architecture – Page 3 – John Angell

Architectural Corner – Cape Cod

A quintissentially American style, Cape Cod architecture dates back to 17th century English colonists, who altered existing styles to suit the climate of New England. Boxy and low-slung, they were designed to weather the bitter New England winters.

Popular between 1690 and 1850 and, thanks to the Great Depression, revived from 1920 to 1960, Cape Cod architecture has enjoyed an enduring popularity. Characterized by a basic rectangular shape, low ceilings to minimize heatable cubic footage, a central brick chimney, shutter-clad dormer windows and a centered front door, they were wrapped in wood siding with an oak or cedar chake roof, framed and floored with oak or pine. Almost always painted white, they enjoy a variety of accent paints along the shuters, doors and fascia boarding.

Architectural Corner – Jeffersonian

Thomas Jefferson was one of history’s great minds. He was a lawyer, a diplomat, an inventor, a philospher and yes, an architect. His drafts were heavily influenced by the neo-classical, neo-palladianism styles that were swepting the western world at the time, but Jerrerson added his own unique touches.

Included in Jefferson’s works are his home, Monticello (Italian for “Little Mountain), his Poplar Forest house, the Academic Village and Rotunda at University of Virginia (which he founded), and the Botetourt County Courthouse.

Jefferson employed red bricks, grand white columns, Chinese Railings and “suppressed” stairs. The layouts were Palladian, with a central main structure and symmetrical wings, and main floors located above ground level, accessed by a brick staircase. Unlike other Palladian designs, however, Jefferson used octagonal forms to great effect.

Architectural Corner: Foursquare

Also called the “Prairie Box”, the American Foursquare was a mass-produced, post-Victorian style that was popular from the 1890’s-1930’s. Along with the California Bungalow, it was a very popular mail-order era style of property, gracing the Sears Roebuck catalogue.

As has been almost every new style of architecture, Foursquare was a direct change-of-pace from the previous ornamentation of Victorian & Revival styles, incorporating portions of both craftsman and prairie styles. Always a huge, boxy design to maximize interior space, 2-and-a-half stories, usually featuring 4 large rooms per floor, these homes used a variety of building materials and were easily mass-produced using handcrafted woodwork A large front porch, symmetrical front fascade, and all bedrooms on the second floor were characteristic. Truly a style that has weathered the ages gracefully.

Architectural Corner – Federal

Also called Adam Style after Scottish Architect William Adam, Federal architecture dominated design in the United Statesfrom roughly 1780-1840, especially 1785-1815. Very close to Georgian style, Federal was a bit of a refinement, putting an American spin on progressive European trends, it’s name connotating the period of time when Federalism was both created and implimented.

Typically a single rectangle, 2-3 stories and not more than 2-rooms deep, Federal homes were almost always completely symmetrical with a grand central front door. Dramatic windows are in abundance. As with neoclassical architecture it is heavily influenced by ancient Greek buildings. For obvious reasons, bald eagles are a common ornamental motif.

The most famous example of Federal Architecture is the White House, built between 1792-1800.

Architectural Corner – The American Craftsman

Inspired by the British Arts & Crafts movement and beginning in the later years of the 1800’s, American Craftsman represented a departure from the ornamentation of the Victorian Style and urban grit of the Industrial Revolution, embracing a return to countryside simplicity. It began in Southern California and spread from 1900-1929 throughout the United States, most common in California and the midwest.

Craftsman homes feature low-pitched, gabled roofs, with overhanging eaves and exposed rafters, signature front porches and tapered columns, large bay windows, and stone or stucco accents. They are almost always painted wood siding, typically with cedar shaker shingles.

Not only is the craftsman style still extremely popular with smaller-sized new construction today, thanks to their quality build they are a common target for renovators, although their small size often warrants signficant additions.

Architectural Corner: Spanish Colonial

From Florida to California and throughout the southwestern states, Spanish Colonial homes date all the way back to the 1600’s when Spanish settlers began building their homes in North America.

Characterized by red clay tile roof, thick, white stucco walls, relatively few, smaller windows, and exposed wood support beams, they were designed around hot climates and to maintain coolness inside. Courtyards are also common, long ago used for cooking. Decorations were usually somewhat minimalist. Earlier homes were not well-suited for cold, humidity, and could swell if exposed to too much water, causing the stucco to fall apart.

Spanish Colonials are very popular in newer construction homes now that the technology has allowed for better stucco and central heat, although many builders (like Clifford Hutsell in the early 1900s) abandoned stucco for brick.

Architectural Corner – Postmodern

Rejecting orthodoxy and grand narratives, postmodernism took shape in architecture, art and philosophy alike. While it’s philosophy, in my opinion, is nihilistic, narcissistic and ultimately despicable, postmodern architecture’s creativity and freedom from convention did produce some fascinating buildings.

Beginning in the 1960s, postmodernism hodgepodged (often disdainfully) multiple styles such as classical, modern, arts-and-crafts, giving rise to truly unique buildings. Defying are norms, boasting asymmetry, confusing themes, and taking pride in not fitting in with its surroundings, it is impossible to miss a postmodern office or home.

The house from Beetlejuice is an example of heavily re-fitted postmodern design. You don’t see a ton of postmodern architecture, but once you do you’ll never forget it. For better or worse.

Architectural Corner – The Cave

The cave has to be the oldest form of shelter in human history, and from a scientific perspective it’s actually a pretty good dwelling!

Caves are either naturally occurring or man-made. Given their temperature is regulated by the planet, caves tend to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer. They save up to 80% on climate control costs. Their materials (rocks, stones & dirt) are surprisingly good with sound insulation, and many caves have underground water sources. Also, caves with only one entrance offer enhanced security. On the negative side, it’s a cave. Typically what you see is what you get, and unless you have a second exit, you’re pretty much doomed if there’s a cave-in or intruder entering.

(Thanks to Kim Nguyen for suggesting this time-tested yet oft-overlooked dwelling.)

Architectural Corner: The Chateau

The word Chateau is old French from the Latin castellum, or castle. In France, they’re the equivalent of the large plantation or ranch houses in America, and are symbol of wealth and opulence.

After spending much of the 1850’s in France, architect Richard Morris Hunt is widely credited with introducing upper class Americans to this lavish, elaborate style. Chateau-style is one of the most elaborate styles of home, with towers and spires, steeply-itched roofs, ornamented windows and doors, tall, elaborate chimneys and dormers, and are typically of stone or masonry construction.

Chateau-style is also one of the styles that is frequently employed with describing new construction properties in North Texas, although the architectural adherence of some can be questioned. But it does sound fancy, making it easier to justify ridiculous prices.

Architectural Corner – Geodesic Dome

After seeing the Geodesic Dome Institute halfway between Dallas and Waco a million times, how could I not do an article?

The Geodesic Dome was developed in 1954 (patented in ‘65) by Buckminster Fuller, and were billed as the strongest, most economical, lightweight structure that could be built. Constructed from a complex network of triangles which create a self-bracing framework, this unusual design is used from storage sheds to multi-million dollar homes and buildings.

They may not be pretty by the standards of most. Frankly, they can look pretty silly depending on the structure, but no one can knock their durability and relatively low-cost of construction. They are often sold as prefab structures, but can be made to-order. They boast impressive survival rates against severe weather, and are exceptionally energy efficient… unless they’re made of glass in which case they’re called greenhouses.