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">For want of a nail, the shoe was lost,</span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">For want of a shoe, the horse was lost,</span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">For want of a horse, the rider was lost,</span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">For want of a rider, the battle was lost,</span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">For want of a battle, the kingdom was lost,</span><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">And all for want of a horseshoe nail.</span></span></div>
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For want of The Lost Cord, many chords in our carols were lost, as well as one whole number we had to scrap because it just wasn't feasible without accompaniment. Yet the loss of the accompaniment itself was a mixed blessing, for that organ certainly didn't make the sound our choirmaster would have cared to hear while "seated one day at the organ," as Sir Arthur Sullivan put it in the song after which I named our keyboard's missing link.<br />
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Following our act was a young folk group who performed a medley from <i>Godspell,</i> but nobody was listening, having apparently turned deaf ears to us for our musical mishap. Fame was as fleeting in this Hall as it had been in the Old Howard—as was public accessibility, now sacrificed for post-9/11 security and COVID-19 safety.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">How's that for "Now you see it, now you don't"?</div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-67473531089478479072021-02-13T21:59:00.001-05:002021-02-13T21:59:06.033-05:00Richardson's railroad relic<div style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjzVE_hAQEc_m_mEk7f1KVUxmz1SnaShLnCceEDZek2dXQlH_hJ6s4DvQfZXyvumn1zf8V5aWU4IVRDwgEJwRiVQzk-F4k_qf_45J-BqrLcq1IgtrXD6IfTfUB28oskb-gQnDqcTJhPKg/s1078/1886_Woodland_station_southwest_elevation_in_1959+Photo+by+Cervin+Robinson%252C+Historic+American+Buildings+Survey%252C+June+1959.png" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="679" data-original-width="1078" height="404" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjzVE_hAQEc_m_mEk7f1KVUxmz1SnaShLnCceEDZek2dXQlH_hJ6s4DvQfZXyvumn1zf8V5aWU4IVRDwgEJwRiVQzk-F4k_qf_45J-BqrLcq1IgtrXD6IfTfUB28oskb-gQnDqcTJhPKg/w640-h404/1886_Woodland_station_southwest_elevation_in_1959+Photo+by+Cervin+Robinson%252C+Historic+American+Buildings+Survey%252C+June+1959.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Cervin Robinson, Historic American Buildings Survey, June 1959.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: left;">Recognize this? You might spot it if you look to your right about 500 feet after leaving <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodland_station" target="_blank">Woodland Station</a> on the MBTA's Green Line trolley heading to Riverside Station. Yet it might not look quite like this, because of the sad shape it's fallen into since this photo was taken in 1959 as part of the <a href="https://www.loc.gov/resource/hhh.ma0303.photos/?sp=2" target="_blank">U.S. Government's Historic American Buildings Survey</a>.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkfcalsU784Ch0k9JTmQQcMuH1_pmBOVLP2VWt0bW1Yb-EAKHg9_nWdT9y_hIQtFQbJAFOPtYxP1ZrpaVENgdFayjIH1FAcmlp2IPKqg93HYE5HOKgdfHEJoEWHn9oGMb2BljuDr2DIcI/s2048/Houghton_MS_Typ_1070_-_Richardson%252C_Newton_Railroad_Station+Houghton+Library+Harvard+University.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1395" data-original-width="2048" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkfcalsU784Ch0k9JTmQQcMuH1_pmBOVLP2VWt0bW1Yb-EAKHg9_nWdT9y_hIQtFQbJAFOPtYxP1ZrpaVENgdFayjIH1FAcmlp2IPKqg93HYE5HOKgdfHEJoEWHn9oGMb2BljuDr2DIcI/w400-h272/Houghton_MS_Typ_1070_-_Richardson%252C_Newton_Railroad_Station+Houghton+Library+Harvard+University.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">1886 photo courtesy of the Houghton Library at Harvard University.</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Historic, indeed. This happens to be the <i>original</i> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodland_station#Richardson_station" target="_blank">Woodland depot</a>, designed by the great architect Henry Hobson Richardson as one of a string of stations on the Boston & Albany Railroad, which in 1958 became the Highland Branch of the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA), now the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA).</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgAGQ11z2LwWI1VO_JqUbhWPdvT-FCjgr5P7uMt1EOCxi8EMylajcn5gJlT_bZ3A7ukYav_Wjq64-5mtkNSIUYMwFxifvDRpKvgpe5fsDLJxcB3OGWPZSWMzdCpwNRZ9wNrXp-HbnNRcE/s2048/1886_Woodland_station_northwest_elevation_in_1959+Photo+by+Cervin+Robinson%252C+Historic+American+Buildings+Survey%252C+June+1959.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1462" data-original-width="2048" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgAGQ11z2LwWI1VO_JqUbhWPdvT-FCjgr5P7uMt1EOCxi8EMylajcn5gJlT_bZ3A7ukYav_Wjq64-5mtkNSIUYMwFxifvDRpKvgpe5fsDLJxcB3OGWPZSWMzdCpwNRZ9wNrXp-HbnNRcE/w400-h285/1886_Woodland_station_northwest_elevation_in_1959+Photo+by+Cervin+Robinson%252C+Historic+American+Buildings+Survey%252C+June+1959.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Cervin Robinson, Historic American Buildings Survey, June 1959.</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Built by the Norcross Brothers in June-September 1886 (beginning two months after Richardson's death), the station typifies the architect's Richardsonian Romanesque style of rock-faced granite trimmed with Red Longmeadow sandstone, a mountainous medieval gable, and a horizontal, earthbound spread across the land. Richardson and his style were chosen to craft the station as a landmark in a largely unspoiled tract of bucolic boondocks in Newton, in the hope that its Romanesque regality would entice more people to settle in that back country and bring in new revenue for the railroad whenever they traveled on business or vacation.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEineGoscMe8yd5sa3-pFE8Z9EndjRn06BLjWzuOhOjkF1nAuObNh8qa_ZVj3BGbYCycTQ0A_M1jfi5lvtlin1uKnaeAB48-RnaaJfRKASUGLx_k41G2YICnZqrmLYpZpCAjMSucslptiCI/s945/1886+Woodland+station+interior+in+1959+Photo+by+Cervin+Robinson%252C+Historic+American+Buildings+Survey%252C+June+1959.png" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="666" data-original-width="945" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEineGoscMe8yd5sa3-pFE8Z9EndjRn06BLjWzuOhOjkF1nAuObNh8qa_ZVj3BGbYCycTQ0A_M1jfi5lvtlin1uKnaeAB48-RnaaJfRKASUGLx_k41G2YICnZqrmLYpZpCAjMSucslptiCI/w400-h283/1886+Woodland+station+interior+in+1959+Photo+by+Cervin+Robinson%252C+Historic+American+Buildings+Survey%252C+June+1959.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Cervin Robinson, Historic American Buildings Survey, June 1959.</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Yet this station eschews Richardson's trademark Roman arches, carved ornament and Arts-and-Crafts décor for a simpler, crisper structure and interior, as if inviting riders from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds to wait inside for their train in an atmosphere that would feel like home to all, without the pretension of his Trinity Church, public libraries and homes for the rich.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidYbTHN8Q3um0SGTmY7MA75mkGyfj1jufazzfbeRbjEfs9lroZJL56Kjkh1PO6w5TyUM5rzbK4AHc-7LkJxz8MxW9kK9iReU4qtulvDtNMAwOPxBzFfy0KyL0WNCsgizBN90wNo8CnsDk/s1080/1886+Woodland+depot+on+Woodland+Golf+Club.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="581" data-original-width="1080" height="344" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidYbTHN8Q3um0SGTmY7MA75mkGyfj1jufazzfbeRbjEfs9lroZJL56Kjkh1PO6w5TyUM5rzbK4AHc-7LkJxz8MxW9kK9iReU4qtulvDtNMAwOPxBzFfy0KyL0WNCsgizBN90wNo8CnsDk/w640-h344/1886+Woodland+depot+on+Woodland+Golf+Club.png" width="640" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0TX0GvME9AsiSLGsQbWb6NSkWlpXZnIY0WR2rTNZqA4T2pT3RnMc6nYu9NaI89PQTwnPWQGxRurTTRlLZjz1980LBMqpYtRxG2jQYns1ef7LZUk-A1eV5D5exrug9QzXrQWvKkC4Nf70/s746/1886+Woodland+depot+on+Woodland+Golf+Club+close+up.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="463" data-original-width="746" height="249" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0TX0GvME9AsiSLGsQbWb6NSkWlpXZnIY0WR2rTNZqA4T2pT3RnMc6nYu9NaI89PQTwnPWQGxRurTTRlLZjz1980LBMqpYtRxG2jQYns1ef7LZUk-A1eV5D5exrug9QzXrQWvKkC4Nf70/w400-h249/1886+Woodland+depot+on+Woodland+Golf+Club+close+up.png" width="400" /></a></div>Today it caters to the rich, but in a plebeian way as a storage "caddyshack" for the Woodland Golf Club. While the club is kept clean, Richardson's railroad relic is relegated to grungy groundskeeper status, its original use and architect spat on (and likely unknown) by those who exploit it for an ace-in-the-hole...</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyg-x0tNgNIVy0O67p9sszIJRp0UNEZICEeK2dGVNmP4L_elrYClTnRwHBICfbL76EV0HWDZRFo88JOwbjyj1OoishvLHjvCwJDeJ8VEGd_FrQe5Kzr_aPmk7MuuXw3dgG4LiXi8C36Xg/s2048/Modern_door_in_Woodland_station_building%252C_December_2018+by+Pi.1415926535.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyg-x0tNgNIVy0O67p9sszIJRp0UNEZICEeK2dGVNmP4L_elrYClTnRwHBICfbL76EV0HWDZRFo88JOwbjyj1OoishvLHjvCwJDeJ8VEGd_FrQe5Kzr_aPmk7MuuXw3dgG4LiXi8C36Xg/w400-h300/Modern_door_in_Woodland_station_building%252C_December_2018+by+Pi.1415926535.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="http://Pi.1415926535">Pi.1415926535</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>).</span></td></tr></tbody></table>...particularly with a loading-dock door that has made a hole where one of the original double windows that provided views of incoming trains from either side once was. Once a gracious gateway to future wealth, H.H. Richardson's original Woodland Station is now an onlooker onto a staid wealth it cannot partake of, on the lookout for an angel who will restore it to its former glory.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><i>Thank you for viewing. I welcome your comments!</i></b></div></div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-31464656969232135592020-09-06T19:26:00.095-04:002021-03-08T13:21:48.017-05:00Lost in the library...<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFD-8cv7SxGpkyBhw7rhOcWRkirWa4vtsHTkFtc__Av4RZ6iEeG0bSzZ1iA6KM27MA0e2qlilWG1z_adJDfDmsHyCmI6CBqglPOSoa4kde9t6VGXKykySBzylp0JaFo4FsUDeYU7b-yLo/s1024/Entrance_to_New_York_Public_Library+by+Alex+Proimos.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFD-8cv7SxGpkyBhw7rhOcWRkirWa4vtsHTkFtc__Av4RZ6iEeG0bSzZ1iA6KM27MA0e2qlilWG1z_adJDfDmsHyCmI6CBqglPOSoa4kde9t6VGXKykySBzylp0JaFo4FsUDeYU7b-yLo/w640-h427/Entrance_to_New_York_Public_Library+by+Alex+Proimos.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Main entrance hall, New York Public Library, Main Branch (1911, Carrère & Hastings). Photo: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/34120957@N04" target="_blank">Alex Proimos</a>. License: <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a>.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfALWMmWU1dIcQuwpwb0WgiS03dsaaWsI521X0T7hy4ylT-auWN2f4fnBnGF_5BC_P6GJACCyLeir-6QJC7TsVWCoI69PHDCJtBnJ3uLvpQ_rZNHNVevZITPFk8kH74givbo0D0FbdYdM/s714/New_York_Public_Library_Central_Building_Stacks_%25283110117728%2529.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="714" data-original-width="610" height="410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfALWMmWU1dIcQuwpwb0WgiS03dsaaWsI521X0T7hy4ylT-auWN2f4fnBnGF_5BC_P6GJACCyLeir-6QJC7TsVWCoI69PHDCJtBnJ3uLvpQ_rZNHNVevZITPFk8kH74givbo0D0FbdYdM/w350-h410/New_York_Public_Library_Central_Building_Stacks_%25283110117728%2529.jpg" width="350" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Stacks, New York Public Library. Archival photo.<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table>The library is more than a storehouse of knowledge. It's a bastion of logic.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I don't just mean the logical reasoning its patrons hoped we would nurture through reams of reading and research in its hallowed halls and stately stacks. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I'm referring to the logical layout users expect of it upon entering—a proper progression of rooms, sequential adherence to the Dewey Decimal System (if used), clear wayfinding signs and nodes, etc.—so they won't have to hound elusive mountain goats or be waylaid by red herrings to track down a desired book or paper, claim a cubicle or computer, or reach a restroom in time.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEnfWPK8mv-RPe_pxLH0antMZjMZGuWkgvLnim87m5UU967s0ybhzHi6K-eOzy1IKa0NRpv1lg9vg4nN8VbCrulidy0KCeGhv2yKQFIdjOt8pw3DJkYqBBjhnbEQ5Y-myXM7j__gccyrI/s1024/NYPL_portals+by+GK+tramrunner229.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="768" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEnfWPK8mv-RPe_pxLH0antMZjMZGuWkgvLnim87m5UU967s0ybhzHi6K-eOzy1IKa0NRpv1lg9vg4nN8VbCrulidy0KCeGhv2yKQFIdjOt8pw3DJkYqBBjhnbEQ5Y-myXM7j__gccyrI/w384-h512/NYPL_portals+by+GK+tramrunner229.jpg" width="384" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Portico, New York Public Library. Photo: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:GK_tramrunner229" target="_blank">GK tramrunner229</a>. License: <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>.<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">After all, no one wants a library experience like a wild duck hunt through Super Stop & Shop, a quest for a lost kid at Six Flags, or a scramble for budget parking in New York. </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Yet some libraries venture beyond their book repository and study hall roles so surreally I'd love to get lost in them, if only to gawk at their glory, eye their ornament, fixate </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">on their frescoes, or thirst for the thought resting on their sky-high shelves. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Besides, midcentury modern libes are as antiseptic as ERs. So why not enjoy a circus of sights while combing the collections, as either a diversion from studies or an artistic experience of the library's intellectual depth?</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzsIYGbaP1mPF0OwLhV6nBIowSFADAL9SNqqDfbQ0tZbctCl-2O0zZ8mdWtufsu1RCrh43oQp2FFa-HncChH48G0FiVTAH6vzzHhXcTflSAb2YT8aORoxzeh77KGlCZYkw2wiQYp8sbb8/s2048/Long_Room_Interior%252C_Trinity_College_Dublin%252C_Ireland_-_Diliff.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1546" data-original-width="2048" height="309" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzsIYGbaP1mPF0OwLhV6nBIowSFADAL9SNqqDfbQ0tZbctCl-2O0zZ8mdWtufsu1RCrh43oQp2FFa-HncChH48G0FiVTAH6vzzHhXcTflSAb2YT8aORoxzeh77KGlCZYkw2wiQYp8sbb8/w410-h309/Long_Room_Interior%252C_Trinity_College_Dublin%252C_Ireland_-_Diliff.jpg" width="410" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="background-color: #f8f9fa; color: #202122; text-align: start;">Library, Trinity College Dublin (1732, Thomas Burgh). Photo: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Diliff" target="_blank">David Iliff</a>. License: <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 4.0</a></span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en" target="_blank"><br /></a></span></td></tr></tbody></table>In the Long Room at the Library of Trinity College, Dublin, the towers of gold-lettered leatherbound tomes are the main attraction, piquing our awe at the expanse of scholarship within those vaulting volumes, expressed by the barrel-vaulted ceiling and the forever feel of the hall that invites us to wander and ponder the leathery linguistics, wondering what food for thought to feast on first and get lost in last.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1dYev6a9yj6FFt8pVqx5zegp88SPDSDn0ggoGolv93GZv6iLk6MGdLnIEFKnGeWeA8CZkE87CrwqhuM7k3J1V0u0vGb08wqMU4BAkgbKaxfYCl-tjWReJyuO7CLHoBwdT6um2b_dtEx4/s600/24_big.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="479" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1dYev6a9yj6FFt8pVqx5zegp88SPDSDn0ggoGolv93GZv6iLk6MGdLnIEFKnGeWeA8CZkE87CrwqhuM7k3J1V0u0vGb08wqMU4BAkgbKaxfYCl-tjWReJyuO7CLHoBwdT6um2b_dtEx4/w383-h480/24_big.jpg" width="383" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Library, University Club of New York (1899, Charles Follen McKim).<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table>The University Club of New York library follows the Long Room's symmetrical hall-procession conservatism, adding the extravaganza of gilded moldings, painted patterns and storybook frescoes on groin vaults, divinely inspired by the Vatican's Borgia Apartments. These elements proclaim the club-clique exclusivity regarding who dares parade its premises and peruse its precious books. This contrasts with the bare-bones barrel-vaulting and structural emphasis that makes Trinity feel more publicly accessible (the Club Library, BTW, is not) in a way that is awe-inspiring but not effusive of the Club Library's palatial pomp.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcE73lyKgYgXy98OwT4qCM2GCTEA6CsPNXWmX1jfd58YAkBet7UKHFhKbIccIVkxbV9IGSBr_uwp9vOT_M2QF3UqAiuMru_nva8gIaC3AYhNM8bvwjY9NeSiXZh0Ejg93Crhv8o5G6L3w/s1023/Clementinum_library2.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="725" data-original-width="1023" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcE73lyKgYgXy98OwT4qCM2GCTEA6CsPNXWmX1jfd58YAkBet7UKHFhKbIccIVkxbV9IGSBr_uwp9vOT_M2QF3UqAiuMru_nva8gIaC3AYhNM8bvwjY9NeSiXZh0Ejg93Crhv8o5G6L3w/w410-h290/Clementinum_library2.jpg" width="410" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Library, Clementinum, Prague, Czech Republic (1722, Kilian Ignatz Dientzenhofer, <br />frescoes painted 1727 by Jan Hiebel). Photo: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/bruno_1802/" target="_blank">Bruno Delzant</a>. License: <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY 2.0</a>. </span></td></tr></tbody></table>The Baroque Library, dedicated in 1722 for the Jesuit university at Klementium in Prague, pushes the pomp further skyward with spiral columns raising the eye to the barrel-vaulted ceiling of Jan Hiebl's frescoes of </span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">allegorical motifs of education and portraits of Jesuit saints and university patrons. Add the geographical and astronomical globes and clocks and the old books, and intellectual stimulation never stops.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFlnv8a3Sm3v0A9zZoIAmCcFfGyKGTMOdqekz8S3TrFzOYjZCPVOerwsntoxbQUdKGpuU1l5UTlPhB_woMC3elyhNFXW7modsyFPWxcdT4F3zZUibXmq2cwAXEaZLn5WxR2E7QvBmPbIU/s1024/Admont_Abbey_Library_-_1326+by+Jorge+Royan.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFlnv8a3Sm3v0A9zZoIAmCcFfGyKGTMOdqekz8S3TrFzOYjZCPVOerwsntoxbQUdKGpuU1l5UTlPhB_woMC3elyhNFXW7modsyFPWxcdT4F3zZUibXmq2cwAXEaZLn5WxR2E7QvBmPbIU/w400-h266/Admont_Abbey_Library_-_1326+by+Jorge+Royan.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Admont Abbey Library (1776, Joseph Hueber), Admont, Austria<br />Photo by <a href="https://royan.com.ar" target="_blank">Jorge Royan</a> (License: <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>)</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Austria's Admont Abbey Library honors the Enlightenment with 48 windows lighting the white-and-gold palette,</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;"> </span>Bartolomeo Altomonte's frescoes of<span style="background-color: white;"> the stages of human knowledge through Divine Revelation, Baroque curlicues vaulting for heavenly realms, and the 70,000 volumes the visuals may stimulate you to be lost in enlightenment in.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGcKAeiyRzydQOY2CuS0vcwbAsoun7y79gfCZG3OcU8OWxOSJmuqBUETOJKzQsgPdHdeoAj1Y10ghPVG3hi_UBu2X7WD52G31IvRfr-JBT65XmHqV7eHoC829XWPw4FxL3NIz41ZJoCic/s2048/George-peabody-library+Baltimore+by+Matthew+Petroff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGcKAeiyRzydQOY2CuS0vcwbAsoun7y79gfCZG3OcU8OWxOSJmuqBUETOJKzQsgPdHdeoAj1Y10ghPVG3hi_UBu2X7WD52G31IvRfr-JBT65XmHqV7eHoC829XWPw4FxL3NIz41ZJoCic/w400-h300/George-peabody-library+Baltimore+by+Matthew+Petroff.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">George Peabody Library (1878, Edmund George Lind), Baltimore, Maryland.<br />Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:George-peabody-library.jpg" target="_blank">Matthew Petroff </a>(<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>).</span></td></tr></tbody></table>The <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Peabody_Library" target="_blank">George Peabody Library</a> is often pictured on ads for travel to Baltimore, and I'm not surprised. Deemed a "cathedral of books" by its first provost Nathaniel H. Morison, this 1878 neo-Greco palace presents the architectural equivalent of gilded tomes: gold-scalloped columns of cast-iron-railed book-stacks soar from a marble floor to a 61-foot latticed skylight, inviting us to lose ourselves in the light of knowledge.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFGTdS9JzySDYcu3eK_KdlewsDcaaZv1AwLV3NOkfVzkjiuuBqWAvWbTgEzA2AbcsGG1c9H2HuW7qCHLtcGPR3Y6aloJhHbUWuOzmr8zil1WvqCeqRwjxR9clq9N-88_yjitYUa1hGZj0/s2048/Salt_Lake_City_Public_Library+by+Nova77.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFGTdS9JzySDYcu3eK_KdlewsDcaaZv1AwLV3NOkfVzkjiuuBqWAvWbTgEzA2AbcsGG1c9H2HuW7qCHLtcGPR3Y6aloJhHbUWuOzmr8zil1WvqCeqRwjxR9clq9N-88_yjitYUa1hGZj0/w375-h500/Salt_Lake_City_Public_Library+by+Nova77.jpg" width="375" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Salt Lake City Public Library (2003, Moshe Safdie & Associates and VCBO Architecture)<br />Photo by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Nova77" target="_blank">Nova77</a> (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_the_GNU_Free_Documentation_License" target="_blank">GNU Free Documentation License</a>)</span></td></tr></tbody></table>But is lavish ornament necessary to enjoy loss in the library? At least not since Moshe Safdie's Salt Lake City Public Library was dedicated in 2003, flaunting enough curves, catwalks, </span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia;">curtain walls,</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia;"> cathedral ceilings and interspatial odysseys to strike awe in Archie's gang:</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;">BETTY: It's...it's awesome!</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;">CHUCK: Wow! And double wow!</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;">JUGHEAD: Throw in a triple wow for me! (<a href="https://www.comixology.eu/Archie-570/digital-comic/3790" target="_blank">Archie #570</a>)</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: xx-small;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;">Eager to eat up as much space as food (if not learning), Jughead nailed it regarding not just the library's astronomical dimensions, but also its expression of the infinite information the libes now possess, kudos to what bounds beyond bookshelf growth: cyberspace and the Internet. </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;">Now <i>that's </i>something to get lost in.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></span></span></div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-37887694553962671482020-09-06T13:30:00.026-04:002020-09-06T13:40:46.303-04:00Balancing the Biltmores<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Marine_69-71">Tony "the Marine" Santiago</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Phoenix-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel-1929.JPG">Wikimedia Commons</a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Biltmore Hotel first piqued my interest while watching<i> </i>Abbott and Costello on TV when I was a kid. <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">In one sketch, once</span> they managed to shut both the hood and the trunk of their car (shutting one made the other open) and stuffed their raft in the back, Bud told Lou to drive them to "the Biltmore Hotel near Phoenix" for their vacation. Lou stopped at the Biltmore next door. A row ensued:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">BUD: "I said the Biltmore Hotel in Phoenix!"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">LOU: "Well, it's the Biltmore Hotel right next to Phoenix Coffee Shop."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">BUD: "I meant the Biltmore Hotel in Phoenix, <i>Arizona!"</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">At that point my father informed me that there was also a Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, the city in which Bud and Lou lived (or barely lived; they were perpetually unemployed actors at the mercy of Mr. Fields, their cantankerous landlord) on <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>The Abbott and Costello<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> Show</span></i></span>. </span><div><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">So now that COVID-19 has put the kibosh on our plans to satiate our summertime wanderlusts, I thought I'd let my mind wander a bit and compare the two hotels—totally different in style, but miraculously built in the same decade—to see which might have been the better vacation resort for the legendary comedy team.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">First of all, neither of the Biltmores looks anything like the one Lou stopped at, which <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">confusedly intermingles</span> the classicism of the Los Angeles Biltmore and the Art Deco of the Arizona Biltmore. (Nor was Phoenix Coffee Shop a real place.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #990000; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The Los Angeles Biltmore</span><br />
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<span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">L.A.'s "Biltmore Angel"—designed as a symbol of the City of the Angels its patrons were visiting—brought Beaux Arts beauty and Renaissance regalia to the city when it opened to festive fanfare in 1923. Since then it has hosted history in
the making, from the Academy Awards to the arrival of the Beatles to the Democratic National
Convention that nominated John F. Kennedy for President in 1960. Restored and
reopened as the Millennium Biltmore in 2009, it <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">remains</span> the host with the most.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photos by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/88834196@N00/">P.G. Roy Photography</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Interior_of_the_Millennium_Biltmore_Hotel#/media/File:Interior_of_the_Millennium_Biltmore_Hotel-24647554504.jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Leonard
Schultze and S. Fullerton Weaver, architects of New York’s Pierre and
Waldorf-Astoria hotels, designed the Biltmore <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">in</span> a<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> mélange of </span></span></span><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Beaux-Arts, </span></span></span>Mediterran<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">ean and </span>Spanish-Italian
Renaissance<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">s<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">tyles,</span></span> befitting both L.A.’s Castilian heritage and Roaring '20s fashions. </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG8YG7H5tR9dqg7V7pvuYHMYd6R1_6IRUFZAOLP2PfeHtxryXE5H8x-GIXh1yMZcj3GgunYNq7zNrbQrj56qjjYIqmvP92vXdSH-Geidww9FVEvjegCCpfn4Eyh0ydOX81ENe9UHLOxcU/s1600/Biltmore+Entrance+Hall.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="332" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG8YG7H5tR9dqg7V7pvuYHMYd6R1_6IRUFZAOLP2PfeHtxryXE5H8x-GIXh1yMZcj3GgunYNq7zNrbQrj56qjjYIqmvP92vXdSH-Geidww9FVEvjegCCpfn4Eyh0ydOX81ENe9UHLOxcU/s320/Biltmore+Entrance+Hall.jpg" width="212" /></a><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Murals, frescoes,
imported crystal chandeliers, carved marble fountains and columns, massive
drapery and other delights embellish <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">the Los Angeles Biltmore's</span> 70,000 square feet of meeting, lounging<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">, dining and<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> club</span></span> space, often <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">integrating</span> images of the “Biltmore Angel” into its lavish ornamentation.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">T</span></span></span><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">he Biltmore's original 1,500
guestrooms included a Presidential Suite, where the Beatles stayed
during their 1964 U.S. tour, accessing it by l<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">anding a </span>helicopter on the hotel roof to avoid the<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span>hordes of screaming fans
below.<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span>Latter-day renovations reduced the room count to 683 <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">but</span> restored the
common areas to their ’20s twinkle<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">.</span></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Italian
artist Giovanni Smeraldi, who painted murals in the Vatican and <br />the White House,
hand-painted angels, cupids, Greek and Roman gods, <br />and other mythological
figures on the ceilings of the Galleria...</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"> ...and the Crystal Ballroom, where the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br />and </span>Sciences was founded at a luncheon banquet
in 1927. Smeraldi's <br />apprentice, Anthony Heinsbergen, restored the ceilings in
the 1980s.</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Reliefs
of Roman deities Ceres and Neptune and Spanish conquistadors <br />Balboa and
Columbus adorn the Palladian entrance.</span></span> </span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr0WBxEr0W-aZWqyw_Aw5CSzD4MxHO6uCXV48AcO8_PkZy57ksanqjvXT06x7y0Z32YqWDr2kJ1IoiSC48jki5uI96Ae1eNW8dnuOnAlBgZZnPIzDoQn6xUl9mpXYRY-_dsEPzVI0XjHk/s1600/Millennium_Biltmore_Hotel_front_desk-Prayitno.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr0WBxEr0W-aZWqyw_Aw5CSzD4MxHO6uCXV48AcO8_PkZy57ksanqjvXT06x7y0Z32YqWDr2kJ1IoiSC48jki5uI96Ae1eNW8dnuOnAlBgZZnPIzDoQn6xUl9mpXYRY-_dsEPzVI0XjHk/s400/Millennium_Biltmore_Hotel_front_desk-Prayitno.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">The lobby retains the travertine walls,
oak paneling and artificial <br />skylight ceiling from when it was the Music Room,
where Kennedy <br />set up his <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">presidential </span>campaign headquarters.</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRvDflHxfCBLzd9hnUbp1xiGGFVfwu5LqHYlKzR0YufQwpPEpzU4iQ_DWd26GxleeMliyAFpNT4vl1wmLcjppnNHPkzBk69Sh0VsxPZ-jyAmXXKla8etKtmYn03GKRnnIH0MoZwLtg-hI/s1600/Millennium_Biltmore_Hotel-Rendezvous+Court+Prayitno.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRvDflHxfCBLzd9hnUbp1xiGGFVfwu5LqHYlKzR0YufQwpPEpzU4iQ_DWd26GxleeMliyAFpNT4vl1wmLcjppnNHPkzBk69Sh0VsxPZ-jyAmXXKla8etKtmYn03GKRnnIH0MoZwLtg-hI/s400/Millennium_Biltmore_Hotel-Rendezvous+Court+Prayitno.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">The
Rendezvous Court, the old lobby-turned-tearoom, <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">features</span> a <br />Moorish cast-plaster
beamed ceiling accented in gold paint, Italian <br />chandeliers, and a
Spanish-Baroque bronze doorway with an <br />astrological clock that still works. </span></span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFfNyOzOh_k2lws9cWANFP6ZLA7QAPMsUgY4OwGyYDZbNOx03G7oP1e2VXfeETgRwHQl6cjoLBS4yaJVqTwWmHUePxHKFc-DhrPxYRjvrzdy02pMdOvW_7PewtrqcxkJrnTqcZSlTDPRs/s1600/Emerald+Room.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="375" data-original-width="500" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFfNyOzOh_k2lws9cWANFP6ZLA7QAPMsUgY4OwGyYDZbNOx03G7oP1e2VXfeETgRwHQl6cjoLBS4yaJVqTwWmHUePxHKFc-DhrPxYRjvrzdy02pMdOvW_7PewtrqcxkJrnTqcZSlTDPRs/s400/Emerald+Room.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Each
ballroom is decorated in remembrance of its original function <br />or in keeping
with the hotel's California heritage. The Emerald <br />Room, formerly the main
dining room, has a food theme: hand-<br />painted animals and fish along cast-plaster
ceiling beams.</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk9BbdXrjf0HrsqDy0CuRVRFPTXUS4p5_0eqDOt9wQVy10YAWeRIxxKlkPUglksVzjN2sdWN68JHmJo2J2ScBTnC9V2651Upm0ZgrweEkEwEa89PQeBq8oCSGKCdyotua9YeJvE34UL7w/s1600/Tiffany+Room.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="768" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk9BbdXrjf0HrsqDy0CuRVRFPTXUS4p5_0eqDOt9wQVy10YAWeRIxxKlkPUglksVzjN2sdWN68JHmJo2J2ScBTnC9V2651Upm0ZgrweEkEwEa89PQeBq8oCSGKCdyotua9YeJvE34UL7w/s400/Tiffany+Room.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">The Tiffany Room, originally the Crystal Ballroom’s drop-off
<br />corridor, features exploration-themed reliefs and sculptures of <br />Queen Isabella,
Columbus and other Spanish explorers.</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglFTYLvhS0gPwu_M2G25-JrVKzpynymyn2vh1HfbRaiAgXHxXgtR38iPC4kUskOuACSDAA5nuqT2yexf6fkRm3NtR0dhNBBsA68Z498Zgn6a30RuKBsTTVp_r0gjaUdjUjqskeVD7_nP8/s1600/Gold+Room.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="359" data-original-width="564" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglFTYLvhS0gPwu_M2G25-JrVKzpynymyn2vh1HfbRaiAgXHxXgtR38iPC4kUskOuACSDAA5nuqT2yexf6fkRm3NtR0dhNBBsA68Z498Zgn6a30RuKBsTTVp_r0gjaUdjUjqskeVD7_nP8/s400/Gold+Room.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">The Gold Room combines an old upper-level
supper club and lower-<br />level palm room in an artful ambiance of hand-oiled wood
paneling, <br />mirrored windows, and concealed liquor cabinets from Prohibition.</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEyx5E1NJWqNjZU-9AAhmr4uWagCw_xz8oHp0LBOO0hwHl180LCn_8WhvLOOP6I03c__6LSqu4MThvha__OeIMsO_NXflquYeK8dgXpXN5-Qb4Ha4OUHhesTzundR0xIhzCIdB7odbNCY/s1600/Millennium+Biltmore+pool.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="460" data-original-width="840" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEyx5E1NJWqNjZU-9AAhmr4uWagCw_xz8oHp0LBOO0hwHl180LCn_8WhvLOOP6I03c__6LSqu4MThvha__OeIMsO_NXflquYeK8dgXpXN5-Qb4Ha4OUHhesTzundR0xIhzCIdB7odbNCY/s400/Millennium+Biltmore+pool.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">A
nautical theme dominates the indoor pool and health club. Brass <br />railings and
window/door trim, teakwood deck chairs, and hand-laid <br />Italian mosaic wall and
pool tiles recall 1920s cruiseliners.</span></span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV6s6unEGktQZnuVWrnvhcscvA7eLBDObBSEMDENPfBg1hxEzZCU-YZPDWR-13GT_haLlN2UizQBB5zrky6UVJkIhGuU-IsT8kSKR8TdX_T95gKk0qXUjQPCB4DWEpQjdm7N0jGmq2KmI/s1600/South+Galleria.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="832" data-original-width="1248" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV6s6unEGktQZnuVWrnvhcscvA7eLBDObBSEMDENPfBg1hxEzZCU-YZPDWR-13GT_haLlN2UizQBB5zrky6UVJkIhGuU-IsT8kSKR8TdX_T95gKk0qXUjQPCB4DWEpQjdm7N0jGmq2KmI/s400/South+Galleria.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">The
South Galleria’s Roman columns, marble balustrades and vaulted <br />ceiling are
complemented with Pompeii-styled floral friezes.</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxDInST8rGHeHFVY0GA7p0uHBwW1DEnI0u0U4GYKrzplpq3PI5ncS1z9fVEi9IbkXvIqjyHE2FPpPCgiR2PU92I8tpDa3YSJkN6eJJEQdktvRLpvB_SgWo62YRq7QEJS_neGrwh7ZdR8k/s1600/The+1937+Academy+Awards+dinner+in+the+Biltmore+Bowl.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="293" data-original-width="600" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxDInST8rGHeHFVY0GA7p0uHBwW1DEnI0u0U4GYKrzplpq3PI5ncS1z9fVEi9IbkXvIqjyHE2FPpPCgiR2PU92I8tpDa3YSJkN6eJJEQdktvRLpvB_SgWo62YRq7QEJS_neGrwh7ZdR8k/s400/The+1937+Academy+Awards+dinner+in+the+Biltmore+Bowl.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">In the</span> Biltmore Bowl<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> downstairs,</span> <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">eight</span> Academy
Award ceremonies <br />took place between 1931 and 1942, making B<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">est Picture </span>legends of <i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br />Cimarron, It Happened One Night, Mutiny on the Bounty, </span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The <br />Great Ziegfeld, <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Life of Emile Zola, You Can't Take it With <br />You, Rebecca, </span></i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">and</span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> How Green Was My Valley</span></i>.</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Since Abbott and Costello's 1941 movie <i>Buck Privates</i> got two Oscar nominations (Best Original Song for "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy," sung by the Andrews Sisters, and Best Original Music Score for Charles Previn), they might have felt at home at the L.A. Biltmore...had it not been for Lou's tendency to get lost in big spaces, experience supernatural phenomena such as paintings or statues coming alive, and fail to convince Bud of the truth of these tales. Besides, this hotel's sheer size might have made his cries of <i>"HEYYYYY, AAAAABBUHHHHHHHHTT!" </i>go unheard by his buddy.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">So let's get to Phoenix...</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Arizona Biltmore</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4opMVfHVV3ZgfEtGtRouSxKly8JN6qgzycdnjVi4gzEt7lkCRpYSSBYzeqW3krMO0MIf1dbSmjBWiU08zRPxswil6_t9efwkmjDFCon2FNOvq7PeuLYg1dVVKK3wJxs5Tj1DDAC5ewc8/s1600/arizona-biltmore-pinterest.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="552" data-original-width="736" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4opMVfHVV3ZgfEtGtRouSxKly8JN6qgzycdnjVi4gzEt7lkCRpYSSBYzeqW3krMO0MIf1dbSmjBWiU08zRPxswil6_t9efwkmjDFCon2FNOvq7PeuLYg1dVVKK3wJxs5Tj1DDAC5ewc8/s640/arizona-biltmore-pinterest.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Built in 1929, the Arizona Biltmore was designed by Albert Chase McArthur in the horizontal, earthy, Prairie-School, Mayan temple-based vernacular of his former teacher Frank Lloyd Wright, who was the design consultant. Though Wright was displeased with the final design, McArthur clearly took so much from the master it's easy to mistake it for a Wright original...</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimUr3FjwenNhW8_b8UgUWw7H5UXcZ_udSEQAjse6bxiqIv7gYMgSm9Fn9UCFbOy3wBwabYcCqHZTtKS9DOzLDPB3MT3h30kInc5tt2MVt4NvV1UBz7YY4BJXyPC8QK7-M0euRssAtZ2ao/s1600/Phoenix-Building-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel-stylized_bricks_by_architect%252C_Albert_Chase_McArthur-1929+by+Marine+69-71+%2528cropped%2529.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1568" data-original-width="1600" height="391" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimUr3FjwenNhW8_b8UgUWw7H5UXcZ_udSEQAjse6bxiqIv7gYMgSm9Fn9UCFbOy3wBwabYcCqHZTtKS9DOzLDPB3MT3h30kInc5tt2MVt4NvV1UBz7YY4BJXyPC8QK7-M0euRssAtZ2ao/s400/Phoenix-Building-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel-stylized_bricks_by_architect%252C_Albert_Chase_McArthur-1929+by+Marine+69-71+%2528cropped%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: xx-small;">All photos by Tony "the Marine" Santiago, aka <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Marine_69-71">Marine 69-71</a> (License: <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>).</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...especially regarding the use of desert sand-casted concrete blocks to create surface patterns inspired by palm-tree trunks and Native American woven fabrics. Wright preferred square Textile Blocks like those on his Derby, Ennis and Hollyhock houses, but MacArthur stood his ground, and his building blocks became known as the "Biltmore Blocks" for giving the Biltmore a unique geometric pattern recalling the movement of water ripples, fish gills, billowing sails...</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-HVfe1cyUTz4yJ034MFwxmPIjSbWxiKDW262Xn4aIbdSzCs2lxlcL01P-yLF7o4z3bT9tN8LzugM4nQmQneFM1bOoQYnzsS9kl0GKl6Jzlc8pZTYScyuaM6YqCW0UmG7F7E8qLyUs9xA/s2048/Phoenix-Building-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel_Mystery_room-1929-6+by+Tony+%2522The+Marine%2522+Santiago.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-HVfe1cyUTz4yJ034MFwxmPIjSbWxiKDW262Xn4aIbdSzCs2lxlcL01P-yLF7o4z3bT9tN8LzugM4nQmQneFM1bOoQYnzsS9kl0GKl6Jzlc8pZTYScyuaM6YqCW0UmG7F7E8qLyUs9xA/w400-h300/Phoenix-Building-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel_Mystery_room-1929-6+by+Tony+%2522The+Marine%2522+Santiago.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>...or smoke rising from the fireplaces. In the Mystery Room, the billowy blocks on the mantel suggest the movement of flames in the hearth and smoke up the flue, accented by the upward pointing of the "Indian arrowhead" andirons. I also love the way the cove-lighting gilds the cornice without the application of gold paint common in the LA Biltmore.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjya1mWuzxievsQ_h0b_zMYTgS2mapsRlteUGpsUq8Mw8yq0ethJJGM6LIHkn505Tfnt05bS1zfB24pzktw6JTMvCJSW93sDQXjuQB2ynPmB11uT3g4JZfnZl754zqL2sCd7bOLOc1oZos/s2048/Phoenix-Building-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel_Mystery_room-1929-4.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjya1mWuzxievsQ_h0b_zMYTgS2mapsRlteUGpsUq8Mw8yq0ethJJGM6LIHkn505Tfnt05bS1zfB24pzktw6JTMvCJSW93sDQXjuQB2ynPmB11uT3g4JZfnZl754zqL2sCd7bOLOc1oZos/w400-h300/Phoenix-Building-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel_Mystery_room-1929-4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>The cove-lit cornice also complements and contrasts the Mystery Room's stained-glass ceiling, for the effect of natural light in the day and artificial light in the evening, each adding splashes of color without the need for applied décor, except for the ceiling gilding that blends with both, smoothing the day-to-night transition.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Biltmore blocks—which do bear a slight resemblance to the ornamentation around Abbott & Costello's "Biltmore"— also contribute to the sense of fluid movement throughout the hotel's lobby, as a counterpoint to the static feel of the more vertically oriented Los Angeles Biltmore. The </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Arizona Biltmore lobby's</span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> spatial continuity would certainly make it easier for Lou to flee from the dangers he couldn't convince Bud of the truth of...or for his </span></span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">"HEYYYYY, AAAAABBUHHHHHHHHTT!" </i><span style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">alarm to be more loud and clear along the long, continuous space.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwxiBeFDYK8LUznUgtYMEssahKYOXXBILYgjQFDiKzaJkAJ6rFSW2rKmc33rxOPqhXCjE1SWpwxmwsRMzemZsv_4HMe9V1-__g_GuYpAhsVVt92Vf_raaK_sGRcnQJc8WotzE6Kp7E3eM/s2048/Phoenix-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel-1929-3.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwxiBeFDYK8LUznUgtYMEssahKYOXXBILYgjQFDiKzaJkAJ6rFSW2rKmc33rxOPqhXCjE1SWpwxmwsRMzemZsv_4HMe9V1-__g_GuYpAhsVVt92Vf_raaK_sGRcnQJc8WotzE6Kp7E3eM/w400-h300/Phoenix-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel-1929-3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Bud would clearly hear Lou's bawl in the Biltmore's original ballroom, the</span><span style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Aztec Room. A geometric mandala radiates on the carpet while copper beams, slanting gilt ceiling panels and Biltmore-Block filigrees augment the sense of upward and inward motion toward the sun, honoring the artfully domineering temples of Mexico's Aztec Empire.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl-fylWbAssotmm_sbGxWhMRLjpp3cDzaqoUGSLp5lb4VoHiDUw_rZ1s1V1Bi-PGsv1MNUBMTHguFV1mCXEEQDrdLtUicplGHmQp6zKuz6I8gzED7vSfM5ycLuPSX09FMUu5qH54qzoUQ/s2048/Phoenix-Building-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel_Gold_room-1929-2.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl-fylWbAssotmm_sbGxWhMRLjpp3cDzaqoUGSLp5lb4VoHiDUw_rZ1s1V1Bi-PGsv1MNUBMTHguFV1mCXEEQDrdLtUicplGHmQp6zKuz6I8gzED7vSfM5ycLuPSX09FMUu5qH54qzoUQ/w400-h300/Phoenix-Building-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel_Gold_room-1929-2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>The Gold Room would be another resonant echo-chamber for Lou's holler of helplessness, with its unobstructed corridor-space and its ceiling slanting to just enough of an apex for acoustic enhancement while maintaining the hotel's low-slung horizontality, helped by low-rise stairs. Geometric sconce stacks and billowy Biltmore Blocks add an Aztec aura.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv8R0FLNp_igqbJRera3Cs3qNAIOCuUP41NmpJhUaz7BlCsHk4UupqXnetlnmWnEQgv7UF16bWXLVJ0JFl8rZhZzaETyWpmG1CZhozr97HPJqqtCflYYxp5dquIf5WhJmGDXZG8FRMMvc/s2048/Phoenix-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel-1929-6.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv8R0FLNp_igqbJRera3Cs3qNAIOCuUP41NmpJhUaz7BlCsHk4UupqXnetlnmWnEQgv7UF16bWXLVJ0JFl8rZhZzaETyWpmG1CZhozr97HPJqqtCflYYxp5dquIf5WhJmGDXZG8FRMMvc/w400-h300/Phoenix-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel-1929-6.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Here was a place for Bud and Lou to splash their raft and join the nabobs who dipped here: the Catalina Pool. Built in the 1930s by Chicago chewing-gum king William Wrigley Jr., it was reportedly Marilyn Monroe's favorite pool. Irving Berlin wrote many songs while sunning on the deck, including "White Christmas," which opens with a nod to the climate he was in:</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; font-size: small; font-style: italic; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUdJXHDnBKi8NfTtvecIJEYj8Bo9a5q7PUbrCW-o3clefG6mxTYVIe-Dcy3QtxQMLLrIaeZ6R07wCevJSybHBa6zKTnYCjB6cF3djNHsF98s2ShW0KMqjzeU1_W4SyurQyEInV-FOMZas/s2048/Phoenix-Building-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel-Catalna_Pool-1929-4.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUdJXHDnBKi8NfTtvecIJEYj8Bo9a5q7PUbrCW-o3clefG6mxTYVIe-Dcy3QtxQMLLrIaeZ6R07wCevJSybHBa6zKTnYCjB6cF3djNHsF98s2ShW0KMqjzeU1_W4SyurQyEInV-FOMZas/w320-h240/Phoenix-Building-Arizona_Biltmore_Hotel-Catalna_Pool-1929-4.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small; font-style: normal;">The Catalina Pool fountain.<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><i style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The sun is shining, the grass is green,</span></i></div></span><span style="font-size: x-small; font-style: italic;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><div style="text-align: center;"><i style="background-color: transparent;">The orange and palm trees sway.</i></div></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><div style="text-align: center;"><i style="background-color: transparent;">There's never been such a day</i></div></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><div style="text-align: center;"><i style="background-color: transparent;">In Beverly Hills, L.A.</i></div></span></span><div style="font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">But it's December the twenty-fourth,</span></span></i></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-style: italic;"><div style="text-align: center;"><i style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">And I am longing to be up North.</span></i></div></span></span></div>
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<br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Though it was the Biltmore's Beaux-Arts bro that was actually in L.A., Berlin nailed the ambiance of the Arizona Bilt to the hilt, with a twist of irony: since winter frigidity makes us miss summer humidity, why the opposite now?</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Balancing the Biltmores</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"> </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-S-n5c1wBnIN-MmM1nIVRoFrBpwDWvj-Hyxm-19FMzN4RDBlfkYsYIlM3DkwiQxQy_3sqmNeZTiGBuq_U5CUrbj2Syev_zKOvRCjPrfsDrYGWMpspEzlbSchvBdhoNUf-7J0FIlzBu9g/s309/Arizona+Biltmore.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="232" data-original-width="309" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-S-n5c1wBnIN-MmM1nIVRoFrBpwDWvj-Hyxm-19FMzN4RDBlfkYsYIlM3DkwiQxQy_3sqmNeZTiGBuq_U5CUrbj2Syev_zKOvRCjPrfsDrYGWMpspEzlbSchvBdhoNUf-7J0FIlzBu9g/w309-h233/Arizona+Biltmore.jpg" width="309" /></a></div></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkMgfnJ5JELdsVS-dD7Hq_IuTBzOQ4CbxV924muLcYYX42s8bI7S5P9cdpwfGcMeJAGQIxVhgWUgiPeNB-zX_ENuf8sE8FvpSvJIKtDOIddKVneTc7vg9RM0n4nmnt60qaNDTrejQybXs/s421/Millenniumbiltmore.jpg" style="clear: left; font-family: georgia; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="421" data-original-width="304" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkMgfnJ5JELdsVS-dD7Hq_IuTBzOQ4CbxV924muLcYYX42s8bI7S5P9cdpwfGcMeJAGQIxVhgWUgiPeNB-zX_ENuf8sE8FvpSvJIKtDOIddKVneTc7vg9RM0n4nmnt60qaNDTrejQybXs/w185-h256/Millenniumbiltmore.jpg" width="185" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">And speaking of opposites: It's clear which Biltmore Bud and Lou preferred. Which one would best cure <i>your</i> summertime blues?</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</span></span></i></b></div>
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</div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-46518393704232388552020-09-05T22:57:00.014-04:002020-09-06T19:43:56.459-04:00How trees shape context<span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2x-VPJy3bq_xWXMoQ_9lEZVfHilyYkyQbLnfYsFZEUw6jsimEHr7syhEH7N5D1QBXTJsG7B3ruXu9-6T0FqHs3awphoIZV_12FsP6I8f8jksUo0tBLOLFfEhrtX5Ktbl14AXeVaeeWz4/s2048/Alpen+House.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1146" data-original-width="2048" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2x-VPJy3bq_xWXMoQ_9lEZVfHilyYkyQbLnfYsFZEUw6jsimEHr7syhEH7N5D1QBXTJsG7B3ruXu9-6T0FqHs3awphoIZV_12FsP6I8f8jksUo0tBLOLFfEhrtX5Ktbl14AXeVaeeWz4/w410-h229/Alpen+House.jpg" width="410" /></a></div>POP QUIZ: Where do you think this is?</span><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">(a) Arber, Germany</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">(b) Bergen, Norway</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">(c) Bernese Oberland, Switzerland</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">(d) Watertown, Massachusetts, USA</span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Stumped? I don't blame you. Looks can be deceiving when trees shroud enough environmental details to frame a building in a new context that obscures its original one, as if Photoshopping out the extraneous to capture the essence, or doing nature's duty to bring out beauty. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaD_wRb6ovXkR3Awhrd1CGwYxWForF1SjpcX8CGykZe18swQYErf4Gov0LkjqB8h-t2wlPTtnT9e9PcKCOZhiK__MdgV2qOget7ffPXVQUDW3czDBZaHP015HY6W7iRU-ktOk3_6NgkdI/s1200/Swiss_chalet+by+Cristo+Vlahos.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="900" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaD_wRb6ovXkR3Awhrd1CGwYxWForF1SjpcX8CGykZe18swQYErf4Gov0LkjqB8h-t2wlPTtnT9e9PcKCOZhiK__MdgV2qOget7ffPXVQUDW3czDBZaHP015HY6W7iRU-ktOk3_6NgkdI/w384-h512/Swiss_chalet+by+Cristo+Vlahos.jpg" width="384" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Cristo Vlahos. License: <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>.<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table>That's how trees bring fresh form to architecture by softening its edges and extensions with serene green. This harmonizes it with the nature that created it and enriches its sheltering capacity with shade to block or diffuse the sun, evapo- transpiration</span><span style="font-family: georgia;"> to supplement the shade by cooling the air, and photosynthesis to</span><span style="font-family: georgia;"> reduce the building's carbon footprint. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">BTW, the answer is (d). The house pictured above is viewed from my bedroom window. </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">The chalet at right is in fact in Bernese Oberland, showing how trees and other greenery create appealing scenery that brings out the chalet's woodsy character, complementing its honest expression of the origin of its building materials.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ_ETKQTqUJXsBI_QWO-fLj5a1ooW0n52XtQ8Ub7SZ6coBzeKOPxPm859fMz9qu86tx1itNuHBj9v2bnPDYY9INMkB4s5Z4P-BEQ1HrFKwSwunBca5G-WtFP0s_4qw19nTRPyDIBk0P4Q/s1064/Summit+Ave.+1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="572" data-original-width="1064" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ_ETKQTqUJXsBI_QWO-fLj5a1ooW0n52XtQ8Ub7SZ6coBzeKOPxPm859fMz9qu86tx1itNuHBj9v2bnPDYY9INMkB4s5Z4P-BEQ1HrFKwSwunBca5G-WtFP0s_4qw19nTRPyDIBk0P4Q/s640/Summit+Ave.+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>Here's another instance of tree-trim from my own experience. When I went up a steeply inclined avenue to look at a room for rent at its summit, I was stunned by the scene before me. It looked and felt as if I'd just stepped into the flatlands of Denmark, the way the avenue suddenly leveled out and the trees seemed to highlight the European aspects of the architecture through their international arboreal language. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhthXOPhr_RZ6cza4H9COkWrI3zN1z0WKRPjtxKK2TmPf7WRGXOdZRbj1jZdS4IOj0vjr4E7Dfb9lB8uF0dndLOI9NfWx2wQsAQJyWUEYpz_8fmc_V8qjcNN6AIuDRPG4IWGPoSvui0hq4/s1280/Summit+Ave.+4.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="440" data-original-width="1280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhthXOPhr_RZ6cza4H9COkWrI3zN1z0WKRPjtxKK2TmPf7WRGXOdZRbj1jZdS4IOj0vjr4E7Dfb9lB8uF0dndLOI9NfWx2wQsAQJyWUEYpz_8fmc_V8qjcNN6AIuDRPG4IWGPoSvui0hq4/s640/Summit+Ave.+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>This was the house, looking Scandinavian in its clean-lined simplicity, bolstered by backyard and street-lining trees that crispen its appearance by contrasting it with the heft of shade, as well as the complement of the archetypal white picket fence of suburban America.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Which gives it away that this is not in Denmark. It's at the crest of Summit Avenue in Brookline, Massachusetts, a block or so from Corey Hill Park. That hilltop oasis also testifies to the power of trees in space-shaping and sight-softening, without which the rocks, furniture, turf, paving and background buildings would seem as barren, hard and dry as a rocky desert or smoggy city (and the atmosphere would feel like either):</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6ls3ihXYRMcbz6zLUtsphvvRSbBySomyJDv0WewvNgv6RfVUmRl74HLgPgco3FJnBSwAkA1twtTGsYFndEgRHjmNVtJTAOb8CEhZD6SAzE5ZM0PRbzuzAdPvKYp4jRsw671Vz_lsxk08/s1024/ma-brookline-corey-hill.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6ls3ihXYRMcbz6zLUtsphvvRSbBySomyJDv0WewvNgv6RfVUmRl74HLgPgco3FJnBSwAkA1twtTGsYFndEgRHjmNVtJTAOb8CEhZD6SAzE5ZM0PRbzuzAdPvKYp4jRsw671Vz_lsxk08/w512-h384/ma-brookline-corey-hill.jpg" width="512" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKDA4x5wz8IsCtjaSQwjckAZFKePgNeQ_sc_e6qqDFwS1sfAL6WmsQHNly8V5rdAvIZmo3FVOVMxVBNXrtJn3QzD_SgqY-EpBwU9w2oedAG5is6vowsQjGnAznUDjraK26QjwcpAnGmyA/s733/ma-brookline-corey-hill-1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="733" data-original-width="550" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKDA4x5wz8IsCtjaSQwjckAZFKePgNeQ_sc_e6qqDFwS1sfAL6WmsQHNly8V5rdAvIZmo3FVOVMxVBNXrtJn3QzD_SgqY-EpBwU9w2oedAG5is6vowsQjGnAznUDjraK26QjwcpAnGmyA/w480-h640/ma-brookline-corey-hill-1.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig5OjCBeRgWzGoURabtK8vBtjzB7NAe5WiYacGk9WGG06_4vj9s4VafA7m5iJDEABbtscdSGQgA9CCgABR-w0c4vHfvi6aurO5T9laZDHSj32IK_nIMFrXCrqEUXlLr7oy-janjU-zxZA/s733/ma-brookline-corey-hill-2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="733" data-original-width="550" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig5OjCBeRgWzGoURabtK8vBtjzB7NAe5WiYacGk9WGG06_4vj9s4VafA7m5iJDEABbtscdSGQgA9CCgABR-w0c4vHfvi6aurO5T9laZDHSj32IK_nIMFrXCrqEUXlLr7oy-janjU-zxZA/s640/ma-brookline-corey-hill-2.jpg" /></a></div></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlwEasKUJfrmRAL2-j9pgmSbTDgXtYe_4y9U8P61QJSgljBonn1QIu5ezW0bM-bSYiDw9qbTPO7D8zc31fw9Oip7vn7xFiSMbTzz9MCPW3Bm98Pngf6w5cxhRqcy5dLfO5vG2JshQ37_E/s733/ma-brookline-corey-hill-3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="733" data-original-width="550" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlwEasKUJfrmRAL2-j9pgmSbTDgXtYe_4y9U8P61QJSgljBonn1QIu5ezW0bM-bSYiDw9qbTPO7D8zc31fw9Oip7vn7xFiSMbTzz9MCPW3Bm98Pngf6w5cxhRqcy5dLfO5vG2JshQ37_E/s640/ma-brookline-corey-hill-3.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Photos by Maurene K., courtesy of <a href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g60823-d15025468-Reviews-Corey_Hill_Park-Brookline_Massachusetts.html#photos;aggregationId=101&albumid=101&filter=7&ff=339965639" target="_blank">TripAdvisor</a><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><span style="font-family: georgia;">Here are examples of Denmark's benchmarks of tree-effect:</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXjKbtstuMgcNJ9lzb5LB586efOoz3YwvNI11AnHKzJBgRf_ltGb9Q_aw0ef7XL0WZ_ogVQa8mtGPpGkg9Wsi806ODqhMzIIrc3_szd9Ruz2DWSW6h2UImLklyJTeg3PjexBrLxbZYPPE/s1641/Kattegat_coast_of_Skagen+by+Okin+cropped.jpeg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1448" data-original-width="1641" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXjKbtstuMgcNJ9lzb5LB586efOoz3YwvNI11AnHKzJBgRf_ltGb9Q_aw0ef7XL0WZ_ogVQa8mtGPpGkg9Wsi806ODqhMzIIrc3_szd9Ruz2DWSW6h2UImLklyJTeg3PjexBrLxbZYPPE/w410-h362/Kattegat_coast_of_Skagen+by+Okin+cropped.jpeg" width="410" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benutzer:Okin" target="_blank">Okin</a>. License: <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 3.0</a><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table>This setting on the </span><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: #f8f9fa;">Coast of Skagen in </span><span style="background-color: #f8f9fa;">Northern Jutland shows how isolated a home can look with no tree-neighbors. Trees connect a structure to the world around it by making the building and its occupants seem less isolated. Trees on a house's grounds also give a sense that the owners are receiving proper nourishment from the Mother Earth that provided the building material and their food and drink.</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="429" data-original-width="687" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1YJ-70-ckpYH-S0i-GlreWxteL0afa2BQNnwv5u04OxSSNp3pS1XN7ac2I8GCKKQTZTT9z25oig_AOldEWgacJY-vjWUovch_larJznUsCunPQARQGNUXFBZt6T85id6xgm2L4FbhFec/w400-h250/Denmark+house+on+lake+with+trees.png" width="400" /></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image courtesy of Best-Wallpaper.net<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table>This one's more like it. The trees and their lake reflection envelop the house in green, which pacifies its milieu, complements its half-timbering and thatched roof, and highlights its orange walls with color-contrast. A sense of 'cool' pervades the place: cooling of the air by the trees, cool water, cool-blue sky—contrasting the 'hot' effect of the deserted house above.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjWdcVmLhOHVduMC5MDxQ3OzNKh6IWCtEOBO7HzBerIOqq5HcSMjncyjKqoZjMBx9ZIj0yXyxAeHq13HyM02VFRZvRzq9iIj7iEFVKTpPZAoaRA0N5DWCjA0VN9tgQDJIReCpGno2hu8k/s722/Exeter_Tree_Halo+by+Dr.+James+Garner+Williams.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="722" data-original-width="590" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjWdcVmLhOHVduMC5MDxQ3OzNKh6IWCtEOBO7HzBerIOqq5HcSMjncyjKqoZjMBx9ZIj0yXyxAeHq13HyM02VFRZvRzq9iIj7iEFVKTpPZAoaRA0N5DWCjA0VN9tgQDJIReCpGno2hu8k/w408-h500/Exeter_Tree_Halo+by+Dr.+James+Garner+Williams.jpg" width="408" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:JWilliams" target="_blank">Dr. James Garner Williams</a> (License: <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 2.5</a>)<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table>Similarly, these trees halo the Academy Building at Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire, cloaking the clocked cupola of Ralph Adams Cram's 1914 Georgian Revival edifice in a festoon of greenery, affirming the campus as the "separate peace" John Knowles depicted the Devon School as in his novel of that name:</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-small;"><i>Between the buildings, elms curved so high that you ceased to remember their height until you looked above the familiar trunks and the lowest umbrellas of leaves and took in the lofty complex they held high above, branches and branches of branches, a world of branches with an infinity of leaves.</i></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhger45GJQMFiUOBK2qR1jnwVC-py0mDeOGYoDUbijf44a94cPOMelEZE9RQQAwfhEzgLJPyL9HGka9oZMn5vt31QXAUEM1j6ixhaPQa0BKXcCd7B6dr-iVyG8j4sJlNLtVBhN3dPrfc_c/s2048/Alpen+House+7.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1327" data-original-width="2048" height="405" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhger45GJQMFiUOBK2qR1jnwVC-py0mDeOGYoDUbijf44a94cPOMelEZE9RQQAwfhEzgLJPyL9HGka9oZMn5vt31QXAUEM1j6ixhaPQa0BKXcCd7B6dr-iVyG8j4sJlNLtVBhN3dPrfc_c/w625-h405/Alpen+House+7.jpg" width="625" /></a></div><br />So, wherever under the blue sky you are—</span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Arber, </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Bergen, </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Bernese Oberland, </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Watertown, or right in your own back yard—be sure to look between the buildings for that infinity of leaves without which any house, hall or high-rise would look like a son of the desert, rather than a child of nature.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b> </span></div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-35284108432217189512020-08-01T17:03:00.029-04:002020-08-16T22:31:45.197-04:00Weird.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1VyR_e76VEnTUkFEnNvatl1dtOqpXliBsuTVCIS1BPlNdPqxI2DpGArvNYY213DbS_fDdihuDgeRsy4Hfgv663WWtk9TFzYOZFBLSLWwzX902HW3_GTFn1lzQhyphenhyphenVpBhHNzmHZd9hwKb4/s1600/135+Fenno+St.%252C+Cambridge+2+cropped.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="763" data-original-width="1600" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1VyR_e76VEnTUkFEnNvatl1dtOqpXliBsuTVCIS1BPlNdPqxI2DpGArvNYY213DbS_fDdihuDgeRsy4Hfgv663WWtk9TFzYOZFBLSLWwzX902HW3_GTFn1lzQhyphenhyphenVpBhHNzmHZd9hwKb4/s640/135+Fenno+St.%252C+Cambridge+2+cropped.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT8EKJI5pvZGhpsD3Jk_vwfYmq6MxP9OqZm3SJT7maoZMBuiGqY8nXGKzvgtaTqs7oqWlYvZE8i6FRNl2DDPWWIcT9nlRAqYLiTEu4L19omBNAZnTxWZuZRLrbhUqHZWnkTGoE2Z-pxRI/s1600/135+Fenno+St.%252C+Cambridge+rear+cropped.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="798" data-original-width="1600" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT8EKJI5pvZGhpsD3Jk_vwfYmq6MxP9OqZm3SJT7maoZMBuiGqY8nXGKzvgtaTqs7oqWlYvZE8i6FRNl2DDPWWIcT9nlRAqYLiTEu4L19omBNAZnTxWZuZRLrbhUqHZWnkTGoE2Z-pxRI/s400/135+Fenno+St.%252C+Cambridge+rear+cropped.jpg" width="400" /></a><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">During our routine treks through those visually uniform neighborhoods or landscapes (or visually insipid wastelands) we tend to overlook in our drive to get from point A to point B, we may be suddenly stared point-blank in the face by a building so off-the-wall, out-of-context and it-came-from-outer-space that it forces us to return its stare as it piques our curiosity about how it got there, how they got away with it, what they were thinking, what the neighbors think, and so on. As we ponder it, its maverick qualities transfix us away from our critical judgment about whether it's a hallmark of innovation, a curse on its environs, or so bad it's good. To our probing eyes it ends up being just...weird.</span><br />
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">This Cambridge, Mass. structure won the weird award for me when it arrested my attention the other day. Sticking slick glass and steel on top of crumbling cinderblock seemed like an odd thing to do, as a crass contrast of clean and dirty, new and old, smooth and rough, polished and patchy, permanent </span><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">and makeshift</span><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">...</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><br /></span><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">...that is, a disruption of the neighborhood's architectural consistency with a quasi-revitalization of a decaying garage, warehouse or industrial outpost as a semi-luxury condo or office. If it happens to be the latter, it certainly articulates the hierarchy of most corporate pecking orders: the clean-lined office suite for the six-figure CEOs above vs. the dreggy workrooms of the underpaid admins below, each component making the other look even more like its character by contrast: the bunkhouse bottom gives its topper a clean sheen, which in turn makes its base look ready to cave in under its weight.</span><br />
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Down the road is another instance of wild weirdness, with fenestration so illogical it makes us wonder what type of interior it gives rise to. The original owners apparently let the exterior fall into place according to floor plan, leaving it to sculpt the façade rather than let it follow the formal classicism, Victorian romanticism or symmetrical propriety long-established in the old neighborhood. But such is modernism's form-follows-function philosophy. At least the use of brick and wood pays token homage to local building tradition, making this oddity look slightly less outer-spacey. And the lush vegetation around it does soften its sharp edges to diminish its elephantine stature enough to have some curb appeal.</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><br /></span>
<span face="" style="color: #cc0000; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: large;">Elephant bizarre</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: left;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Lucy the Elephant, Margate City, New Jersey (1881, James V. Lafferty, William Free and J. Mason Kirby). Photo: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lucy_the_Elephant_by_Naomi_Love.jpg">Naomi Love</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>).</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Speaking of elephants, the brazen bizarreness of those buildings got me thinking of historic structures that must have provoked reactions of "weird" at their christenings. An early one was Elephant Bazaar, later called Lucy the Elephant. She was built in 1881 in Margate City, New Jersey, by Irish-American inventor James V. Lafferty as a roadside attraction to lure tourists and real estate prospectors with a building the likes of which they'd never seen before, in the form of a familiar circus icon (it was modeled on Jumbo the Elephant from Barnum & Bailey's Greatest Show on Earth). That way, they'd charge in and beef up the local economy. Lucy's howdah (covered seat) let them view the real estate landscape and urban energy from way up high with amusement-park jollity. Of course, her weird configuration made her less practical for habitation than her traditionally gabled neighbors... </span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"><i>Eléphant de la Bastille, </i>Paris, France. llustration by<br /><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustave_Brion" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); color: #0b0080; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" title="Gustave Brion">Gustave Brion</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"> for Victor Hugo's </span><i style="background-color: white; color: #202122; text-align: start;">Les Misérables, </i><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">1865</span></span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">...though one of her predecessors, <i>l'Eléphant de la Bastille, </i>erected in Paris in 1813 in honor of Napoléon I's military triumphs, proved to be a functional shelter for street urchin Gavroche in Victor Hugo's <i>Les Misérables </i>(1862):</span><br />
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: x-small;">Gavroche's bed was complete; that is to say, it had a mattress, a blanket, and an alcove with curtains. The mattress was a straw mat, the blanket a rather large strip of gray woollen stuff, very warm and almost new. This is what the alcove consisted of:—Three rather long poles, thrust into and consolidated, with the rubbish which formed the floor, that is to say, the belly of the elephant, two in front and one behind, and united by a rope at their summits, so as to form a pyramidal bundle. This cluster supported a trellis-work of brass wire which was simply placed upon it, but artistically applied, and held by fastenings of iron wire, so that it enveloped all three holes. A row of very heavy stones kept this network down to the floor so that nothing could pass under it. This grating was nothing else than a piece of the brass screens with which aviaries are covered in menageries. Gavroche's bed stood as in a cage, behind this net. The whole resembled an Esquimaux tent.</span></blockquote>
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">And I'm told that Lucy the Elephant bedded visitors in her innards for the first time since she was rented out as a home a century ago, fetching $138/night on Airbnb on March 17-19, 2020. As Gavroche demonstrated, weird in appearance doesn't mean weird in inherence.</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><br /></span>
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: large;">Ducky</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">The Big Duck (1931, Martin Maurer), Flanders, NY. Photo by Beth Savage, courtesy of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Park_Service">National Park Service</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">The Big Duck, Flanders, NY. Photo by <span style="color: #0b0080;"><span style="background: none rgb(248, 249, 250); text-align: start;"><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Mike_Peel">Mike Peel</a></span></span><span style="background-color: #f8f9fa; color: #54595d;"><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Mike_Peel"> </a>(</span><a href="http://www.mikepeel.net/">www.mikepeel.net</a><span style="background-color: #f8f9fa; color: #54595d;">) (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>).</span></span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Architectural husband-and-wife team Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown would have categorized Lucy the Elephant as a "duck" in their theory of "the duck" vs. "the decorated shed," that is, a building as a self-contained symbol of its message or use vs. a box tacked on with ornament for greater drawing power.</span></span><div><font face=""><br /></font>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">The Big Duck interior. Photo by Off_Beaten_Tracker, courtesy of <a href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g754554-d3292234-Reviews-The_Big_Duck-Flanders_Long_Island_New_York.html#photos;aggregationId=101&albumid=101&filter=7&ff=328768225">TripAdvisor</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">This quacker of a promo for a duck and duck-egg farm, </span><span style="background-color: white;">built in 1931 by Martin Maurer in Riverhead, Long Island, </span>New York, and later moved to nearby Flanders, inspired that theory for the way it sublimated its structure to present the familiar form of a duck to the public in a way that was weird—or just <i>ducky</i>, depending on your POV when you approached it. The Big Duck, as it's known, simply says, "Duck," and we flock to it out of curiosity about what it's for or what's inside.</span><div><font face=""><br /></font><span face="" style="color: #bf9000; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: large;">Corny</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0kJFOYgFTbzPd8mtY9SpwBqr_x8rRcmuhtwTHPnFUjeELU-laCtOjwttUWHC-imG9McGE7iC0SGMHxghHQVZr06HcA-X4L8QNG5GTYyEGCWQw0ar04HDu7Ev3P7i5EXZbSoPVoCpIJU0/s1600/Mitchell_corn_palace+by+Patrick+Bolduan.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="375" data-original-width="500" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0kJFOYgFTbzPd8mtY9SpwBqr_x8rRcmuhtwTHPnFUjeELU-laCtOjwttUWHC-imG9McGE7iC0SGMHxghHQVZr06HcA-X4L8QNG5GTYyEGCWQw0ar04HDu7Ev3P7i5EXZbSoPVoCpIJU0/s400/Mitchell_corn_palace+by+Patrick+Bolduan.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">An archetypal "decorated shed" is the Corn Palace in Mitchell, South Dakota. Built 1891-1937 in a Moorish design by Rapp & Rapp, it is annually bedecked in murals and patterns of colorful corn kernels to promote events such as rodeos, concerts, and Mitchell High School Kernels (!) and D</span></span><span face="" style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">akota Wesleyan University Tigers basketball games.</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span>
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Thus it assumes a different identity with each event, according to how the kernels are clustered like Native American beadwork or Pompeiian mosaics. Without the corn, the palace is essentially a plain long box topped with cone and onion protrusions, needing a "decorated shed" appearance to awe onlookers and ballyhoo the events inside it.</span></span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span>
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">Crazy</span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leena_Hietanen">Leena Hietanen</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>)</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-small;">Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/132084522@N05">Sam Valadi </a>(<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en">CC BY 2.0</a>).</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">"Crazy Guggenheim" was Zippy the Pinhead's sobriquet for Frank Lloyd Wright's spurning of Fifth Avenue's rectangular masonry, boxed rooms and punched windows by spinning spirals to create spectacular spaces. (Zippy, of course, was referring to Frank Fontaine's perpetually inebriated character in the "Joe the Bartender" skits on <i>The Jackie Gleason Show.</i>)</span></span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: xx-small;"><i> </i></span></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeKmhjeW4cnG2fdP30nkpGmmWDq61EsbDjwbGxcnT4-guVSIbR-IYBGYDcBF_TcBjBIPEi0Fp49fjGq8F8FbLm5XjuTFRfkzNAn2qMp1wrEMtN41FHjxJeHWI9WnV3DFKow-xrWYO2HwY/s1600/Guggenheim_Museum_construction_LOC_gsc.5a25494.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="986" data-original-width="1600" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeKmhjeW4cnG2fdP30nkpGmmWDq61EsbDjwbGxcnT4-guVSIbR-IYBGYDcBF_TcBjBIPEi0Fp49fjGq8F8FbLm5XjuTFRfkzNAn2qMp1wrEMtN41FHjxJeHWI9WnV3DFKow-xrWYO2HwY/s400/Guggenheim_Museum_construction_LOC_gsc.5a25494.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Courtesy of the Gottscho-Schleisner collection at the Library of Congress.</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">And "crazy" was what New Yorkers must have thought of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum while it was defying the shadowy streetwall of Fifth Avenue and Central Park in 1959, as they wondered what such a neanderthal nautilus shell could possibly contain when completed. </span></span><span face="" style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">They soon found out..</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: xx-small;"> </span></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0lUd70qZ1ZgcdVqY9D1k5gPawd5pU4r5kxw-elfqUYMTk24Ogra9iDeEkA0mBNR7Sp8w0D7zGo-yC1nBT31K3rYj5YRbo6UEfJ95UbY6oMrSwub2_3dUKn8urP13y0zITO1MxpK2VVfE/s1600/Guggenheim%252C_NYC_fisheye_-_Flickr_-_Lisa_Bettany_%2528Mostly_Lisa%2529.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0lUd70qZ1ZgcdVqY9D1k5gPawd5pU4r5kxw-elfqUYMTk24Ogra9iDeEkA0mBNR7Sp8w0D7zGo-yC1nBT31K3rYj5YRbo6UEfJ95UbY6oMrSwub2_3dUKn8urP13y0zITO1MxpK2VVfE/s640/Guggenheim%252C_NYC_fisheye_-_Flickr_-_Lisa_Bettany_%2528Mostly_Lisa%2529.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/40414712@N00">Lisa Bettany</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>)</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Designed to display an artist's work in uninterrupted continuity from firmament to terra firma, this concrete curvature externally expressed a spiral ramp one descended while taking in an entire exhibit, with virtually no walls, windows or columns to impede the "organic progress" (in Wright's words) of the ramp, the atrium and the artist's oeuvre. Though Wright had to allow one column for structural practicality's sake, this was the closest a museum came to exhibiting pure space, light and form as well as art—while sometimes leaving visitors in a drunken dizziness as they circumnavigated the space, befitting Zippy's spin on it.</span><br />
<span face="" style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><br /></span>
<span face="" style="color: #444444; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">Whitney whimsey</span></span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: xx-small;"> </span></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyFBB5zmUVqFnJTaJYpZCus5EzsY-9YL2gYv2jTVXKYU7xzPjjMDB7TC7OQOHrA-VUDU894EAanZRjbWoQIKI2K_H-tBUEcGgLBqN_r8SD5ju7tyeZQ-fwwFjN-GoY6X0Lf6CA45ueDWk/s1600/Whitney_Museum_of_American_Art+by+Gryffindor.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyFBB5zmUVqFnJTaJYpZCus5EzsY-9YL2gYv2jTVXKYU7xzPjjMDB7TC7OQOHrA-VUDU894EAanZRjbWoQIKI2K_H-tBUEcGgLBqN_r8SD5ju7tyeZQ-fwwFjN-GoY6X0Lf6CA45ueDWk/s400/Whitney_Museum_of_American_Art+by+Gryffindor.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Gryffindor">Gryffindor</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>)</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Now that Wright had commenced a craze for the crazy in museum design, Marcel Breuer and the Whitney Museum of American Art followed suit in 1966 with their disruption of Madison Avenue's Moorish-Georgian praxis. They plunked down a sort of inverted ziggurat with oddball windows that made looky-loos out of hurried ad execs, retailers and commuters.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0fT10kAkrImEObKc02acZSQlIaRNj_kBz-FnwNrpGJt-Ndu8JgR1oWVdlcxnxuiPWQUTxcH4yEOTQuzQ_BOen1_ogeolEBy9Zn8QMnbKheUjB74_8qhpW7qRvW-zjzLK0xZA3GL_bnmw/s1600/Whitney_Museum_PC230113+by+Deror+Avi.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1197" data-original-width="1600" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0fT10kAkrImEObKc02acZSQlIaRNj_kBz-FnwNrpGJt-Ndu8JgR1oWVdlcxnxuiPWQUTxcH4yEOTQuzQ_BOen1_ogeolEBy9Zn8QMnbKheUjB74_8qhpW7qRvW-zjzLK0xZA3GL_bnmw/s400/Whitney_Museum_PC230113+by+Deror+Avi.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">If you yourself are wondering what lurks behind this exhibition of eccentricity, just follow the floating bridge over the moat-like sunken court and proceed along the concrete catwalk that overlooks the atrial lobby, for a continuity of space from outside to inside, <i>à la </i>Guggenheim but more angular.</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><br /></span>
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Now look up...</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWVGXp4O7PNkAdU1wjBXMtPyJMj_WgeeP7rUSU96pIkCB4r0y1JBzxkdrrXnow0xdkl74t3xM8Yu-snEsPlUYpp8B4D568eFSLdgHdoBklkBp3DY3DFyjquWiHBSLPRHGAkJxpgC-_8Fs/s1600/Breuer_lobby_exit_jeh.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWVGXp4O7PNkAdU1wjBXMtPyJMj_WgeeP7rUSU96pIkCB4r0y1JBzxkdrrXnow0xdkl74t3xM8Yu-snEsPlUYpp8B4D568eFSLdgHdoBklkBp3DY3DFyjquWiHBSLPRHGAkJxpgC-_8Fs/s400/Breuer_lobby_exit_jeh.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Jim Henderson</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">...and see a flock of flying saucers hovering overhead. This was the special interior lighting Breuer called for in the absence of many windows in the building, and for better, safer illumination of art without UV radiation damage from natural sunlight. So why not make the lighting a little weird, too, now that it's necessary? </span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><br /></span>
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">And look around...</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr1-a3x0iJMDIm9JPn8zURiNJMIefXeCAzGXyEAbqCY5NEAltQw7WcxiUyWXTpSpnTPyf0nEGSqZUSOcgJyGYgS5WOfl3dBDEw1yq8790TIxI9oC4XPS5kXOpfanBlRRb5EW9FX5IanOU/s1600/Met_breuer_stairwell+by+Tinanyc.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr1-a3x0iJMDIm9JPn8zURiNJMIefXeCAzGXyEAbqCY5NEAltQw7WcxiUyWXTpSpnTPyf0nEGSqZUSOcgJyGYgS5WOfl3dBDEw1yq8790TIxI9oC4XPS5kXOpfanBlRRb5EW9FX5IanOU/s640/Met_breuer_stairwell+by+Tinanyc.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Tinanyc (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>)</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">...at the heft and texture the exposed concrete presents to the viewer, as a more honest, direct expression of building structure and material than the prissy paint, plaster and patterns in places like the Met. Which made the Whitney (now the Met Breuer) weird at first for its space-age novelty and down-to-earth tactility, until its brutalism took a giant leap with such buildings as:</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><br /></span>
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: large;">'What the hell is that?'</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP0sIQ_16msQXD70mAVGDAI6V-_qB3ldTTqBAUGB3knZyWOrxhM3UkGI_8pOIJx3opJajgTkMAcpV1FDpvecnZEDLnZWJeMJeO8JXWyym6wkqqyr6OMk0V7v5YnXHF3biLXlOc4G1Lx3I/s1600/Boston_City_Hall_aerial_2019_P1020786+by+NewtonCourt.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP0sIQ_16msQXD70mAVGDAI6V-_qB3ldTTqBAUGB3knZyWOrxhM3UkGI_8pOIJx3opJajgTkMAcpV1FDpvecnZEDLnZWJeMJeO8JXWyym6wkqqyr6OMk0V7v5YnXHF3biLXlOc4G1Lx3I/s640/Boston_City_Hall_aerial_2019_P1020786+by+NewtonCourt.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:NewtonCourt">NewtonCourt</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>)</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Beyond_My_Ken">Beyond My Ken</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>)</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">That was the initial reaction to the model of Boston's new City Hall when presented before then-Mayor John Collins in the 1960s. Modeling their design on the cantilevered window banks and column-supported top-heavy superstructure of Le Corbusier's concrete brutalist monastery of Sainte Marie de la Tourette near Lyon, France, architects Gerhard Kallmann, Michael McKinnell (who passed away from COVID-19 this year) and Edward Knowles presented something as weirdly, goofily un-Bostonian as could be. Gone were the Hub's trademark regimented masonry, slate mansard roofing and monumental stonecarving in favor of exposed concrete molded as a sculptural expression of city government's individual functions (and authoritarian hierarchy): the collective City Council and School Committee in the window-lines up top (with a token nod to Olde Boston's cornices and crown moldings), the Mayor's Office in the two gargantuan windows near the center (with an "I'm watching you" binocular gaze), and the populace's free gathering space in the open-concept atrium on the bottom and on the vast plaza in front.</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo courtesy of the U.S. <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Library_of_Congress" style="background: none rgb(248, 249, 250); color: #0b0080; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" title="Library of Congress">Library of Congress</a><span style="background-color: #f8f9fa; color: #54595d;">'s </span><a class="external text" href="https://www.loc.gov/rr/print/" rel="nofollow" style="background: none rgb(248, 249, 250); color: #0b0080; text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;">Prints and Photographs division</a></span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">City Hall's interior is a bare-bones expression of open democracy in its freedom from the shackles of ornament and wallcovering, continuing the external structure inside to craft a "people's temple" of sorts. W</span><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">eird, as in, radical and populist, not regal and elitist (</span><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">post-9/11 security checkpoints and entrance closures notwithstanding)</span><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">.</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">The pure-structure ambiance may have been weird, but the acoustics were not. Just as echoic as a traditional church, they were ideal for a concert my boys' choir at St. Paul's Cathedral gave on the stage pictured here—which would have been just as ideal had a weird situation not stymied us. City Hall had promised us a piano for accompaniment. </span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Instead, they lent us a cheap little electric organ with a cord not long enough for our choirmaster (renowned organist Thomas Murray) to turn the organ around so he could play it while directing us. But, of course, City Hall bureaucracy couldn't be bothered to fetch a simple extension cord. So we had to sing everything <i>a cappella.</i></span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWxm5T0YUMd6L4IzlWOw-sV7Wr19uEpdT62I_sV-B9Bp0IhFhGwKO9nbIlqovIfuPGG_bXEZV5Z6DkKBp6h5V1c702spQzI8Z1T-mELcO4tYpaKLdeSl4vgWEUdpc-hYq2gk103owUCaU/s1600/Benjamin_Franklin_1767+by+David+Martin.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1273" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWxm5T0YUMd6L4IzlWOw-sV7Wr19uEpdT62I_sV-B9Bp0IhFhGwKO9nbIlqovIfuPGG_bXEZV5Z6DkKBp6h5V1c702spQzI8Z1T-mELcO4tYpaKLdeSl4vgWEUdpc-hYq2gk103owUCaU/s400/Benjamin_Franklin_1767+by+David+Martin.jpg" width="317" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Benjamin Franklin, 1767. Portrait by David Martin, displayed in White House.</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Which was disconcerting, so to speak, when we found ourselves singing accompanied songs in unison and scrapping one number, all because of that little missing link. A prime example of a lesson from Boston's favorite son, Benjamin Franklin: </span><br />
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">A little neglect breeds mischief: for want of a nail, the shoe was lost, for want of a shoe, the horse was lost, for want of a horse, the rider was lost, for want of a rider, the battle was lost, for want of a battle, the kingdom was lost, and all for want of a horseshoe nail.</span></i></span></blockquote>
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">City Hall's mountainous mass and labyrinthine layout indeed became more of an expression of bureaucracy than democracy, as further evinced by its rebar corrosion and concrete/brick erosion from neglect, not to mention the near-impenetrability of the "transparent" entry in the name of safety—a challenge to another Franklin dictum: </span><br />
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: x-small;"><i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Those who would give up essential </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Liberty</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">, to purchase a little temporary </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Safety</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">, </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">deserve neither Liberty nor Safety</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">.</span></i></span></blockquote>
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Weird, indeed.</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><br /></span>
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: large;">Down to the studs</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK7Cnrwl5pwVEs3FaegebIgnvYolIxCNkPtc3Tg938sVdacbrqWpd2U3ga-NcPxjs3LJseqcoL-jEFZKFHxijODbL4B0zLRusvA253-JntNzErBRQXcQGrmYxbZPPe_AWXx27UO6jyga8/s1600/Centre+Pompidou+large.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="424" data-original-width="1093" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK7Cnrwl5pwVEs3FaegebIgnvYolIxCNkPtc3Tg938sVdacbrqWpd2U3ga-NcPxjs3LJseqcoL-jEFZKFHxijODbL4B0zLRusvA253-JntNzErBRQXcQGrmYxbZPPe_AWXx27UO6jyga8/s640/Centre+Pompidou+large.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWdd_ccD3YMdO5UftY_3EkDAcoX7W0vZqCoMtKUuD1a2XmLc8C1B7flmDlMDjHpArMfJBZH6wZKwwP2oo2b3Ox0gST0cHVMDq2cGtMCnUiEz-9AJRNf840mxR7AKWKPZdZbj0veTITv7k/s1600/Centre+Pompidou+by+Johan+Nilsson.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="362" data-original-width="563" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWdd_ccD3YMdO5UftY_3EkDAcoX7W0vZqCoMtKUuD1a2XmLc8C1B7flmDlMDjHpArMfJBZH6wZKwwP2oo2b3Ox0gST0cHVMDq2cGtMCnUiEz-9AJRNf840mxR7AKWKPZdZbj0veTITv7k/s400/Centre+Pompidou+by+Johan+Nilsson.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Johan Nilsson, courtesy of Pinterest.</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">This one would surely<i> </i>breed mischief if it lost one rivet. The French pushed transparency and structural sincerity farther by crash-landing the Centre Pompidou in Paris in 1977, disrupting the city's Napoleonic continuity with not just skin-and-bones but guts-and-bowels architecture, effectively turning the building inside-out.</span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiChfSaljeT_Sh7tKMJPy3fPJq-JIgUYfsWLUfhMhuPUrPC4SsmP8znjgHemF7dD3Q7WT_QJKW5aL3u5exU-lE4mSdgF_jA-YOvTlGlNwOdwyEFjJiXVSL2UodCsFIc2zSevNMgA_nC8_A/s1600/Centre+Pompidou+by+Jeffrey+Milstein+on+Instagram.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="613" data-original-width="564" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiChfSaljeT_Sh7tKMJPy3fPJq-JIgUYfsWLUfhMhuPUrPC4SsmP8znjgHemF7dD3Q7WT_QJKW5aL3u5exU-lE4mSdgF_jA-YOvTlGlNwOdwyEFjJiXVSL2UodCsFIc2zSevNMgA_nC8_A/s400/Centre+Pompidou+by+Jeffrey+Milstein+on+Instagram.jpg" width="366" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Jeffrey Milstein, courtesy of Instagram.</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Designed by Richard Rogers, Su Rogers, Renzo Piano and Gianfranco Franchini, this amalgamation of <i><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">la Bibliothèque publique d'information, la </span>Musée National d'Art Moderne</i> a<span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">nd the </span>IRCAM center <span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">for music and acoustic research exposes not only its rods, rivets, grids and girders but also its mechanical and circulatory systems, color-coding them for clear definition and sculptural distinction so it doesn't look too much like a construction site: green for plumbing, blue for ductwork, yellow for electrical conduits, and red for escalators, fire extinguishers and other safety components.</span></span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122; font-size: xx-small;"> </span></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJmz5Ybeg7NlyKn1vRBJIAq6QgYlqCx8kY8BNEgagp61BcwqZXgcITexOiST92VIKdBTBNMR3cMLgEKCOsAq7IDKHV0y1EZ2nRzW7wtuC9FNZqLfV668cQjQIrJUiQMyPyYlVE4PcpWk8/s1600/Centre+Pompidou+interior+by+Andrew+H.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJmz5Ybeg7NlyKn1vRBJIAq6QgYlqCx8kY8BNEgagp61BcwqZXgcITexOiST92VIKdBTBNMR3cMLgEKCOsAq7IDKHV0y1EZ2nRzW7wtuC9FNZqLfV668cQjQIrJUiQMyPyYlVE4PcpWk8/s400/Centre+Pompidou+interior+by+Andrew+H.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/100251963@N05">Andrew H</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en">CC BY 2.0</a>).</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">Which makes this not simply an expression of structure and infrastructure but a celebration of them. It honors what those typically hidden-from-view elements offer us—stability, safety, warmth, coolness, hydration, hygiene—which we tend to overlook as we fuss over wall colors, floor types, ceiling solidity, light quality, décor, etc. </span></span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><br /></span></span>
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">Bereft of those cosmetics, we're now forced to see the innards and remember their inherent value. Just as we must remember how our own internal body parts—skeleton, organs, nervous and circulatory systems, etc.—maintain us beyond our outward appearances.</span></span><br />
<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><br /></span></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkM58hKhM9X2_5ADkcQRBMXwkAklqGzd3xmwHwTboTxfuhifb_RDHhrFaqXHMYLl2aQXnZrJeGFLPaKM0jRirXa22UYsK7ikauPaZuL_i8mg5a3lO-tas44JQd5jWZxhWSCuXhdOC9qLw/s1600/Centre+Pompidou_July_13%252C_2008_4+by+Thomas+Claveirole.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1066" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkM58hKhM9X2_5ADkcQRBMXwkAklqGzd3xmwHwTboTxfuhifb_RDHhrFaqXHMYLl2aQXnZrJeGFLPaKM0jRirXa22UYsK7ikauPaZuL_i8mg5a3lO-tas44JQd5jWZxhWSCuXhdOC9qLw/s400/Centre+Pompidou_July_13%252C_2008_4+by+Thomas+Claveirole.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Thomas Claveirole (CC BY-SA 2.0).</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">The Centre Pompidou's framework also emphasizes the process of construction and reconstruction inherent in the changing, evolving exhibitions, book collections and musical currents inside. In doing so, it forces our focus on these subjects without the distraction of a pretty face. </span></span><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">The content, not the container. The essence, not the edifice. </span></span><span face="" style="background-color: white; color: #202122; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">The skinny, not the skin.</span><br />
<span face="" style="background-color: white; color: #202122; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><br /></span>
<span face="" style="color: #202122; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Weird, but worthy—after all, aren't exposed beams, posts, pipes and ducts more <i>chic</i> now in mainstream loft living? A prime example of how today's "weird" is tomorrow's "new normal," just as concrete brutalism was before it evolved from "weird" to "worn."</span></span><br />
<span face="" style="color: #202122; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span>
<span face="" style="color: #202122; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #999999; font-size: large;">Crazy Guggenheim II</span></span><br />
<span face="" style="color: #202122; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZXoeJxdZm7e2jqZx5uviQwveAjnFXA0yvG5Ub1iNiA5m3RVdEmHOMZc48oX6kIzFOR0iPPh4M5IOM_m_rxU3_w2X7M7j4TiS0BIYsMjFCwdZmJYLWjt64rnRiydnPuHBji8PieppIqRo/s1600/Guggenheim-bilbao-jan05+by+MykReeve.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="608" data-original-width="1200" height="324" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZXoeJxdZm7e2jqZx5uviQwveAjnFXA0yvG5Ub1iNiA5m3RVdEmHOMZc48oX6kIzFOR0iPPh4M5IOM_m_rxU3_w2X7M7j4TiS0BIYsMjFCwdZmJYLWjt64rnRiydnPuHBji8PieppIqRo/s640/Guggenheim-bilbao-jan05+by+MykReeve.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Guggenheim Museum Bilbao (1997, Frank Gehry), Bilbao, Spain. Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:MykReeve">MykReeve</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>).</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by Mikel Arrazola (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en">CC BY 3.0</a>).</span></td></tr>
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<span face="" style="color: #202122; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">But if you insist that the Centre Pompidou needs a Christo wrapping to front its nudity, just get a load of Frank Gehry's Guggenheim Museum Bilbao. Crazier than its New York precursor, it presented itself as a weird whimsy of whirly-curly-swirly sheets of shimmering titanium </span></span><span face="" style="background-color: white; color: #202122; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">as splashy as the waters of the Nervion River below, wrapped </span><span face="" style="background-color: white; color: #202122; font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">around and about a layout as splayed as the spider sculpture out front, when it opened in 1997.</span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgARKrSrfnKLqnwWv_ckg5aoNuJCDlklyr5_mIPHg4-WSVuNyUsWk324RecKvJzUC7qdKd9qpW1liUrv_g6o_jTx870XrfWr6UZRKbFH0_YNhxQoON73TMvkWMqBsX66xJPpqFX3YWFRTk/s1000/Guggenheim+Bilbao+interior+by+Andrew+C.+Yelp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="935" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgARKrSrfnKLqnwWv_ckg5aoNuJCDlklyr5_mIPHg4-WSVuNyUsWk324RecKvJzUC7qdKd9qpW1liUrv_g6o_jTx870XrfWr6UZRKbFH0_YNhxQoON73TMvkWMqBsX66xJPpqFX3YWFRTk/w598-h640/Guggenheim+Bilbao+interior+by+Andrew+C.+Yelp.jpg" width="598" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-small;">Photo by Andrew C., courtesy of <a href="https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/museo-guggenheim-bilbao-bilbao-2?select=phWos3UGQfuyKCQI-pG7jQ" target="_blank">Yelp</a></span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><span style="color: #202122;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicvKGhuT7OReQlciU9GvVroyfNlCa2v32Pp-5VP17Flws9B1S-aNXurYTID3j_u7WPXAQNa-WflbhFXITNgEddb3fiBlCb3K9AGUeJ-6UF7THLydnMjFAB1RpxwhhC9GSo_f-KmlyOdQY/s1000/Guggenheim+Bilbao+by+Costas+S.+Yelp.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="750" height="513" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicvKGhuT7OReQlciU9GvVroyfNlCa2v32Pp-5VP17Flws9B1S-aNXurYTID3j_u7WPXAQNa-WflbhFXITNgEddb3fiBlCb3K9AGUeJ-6UF7THLydnMjFAB1RpxwhhC9GSo_f-KmlyOdQY/w384-h513/Guggenheim+Bilbao+by+Costas+S.+Yelp.jpg" width="384" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-small;">Photo by Costas S., courtesy of <a href="https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/museo-guggenheim-bilbao-bilbao-2?select=auBrH6myrn6ke4Rrb4Urig" target="_blank">Yelp</a><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">Far from the logical progression of rectangular rooms, molded arches, barrel-vaulted halls and statue-laden staircases the image of "museum" typically conjures up, Guggenheim Bilbao stupefies us with the swirls, swishes and swoons of curving walls, soaring glass curtains, careening catwalks, swooping skylights and other architectural expressions of erratic movement hither and yon. It bursts the box with deconstructivist daring as a sculpture in itself that keeps our eyes roving around the space so much we may lose sight of its art exhibits in anticipation of what spontaneous surprise is around the corner or up in the air. This wild weirdness makes Centre Pompidou seem so logically conservative by contrast! (Which it is; it follows traditional structural technique, unlike the bendy-flexy skeleton Guggenheim Bilbao needed for its curveball craziness.)</span><br /></span><br />
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<span face="" style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;"><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></span></span></div>
</div></div>Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-4163560925033997972020-05-30T23:32:00.000-04:002020-05-31T20:08:07.498-04:00A court of honor<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://illustratemypoint.wordpress.com/2015/08/19/aerial-views-of-bostons-south-end/">Paula Ogier</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Braddock Park, South End. Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/41813589@N00">Payton Chung</a>, <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en">CC BY 2.0</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">As my school bus meandered through Boston's South End to alight a student in one of its archetypal residential squares, the Victorian architecture riveted me to the window away from my rowdy schoolmates, which often provoked their spiteful derision of me. Yet I remained transfixed by the area's striking resemblance to my Beacon Hill neighborhood as its brick bowfronts, scrolled ironwork, ornate porches and deep cornices trumpeted its potential as a desirable—if not necessarily affordable—place to live someday.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1yPhsVF5bWVcCjvo7Dv453ge60H3kgUsfPLm0kXsV3ktk6sWZENeyTOTjBkGyALPdj2jWBXNQgyBc8aOPB0olhg9_HbYvZttnGGcVLxeKddHxG7T66fho_RqrlYuhEYcy_KVPI-aqQ58/s1600/Newcastle+Court+gate+%252B+clock.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="578" data-original-width="315" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1yPhsVF5bWVcCjvo7Dv453ge60H3kgUsfPLm0kXsV3ktk6sWZENeyTOTjBkGyALPdj2jWBXNQgyBc8aOPB0olhg9_HbYvZttnGGcVLxeKddHxG7T66fho_RqrlYuhEYcy_KVPI-aqQ58/s640/Newcastle+Court+gate+%252B+clock.jpg" width="345" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">A development that fit both bills piqued my special interest for its solemn center-court entrance with lavish iron gate, classical balustrade, Grecian urns, Roman clock parapet, and classic block lettering that proclaimed its name over the gate and under the clock: NEWCASTLE COURT. The bay windows bookending the gateway refined the complex as a stately residence and close-knit enclave, while the sheer opulence of the gate and the clock left me guessing how old this building was.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Built in 1905, Newcastle Court at 599 Columbus Ave. picks up many of the architectural elements of its more upscale South End and Back Bay models, including bay windows with diamond and stained-glass panes, heavy cornices with modillions and fleur-de-lis reliefs, oriel windows, and opulent ironwork. Yet </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">its yellow brick, cast-stone trim and simplified side-window balconies suggest its affordability as well as its turn-of-the-20th-century construction era.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">As does its extended rear elevation, which occupies almost its entire side-street block, signifying its developers' intent to build it as an affordable multifamily residential complex. The pressed-metal oriel si</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">de windows elegantly extend some interiors into comfortable living spaces akin to those of wealthier South End and Back Bay dwellers. In so doing, these oriels form an architectural dialogue with that of the older red-brick building across the side-street, as a "good neighbor" gesture that welcomes lower-income people into an upper-scale neighborhood.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Of course, the rear extension denies Newcastle Court residents the private "hidden gardens" of the South End and Beacon Hill. But in exchange they get generous recreational acreage from the Southwest Corridor Park as it snakes through their "back yard." They also get a South End rarity: a green carpet welcoming them home.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The classical delicacy of the gateway's fluted columns and iron scrolls foretells the elegance of the space it introduces. The tenants</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> are escorted out and welcomed home by a garden that forms</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> a pastoral oasis from city clamor and a dignified approach to the units, in the vein of the aforementioned residential square with a central park, but this time without the cars, and with a park they can call their own.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> trees and shrubbery enrich the entry experience beyond just unlocking the door from the street. They make it into a rustic rite of passage homeward, which climaxes with the mighty timepiece signifying suppertime in the vein of vintage European public clocks such as the Paris-Orléans clock on Paris's Gare d'Orsay (</span><span style="background-color: white;">1900, </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_Laloux" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-line: none;" title="Victor Laloux">Victor Laloux</a><span style="background-color: white;">, </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucien_Magne" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-line: none;" title="Lucien Magne">Lucien Magne</a><span style="background-color: white;"> and </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%89mile_B%C3%A9nard" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-line: none;" title="Émile Bénard">Émile Bénard</a>), now the Musée d'Orsay.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/84989911@N00">Daniel Stockman</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This "common ground" and watchful clocktower symbolize the Newcastle Court community itself, as 30-year resident Patricia Rogers reported to the <a href="https://www.boston.gov/news/affordable-housing-lower-roxbury-preserved">Office of Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh</a> on the building's August 19, 2019 rededication: "<span style="background-color: white;">This building is in at a convenient location, but the best part of living here is my neighbors. We look out for each other. I want to thank the Mayor, Fenway CDC and all of the people here today for helping us stay in our homes." </span></span></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVv4j7IJ0e26tve12_TtV617d8YNZ_EliSqrPt2I21Q4bmtNt0KDWte79W3NZBG4MDhIg9O2uKR9NhUHUZd9lvKgNpMz9953N3EDUpCTVsfCQmwmW1poqgoB690vAQfwQK5Z4UHu7bla4/s1600/Newcastle+Court+gate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="586" data-original-width="512" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVv4j7IJ0e26tve12_TtV617d8YNZ_EliSqrPt2I21Q4bmtNt0KDWte79W3NZBG4MDhIg9O2uKR9NhUHUZd9lvKgNpMz9953N3EDUpCTVsfCQmwmW1poqgoB690vAQfwQK5Z4UHu7bla4/s400/Newcastle+Court+gate.jpg" width="348" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">The Fenway Community Development Corporation</span><span style="background-color: white;"> and its development partner, <a href="https://www.schochet.com/">The Schochet Companies</a> of </span>Braintree, Massachusetts, did just that by acquiring</span><span style="background-color: white;"> the 97-unit block to preserve it </span>as the affordable housing community its original developers intended it to be. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Now known as the Newcastle/ Saranac Apartments, it not only welcomes low- and moderate-income tenants home with European gentility but also guards them from the eviction they would have faced had they not spoken up, as six-year resident Kim Wilson put it at the rededication ceremony:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZKLFvcf0p_n0trYNNtoU9Ht6_zi1NyaSkxT5qHsnGf-rIE-85x6I4lAMDuRq4PSXIz_hb7NKKSCjg1aYsAJXRaYG7rMLdNSv8tatyBdMpOdG6K3-Wg29-GIEu81uzceHAzDKPB96pqA0/s1600/Newcastle+Court+gate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="468" data-original-width="123" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZKLFvcf0p_n0trYNNtoU9Ht6_zi1NyaSkxT5qHsnGf-rIE-85x6I4lAMDuRq4PSXIz_hb7NKKSCjg1aYsAJXRaYG7rMLdNSv8tatyBdMpOdG6K3-Wg29-GIEu81uzceHAzDKPB96pqA0/s640/Newcastle+Court+gate.jpg" width="168" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">"Before I moved in, I always said that this place was great because it was across the street from my church [and] I love the park that you have here. I used to come out here on Friday nights before choir practice and sit out in the park...and say hi to the people who came in the building. The walk pathways, the stores and services around here, and just how everybody used to come and just sit here in the parks...down here in the Northeastern area and just see the kids play, that really impressed me.</span><div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">"After living here for a short period of time, I heard from one of my fellow tenants the rumor that was going around the building that it was going to be sold. Knowing this was the City of Boston, I figured that the building would be turned into college dormitories for Northeastern, or luxury apartments.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">"I was impressed that the owner...came all the way from Florida to speak to us. He...had the City of Boston there to...tell us that they were going to keep this area affordable for us... During this meeting we had a voice. We expressed how we felt, that we were going to be at the table through this whole entire process to keep where we lived affordable... </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">We also rallied by...speaking out at the State House...for funding for affordable housing, because...if we don’t do it, it’s not going to get done.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">"And we’re just working people trying to make a living for ourselves and keep a roof over our heads. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">All the members of the tenant association are people that care about what happens to our lives and what happens here in this area, in our apartments. And we’re all here to improve the capacity and the quality of life for us. We are all thankful that the building has been preserved as affordable and no one has to move out." (</span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSxwP5NEBcw" style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSxwP5NEBcw</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This makes Newcastle Court both a court of honor and a bastion of hope for living affordably but nobly in the South End—just as I had envisioned it as an onlooker from my school-bus window.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></span></div>
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Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-31060774881859410322020-05-26T18:58:00.013-04:002023-11-27T18:43:34.290-05:00A court of inquiry<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4fCrILqOcjzVgHq_gdXyvA43pVCnACsA8nTZ2xz-zN6fDzalnALlB70FqzO66zrsM2v471ZDOQni2F3p7PPdX9KRXoBCkJURq4ru28CVde0_G7FrlP65Ty6UAOjTjTCvS_5jACud74fY/s1600/Corn+Court+site+6.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="315" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4fCrILqOcjzVgHq_gdXyvA43pVCnACsA8nTZ2xz-zN6fDzalnALlB70FqzO66zrsM2v471ZDOQni2F3p7PPdX9KRXoBCkJURq4ru28CVde0_G7FrlP65Ty6UAOjTjTCvS_5jACud74fY/s640/Corn+Court+site+6.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">For most Bostonians and visitors, this cavernous cut-through between State Street and Faneuil Hall Marketplace wedged in the shadows of two overbearing buildings is just that—a cavernous cut-through between State Street and Faneuil Hall Marketplace wedged in the shadows of two overbearing buildings.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">But if we weren't so rushed to make our next business meeting, gung-ho to grab those takeout French fries, impatient to indulge in that Starbucks latte, or obsessed with social distancing in the age of COVID-19, we might well stop and inquire about this pedestrian path's historic origins. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">G</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">iven the remnants of colonial Boston's erratic network of winding and narrow lanes and alleys in places like the Blackstone Block near Faneuil Hall, Spring Lane in Downtown Crossing, Boylston Place in the Theater District, and the North End, our inquiry might revolve around the</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> kind of stomping ground this lane was in premodern times, and the architectural atmosphere it may have led people to or through back in the day.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq-KNuSo18mGdDDFz6ZfwMpBVpX9X9AiYsYyaYz7yTxwRmhldpYL70V3jMoS3ckSEboptgaOLkTqGiGhXJRMF0Wg5WAbmdeX1w3wXDy_frtn-CnbemlLvkv1v1YIwE_K9iMCXaYH-30mU/s1600/Corn+Court+1895-1905+BPL+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="770" data-original-width="790" height="388" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq-KNuSo18mGdDDFz6ZfwMpBVpX9X9AiYsYyaYz7yTxwRmhldpYL70V3jMoS3ckSEboptgaOLkTqGiGhXJRMF0Wg5WAbmdeX1w3wXDy_frtn-CnbemlLvkv1v1YIwE_K9iMCXaYH-30mU/s400/Corn+Court+1895-1905+BPL+2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3sRqQ503o1kwYhmdzxXTk9-OHUNnpoKxmqPb2xJKj_zq75dP9j9uhLaDbegvd87tICpfP3OWCHWBy9WDOeYTNVibr-IeXjWAMnDI4NaKm5XnjmEJiAeANhQMdAHXhwsPiNHeXLQNtv44/s1600/Corn+Court+1895-1905+BPL.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="772" data-original-width="768" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3sRqQ503o1kwYhmdzxXTk9-OHUNnpoKxmqPb2xJKj_zq75dP9j9uhLaDbegvd87tICpfP3OWCHWBy9WDOeYTNVibr-IeXjWAMnDI4NaKm5XnjmEJiAeANhQMdAHXhwsPiNHeXLQNtv44/s400/Corn+Court+1895-1905+BPL.jpg" width="397" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Corn Court, late 19th century. (All images courtesy of the Boston Public Library.)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The path marks the approximate site of Corn Court, a cobblestoned lane that meandered from Dock Square to Merchants Row in an obtuse zigzag pattern. It typified the way Boston's streets fell in line according to where buildings were placed in colonial times, with no formal city planning to lay out orderly grids and develop real estate along the template the streets had established. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiUJA7S-qdjKHoIPxpfFgSwYdZiOwzc35I_-mAu4sYFATKpQgwiUu5zNjerkt_q-N0tDiz3CMf84hEluHulCwnFkPank2tdbIYwtrFx0xy_EuKwjYZvlySXa8UAd2S6pPCZddPGnkIAeg/s1600/hancocktavern1867corncourt.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiUJA7S-qdjKHoIPxpfFgSwYdZiOwzc35I_-mAu4sYFATKpQgwiUu5zNjerkt_q-N0tDiz3CMf84hEluHulCwnFkPank2tdbIYwtrFx0xy_EuKwjYZvlySXa8UAd2S6pPCZddPGnkIAeg/s1600/hancocktavern1867corncourt.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="687" data-original-width="923" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiUJA7S-qdjKHoIPxpfFgSwYdZiOwzc35I_-mAu4sYFATKpQgwiUu5zNjerkt_q-N0tDiz3CMf84hEluHulCwnFkPank2tdbIYwtrFx0xy_EuKwjYZvlySXa8UAd2S6pPCZddPGnkIAeg/s400/hancocktavern1867corncourt.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">These photos depict the two approaches to the court, which was built c.1650 for carrying goods from the docks at the harbor's edge Faneuil Hall was later built on. At first unnamed, the lane was simply called "a wheelbarrow-way of five full feet" in 1670, as well as the "</span><span style="background-color: white;">alley that leads from the house of James Oliver towards the dock." </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">(James Oliver [1617-1682] was a merchant who rose to captain of the Boston Artillery Company and then Boston's militia and later became a town selectman. In 1675, he commanded Narragansett Campaign troops in the Great Swamp Fight</span></span><span style="background-color: white;"> in King Philip's War against the Narragansett tribe in Rhode Island.)</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The lane was named Corn Court in 1708 for a common New England crop often exported from Boston Harbor. Expanded into Noyes Alley in 1796, it became best known as the approach to the Hancock House, later the Hancock Tavern (visible in both photos), an inn with rooms to let built between 1807 and 1812 in brick with a granite post-and-lintel entrance level and a </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">clapboard </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">rear wall (presumably to save money). It was carefully sited so its clapboard elevation was hidden from view and its more orderly brick/granite faces were visible from the court's main entry from Dock Square, as an invitation for merchants, politicians and others to quaff an ale, port or sherry over the latest scuttlebutt.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Hancock House, mid-to-late 19th century.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Not as strictly symmetrical as most other Federal-style structures, the Hancock House/Tavern had a corner bay that was spaced furthest apart from the other windows to allow more wall area, which possibly indicated larger interior spaces for dining and tea rooms above. This lopsided fenestration also emphasized the tavern's wide corner entrance and gave it a cleaner, more solid "wall" look from its Dock Square approach when the neighboring left-hand building concealed its other windows as one entered the court from Dock Square.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Hancock Tavern, c.1890. Note the Boston Stock Exchange (1889-1891, Peabody & <br />Stearns, now Exchange Place, the offices of <i>The Boston Globe</i>) in the background.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-ocluUMBI-gZNL0CX7oU9B3TnJPhz1QW8A5C_Jp61NMsqrq5ZgxHE4mR2XtWIZuUVNWpsIo9cpCluaKUErgMhm8mWK0tsHDnMCVNsIiUWW9kE-O1u7Hmz4ISBI9S95SvRPkEXPyGyZjI/s1600/Hancock+Tavern+Double+Menu.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1046" data-original-width="1152" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-ocluUMBI-gZNL0CX7oU9B3TnJPhz1QW8A5C_Jp61NMsqrq5ZgxHE4mR2XtWIZuUVNWpsIo9cpCluaKUErgMhm8mWK0tsHDnMCVNsIiUWW9kE-O1u7Hmz4ISBI9S95SvRPkEXPyGyZjI/s400/Hancock+Tavern+Double+Menu.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">By the 1880s, the Hancock Tavern had become the stuff of legend. Its signs and menus spun the yarn that it was established in 1634 (four years after the founding of Boston) as the next phase of a tavern begun by Samuel Coles. Rumors spread that it had hosted John Hancock (hence its name!), future French king Louis-Philippe I when he was in exile during the French Revolution of 1789, French foreign minister Talleyrand, Benjamin Franklin...and, yes, George Washington wined and dined here, they claimed! </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitT8lXnJuQBxQd8IVxdF2ZXzrjHB8KgnvtPog4vCejSZceGip0UEN4zhMVIGeKv4C5XyVxPhMCC-_yO9VGP3VNEwN3nXUnF5NgtmmnoUpxo9TOm-0tqI1KvWKJ0ogwlHRsQOaR_FCph3E/s1600/Tea+room+Hancock+Tavern.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="793" data-original-width="992" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitT8lXnJuQBxQd8IVxdF2ZXzrjHB8KgnvtPog4vCejSZceGip0UEN4zhMVIGeKv4C5XyVxPhMCC-_yO9VGP3VNEwN3nXUnF5NgtmmnoUpxo9TOm-0tqI1KvWKJ0ogwlHRsQOaR_FCph3E/s400/Tea+room+Hancock+Tavern.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Tea room, Hancock Tavern, c.1895-1900.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Yet another note from the Old-Myths-Die-Hard Department: the Hancock Tavern's owners boasted that this was where the Sons of Liberty met before staging the Boston Tea Party. A menu told this tall tale: “Visit the Historic Tea Room Up Stairs. In this room the ‘Boston Tea Party’ made their plans, and dressed as Mohawk Indians to destroy the tea in Boston harbor, Dec. 16, 1773.”</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoqHMVuGxLILZihXX-i3yjcrzZsXxhXfBP8AjKZkiCJ8_dcSw0FUKY1Vmdq6tYWvtTbieDqoSgZj3NcWTU1Jw0R-m3eJNcX_avzGlqu7KEEh9ZCLnykv5WVb8U__U0H2oqjlF6attkelc/s1600/Tea+room+Hancock+Tavern.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: right;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjAqHblQmbPFGO0MtxKiurWtJp8wmmRJooC-2kmu-cwWNxWpb-P6gB7gdfJB4JCU9hmVBRIEWw_VJpn5UGfzmEqfnkDHWw-7U1u8xbs_U5tbWykrcVvx8WfCEmylzKIXD-LLMYyWfPeYQ/s1600/hancocktaverndec1898.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="395" data-original-width="356" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjAqHblQmbPFGO0MtxKiurWtJp8wmmRJooC-2kmu-cwWNxWpb-P6gB7gdfJB4JCU9hmVBRIEWw_VJpn5UGfzmEqfnkDHWw-7U1u8xbs_U5tbWykrcVvx8WfCEmylzKIXD-LLMYyWfPeYQ/s400/hancocktaverndec1898.jpg" width="360" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Daughters of the American Revolution perpetuated that myth when they convened at the Hancock Tavern in December 1898—dressed as Colonial maids—to celebrate the Tea Party's 125th anniversary. Complementing the occasion was a wall inscription of the illusion, probably placed there by then owner E.B. Wadsworth & Co.:<span style="background-color: white;"> “In this room the Boston tea party made their plans and dressed as Mohawk Indians, and went to Griffin’s (now Liverpool) wharf, where the ships Beaver and Eleanor and Dartmouth lay, and threw overboard 342 chests of tea, Dec. 16, 1773."</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Hancock Tavern, 1901.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">As the above images of tall office buildings rising behind and around Corn Court and the Hancock Tavern signify, commercial real estate value was on the rise, giving birth to Boston's Financial District and sealing the tavern's fate, despite Wadsworth & Co.'s clear attempt to bump up its visibility in that dark, narrow enclave with signage on the commercial level of the encroaching high-rises.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuwmWs7d6HyCPbmbW61xFy_3tZIKqUMZ0MRtkQoGngeMDAkcA3d52-jSVZZp5USnQF9QHBMKiJhtBq6wnFJnZJa06ZYhcRmPxzz9q_awpLMePB5R5wu1m9Q-woeQmjSQZxdlbyLz_Wt-g/s1600/J.K._Souther___S_5458200ba7abf.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="438" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuwmWs7d6HyCPbmbW61xFy_3tZIKqUMZ0MRtkQoGngeMDAkcA3d52-jSVZZp5USnQF9QHBMKiJhtBq6wnFJnZJa06ZYhcRmPxzz9q_awpLMePB5R5wu1m9Q-woeQmjSQZxdlbyLz_Wt-g/s200/J.K._Souther___S_5458200ba7abf.jpg" width="124" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRLUdVi7c5iYlqUrHqS4v_tP0bxPKccwkifbRN-Kw81Qm07vdpXKbLzpCZ4lZ0nieBTec79aZ7tMimUxY7bW3Thzl671hyVYCYj3-R18ZBKWTPHxWHwAh_wBdKOcLLPHCga1ZhJ05jR14/s1600/Burton+Ales.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1110" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRLUdVi7c5iYlqUrHqS4v_tP0bxPKccwkifbRN-Kw81Qm07vdpXKbLzpCZ4lZ0nieBTec79aZ7tMimUxY7bW3Thzl671hyVYCYj3-R18ZBKWTPHxWHwAh_wBdKOcLLPHCga1ZhJ05jR14/s200/Burton+Ales.jpg" width="138" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And well they might. The tavern had gone through a succession of proprietors and had been a gambling den for years when Edward and Lucina Wadsworth acquired it in 1897, engaging in a last-ditch attempt to trumpet its alleged historical connection as well as its array of wines, liquors, cigars, lagers and bass ales. ("Burton Musty" was a brand of ale brewed by J.K. Souther & Sons, a short-lived Boston brewery operating from 1884-1889.)</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Site of Corn Court and Hancock Tavern, 1920s.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Upon the tavern's demolition in 1903, all of its myths died with it when City Registrar Edward W. McGlenen confirmed its construction date range and reported that the two-story house it had replaced had received its tavern license in 1790, thus retiring the Hancock's Revolution connection to Boston's folklore annals. McGlenen confirmed that Samuel Coles' 1634 inn had no connection either, thus scuttling the Hancock's boast as Boston's oldest tavern.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYHIImiO2520l-8L4R4KuU3XCtFSCvNnVRkCUHFZRBEaw9Dc6Nnk7ykhwut1UQVFw59LBa6JCTq_eU-8JDYEwZ_zZsjR9qDoeM0mEogLdtn1bJhE2DbmdG1MHekdQIJXS1ib_eX_5-0xs/s1600/Corn+Court+site+%2526+replacement+bldg.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="620" data-original-width="1240" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYHIImiO2520l-8L4R4KuU3XCtFSCvNnVRkCUHFZRBEaw9Dc6Nnk7ykhwut1UQVFw59LBa6JCTq_eU-8JDYEwZ_zZsjR9qDoeM0mEogLdtn1bJhE2DbmdG1MHekdQIJXS1ib_eX_5-0xs/s640/Corn+Court+site+%2526+replacement+bldg.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOTUWeeHVExNmhDU3Qke_clCh9dsAbbLf9dP0yYqlV4c8mtrHIFsgOxbZAvhHkHfYTbuwQAFg3Okk5RC5U7Bt5bkTM4USRKjSH7VQLwHGqES1ZSZwaGaxie_Ey5UYzcHxX5KwcdJwmf60/s1600/Corn+Court+replacement+bldg.+court.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="315" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOTUWeeHVExNmhDU3Qke_clCh9dsAbbLf9dP0yYqlV4c8mtrHIFsgOxbZAvhHkHfYTbuwQAFg3Okk5RC5U7Bt5bkTM4USRKjSH7VQLwHGqES1ZSZwaGaxie_Ey5UYzcHxX5KwcdJwmf60/s400/Corn+Court+replacement+bldg.+court.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">History couldn't save the Hancock, because it had no history to speak of, save for its unusually functionalist take on Federal architecture and its placement in one of Boston's oldest street patterns.<br /><br />But the office building that replaced it carried on Corn's court tradition in some form, forming a central light court to give more sun to more of its offices—an innovation that was to figure prominently in modernist buildings such as Boston City Hall more than half a century later. And the building's granite construction continued a proud Boston building tradition the Hancock Tavern was a part of.<br /><br />So next time you cut through this little alley on your way to work or to satisfy your comfort-food craving or caffeine fix, be sure to pause and reflect on the history—corny or kosher—that took place on this site. (The new social distancing protocol should make that easier.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></span></div>
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Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-27776454089240816942020-05-20T16:09:00.001-04:002020-05-20T16:11:55.514-04:00Balboa bonanza<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW_b3ThxQ38R5b9sMHGA8U7m-hfqoJyAhSQTwoXiPwSQZ-ZIQAXnCOqzI8j9yqRNrAfNTICk2oYIhpxPGEdUJ5LEQC4reQCSOGk8KaRDqtMzz-W9hKGPohHI6ZJDqtSgYMFt-ZvEeaJhU/s1600/Balboa_Park%252C_San_Diego%252C_California_18_2014-03-12+by+Fastily+%2528cropped%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1204" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW_b3ThxQ38R5b9sMHGA8U7m-hfqoJyAhSQTwoXiPwSQZ-ZIQAXnCOqzI8j9yqRNrAfNTICk2oYIhpxPGEdUJ5LEQC4reQCSOGk8KaRDqtMzz-W9hKGPohHI6ZJDqtSgYMFt-ZvEeaJhU/s640/Balboa_Park%252C_San_Diego%252C_California_18_2014-03-12+by+Fastily+%2528cropped%2529.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The elaborate Spanish temple edifice of San Diego’s Balboa Park Visitor Center (now closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but worthy of inclusion on your travel bucket list once the lockdown lifts) tells many tales: of world and city history, of conquest, of endurance through time and tempest, of hope for a better future, of determination to preserve the past, and of Balboa Park’s rich cultural offerings today.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAFkuU1e7TwRaHht6wfWC8D96n-dHBxvjC8xCh10mScMGQSLg4RpHkX5yyr32NW1azHDxZYwjnTiAapH85SWW-aj6XLBs4c1JX6GduILuVTMEO3DzemViJRPiUSkmDII3VI-nn9Uhrb-I/s1600/ForeignArtsBuilding%2528old%2529+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="319" data-original-width="510" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAFkuU1e7TwRaHht6wfWC8D96n-dHBxvjC8xCh10mScMGQSLg4RpHkX5yyr32NW1azHDxZYwjnTiAapH85SWW-aj6XLBs4c1JX6GduILuVTMEO3DzemViJRPiUSkmDII3VI-nn9Uhrb-I/s400/ForeignArtsBuilding%2528old%2529+copy.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">First called the Foreign Arts Building, it was one of many Spanish Colonial and Mission style buildings erected in Balboa Park for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition celebrating the 1914 opening of the Panama Canal and promoting San Diego as a first US port of call for northbound ships that navigated the canal. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiePHXavtHS2xf5TzwlF3MIuF2gyYoikDmvTOXekLexdiiUxfIa4MupC5kWmEcYlUfe44YBRxGqdQtvdLUoR_qbiyYf2N7oYBukJJkFYdl_MMzxp0vFrY4iSTJ3so6TTcIuDlTqbIT7eHM/s1600/Engraving+of+1726+depicting+Balboa+taking+possession+of+the+South+Sea+and+all+adjoining+lands+for+Spain+in+1513.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="455" data-original-width="718" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiePHXavtHS2xf5TzwlF3MIuF2gyYoikDmvTOXekLexdiiUxfIa4MupC5kWmEcYlUfe44YBRxGqdQtvdLUoR_qbiyYf2N7oYBukJJkFYdl_MMzxp0vFrY4iSTJ3so6TTcIuDlTqbIT7eHM/s400/Engraving+of+1726+depicting+Balboa+taking+possession+of+the+South+Sea+and+all+adjoining+lands+for+Spain+in+1513.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: #f7f7f8; color: #323248; letter-spacing: -0.2px;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Engraving of 1726 depicting Balboa claiming the South Sea and all adjoining lands for Spain in 1513.</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This was a legacy of Spanish conquistador Vasco Núñez de Balboa crossing Panama to the Pacific Ocean (then the South Sea) in 1513 and paving the way for Spanish explorers and settlers along California’s coast — particularly Sebastián Vizcaíno, who mapped the coast in 1602 and named the San Diego area for Catholic Saint Didacus (after Vizcaino’s flagship San Diego); and Father Junípero Serra, who in 1769 founded the Franciscan mission of San Diego de Alcalá that initiated the city.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">The Plaza de Panama at the Panama-California Exposition of 1915. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo courtesy of Library of Congress and Committee of 100.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">“Here is pictured in this happy combination of splendid temples, the story of the friars, the thrilling tale of the pioneers, the orderly conquest of commerce, coupled with the hopes of an El Dorado where life can expand in this fragrant land of opportunity,” said G. Aubrey Davidson, president of the Panama-California Exposition Corporation, at the January 1 opening of the Exposition. “It is indeed a permanent city, and every building fits into the picture.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBRM7cOmqNBTzZkLwqN8Vq2WTUQjIq1EL5QjEdGBjNYspiCdUR0CFI4bVWwoisKuwAv0h2UtBFRfy5iRmK8ticcNY1CWhMYUmxRZlJJ48LT4PQkF-Aclbim7Ksu20mHAP1zRve-mQHVxg/s1600/View+from+the+tower+of+the+California+State+Building+at+the+1915+Panama-California+Exposition+in+Balboa+Park%252C+San+Diego%252C+California.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="466" data-original-width="1272" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBRM7cOmqNBTzZkLwqN8Vq2WTUQjIq1EL5QjEdGBjNYspiCdUR0CFI4bVWwoisKuwAv0h2UtBFRfy5iRmK8ticcNY1CWhMYUmxRZlJJ48LT4PQkF-Aclbim7Ksu20mHAP1zRve-mQHVxg/s640/View+from+the+tower+of+the+California+State+Building+at+the+1915+Panama-California+Exposition+in+Balboa+Park%252C+San+Diego%252C+California.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span class="mw-mmv-title">View from the tower of the California State Building at the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panama-California_Exposition" style="color: purple;" title="en:Panama-California Exposition"><span style="color: windowtext; text-decoration-line: none;">1915 Panama-California Exposition</span></a> in Balboa Park, San Diego, California.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Most, including the Foreign Arts Building, were actually built as temporary structures of wood-framed “staff,” a blend of plaster and burlap-like fiber, to house exhibits on artistic, scientific, agricultural, commercial, national and international themes. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMpTpExWimr91JZC6Uvi3iZI3trehJ7aWmMEU_ZTQqBFxLoiaLnFEhRlLr-AJRR4uQ2FZ8xsHxewm-l6VbjdEyM5ZX9668OBxmC05EfhwaP6Gwo4yXuX4jaPBuycmoudsHm5r7gwdfZpA/s1600/The_Prado%252C_Balboa_Park%252C_San_Diego_CA_01+by+David+Cossaboom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="540" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMpTpExWimr91JZC6Uvi3iZI3trehJ7aWmMEU_ZTQqBFxLoiaLnFEhRlLr-AJRR4uQ2FZ8xsHxewm-l6VbjdEyM5ZX9668OBxmC05EfhwaP6Gwo4yXuX4jaPBuycmoudsHm5r7gwdfZpA/s200/The_Prado%252C_Balboa_Park%252C_San_Diego_CA_01+by+David+Cossaboom.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Balboa Park Visitor Center entrance.<br />Photo: David Cossaboom, <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 4.</a>0.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJMu7s3r15wXjqAbDKf7CF3qKL8aociUh9wxGeP2dQuS9YGpvByXpTCi_IdWjGFImE0MbRljMECfx5tDq8qm9JWloAN-cnOmsK6t5RDY9Riicq7SFUV9sEpfUwSIqwqPSj3PcOj3Am1Bg/s1600/1872-03-16%252C_La_Ilustracio%25CC%2581n_Espan%25CC%2583ola_y_Americana%252C_Toledo%252C_Fachada_de_la_iglesia_de_Santa_Cruz%252C_hoy_Escuela_central_de_Tiro+by+Manual+Nao+%25281843-1884%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1177" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJMu7s3r15wXjqAbDKf7CF3qKL8aociUh9wxGeP2dQuS9YGpvByXpTCi_IdWjGFImE0MbRljMECfx5tDq8qm9JWloAN-cnOmsK6t5RDY9Riicq7SFUV9sEpfUwSIqwqPSj3PcOj3Am1Bg/s200/1872-03-16%252C_La_Ilustracio%25CC%2581n_Espan%25CC%2583ola_y_Americana%252C_Toledo%252C_Fachada_de_la_iglesia_de_Santa_Cruz%252C_hoy_Escuela_central_de_Tiro+by+Manual+Nao+%25281843-1884%2529.jpg" width="146" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Engraving of the Hospital of Santa Cruz, <br />Toledo, Spain, by Manual Nao (1843-1884).</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Inspired by the 16<sup>th</sup>-century Hospital of Santa Cruz (now the Museum of Santa Cruz) in Toledo, Spain (left), architect Carleton Monroe Winslow designed the Foreign Arts Building with an ornate façade (right), a ground-level arcade, and the finial-topped bell tower seen in the images above. The building exhibited Italian and Russian arts and crafts, and Chinese and Japanese goods.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQOCPaabQwmgy861DJ3TkTinrjbXxmaIjGUfYaBnRA6iaDQWWzP11cFpRUt3JqDfTgU3womBdSNLtf8RiJVEq0OZ0xGsehVDSiT44iDL91ICsQRdtHMMy5TC6L_5u7s6vaYKANhu8Q4T8/s1600/AVENUE+OF+PALACES%252C+CALIFORNIA+PACIFIC+INTERNATIONAL+EXPOSITION%252C+1934.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1019" data-original-width="1600" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQOCPaabQwmgy861DJ3TkTinrjbXxmaIjGUfYaBnRA6iaDQWWzP11cFpRUt3JqDfTgU3womBdSNLtf8RiJVEq0OZ0xGsehVDSiT44iDL91ICsQRdtHMMy5TC6L_5u7s6vaYKANhu8Q4T8/s400/AVENUE+OF+PALACES%252C+CALIFORNIA+PACIFIC+INTERNATIONAL+EXPOSITION%252C+1934.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Avenue of Palaces, California Pacific International Exposition, 1934.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">When the building housed a natural history museum in 1920-22, its structural weaknesses showed. However, merchant and philanthropist George White Marston, the Exposition’s Buildings and Grounds Committee chairman, called for preservation of as many </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Panama-California Exposition</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> buildings as possible for their historical beauty, having visited Spain and romanticized its architecture. Thus most of them were revamped for the 1935 California-Pacific International Exposition.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc-Qdold5NeKTR9acs3K6TnovqE13IuHHjYG7yvWox1YIJ74BVjLIzASjYlibKDRp-g3Om55YFn8PmWKVNeuVyQK7H0X42g-fxhEsoqoOLEFMymw9zIu1GAYZji5Vl22zWssMDkGJTnVk/s1600/lossy-page1-750px-thumbnail.tif.HABS+Library+of+Congress+Prints+and+Photographs+Division+jpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="554" data-original-width="703" height="315" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc-Qdold5NeKTR9acs3K6TnovqE13IuHHjYG7yvWox1YIJ74BVjLIzASjYlibKDRp-g3Om55YFn8PmWKVNeuVyQK7H0X42g-fxhEsoqoOLEFMymw9zIu1GAYZji5Vl22zWssMDkGJTnVk/s400/lossy-page1-750px-thumbnail.tif.HABS+Library+of+Congress+Prints+and+Photographs+Division+jpg.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo from the Historic American Building Survey (HABS), <br />courtesy of the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Foreign Arts Building was renamed the House of Hospitality and redesigned by San Diego architect Richard Requa with a fountain courtyard, Mexican loggia, Flamingo Room, Sala de Oro and Casa del Rey Moro Café. During their October 2 visit, President Franklin D. Roosevelt dined in the Sala de Oro and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt lunched in the Mexican loggia, entertained by troubadours in the courtyard.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIiTNqfbXQv1YZZBfbq5I4AumFH5jOWQ3w809vY7s_g-U6IrvaeDrtiHUXYovz9scTrHldpCyTb_u_HckttsmtvfUKxB0A3nq8Vp_MMSxPWPPw_6WFtGNKoPKAg-iWxN2QdO_qj827NqM/s1600/San_Diego%252C_2016_-_450+by+Another+Believer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIiTNqfbXQv1YZZBfbq5I4AumFH5jOWQ3w809vY7s_g-U6IrvaeDrtiHUXYovz9scTrHldpCyTb_u_HckttsmtvfUKxB0A3nq8Vp_MMSxPWPPw_6WFtGNKoPKAg-iWxN2QdO_qj827NqM/s640/San_Diego%252C_2016_-_450+by+Another+Believer.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Another_Believer">Another Believer</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en">Creative Commons</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Woman of Tehuantepec fountain statue, sculpted by </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">San Diego sculptor Donal Hord, </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">still stands in the courtyard.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3lp7uAyz1jD9d02cxXCdUU2KZuckDIA8CGyhE6xSnM_V014kFVTYwvKyMhlWlbkY6ely57HYWcalW9YG5KuhjSk5SXbKbt7YYHeCK19psPFvhBwjyFbu9bnVg_uVWq9OGvFXxn24_h5A/s1600/lossy-page1-800px-%2528Lilly_pond_at_Exposition_Buildings%252C_a_view_of_the_U.S._Naval_Training_Station%252C_San_Diego%252C_California.%2529_-_NARA_-_295553.tif.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="478" data-original-width="800" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3lp7uAyz1jD9d02cxXCdUU2KZuckDIA8CGyhE6xSnM_V014kFVTYwvKyMhlWlbkY6ely57HYWcalW9YG5KuhjSk5SXbKbt7YYHeCK19psPFvhBwjyFbu9bnVg_uVWq9OGvFXxn24_h5A/s400/lossy-page1-800px-%2528Lilly_pond_at_Exposition_Buildings%252C_a_view_of_the_U.S._Naval_Training_Station%252C_San_Diego%252C_California.%2529_-_NARA_-_295553.tif.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">U.S. Naval Training Center at House of Hospitality, September 18, 1947. <br />Photo courtesy of the U.S. Naval Records Administration.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">During World War II the U.S. Navy occupied the House of Hospitality as just that: a nurse-staffed hospital as a U.S. Naval Training Center. Following years of decay, patchups and falling ornaments, the building, along with most other Exposition structures, was replicated in earthquake-resistant glass-fiber-reinforced-concrete in 1997 as the Balboa Park Visitor Center.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAc0Fmp7Qz2eusfQzbCwq8vX7nDg0qiG0M3asXtMbGlVLSrg4HinFWUt3WfNgO_Xfrf-g99pF7GuodvROxnKmz2rvYocMHQLj3fIiPcN7dwZ0FDCC2R2eaPwjRbzO6u7g4zZn-NgTY3ns/s1600/Aerial_-_San_Diego%252C_CA_-_El_Prado_Complex_03+by+Joe+Mabel+%2528cropped%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="404" data-original-width="1600" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAc0Fmp7Qz2eusfQzbCwq8vX7nDg0qiG0M3asXtMbGlVLSrg4HinFWUt3WfNgO_Xfrf-g99pF7GuodvROxnKmz2rvYocMHQLj3fIiPcN7dwZ0FDCC2R2eaPwjRbzO6u7g4zZn-NgTY3ns/s640/Aerial_-_San_Diego%252C_CA_-_El_Prado_Complex_03+by+Joe+Mabel+%2528cropped%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Balboa Park, San Diego. Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Jmabel">Joe Mabel</a>, <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en">CC BY 3.0</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif9G5Vx1jAMvMdbWQk-L0P1IH5FM4-7ulL7GEQCOwak8TBkRB36RqKUiV6OepHtaPU5qiQ85DTdkpJXCW8ekM2Sa6Ua9yLrHCpefBRLTNxWm5fWgMs7PfyWoSmTwAvtA_ZMAWT9u5dXlU/s1600/Museo_-_Parque_Balboa_en_California+by+Michael+Seljos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1065" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif9G5Vx1jAMvMdbWQk-L0P1IH5FM4-7ulL7GEQCOwak8TBkRB36RqKUiV6OepHtaPU5qiQ85DTdkpJXCW8ekM2Sa6Ua9yLrHCpefBRLTNxWm5fWgMs7PfyWoSmTwAvtA_ZMAWT9u5dXlU/s400/Museo_-_Parque_Balboa_en_California+by+Michael+Seljos.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/99149846@N00">Michael Seljos</a>, <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Today the Balboa Park Visitor Center continues to be the beacon of beauty it provided for the two Expositions it became a recognizable icon of, this time informationally as well as architecturally.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Center provides the skinny on all of Balboa’s family-friendly events, exhibits and recreational opportunities. For starters: the anthropological Museum of Man in the first Exposition’s California State Building; theater at the Old Globe, the second Exposition’s replica of Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre; concerts in the Spreckels Organ Pavilion (with the world’s largest outdoor pipe organ); art, science and model railroad museums; sports facilities; the Botanical Building; picturesque gardens; the San Diego Zoo; and, above all, the El Dorado envisioned by expeditions and expositions.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">A Balboa bonanza, for sure!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></span></div>
Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-5005884154080050392020-05-19T23:51:00.001-04:002020-05-25T14:51:53.687-04:00Vive la Place d'Italie!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Connaissez-vous la Place d'Italie à Paris?</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Avez-vous jamais remarqué No. 10?</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Souvenez-vous Monsieur et Madame Thibaut?</span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">If you're a Baby-Boomer or Gen-Xer who, like yours truly, had <i>l'honneur</i> of learning French through the pre-digital filmstrips, reel-tapes and records of <i>Voix et Images de France,</i> you'd answer '<i>oui'</i> to all of the above. For this then-<i>nouveau, </i>now-<i>passé </i>audio-visual learning tool made <i>Dix Place d'Italie</i> (10 Italy Square) one of Paris's most flocked-to sites for students eager to meet and greet their beloved <i>ingénieur en costume noir, Monsieur Thibaut...</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...only to find him fictitious, and his <i>maison</i> the same. For the real <i>Dix Place d'Italie </i>looks nothing like the plain five-story box (or four-story [<i>quatre étages</i>], as the French don't count the lobby, <i>le rez-de-chaussée,</i> as an actual <i>étage</i>) in <i>Leçon 2: La Maison</i> of the filmstrip. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Instead, No. 10 is a distinctive seven-story (including the living space in its mansard roof, which the French <i>do</i> count as an <i>étage</i>) sandstone-limestone <i>mélange </i>of<i> Art Nouveau </i>and French Second Empire, p</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">unctuated by French windows, French balconies and bay windows, and bookended by brick English Jacobean-Second Empire<i> </i>hybrids angling</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> obtusely with <i>l'Avenue</i></span><i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> de la Soeur Rosalie </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">called </span><i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">La Rue de la Gare </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">in the lesson) </span><i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">à droite </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(at right)</span><i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">, </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">and</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span><i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">le Boulevard Auguste Blanqui, à gauche</i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> (at left)</span><i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">. </i><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This combination of radiating streets and abutting buildings of contrasting materials gives </span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">la maison de M. Thibaut</i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> a monumental presence in </span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">la Place d'Italie, </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">which is enriched by the greenspace and the fountain in the central circular park, </span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">une exemple supérieure</i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">de la place radiale</i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> of Paris's master planner, Baron Haussmann. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Plan de Paris, 1853. Paniconography by Firmin Gillot (1820-1872), engraving by F. Delamare.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Between 1853 and 1870, under the direction of Emperor Napoléon III, Haussmann redesigned the city as a geometric network of wide streets and tree-lined boulevards of upscale residential/retail blocks of Second Empire, Jacobean, <i>Beaux-Arts</i> and <i>Art Nouveau </i>architecture of mostly Lutetian limestone and brick, radiating from circular traffic islands that offered parks, fountains and monuments to <i>le nouveau riche de Paris, </i>as a beautiful alternative to the narrow, squalid, disease-ridden streets of medieval Paris where Victor Hugo's <i>Les Misérables </i>took place. Named after the nearby <i>Avenue d'Italie, Place d'Italie</i> was built beginning in 1860 on the site of the Wall of the<i> Ferme Générale </i>(Farmers General), built c.1780 as a means of collecting internal revenue for Paris in the form of indirect taxation.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">In <i>Leçon 2, le rez-de-chaussée de la maison de M. Thibaut </i>is described as follows: <i>"En </i></span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">bas, il y a deux magasins" </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">("Below, there are two stores"). In the lesson these are </span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">la pharmacie et l'épicerie</i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> (the drugstore and the grocery store). In reality, <i>la pharmacie</i> is there—albeit next door—though No. 10 itself has some sort of <i>café.</i> (But who knows what's there now, in the wake of COVID-19—though I'm sure <i>la pharmacie reste là, </i>since it's needed more than ever.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">But </span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">la Place d'Italie </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">as a whole is far from the intimately idyllic human-scaled village M. Thibaut depicted it as when he said, </span><i style="font-family: georgia, "times new roman", serif;">"J'habite Place d'Italie à Paris" </i><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">("I live in Italy Squar</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">e in Paris") in <i>Leçon 1: Présentation </i>(<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p34I695RAjc">"Voilà Monsieur Thibaut" on YouTube</a>). Soon after <i>Voix et Images</i> was made (1961-62), the square's neighborhood of <i>le </i><i style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">XIII<sup style="line-height: 1;">e</sup> arrondissement </i><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">was targeted for the <i>Italie 13</i> urban renewal project of modern skyscrapers, partially modeled on Le Corbusier's unrealized <i>Ville Radieuse </i>(Radiant City) scheme of cruciform towers in a grid of boulevards and greenspaces. Public opposition halted this proposal, but <i>la Place d'Italie </i>bears the scars of this destructive initiative, most notably...</span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/26700188@N05">besopha</a>, courtesy of Flickr and <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en">Creative Commons</a>.</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">...a bland block snuggling up incompatibly to M. Thibaut's neighbor...</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by </span><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/35349231@N00/" style="font-size: x-small;">David Monniaux</a><span style="font-size: xx-small;">, courtesy of Flickr and </span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en" style="font-size: x-small;">Creative Commons</a><span style="font-size: xx-small;">.</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Courtesy of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yh_Q_djocvs"><span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; text-align: start;">La France Vue Du Bitume</span>, YouTube</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">...<i>le </i><i><span style="background: white;">Grand Écran Italie, </span></i><span style="background: white;">a 1992 cinema complex </span>by Japanese <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">architect Kenzo Tange that looks as alien to its <i>arrondissement</i> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">as its space-age oddity implies (as well as its 2006 closing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">and renovation into a Manhattan-style shopping mall,<br />not surprisingly rechristened ITALIE DEUX)...</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMo9LjpfuPoKF-kGqJE6cuX8-ftPgcIQWzlXCFkQCeC4V4CTPtv4nvui3AJZWP8-3aCILba-V05KZTPSeOp5yqVdc74VRjWYra7V6drq845yQkJZAGiiZGRlLr2R7UInCnmZRL04RaNbY/s1600/Paris_13e+by+Fauxjeton.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="289" data-original-width="451" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMo9LjpfuPoKF-kGqJE6cuX8-ftPgcIQWzlXCFkQCeC4V4CTPtv4nvui3AJZWP8-3aCILba-V05KZTPSeOp5yqVdc74VRjWYra7V6drq845yQkJZAGiiZGRlLr2R7UInCnmZRL04RaNbY/s400/Paris_13e+by+Fauxjeton.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by </span><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paris_13e.jpg" style="font-size: x-small;">Fauxjeton</a><span style="font-size: xx-small;">, courtesy of </span><a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en" style="font-size: x-small;">Creative Commons</a><span style="font-size: xx-small;">.</span><br /><span style="font-size: small;">...a boulevard physically and symbolically forging a <br />generation gap between <i>classique</i> and <i>moderne...</i></span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCpn-sz4HI9whuM2i65isCH5Lwor2esOPREapJPe5Si3k-Rrk_H1Jrw4eOYAtJZyDNj_9dFbHttQ6RfFN_Mq6wYPh8mKirl98rND-7pKfrK1-O5XD82j4AgnzDTA9yo9imsgCLjybfnF4/s1600/Place_d%2527Italie_May_27%252C_2012+by+besopha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCpn-sz4HI9whuM2i65isCH5Lwor2esOPREapJPe5Si3k-Rrk_H1Jrw4eOYAtJZyDNj_9dFbHttQ6RfFN_Mq6wYPh8mKirl98rND-7pKfrK1-O5XD82j4AgnzDTA9yo9imsgCLjybfnF4/s400/Place_d%2527Italie_May_27%252C_2012+by+besopha.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/26700188@N05">besopha</a>, courtesy of Flickr and <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en">Creative Commons</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">...and divers other popups polluting <i>La Place</i> with <i>pompe et insipidité</i>.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgljcwFvrEdoeZ97qPx2w4OP7t3wsrD8dpzIraYvuAYRubiNAog1HWeTXULQsGSDLApEYzMWLvHUzu28030GFbWJ4wOLf6XQgGd5zyrZLM1qtjgU3XZQXaGICVHYssOstcpHQRAaetF97M/s1600/Monsieur+Thibaut+est+inge%25CC%2581nieur.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="692" data-original-width="1065" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgljcwFvrEdoeZ97qPx2w4OP7t3wsrD8dpzIraYvuAYRubiNAog1HWeTXULQsGSDLApEYzMWLvHUzu28030GFbWJ4wOLf6XQgGd5zyrZLM1qtjgU3XZQXaGICVHYssOstcpHQRAaetF97M/s400/Monsieur+Thibaut+est+inge%25CC%2581nieur.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Of course, at the end of <i>Leçon 1 </i>we learned that <i>"Monsieur Thibaut est ingénieur" </i>("Mr. Thibaut is an engineer"), and the propensity for modern design he demonstrated in this <i>image</i> may well have foreshadowed what would become of his <i>Place précieuse</i> a few years hence.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Notice the roof gables outside his office, behind its modern ribbon-window—symbolic of how the midcentury modernism he was engineering was about to supplant some of the old Parisian architecture of his <i>Place.</i></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA9NpJkAhjbBbQDJoDUVq46_Vc15ogo46iAp3wSr3NRByRhQbqGsMzYtVA6VdS8_uO1CZomwoCmE0-9yhv5S8OXqdm_mUgjTGS2CO2dNae96DmdM1nnnSD7cBtS9ZnzDYgXOavab6O8HY/s1600/Paris-XIIIe-mairie+by+Thierry+Be%25CC%2581zecourt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1016" data-original-width="1600" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA9NpJkAhjbBbQDJoDUVq46_Vc15ogo46iAp3wSr3NRByRhQbqGsMzYtVA6VdS8_uO1CZomwoCmE0-9yhv5S8OXqdm_mUgjTGS2CO2dNae96DmdM1nnnSD7cBtS9ZnzDYgXOavab6O8HY/s400/Paris-XIIIe-mairie+by+Thierry+Be%25CC%2581zecourt.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Thbz">Thierry Bézecourt</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en">Creative Commons</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Luckily, one example of that survives: <i>la Mairie </i>(City Hall) <i>du XIIIe Arrondissement,</i> built 1866-1877 </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">from a Second Empire/Baroque Revival design by </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #404040; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paul-Émile Bonnet (1828-1881) as one of 20 <i>mairies </i>built in all <i>arrondissements </i>by Napoléon III. Its <i>grandeur châteauesque </i>has made it a popular wedding venue...</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLr0OdYUWQhb_vbrhwVdmgfdBBStkWSK_uTYhoTG0JnAA0mXJiOYtC8xLCjPZZ32FVLzGvIQDOOtsZybwWtPUlh27UotiPkgY8zaxnwPOJPuzS9Lx1dQWZ6MdORfDfNzhfqiFh4Lnakbg/s1600/Paris_13_-_mairie_du_13e_et_paulownias+by+Ordifana75.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLr0OdYUWQhb_vbrhwVdmgfdBBStkWSK_uTYhoTG0JnAA0mXJiOYtC8xLCjPZZ32FVLzGvIQDOOtsZybwWtPUlh27UotiPkgY8zaxnwPOJPuzS9Lx1dQWZ6MdORfDfNzhfqiFh4Lnakbg/s400/Paris_13_-_mairie_du_13e_et_paulownias+by+Ordifana75.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Ordifana75">Ordifana75</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en">Creative Commons</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #404040; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...especially when lilacs bloom from the pawlonia trees of <i>Jardin Françoise-Giroud</i> in the park, enhancing the building's baroque beauty and restoring a corner of <i>la Place d'Italie</i> to a semblance of its Napoleonic nascence. It does seem like a different <i>'place' </i>from different vantage points, ranging from <i>historique</i> to <i>haute moderne </i>and <i>antique</i> to <i>avant-garde.</i></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #404040; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">But </span><i style="color: #404040; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">c'est la vie à Paris.</i><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #404040; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;"><i> </i></span>
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<span style="color: #404040; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b><i>Merci pour votre séjour! Questions? Commentaires?</i></b></span></span></div>
Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-19984800415559418772020-05-18T22:51:00.131-04:002021-03-06T16:22:38.121-05:00Back-door banality (or beauty?)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMwnLivmIOXdoUH23VMv_WSoCTM3xods9tQXhzHVtnwK6FhvltmsJw4zEXUyFFASZP1KkCE6vPcNwtlhAHC8B_b-6yQKMsGspRzeD7XNsJA49aV9SLW3ZphShvxhiWi3Kyu9mBRxBRegs/s1600/Watertown+back+doors.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="612" data-original-width="1600" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMwnLivmIOXdoUH23VMv_WSoCTM3xods9tQXhzHVtnwK6FhvltmsJw4zEXUyFFASZP1KkCE6vPcNwtlhAHC8B_b-6yQKMsGspRzeD7XNsJA49aV9SLW3ZphShvxhiWi3Kyu9mBRxBRegs/s640/Watertown+back+doors.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">My recent notice of this patchwork of back doors, balconies, bays and odd windows made me think of how the rear ends of our buildings tend to get shorter shrift than their streetfronts in terms of public presentability. As dandruff on shoulders, runs in stockings, and scuffs on heels signify our neglect of our backsides compared to our neatening of ties, bodices and laces on our first-impression fronts, so rickety back porches, tacky ells and bizarre bumpouts show our tendency to cut corners on rear elevations, clearly to save design/build costs and hours. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Warehouses on West Parade near Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, England. <br />Photo by <a href="https://www.geograph.org.uk/profile/14840">Evelyn Simak</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en">Creative Commons</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And understandably so. Service entrances, loading docks, employee entries, emergency egresses, and rear garages are merely functional and hidden from public view. So they don't require the order, ornament and signage front facades need for the curb appeal and civic propriety necessary to lure customers, visitors, tenants and homebuyers with a strong first impression, like our frontal apparel.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And yet back doors, walls and alleys are special beyond their roles as channels for deliveries, services, fire escapes, parking access, and—ugh—unseen break-ins. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">For one, they can express the functions of their buildings' interiors more honestly than orderly or prissied-up façades can. This was how backsides of buildings helped give rise to the bare-bones utilitarianism of modern architecture, as an honest expression of the structures and functions of buildings with their ornamental ball-masks off. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And their erratic self-formation, in contrast to the formality of their corresponding fronts, can yield a diversity of forms and color-texture contrasts that captivate us like collages or Cubist paintings, as a tangible example of, in Paul McCartney's words, "chaos and creation in the backyard."</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP1cbdhaLAP0xZTQDUp9ymPjwyBqVmb8VoS0Wce4vbY1U7w6g_rq8EttqrB5swqRVGmnkIt5_9DjKdvi090vhrVJWMY4HCCDE1tJyaX1rdhnoNU0qk_ekb2OsAETg8-KXq8gkjTWcSt6Y/s1600/Watertown+back+doors+3.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP1cbdhaLAP0xZTQDUp9ymPjwyBqVmb8VoS0Wce4vbY1U7w6g_rq8EttqrB5swqRVGmnkIt5_9DjKdvi090vhrVJWMY4HCCDE1tJyaX1rdhnoNU0qk_ekb2OsAETg8-KXq8gkjTWcSt6Y/s400/Watertown+back+doors+3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">As this back-alley-scape does. A house-like addition with white vinyl siding contrasts with various shades of brown and reddish-brown from paint, stucco and brick. Its closure counters the breezy, square openness of the left-hand porches and the overhanging sheltered balcony. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This in turn contrasts with the solid polygon of the cantilevered bump-out beside it, expressing the angle of the staircase it encloses. These projections also add to the angularity by casting slanting shadows on the walls, which creates a light-dark polarity to increase the diversity.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Now I ask you: <i>What and where do you think these buildings are?</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">While you try to guess, come with me on a tour of structures throughout the ages and the world that flourished on their fronts but balked on their backs...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;">Mount Vernon, Virginia</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">George Washington's 1750s-1770s expansion of the iconic plantation estate he had inherited from his father, Augustine, had a twofold intent: august architectural expression of his Southern-gentlemanly landed-gentry wealth and prestige; and refreshment from</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> the winds off the Potomac River in the shady calm of an "outdoor room." </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Fitting the bill for both these goals was a riverfront façade of perfect Palladian symmetry, from the precisely centered Carolean cupola to the twin chimneys to the trio of dormers to the mirror-image window banks to the equally-spaced-apart columns on the façade-spanning verandah.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:WestFrontMansionMountVernon.jpg">Otherspice</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en">Creative Commons.</a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The rear west front entrance does not mirror this balance, showing Washington's struggle to balance interior function with exterior display. The left-hand wing's third bay snuggles under the central pediment, knocking lopsided the symmetry of its right-hand counterpart and disrupting the even-handedness the axis of the cupola, pediment and pedimented door sought for the composition. This suggests that the three interiors differ greatly in layout, hence function, from one another.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">City Hall, New York</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">City Hall, New York (1810-1812, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph-Fran%C3%A7ois_Mangin" style="background: none rgb(248, 249, 250); color: #0b0080; text-align: left;" title="Joseph-François Mangin">Joseph-François Mangin</a><span style="background-color: #f8f9fa; text-align: left;"> and </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_McComb_Jr." style="background: none rgb(248, 249, 250); color: #0b0080; text-align: left;" title="John McComb Jr.">John McComb Jr.</a>), 1900.<br />Photo courtesy of Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Front-to-back, side-to-side symmetry was no bane for the planners of City Hall, who drew on French Renaissance and Georgian standards for architectural expression of civic pride, orderly conduct, firm leadership, and open democracy (hence the front porch, public park and open-armed wings). Building expenses were the bugaboo this time. Massachusetts marble bedecked the front for a strong first impression...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">City Hall, New York, 1913. Photo courtesy of Library of Congress.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...but brownstone </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">clad the rear to save money on the least visible elevation. Its central projection, which supplied the interior space the set-back front had taken away to form a welcoming forecourt, was another awkward front-to-back transition, appearing to keep visitors at bay with a "where do you think you're going" statement instead of inviting them with the "come on in, the door's open" one that the marble front extended.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">City Hall, New York, 2016. Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:MusikAnimal">MusikAnimal</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en">Creative Commons.</a></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">City Hall, New York, 1939. Photo courtesy of New York City Parks Archive.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">After decades of pollution and pigeons had deteriorated the marble (left) and eroded the brownstone, City Hall was resheathed in Alabama limestone on a Missouri granite base in 1954-56 by Shreve, Lamb & Harmon (architects of the Empire State Building), uniforming its face front-to-back. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(And both sides are uniformly unwelcoming now, kudos to the security aftermaths of 9/11 and COVID-19.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Tweed Courthouse, New York</span><br /><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC8n0y_vqoo_og56AkejR_GeOMYFj0CbxItuJsAYIMCti-zMdlP_QnPMsUsS4OJkvIFcC-63BHie7QdwA1XvVg2gSFwKOfr99kbYvBz9y0nyLKYL6Vg57jZWiW8N03piKf5AeYR9q0mK4/s1600/Tweed+Courthouse%252C+1893%252C+Image+extracted+from+page+269+of+King%25E2%2580%2599s+Handbook+of+New+York+City+%25E2%2580%25A6%252C+by+KING%252C+Moses.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1069" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC8n0y_vqoo_og56AkejR_GeOMYFj0CbxItuJsAYIMCti-zMdlP_QnPMsUsS4OJkvIFcC-63BHie7QdwA1XvVg2gSFwKOfr99kbYvBz9y0nyLKYL6Vg57jZWiW8N03piKf5AeYR9q0mK4/s400/Tweed+Courthouse%252C+1893%252C+Image+extracted+from+page+269+of+King%25E2%2580%2599s+Handbook+of+New+York+City+%25E2%2580%25A6%252C+by+KING%252C+Moses.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Tweed Courthouse, New York (1861-72, 1877-81, John Kellum & Leopold Eidlitz), 1893, <br />Image extracted from page 269 of <i>King’s Handbook of New York City </i>by Moses King.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">City Hall's marble classical symmetry inspired the erection of a neighbor that made similar open-door and back-off gestures, but with greater grandiosity: the New York County Courthouse (now the Tweed Courthouse). Clearly designed to outrank the more restrained City Hall in physical stature and curb appeal, this marble edifice was built in an Italianate style by William M. "Boss" Tweed, the crooked leader of the Tammany Hall political machine that was monopolizing New York city and state governments. Kickbacks from his embezzlement of nearly $300 million in New York City public funds assured the courthouse's completion. Indeed, its pediment-crowned central temple-front entrance seemed to say "I'm the boss," infusing you with a sense of overwhelming awe as you dared venture past its monumental columns, unlike City Hall's lowlier, friendlier front porch.</span><br /><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Tweed Courthouse, 1893. <br />Image extracted from page 59 of <i>King’s Handbook of New York City </i>by Moses King.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The courthouse stuck out its rear end further than City Hall had done. This disrupted the traditional classical tripartite scheme of projecting wings and a central headhouse set back from the wings while projecting just enough of a porch to offer friendly shelter before one's formal entry, which City Hall's front succeeded at. By contrast, Tweed seemed eager to grab as much space as possible within his footprint's parameters...</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Tweed Courthouse, City Hall, Municipal Building (1907-1914, William M. Kendall / McKim, Mead & White), 1915. Library of Congress.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">David N. Dinkins Municipal <br />Building (1909-1914, McKim,<br />Mead & White), New York. <br />Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Municipal_Building_-_New_York_City.jpg">Momos</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>).</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Civic Fame (1913, Adolph <br />Alexander Weinman). <br />Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2008-05-04_CanonS3_IMG_3076_Civic_Fame_crop.jpg">Valeriy Ovechkin</a>, <br />courtesy of <a href="https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/licensing-considerations/compatible-licenses">Creative Commons</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...thus locking the back ends of the courthouse and City Hall in what looked like head-butting, finger-pointing, knife-wielding, or tongues sticking out at each other (or Tweed giving City Hall the finger) over who was the real powerhouse of New York City, needing the judge's robes of the dominant Municipal Building (now the David N. Dinkins Municipal Building, right) and its crowning <i>Civic Fame</i> statue (left) to be the final arbiter and judge of who was <i>really </i>boss of the boroughs.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">See what their backstabbing looks like from <i>Civic Fame</i>'s point of view:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFxVWj_lEwQbIV4_uopJMs_Z4w-PfTkcxf0HqGfqhzWBXnwLg1Ba0mIwcATBw-YVChNktvaH2MVjy4Qsk6clc9XD5n_9no1YuyI3qkV3HVuwEo3hlu7_szW-2WxllbGwDQWIGE-kW9B84/s1600/Tweed+Courthouse+and+City+Hall%252C+bird%2527s-eye+view.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="364" data-original-width="433" height="538" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFxVWj_lEwQbIV4_uopJMs_Z4w-PfTkcxf0HqGfqhzWBXnwLg1Ba0mIwcATBw-YVChNktvaH2MVjy4Qsk6clc9XD5n_9no1YuyI3qkV3HVuwEo3hlu7_szW-2WxllbGwDQWIGE-kW9B84/s640/Tweed+Courthouse+and+City+Hall%252C+bird%2527s-eye+view.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #990000; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">New York Public Library</span></div><div><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Y0P8oM5xIqrkYesGeoEoLwUAkddiyZjMaeqDiOEXhSZ2PwHRa5OG4gsgdlRN3Wzk7-ANXQxj3yyvxgCTFZWtfS-dnhFcQR95SGmn7iIBotxG5A6LzslEuCkkuAyPk3gUOTzRP_8UdQk/s642/NYPL+front+and+center.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="197" data-original-width="642" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Y0P8oM5xIqrkYesGeoEoLwUAkddiyZjMaeqDiOEXhSZ2PwHRa5OG4gsgdlRN3Wzk7-ANXQxj3yyvxgCTFZWtfS-dnhFcQR95SGmn7iIBotxG5A6LzslEuCkkuAyPk3gUOTzRP_8UdQk/w640-h196/NYPL+front+and+center.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1lkAf8CwdQ3zd2DRlx9FnPhWup5lmYPkqNc_vDIGi32_XdsSYSPo6m1gZf1CDeNNE3AzQpGD9HVAIfLxp5qOcXn_-mwLPXwqa7XwSNsZZhqWsd8EY_KP7uPwM64XjjTpFBHq2cQUKWUU/s1500/New+York+Public+Library+front+1915.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1199" data-original-width="1500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1lkAf8CwdQ3zd2DRlx9FnPhWup5lmYPkqNc_vDIGi32_XdsSYSPo6m1gZf1CDeNNE3AzQpGD9HVAIfLxp5qOcXn_-mwLPXwqa7XwSNsZZhqWsd8EY_KP7uPwM64XjjTpFBHq2cQUKWUU/w400-h320/New+York+Public+Library+front+1915.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">The New York Public Library in 1915.</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Another New York City landmark that finessed its front but rumped its rear is the New York Public Library. Built in 1902-1911 from a design by Carrère & Hastings, it went all out to trumpet its intellectual enrichment goals with the utmost in classical design and statuary, from the Patience and Fortitude lions that sternly guard its steps to the Beauty and Truth figures that flourish in the fountain alcoves...</span></div><div><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxrH69fcHjHzdBvXQkXwUOlbH80RBbN7sb9BUuxjplb2jyxnuKobjp4m2YGv2CKtHuvMkiS5tFUPhgz8WwE9A5-yb1sCivnoUDKYaWSysqLZrWiFO082syN3fRPLNjE7ICQbJOc9WbS4E/s720/NYPL+rear+view+c.1912%252C+New+York+Historical+Society.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="720" height="534" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxrH69fcHjHzdBvXQkXwUOlbH80RBbN7sb9BUuxjplb2jyxnuKobjp4m2YGv2CKtHuvMkiS5tFUPhgz8WwE9A5-yb1sCivnoUDKYaWSysqLZrWiFO082syN3fRPLNjE7ICQbJOc9WbS4E/w640-h534/NYPL+rear+view+c.1912%252C+New+York+Historical+Society.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3BNAa3oO8HCNiDk-8gnCC2K13kDoLbA6dgaOE8tBMRB0M2xJgJAc0Aj6Gx20QCaDtmq80kugwXMf0ry_vhmCoKwncnDQL1nzBPqUUk4-2pRbWpobSpjA1irE2_wRKmxpjyNvlAgl6uJw/s923/NYPL+main+stack+room+CROPPED.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="708" data-original-width="923" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3BNAa3oO8HCNiDk-8gnCC2K13kDoLbA6dgaOE8tBMRB0M2xJgJAc0Aj6Gx20QCaDtmq80kugwXMf0ry_vhmCoKwncnDQL1nzBPqUUk4-2pRbWpobSpjA1irE2_wRKmxpjyNvlAgl6uJw/w400-h306/NYPL+main+stack+room+CROPPED.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>...but look at how its backside turned out: plain vertical window-strips signifying the bare-bones steel stacks behind them in a way that clashes with the classicism in a proto-modernist way. Of course, the $9 million building, having ballooned its budget three times over, had to cut corners somewhere. So, like City Hall, why not the back end, where fewer people would be?<br /></span><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhltpSb3jlSlXY6v4TErSnM2_yB76zR607LWCxWDcFFqpAGtlNVOjKKS9N2HPFjGDcVEz1w34G13IqoIKC3FCGegokXUfxYcHU3G99KyKhnaa-rQS74ov3AjuwgS8C_uLIo-dtxoWYBpgY/s2048/Bryant_Park+by+Jean-Christophe+BENOIST.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1625" data-original-width="2048" height="508" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhltpSb3jlSlXY6v4TErSnM2_yB76zR607LWCxWDcFFqpAGtlNVOjKKS9N2HPFjGDcVEz1w34G13IqoIKC3FCGegokXUfxYcHU3G99KyKhnaa-rQS74ov3AjuwgS8C_uLIo-dtxoWYBpgY/w640-h508/Bryant_Park+by+Jean-Christophe+BENOIST.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Bryant Park, NYC (1933-34, Lusby Simpson; 1988-92, Hanna Olin & Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer. Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Jean-Christophe_BENOIST" target="_blank">Jean-Christophe Benoist</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY 3.0</a>).</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGlqR2K36kF7DbD15_bqesSy-S9Sa459l-YiFhcV-hrd7ErkyHO70MsTAcKOHd8azY_ofaftK_LOd_ObWw7cjnxhobL7g-uxv4cq9evpfBEdrrRtM-sh5pqtlFdZoD_eC4MxizsaqDkRo/s1733/Bryant_Park+by+Elisa+Rolle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1170" data-original-width="1733" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGlqR2K36kF7DbD15_bqesSy-S9Sa459l-YiFhcV-hrd7ErkyHO70MsTAcKOHd8azY_ofaftK_LOd_ObWw7cjnxhobL7g-uxv4cq9evpfBEdrrRtM-sh5pqtlFdZoD_eC4MxizsaqDkRo/w400-h270/Bryant_Park+by+Elisa+Rolle.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Elisa.rolle" target="_blank">Elisa Rolle</a> (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>).</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Until today, thanks to the very attractive, people-luring back end the NYPL has now: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bryant_Park" target="_blank">Bryant Park</a>, a serene green lawn serving as an outdoor lunchroom for local workers' lunchbreaks, an outdoor reading room, and a gathering place for movie nights, live performances, yoga, tai chi, chess, Ping-Pong, Putt-Putt, you name it. And the park's <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platanus_%C3%97_acerifolia" target="_blank">London plane trees</a> and 1911 William Cullen Bryant Memorial (honoring the park's namesake) offset the austerity of the stack windows with an attractive screen, emphasizing the Renaissance arched windows to allow some of the library's academic classicism into the park.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;"> </span></div><div><span style="color: #990000; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Did you guess?</span><br /><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCuZIRt-yBsZDE2Bty5Vcf-N9k_IhXcwU8OjZF8wouFd5519hi7cex9nKWLOE9fGBrXv-mgUvICn8aa_xB7i6zlJQzozUrCOfL2aO_dP3bJ-ap7nmeDKpqcd-kmN26284ele2bix76BBw/s1600/Watertown+back+doors.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="612" data-original-width="1600" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCuZIRt-yBsZDE2Bty5Vcf-N9k_IhXcwU8OjZF8wouFd5519hi7cex9nKWLOE9fGBrXv-mgUvICn8aa_xB7i6zlJQzozUrCOfL2aO_dP3bJ-ap7nmeDKpqcd-kmN26284ele2bix76BBw/s640/Watertown+back+doors.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">If you haven't yet guessed what lurks behind (or in front of) this back-door bonanza, or where it is, then here it is:</span><br /><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxqnUzPohWmzDXnd8fTkwd6vNh8wC3zOrPHUjWfvu8h2tjSaS21UthKXARyUwgVQSBW7xfca7bmEUBjKf5Sc2h3uMiCPwAYnfDMvdAf6XTIZ3p2KsW6cFiv-R-5A4hQSZ4FVPouSCcb7k/s1600/Watertown+storefronts.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="709" data-original-width="1600" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxqnUzPohWmzDXnd8fTkwd6vNh8wC3zOrPHUjWfvu8h2tjSaS21UthKXARyUwgVQSBW7xfca7bmEUBjKf5Sc2h3uMiCPwAYnfDMvdAf6XTIZ3p2KsW6cFiv-R-5A4hQSZ4FVPouSCcb7k/s640/Watertown+storefronts.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This business block on Mt. Auburn Street in Watertown, Massachusetts, includes a liquor store, a Fraternal Order of Eagles lodge, and a pizza/sub shop; further down are a cigar store, international restaurants and a beauty salon. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiodXOS00HFLH6X7PKSrft1bOyBHR2-UzqJCrDpfmY-f0FJEZpplU-jQOf4caeWb8uOvJ_-TYo9jlcWxmWJQwBDZJP03HXo2yt-qdhNgJ0sw6WUxIwHxtTDlJKO4W3fwaeecgFiKp8JG8s/s1600/Watertown+storefronts+6.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1600" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiodXOS00HFLH6X7PKSrft1bOyBHR2-UzqJCrDpfmY-f0FJEZpplU-jQOf4caeWb8uOvJ_-TYo9jlcWxmWJQwBDZJP03HXo2yt-qdhNgJ0sw6WUxIwHxtTDlJKO4W3fwaeecgFiKp8JG8s/s640/Watertown+storefronts+6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">As you can see, it </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">is as diverse in its tenancy as it is in its back-door architecture—another example of how telling backup bands can be about their frontmen.</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></span></div>
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Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-43680357538267529592020-03-05T22:48:00.000-05:002020-03-05T22:48:56.429-05:00A midcentury maverick<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJUDnzkUELoaUtt-zvQ2QU7FTvf2AWzhrCMqn6q6K0X-JX1I-MSL3JHXPoKAiyny4t4UfJfE6RAG2g-khZaiowSDTXE6i1CE_wRO-ZFpzgXumwbUo14dWgdYi8QIKOFg86rjVhgjdK8H0/s1600/River+House+Side+5+cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1090" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJUDnzkUELoaUtt-zvQ2QU7FTvf2AWzhrCMqn6q6K0X-JX1I-MSL3JHXPoKAiyny4t4UfJfE6RAG2g-khZaiowSDTXE6i1CE_wRO-ZFpzgXumwbUo14dWgdYi8QIKOFg86rjVhgjdK8H0/s400/River+House+Side+5+cropped.jpg" width="271" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Pop quiz:</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Where is this?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(a) Charles River Park, Boston</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(b) Beacon Street, Brookline</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(c) Memorial Drive, Cambridge</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(d) New York, NY</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(e) Co-op City, Bronx</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(f) LeFrak City, Queens</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(g) The Churchill, White Plains, NY</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">(h) On the streetfront of the Greenwich Village apartment block in Alfred Hitchcock's movie <i>Rear Window</i></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUKqqQ5HkTZP0FF16MvqPjIQJYccaE5FtIYlAV8or6LOuN262qY5ut8A7zYYkGkQONf3OrwM_dRhMoeXVzU2Ri2oVYLvmROrSEH6fAC0R1wHDN52vocQhvYjPJSUXAdDDlgz3JlZYlNDk/s1600/River+House+Front+12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUKqqQ5HkTZP0FF16MvqPjIQJYccaE5FtIYlAV8or6LOuN262qY5ut8A7zYYkGkQONf3OrwM_dRhMoeXVzU2Ri2oVYLvmROrSEH6fAC0R1wHDN52vocQhvYjPJSUXAdDDlgz3JlZYlNDk/s640/River+House+Front+12.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8tpK0Op69kCYHZLYhOwYhNNX1OA-AWMp-wv2ykrty3Sfd__LaBS-p9hTIA2jbug1gKGbxM_z3euV1DHj-OamCfdG9B4u6rrSXRxOtvsO6-N7Z0TPtAWzF_iLoE7sVWqwGQGDjdeTpai8/s1600/River+House+from+street+1+cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="886" data-original-width="1600" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8tpK0Op69kCYHZLYhOwYhNNX1OA-AWMp-wv2ykrty3Sfd__LaBS-p9hTIA2jbug1gKGbxM_z3euV1DHj-OamCfdG9B4u6rrSXRxOtvsO6-N7Z0TPtAWzF_iLoE7sVWqwGQGDjdeTpai8/s400/River+House+from+street+1+cropped.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Answer: </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">None of the above. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">If you answered (b), you weren't too far off — because it's actually on Beacon Hill. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">But before my comment box gets deluged with how-did-that-get-there or there-goes-the-neighborhood gripes, I want to let you know that this was one of my favorite buildings in Boston when I moved there from New York City at age 10, from the moment it caught my eye at the end of Brimmer Street the day I started fifth grade at the Advent School half a block down from it.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA1_O5Of0DMaObJ1MPzYRPiPb5hl5kSYHieUwDW3IJV1WKXiQZGljs4yOQ08hY2orMMI1JTx4hG3VtnmveAeOdI7GiDlOPJgMKhfWgCSZRV93fLqy4cDCInVAa_PM0Q2o-nhp-lbACGTA/s1600/River+House+front+16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA1_O5Of0DMaObJ1MPzYRPiPb5hl5kSYHieUwDW3IJV1WKXiQZGljs4yOQ08hY2orMMI1JTx4hG3VtnmveAeOdI7GiDlOPJgMKhfWgCSZRV93fLqy4cDCInVAa_PM0Q2o-nhp-lbACGTA/s400/River+House+front+16.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; text-align: center;">Built in 1952, River House at 145 Pinckney Street readily recalled the midcentury modern apartments I frequented when visiting classmates or my dad's design clients in New York, which I wasn't ready to renounce as history became my home. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOx9OTIvOrSqbyJJAeXk43vhCEQGcsbkaf0AFzU49I4GmSWao8dCBgYD3iO2Oa4qqvgyzlFtstfcs2Mg-VTPNrgJpRK3A0LBmu7IOfKNMa59fT9RhMM9qVd0cdjhBKiN0DUtj_q5RllLs/s1600/River+House+Front+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: Times; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOx9OTIvOrSqbyJJAeXk43vhCEQGcsbkaf0AFzU49I4GmSWao8dCBgYD3iO2Oa4qqvgyzlFtstfcs2Mg-VTPNrgJpRK3A0LBmu7IOfKNMa59fT9RhMM9qVd0cdjhBKiN0DUtj_q5RllLs/s400/River+House+Front+6.jpg" width="400" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">That's why I was awestruck by how the seven-story structure's </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">clean lines, buff brick, terrace balconies, corner exposures, Chicago windows, flat roof, sweeping courtyards, superblock supremacy, and horizontal emphasis in all of the above sharply contrasted the small vertical rowhouses and sash windows, red brick, curved bowfronts, slate hipped or mansard roofs, ornamental accents, hidden gardens, brownstone stoops, and cast-iron railings and bootscrapers for which Beacon Hill was historically renowned and revered for centuries.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ZDtNifNxolmPbeHwyjh0GhsfyKaUBO_aa_rj9PcucILO-qxhIbg1Bjd9FaLC6M47WnQcyvDULUTzF6g8mUGhz4qIZmIcvIHOF9WojaCfP3QdRqFzjx5XFOO24SgBkwL44St6XXwnhyphenhyphenQ/s1600/West_End_Boston_crop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="310" data-original-width="153" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ZDtNifNxolmPbeHwyjh0GhsfyKaUBO_aa_rj9PcucILO-qxhIbg1Bjd9FaLC6M47WnQcyvDULUTzF6g8mUGhz4qIZmIcvIHOF9WojaCfP3QdRqFzjx5XFOO24SgBkwL44St6XXwnhyphenhyphenQ/s320/West_End_Boston_crop.jpg" width="157" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgfZGSH-LnYTlhr4x7QkfnaRgZaMPZAF3IafbeERcguu3MkiFO-xX0AiswfPmA3HOogiYgCJPHLSADHXpwMay_JM8td_KAlPSn2QUrMtx1wTkNb5n19ZytJYIyDV-A-y5naeOV2H1f3j4/s1600/River+House+Front+10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgfZGSH-LnYTlhr4x7QkfnaRgZaMPZAF3IafbeERcguu3MkiFO-xX0AiswfPmA3HOogiYgCJPHLSADHXpwMay_JM8td_KAlPSn2QUrMtx1wTkNb5n19ZytJYIyDV-A-y5naeOV2H1f3j4/s320/River+House+Front+10.jpg" width="160" /></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Reluctant to haunt the dark corners, cramped halls, hardwood floors and steep steps of the Federal-style rowhouse we moved into, I longed to make River House's oversized windows, </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">open floor plans,</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> wall-to-wall carpeting, cocktail terraces</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> and elevator/ concierge services home again. </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">For the streamlined simplicity of its image of easy living and creature comforts echoed the slogan of its contemporary, Charles River Park: "If you lived here, you'd be home now." But unlike the latter, River House did not wreck a neighbor- hood to make a statement.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3MxJ6Kb2nPoXCaYLHnFrxdNIZJ4ab281EWZ2o9a-8ZuQ0Ty4qflhuCU2cHFlXFKfXcQRFH5hE609F1b431l6OoVR0RM6IBGu7ev-BOXfg-20hDBATosRrGcZzv2sOd-lZACSINOyuc_8/s1600/River+House+Yard+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3MxJ6Kb2nPoXCaYLHnFrxdNIZJ4ab281EWZ2o9a-8ZuQ0Ty4qflhuCU2cHFlXFKfXcQRFH5hE609F1b431l6OoVR0RM6IBGu7ev-BOXfg-20hDBATosRrGcZzv2sOd-lZACSINOyuc_8/s640/River+House+Yard+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUQJ91adR_LG_xiPytiGi8SMY2CDD55cS8PqFWQkzPSbCxTux8ggcWNw7C1uQtfYrxiVpL-G208Gqz3R5pyva0yvflaTEeVDs_EGoKBLjI2iP_BMVf2vq-L_T8CpHhKIWqhrpYtea6txw/s1600/River+House+Yard+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUQJ91adR_LG_xiPytiGi8SMY2CDD55cS8PqFWQkzPSbCxTux8ggcWNw7C1uQtfYrxiVpL-G208Gqz3R5pyva0yvflaTEeVDs_EGoKBLjI2iP_BMVf2vq-L_T8CpHhKIWqhrpYtea6txw/s400/River+House+Yard+4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">It was built on primarily open land occupied by one building called the Old Ladies' Home, where the vast acreage allowed its occupants ample light and air to maximize the health of their senior years. River House's unique L-shape, with a linear or angular "ell" extension on each leg, allows its residents similar benefits: a grassy back yard for recreation, a tree-and-shrub-planted garden patio for neighborly socializing, and generous light, air and balcony space for general good living in the units, as an "antidote" to the Hill's narrow and shadowy (but charming) alleyways. The street views of the historic Hill architecture aren't bad, either.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">In short, River House is a prime example of how modernism and historicism can be cozy bedfellows, each enriching the other by a contrast of styles.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></span></div>
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Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-35039317484220319622020-03-05T20:56:00.001-05:002020-03-05T22:23:45.199-05:00'The day in question'<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Notre-Dame de Paris fire, April 15-16, 2019. <br />Photo by Antoninnnnn, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:La_Fl%C3%A8che_juste_avant_l%E2%80%99effondrement.jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a>.</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This Wordplay Meetup prompt stoked the following flames in my imagination:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The day in question is <b>April 15</b>...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...the day Abraham Lincoln's assassination impelled us to question the underrating of his legacy and the understaffing of presidential security...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...the day the sinking of the <i>Titanic</i> spurred us to question what caused the tragedy and how cruise ships could be made safer, but above all, to question the naïve mindset about her "unsinkability"...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...the day our tax return submissions prompt us to question how much we might save were last-minute filing not our bane...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...and the day the burning of <i>Notre-Dame de Paris</i> left us hanging with the question of just how she should be rebuilt. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRsqJOAWGKW9cDlEZ85sfdbwaOKIupVjLoCYdy0rcl71PEsDZ312K7eqnltAJGyCHxDMiCHwnccIAo9dSabO48MdNLhTqtugtLhXzWtEiYNZCS4FwSUi_Z3aiuJeugx1IjE1ftx40ehSA/s1600/Cathe%25CC%2581drale_Notre-Dame_de_Paris%252C_3_June_2010+by+sacratomato_hr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1063" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRsqJOAWGKW9cDlEZ85sfdbwaOKIupVjLoCYdy0rcl71PEsDZ312K7eqnltAJGyCHxDMiCHwnccIAo9dSabO48MdNLhTqtugtLhXzWtEiYNZCS4FwSUi_Z3aiuJeugx1IjE1ftx40ehSA/s640/Cathe%25CC%2581drale_Notre-Dame_de_Paris%252C_3_June_2010+by+sacratomato_hr.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Notre-Dame de Paris in 2010. Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/11677248@N00">sacratomato_hr</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cath%C3%A9drale_Notre-Dame_de_Paris,_3_June_2010.jpg">Wikimedia Commons.</a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Should she be restored to her pre-incineration incarnation, if only to keep Quasimodo and Victor Hugo from turning in their graves? </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Or should she be resurrected according to present millennial sensibilities?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Such a question no doubt divides the Parisian public, who are just as drawn to radical modernism as to the Medieval Gothic of Our Lady. I mean, consider the colossi of contemporaneity that have space-aged the city's landscape over the past 40-odd years...</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFqegzWA6A0LjcdaYX-uAwBI_BIdAhdDT6ZrJ0uwOrbohKuFSGau6az7Rv9jNibYv8BTntYNsp6S5NI-o4HhMb4Eh00X_1OySdEdmyGOmWiCkI-U-pE964A5eZja-8sDnS3mJXU8YG2Pw/s1600/014_Pompidou_Centre_%252848826556313%2529+by+Jeff+%2526+Brian+from+Eastbourne.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="570" data-original-width="814" height="448" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFqegzWA6A0LjcdaYX-uAwBI_BIdAhdDT6ZrJ0uwOrbohKuFSGau6az7Rv9jNibYv8BTntYNsp6S5NI-o4HhMb4Eh00X_1OySdEdmyGOmWiCkI-U-pE964A5eZja-8sDnS3mJXU8YG2Pw/s640/014_Pompidou_Centre_%252848826556313%2529+by+Jeff+%2526+Brian+from+Eastbourne.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris (1977, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renzo_Piano" style="background: none rgb(248, 249, 250); color: #0b0080; text-align: left;" title="Renzo Piano">Renzo Piano</a><span style="background-color: #f8f9fa; text-align: left;">, </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Rogers" style="background: none rgb(248, 249, 250); color: #0b0080; text-align: left;" title="Richard Rogers">Richard Rogers</a><span style="background-color: #f8f9fa; text-align: left;"> and </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gianfranco_Franchini" style="background: none rgb(248, 249, 250); color: #0b0080; text-align: left;" title="Gianfranco Franchini">Gianfranco <br />Franchini</a>). Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/16707908@N07">Jeff & Brian</a> from Eastbourne, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:014_Pompidou_Centre_(48826556313).jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...the exposed innards, guts and bones of <i>La Centre Georges Pompidou </i>modern art museum<i>, </i>for which <i>Les Halles</i> were sent to the slaughterhouse...</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnt7NeNhKRGRnaSLawJ0G-GAW36BOT7hql0k1-bmMH58aE2S2VJCDr1sopQbUR4Hbz7OLHaESYowyWZ9yGH0S8upVt-J8akqc5W3F_iiK4LxeXQs-ESfk40fEv9xeYQB9U540Lch3BQUc/s1600/Louvre_Pyramid_%252889845031%2529+by+Bilderteppich.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1517" height="454" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnt7NeNhKRGRnaSLawJ0G-GAW36BOT7hql0k1-bmMH58aE2S2VJCDr1sopQbUR4Hbz7OLHaESYowyWZ9yGH0S8upVt-J8akqc5W3F_iiK4LxeXQs-ESfk40fEv9xeYQB9U540Lch3BQUc/s640/Louvre_Pyramid_%252889845031%2529+by+Bilderteppich.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Louvre Pyramid, Paris (1989, I.M. Pei). Photo by <a href="https://500px.com/bildroboter">Bilderteppich</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Louvre_Pyramid_(89845031).jpeg">Wikimedia Commons</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...the geometric linearity of the late I.M. Pei's glass pyramid at the Louvre, counterpointing the venerable museum's French Academic classicism with a crisp currency rooted in Egyptian <i>mathematica...</i></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuatkrUcGaQu_-3GgY8a9ue7hnLgxLBFn3pcdOJMllgT_hyphenhyphenIS-QJpWJkM74VHDDM7wiXOV5rltH9PmwU1PEvAqEXUyYkvBzn5waC4NFD3M_hgWnuQlcE3D61v4pQQZLdtJYOSxQQQM4Lc/s1600/B.N.F.+by+Michaelstephaneboucher.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="442" data-original-width="700" height="404" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuatkrUcGaQu_-3GgY8a9ue7hnLgxLBFn3pcdOJMllgT_hyphenhyphenIS-QJpWJkM74VHDDM7wiXOV5rltH9PmwU1PEvAqEXUyYkvBzn5waC4NFD3M_hgWnuQlcE3D61v4pQQZLdtJYOSxQQQM4Lc/s640/B.N.F.+by+Michaelstephaneboucher.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;"><i>Bibliothèque Nationale de France,</i> Paris (1989-96, Dominique Perrault). Photo by <a class="new" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:Michaelstephaneboucher&action=edit&redlink=1" style="background: none rgb(248, 249, 250); text-align: start; text-decoration-line: none;" title="User:Michaelstephaneboucher (page does not exist)"><span style="color: black;">Michaelstephaneboucher</span></a>, courtesy <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:B.N.F.jpg">Wiki</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...the behemoth "bookends" that symbolically comprise <i>"La Très Grande Bibliothèque" de la Bibliothèque Nationale de France,</i> the lofty legacy of the Mitterand administration...</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-pczXC_iQlHY7iE4Ph-Czldr6CiQ79KdyHrDn3mlI0sIo0MIwXUFgZEPnbd8FngJZNR1n0LMiplLi2HpQQQgsCStQfb9wQ7YNsJ0M0sfyukcrKVNqRwlJxUGMcYEtNJScY4F8PdlHr0U/s1600/Grand+Ecran+Italie+by+Kenzo+Tange+by+David+Monniaux.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-pczXC_iQlHY7iE4Ph-Czldr6CiQ79KdyHrDn3mlI0sIo0MIwXUFgZEPnbd8FngJZNR1n0LMiplLi2HpQQQgsCStQfb9wQ7YNsJ0M0sfyukcrKVNqRwlJxUGMcYEtNJScY4F8PdlHr0U/s640/Grand+Ecran+Italie+by+Kenzo+Tange+by+David+Monniaux.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;"><i>Grand Écran Italie, </i>Place d'Italie, Paris (1992, Kenzo Tange). Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:David.Monniaux">David Monniaux</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paris_2005-11-26_snow_dsc06418.jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...that <i>Grand Écran Italie </i>cinematic contraption by Kenzo Tange that disrupted the historic fabric of <i>La Place d'Italie </i>with a space-station spectacle...</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOxEkyX4YdJK_CY6uehmds4eG-dK4CE97w6HUOiVLCsUw8lt5Z-DeZeR7LERiMWcoCCL8DEQbCGA-TyH2Xh5a6sm5DqkBCFXI4nlZOwr-0DPTG3AtIcfvDyAUzSeePtJvu10UFbxB_vXU/s1600/Tour_Eiffel+by+Benh+Lieu+Song.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="961" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOxEkyX4YdJK_CY6uehmds4eG-dK4CE97w6HUOiVLCsUw8lt5Z-DeZeR7LERiMWcoCCL8DEQbCGA-TyH2Xh5a6sm5DqkBCFXI4nlZOwr-0DPTG3AtIcfvDyAUzSeePtJvu10UFbxB_vXU/s640/Tour_Eiffel+by+Benh+Lieu+Song.jpg" width="384" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Eiffel Tower, Paris (1889, Gustave Eiffel). Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Benh">Benh Lieu Song</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tour_Eiffel_Wikimedia_Commons_(cropped).jpg">Wiki</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">...and, of course, the Eiffel Tower, so structurally advanced for its era (1889), with hyperbolic paraboloids that not even Baron Haussmann would dare tinker with when rebuilding Paris with his French Second Empire traditionalism (though he wasn't shy about taking the tower's symmetry to the streets).</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1EC9HL2fNHv5ade5tUgDqzR6f9IwOh89R3kGcCPVd9NWVYClVnjOhQjZEdTM23tTLmgKrXpyCFfZzqCBlXxZQ1Y21G7vBoGQfK-peYbdBoEtjFU1ByufhMbyGoBTDnV6ClFP7iLnGf0s/s1600/Notre-Dame+skyview+2+Tasnim+News.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="718" data-original-width="878" height="521" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1EC9HL2fNHv5ade5tUgDqzR6f9IwOh89R3kGcCPVd9NWVYClVnjOhQjZEdTM23tTLmgKrXpyCFfZzqCBlXxZQ1Y21G7vBoGQfK-peYbdBoEtjFU1ByufhMbyGoBTDnV6ClFP7iLnGf0s/s640/Notre-Dame+skyview+2+Tasnim+News.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Notre-Dame de Paris after the fire, courtesy of Tasnim News and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notre-Dame_de_Paris_fire">Wikipedia</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimKg8D0Fi8ZIO0vjSYLtJhOe51bn6n1qTEoa8VQJV5PcR0ER9k5EqcFqayJDGb3PcA8KSWNqgUCkMf81UGc469ZityyXVkTJ8QoiDTTkmgN85k3E9OdCT89W7i-Yk8bysAhSq9Fiz6X38/s1600/Spire+on+fire+by+Guillaume+Levrier.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="602" data-original-width="427" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimKg8D0Fi8ZIO0vjSYLtJhOe51bn6n1qTEoa8VQJV5PcR0ER9k5EqcFqayJDGb3PcA8KSWNqgUCkMf81UGc469ZityyXVkTJ8QoiDTTkmgN85k3E9OdCT89W7i-Yk8bysAhSq9Fiz6X38/s640/Spire+on+fire+by+Guillaume+Levrier.png" width="452" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Notre-Dame spire on fire. Photo by Guillaume Levrier, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fl%C3%A8che_en_feu_-_Spire_on_Fire.jpeg">Wikimedia Commons</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Notre-Dame's bare skeleton, though, reveals how structurally clear the Gothic was. Flying buttresses and slender columns, tenets of modernism, bore the loads and resisted the flames as they devoured the medieval hammerbeams and Eugène Viollet-le-Duc's prized spire. Just as progressive for its time as the above examples of 19th- and 20th-century modernism were for theirs, Notre-Dame's Gothic structure should guide its resurrection, to do it justice, structurally and aesthetically.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></span></div>
Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-7691122561024865822020-02-27T21:13:00.000-05:002020-03-01T16:39:47.529-05:00Twin towers<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUForpoUPh3439Znjqixl4b9ew5XE4jMywc6ArB4P7nIH2FRbuL78UI5ds6dDwk9K4TaXfzoYNC_wfeAohYrf_FH1w7MfzUW_I0Q0Y7vqGyzB4pt9cp499Yxe5iNAb8OYx2JTs_gbQI8w/s1600/Millennium_Tower_and_steeple_of_Park_Street_Church_from_Beacon_Hill+by+Beyond+My+Ken.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1153" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUForpoUPh3439Znjqixl4b9ew5XE4jMywc6ArB4P7nIH2FRbuL78UI5ds6dDwk9K4TaXfzoYNC_wfeAohYrf_FH1w7MfzUW_I0Q0Y7vqGyzB4pt9cp499Yxe5iNAb8OYx2JTs_gbQI8w/s320/Millennium_Tower_and_steeple_of_Park_Street_Church_from_Beacon_Hill+by+Beyond+My+Ken.jpg" width="229" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Millennium Tower, Boston, 2016. <br />Architect: Blake Middleton of Handel Architects. <br />Photo: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Beyond_My_Ken">Beyond My Ken</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Millennium_Tower_and_steeple_of_Park_Street_Church_from_Beacon_Hill.jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a>.</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ_gYqkqYOsBkNqqjns3KfSzL-w-Aav7WxfXCld80P04Uh8ttvNcK_AG_3GxIvtjBxcinZdky4Aet4Y69d_KYEIhR_OGl9zSsDrOcC5OVU37QpWaIAtp-eSS8SXhY8Xsru0udjlGN6gHM/s1600/One_Dalton%252C_December_2018+by+Edward+Orde.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ_gYqkqYOsBkNqqjns3KfSzL-w-Aav7WxfXCld80P04Uh8ttvNcK_AG_3GxIvtjBxcinZdky4Aet4Y69d_KYEIhR_OGl9zSsDrOcC5OVU37QpWaIAtp-eSS8SXhY8Xsru0udjlGN6gHM/s320/One_Dalton%252C_December_2018+by+Edward+Orde.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">One Dalton, Boston, 2019. <br />Architect: Henry Cobb of Pei Cobb Freed Partners. <br />Photo: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:EoRdE6">Edward Orde,</a> courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:One_Dalton,_December_2018.jpg#mw-jump-to-license">Wikimedia Commons</a>.</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Not in the WTC or Petronas sense of the word. Just equally overscaled, overrated, intrusive, expensive, and just plain dull and forgettable—though, like the antecedent Prudential Tower, so omnipresent from everywhere you can't get them out of your head, and, unlike the precedent John Hancock Tower, lacking in contextual distinction and memorable form. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Which makes it surprising that the Millennium Tower (left) in Boston's Downtown Crossing and One Dalton (right) in Boston's Back Bay got so many accolades when they opened in 2016 and 2019, respectively. For they share more common attributes with the unanimously reviled Pru than the universally praised Hancock (though one of them was designed, regrettably, by Hancock's architect).</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="color: #3d85c6;"><span style="font-size: large;">Millennium monster</span></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe_q2AHvi6MChI4KtgsH10p1HBbLuWAlOzFyEjKmvoCUw7QK8PsgNVRJA7bg8zw6YEGy0WoI0W3mz5l8XfZEihaHV9gUCnKvxbCD6pnSVl2U7AGrvraIEJCp-lvPx19Wl_cXFWCV-AiuU/s1600/Millennium_Tower_on_April_8th%252C_2016+by+Carter+Hubert97.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe_q2AHvi6MChI4KtgsH10p1HBbLuWAlOzFyEjKmvoCUw7QK8PsgNVRJA7bg8zw6YEGy0WoI0W3mz5l8XfZEihaHV9gUCnKvxbCD6pnSVl2U7AGrvraIEJCp-lvPx19Wl_cXFWCV-AiuU/s400/Millennium_Tower_on_April_8th%252C_2016+by+Carter+Hubert97.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Millennium Tower near completion in 2016. Photo by Carter Hubert97, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Millennium_Tower_on_April_8th,_2016.jpg">Wiki</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Designed by Handel Architects, most famous for the 9/11 Memorial in New York, the Millennium Tower makes no sort of impression from a distance. When its glass facade (ho-hum, that's all that's built nowadays) regains its reflective powers, it resembles either a svelte version of a Bic cigarette lighter or a cluster of those shiny-new Sheaffer pens I got as a Christmas present ages ago but hardly took out of the jewel box, thus preserving their silvery-chrome luster to this day.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj28fGH4hWSDMLWn0HeBvOhYQ2BPwWKulXw1XMZw6PQxpAERSRSzmwVLtolGqpuTLo1wHVhV8dyayvmuUUdXnLU1md5a9KQx08r3GpWVr35Y-8R2XKh0ictXlr7NHQEqH7-Pmf9KSqFCQU/s1600/Millennium+Tower.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="382" data-original-width="270" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj28fGH4hWSDMLWn0HeBvOhYQ2BPwWKulXw1XMZw6PQxpAERSRSzmwVLtolGqpuTLo1wHVhV8dyayvmuUUdXnLU1md5a9KQx08r3GpWVr35Y-8R2XKh0ictXlr7NHQEqH7-Pmf9KSqFCQU/s400/Millennium+Tower.jpg" width="282" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Such an appearance is an intrusion on the historic Boston skyline, to be sure, creating odd bedfellows with the historically elegant Park Street Church spire near it (top, left), the area's original and best "skyscraper." </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Nor is it compatible with the building it was part of the redevelopment of: the neoclassical Filene's (right), designed in 1914 by noted Chicago architecture pioneer Daniel Burnham, most renowned for its bargain basement where wedding gowns and prom tuxes could be had for rock-bottom wages. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Let's face it—a penthouse condo that dropped for $45 million is so out of place here (which it is, physically, being way up there), beyond the clear clash of the glass with the historic ornamented masonry and pressed metal that refined the Filene's shopping experience, even for basement-bingers.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="color: #45818e;"><span style="font-size: large;">Dalton domination</span></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyyqvBRGygshMnbmBTDcapbKfpMAkssCa9SlG2OpkIFV8nFu2XTUi1Et5yCfwscmRJXIuIO_ysWBJMy5hiQUMXQzr8WG56mZF_qokYOD-d9mIGt39FoIWhFd-uKELAb8GOZ-c63VwpvpE/s1600/JohnHancockTower+by+Bobak+Ha%2527Eri.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyyqvBRGygshMnbmBTDcapbKfpMAkssCa9SlG2OpkIFV8nFu2XTUi1Et5yCfwscmRJXIuIO_ysWBJMy5hiQUMXQzr8WG56mZF_qokYOD-d9mIGt39FoIWhFd-uKELAb8GOZ-c63VwpvpE/s640/JohnHancockTower+by+Bobak+Ha%2527Eri.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPubVmlh9bez20-usj_1fnTzG-0KWeBhbxn79dUEpnqFqxCvI3dS6KsM1lTm5km9PPC-emYgxHTV5rj59zqoFV2_0LApaf6NwMWKUC0jzpAKtqyvyfVZQ2pf_NVC77Y2L5IIHQMdERLf4/s1600/Moakley_US_Courthouse_from_Central_Wharf+by+Beyond+My+Ken.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="771" data-original-width="1600" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPubVmlh9bez20-usj_1fnTzG-0KWeBhbxn79dUEpnqFqxCvI3dS6KsM1lTm5km9PPC-emYgxHTV5rj59zqoFV2_0LApaf6NwMWKUC0jzpAKtqyvyfVZQ2pf_NVC77Y2L5IIHQMdERLf4/s400/Moakley_US_Courthouse_from_Central_Wharf+by+Beyond+My+Ken.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Designed by Henry Cobb, renowned for the John Hancock Tower (1976) in the Back Bay and the John Joseph Moakley Courthouse (2004) in the Seaport District, One Dalton hardly lives up to the promise of those two groundbreaking buildings at all. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">In fact, it regresses to the thrown-up commonplaceness of one of his first Boston projects, Harbor Towers (1971), which essentially recycled modernist design elements that Mies Van der Rohe and Le Corbusier had already pioneered in Chicago's Lake Shore Drive Apartments and France's Unité d'Habitation, respectively.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;">Be honest: Would you really want to pay <a href="https://boston.curbed.com/2020/1/10/21060792/one-dalton-penthouse-34-million">$34 million</a> to live all the way up there? With nothing surrounding you all day but glass and sky, it would get pretty dull and lonely, wouldn't it?</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: #f8f9fa; color: #222222; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: xx-small;">Two World Trade Center (south tower) after being struck by United Airlines Flight 175 <br />on September 11, 2001. Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/themachinestops/">Robert on Flickr</a>, courtesy of<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:North_face_south_tower_after_plane_strike_9-11.jpg"> Wikimedia Commons</a>.</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif;">Of course, a drop-in from an airplane is another matter...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></span></div>
Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7533833769922697149.post-54880237847930886962020-02-27T20:40:00.001-05:002020-03-02T20:49:18.307-05:00'Dream a little before you think'<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhEMqk3-kaKGKCxbSW1wTpJ83UtV_QdED00UCaPOND0EzBXaoFDDQ10s9_8c7nAU1KEwF7E13VPRxPdqjJAeIdv46Xw6FtQwxPfmCHDmArNXGobmEOHPaCJYtWRH6XKAIX708xet1Rwpg/s1600/joel-filipe-6pq-BnMce1E-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1257" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhEMqk3-kaKGKCxbSW1wTpJ83UtV_QdED00UCaPOND0EzBXaoFDDQ10s9_8c7nAU1KEwF7E13VPRxPdqjJAeIdv46Xw6FtQwxPfmCHDmArNXGobmEOHPaCJYtWRH6XKAIX708xet1Rwpg/s400/joel-filipe-6pq-BnMce1E-unsplash.jpg" width="313" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">No one but an architect—an imaginative one, that is—could manifest Toni Morrison's maxim "Dream a little before you think" most fully physically. This doesn't mean the boxy, regimented, cubical blah spitting out of draughtsmen's AutoCAD and SketchUp screens by the gazillion to resolve an urgent housing crisis, meet a client's deadline, or throw the blasted thing up ASAP. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">It's the architecture that swoops, swirls, swishes, glides the eye through space, wakes us to wonder, challenges our conception of being in a space by allowing us to truly experience it, celebrate it, revel in it, and wish we didn't have to return to the housebox we make our bed in.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Ray and Maria Stata Center at MIT (2004, Frank Gehry). Photo by Laura Choate, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Architecture_Experiment.JPG">Wikimedia Commons</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPHQ8tedjG7R3hlxxINnSfPucMQ3zS7IP6ZPuktjixLvvw6nn1AjzmjmQxZWoUW61yb-92RNTlic8UZicKbZcy6u_OGXaE-UCHjcRQHldPEJnbE56Cm-1qiqvkWbZm0uWREiBP13cyKu4/s1600/Stata+Center+by+Alan+Levine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPHQ8tedjG7R3hlxxINnSfPucMQ3zS7IP6ZPuktjixLvvw6nn1AjzmjmQxZWoUW61yb-92RNTlic8UZicKbZcy6u_OGXaE-UCHjcRQHldPEJnbE56Cm-1qiqvkWbZm0uWREiBP13cyKu4/s400/Stata+Center+by+Alan+Levine.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Stata Center main hallway. Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/37996646802@N01">Alan Levine</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/37996646802@N01/6288594/">Flickr</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">That would include Frank Gehry's Ray and Maria Stata Center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dedicated in 2004, it's an extravaganza of excess in architectural agility. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Walls bounce and rebound like Wham-O Superballs. Ceilings soar and sink like Soaring Sam gliders. Windows shoot out like spitballs. Bays bulge like obese bellies.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And all of this is the product of a dreamer who could translate his reveries to computer algorithms as the bridge to the thinking phase of his visions, so he could walk, chew gum, and blow bubbles all in one fell swoop of a Superball. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">And ballsy it is, compared to the geometric rigidity of virtually all the M.I.T. architecture that preceded it.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh305wbJlqZ2qd7Kuq_BUa5ARKOLkyMLioVC58s8PWaJFqXPedU7vVb9-NrOS80Z1dLgovxEjtMK_pMlJ1K-GxcBf5sQ6bMv3g3LUGVJOWp-7jRAAuE-4uF3HBc9xy-0eALsLpKL0aMgcE/s1600/MIT_Stata_Center-sprinker_explosion-2007+by+Yoyo+Zhou.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh305wbJlqZ2qd7Kuq_BUa5ARKOLkyMLioVC58s8PWaJFqXPedU7vVb9-NrOS80Z1dLgovxEjtMK_pMlJ1K-GxcBf5sQ6bMv3g3LUGVJOWp-7jRAAuE-4uF3HBc9xy-0eALsLpKL0aMgcE/s400/MIT_Stata_Center-sprinker_explosion-2007+by+Yoyo+Zhou.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Stata Center sprinkler explosion, March 6, 2007. Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/people/10205177@N04">Yoyo Zhou,</a> courtesy of <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/10205177@N04/2044125292/">Flickr</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">But it turned out Gehry may have dreamed a little too much and didn't think enough about the technical snafus such a box-bursting design would inevitably cause, such as the sprinkler burst shown here—ironically, amid fish and circle sculptures with "messages on them that extol the virtues of water conservation," said the photographer, Yoyo Zhou.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Long room, Old Library, Trinity College, Dublin. Photo by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Diliff">Diliff</a>, courtesy of <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Long_Room_Interior,_Trinity_College_Dublin,_Ireland_-_Diliff.jpg">Wikimedia</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Another architectural dreamboat—albeit on the classical side—is the Long Room of the Old Library at Trinity College Library in Dublin. Built between 1712 and 1732 and roof-raised in 1860 for an upper gallery of books, it is the most bookish architecture imaginable, making a good 200,000 of the library's oldest volumes into wallcoverings of wonderment.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: xx-small;">Jonathan Swift bust by Louis François Roubiliac at Old Library, Trinity College, Dublin.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">It certainly realizes a dream of using architecture to stimulate the intellect by booking all walls solid with old tomes reaching back years and yores, whetting our intellectual curiosities about the sheer store of knowledge within those lines and lines of leather spines, with cerebral sparks from busts of great writers like Jonathan Swift (left).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><i>Thank you for visiting. I welcome your comments!</i></b></span></div>
Todd Larsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03389646102158536171noreply@blogger.com0