I'd have sworn was an old Adirondacks house.
Aren't we all surrounded these days by new homes that are a horrendous mix of architectural styles and materials?
Here's a typical McMansion..(the builder loved stone (all the way to the eves!) apparently!)
I loved that this Association's book of Architectural Guidelines contain 8 photos of "Examples of Unsuitable Design"(p.77). All these homes are in their neighboring communities! If you really want to understand the architectural components of what makes an esthetically pleasing home, download these guidelines!
As summarized in the Washington Post, regarding good architecture--- "no matter what the style, they use natural materials and proper scale.."
One thing that I always remember---is that we don't have to recreate the wheel--look around to see what attracts you and then start looking at the parts that make the whole visually appealing.
A beautiful Neoclassical stone house
When planning the community, the Architectural Review Committee looked around at homes that were considered beautiful and found that:
"Houses built in older neighborhoods, though grand, had a more 'delicate and smaller scale'".
"They were constructed from natural materials: slate roofs with brick, wood or stone sidings."
Most notably, and a little disturbing: "The architects who designed the old houses were better trained in scale and proportion than architects who work with large developers."
The lesson here is if you're lucky enough to be looking to hire an architect don't make any assumptions! Look at their designs and the homes they've built!
It was wonderful to read about such a conscious effort to maintain high architectural standards in new construction!
The lesson here is if you're lucky enough to be looking to hire an architect don't make any assumptions! Look at their designs and the homes they've built!
It was wonderful to read about such a conscious effort to maintain high architectural standards in new construction!
No comments:
Post a Comment