Garages

For this week, you are reading J. B. Jackson’s essay on garages. What has happened to garages since Jackson published this piece? Either visit some recently built houses, or visit them virtually online (e.g., realtor.com) to get some idea. How do you interpret these changes?


Garages have changed quite a bit over time, from being isolated from the house to being incorporated with it.

Jackson connects this Post-WWII phenomenon with the use of the house
" as a place for recreation and entertainment." (Jackson 124) He also mentions the multi-purpose
qualities of a garage (storage space, laundry room, etc.) as being instrumental to their popularity.

These qualities have been a constant in the half a century since Jackson wrote this essay, and are reflected in the architectural landscape we see today.

Three-car garages have become even more popular, as houses have expanded in size.

However, detached garages have not lost their popularity.

Also, carriage houses are still being built for those with more cars than children.

The use of garages as storage space has held constant as well.

For the most part, the use of a garage hasn't changed much over the years.

Postwar Culture and Ray's House

Jackson argues that Ray’s house was a very different place than his father’s house, and represented a new order, in some ways freer, In some ways poorer. What does he mean? Reflect on postwar housing as a part of postwar culture. Note that Jackson’s essay was published in 1953, so he was writing as a contemporary cultural observer, not a historian.


Post-WWII, a new way of thinking emerged regarding housing in terms of status, organization, and use. This led to the enrichment of the family in terms of reducing the work associated with home ownership -cooking, cleaning, lawn maintenance; but, in turn, also resulted in the decrease of familial connections to the house and, in some ways, to each other.

Function over form become the norm, with utilitarianism of living spaces deemed to be the highest goal.
This is term led to houses of convenience, cookie cutter cul-de-sacs of identical houses built for use for a specific time frame: for one generation. These were not houses to be handed down, but only built to house a family for as long as it took to raise the children. Jackson comments that architecturally they were not that different from hotels. Considering that they were used as such, this is not surprising. These new types of houses were not to be lived in as such; rather, they were used as transient spaces for the members of the family to eat and sleep in.

Jackson makes an interesting point about the transformative properties of these new houses, how they existed "not to create something new but to transform four separate individuals into a group." (Jackson, 101)
These are not living spaces which impart loyalty or later nostalgia about years gone by; they are built for maximum efficiency. These are houses that will never be homes.

Mrs. Tinkham's insistence on the latest kitchen gadgets and refusal to have a dining room or fireplace (she considers them a waste of time and energy) indicates a shift in what constitutes a house, and the elements that are necessary for them. Rooms and that would have been used for entertaining guests or for family gatherings are turned into multi-purpose or just eliminated as being superfluous. Social status became less dependent on the type and size of house then on your clubs, clothes, and car, so the incentive to build a large, elaborate house was not there anymore. Thus the Tinkham house was a reflection of postwar culture: the idealization of technology, conspicuous consumption through goods, and of minimization regarding living space.

Spring Break Stories

Despite being ill for half of it, I had a great break. My mom and I are avid gardeners, and we ended up going to two major flower shows.

We left home before the sun rose on the 7th and drove up to Philadelphia for the weekend. It was our second time seeing the show (the last had been ten years ago), so we weren't sure what to expect.
It was amazing! Philadelphia hosts the largest show in North America, covering eleven acres in displays, vendors, and millions of blooms. This years' theme was New Orleans, so masks and beads were in abundance.
The weather in Philly was wonderful as well. Spring seems to have arrived there...it was in the 50s, sunny and breezy, perfect for walking.

Came back to Buffalo in high spirits, but with a scratchy throat. This developed into a nasty cold that took me the week and a gallon of OJ to get rid of. Oh well. I'd rather be sick when I have time to recover. :)

On Saturday we went to the movies...to see an opera!
For the last two years the Met has been offering live broadcasts of different operas to movie theaters around the world. It's a great opportunity to see a show at a reasonable price, and the broadcasts are well-produced and subtitled. The Met generally schedules 1-2/month, and offers a wide range of composers. We saw Benjamin Britten's Peter Grimes. The story is based on an 18th century English poem about a fisherman in a rural village who is ostracized over the death of his young apprentice at sea. This incident is deemed accidental at the inquest, but is not believed to be so by the gossiping villagers. It was our first opera sung in English, which was initially jarring; we were used to focusing on the expressive qualities of the singer's voice and body language over actually hearing the exact words they were singing. Once we adjusted to this, it was a relaxing and enjoyable afternoon.

We spent St.Patty's in Toronto, which hosts the 2nd largest flower show in N. America. This show was spread over six acres and three floors in the Convention Center. Quite nice, but I wasn't as impressed. It wasn't just the size factor; the Toronto one seemed to have displays that were more geared towards advertising- pamphlets, salesmen, and business cards were everywhere. The Philadelphia show was less commercial; a sign would be posted at each display, but business cards in a holder was the extent of the sales pitch. They let their work speak for itself.

All in all, a nice Spring Break.
Now all I want is for Spring to arrive!

The Grand Tours

I looked at a few packaged tours from Europe to the States, and vice versa.

The tours to Europe were more focused on seeing the cities,
with the museums and architectural highlights being of specific interest.
The most popular major cities to see were London, Paris, and Rome.

In contrast, tours to the States revolved around seeing places and landmarks. The favored destinations were Hawaii, Alaska, and the Southwest and Western regions of the US, specifically focusing on the National Parks System. Popular places to visit included the Grand Canyon, Zion, Yellowstone, Bryce Canyon, and Yosemite National Parks.










It seems that Americans going abroad to Europe are more interested in urban areas and the cultural institutions that they contain, while Europeans appear to be coming to the US to experience the great outdoors. Could this be due to the still popularly held belief that European culture is superior, in some aspects, to American? Or the fact that we have much more open land and diversity in landscapes than in Europe? Probably this is the result of both of these reasons, combined with the inclination of Europeans towards vacationing by experiencing nature. This is due, in part, to the much higher population density in Europe than the States (which leads to an interest in escaping the cities on vacation), and a greater interest in outdoor activities (including skiing, hiking, and mountain climbing). These are very broad generalizations, but I feel that they provide an explanation for why there is such a disparity in the tour types for the US and Europe.

Greek Revival Architecture and the Parthenon

Although the Greek Revival period is generally dated from the late eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries, the popularity of this mode of architecture lasted into the twentieth century. Taking inspiration from the sacred and civic buildings of fourth and fifth century B.C. Athens, it conferred a certain gravitas and decorum to the spaces it was used in, as well as a sense of vastness, elegance, and proportion.

The Parthenon is considered both the best example of Greek architecture and a major inspiration for the Greek Revival style of architecture. Primarily ulitized in public buildings-for example, the Second Bank of the United States in Philadelphia (1816) - it, like the Parthenon, was also considered to be appropriate for religious spaces as well. The best example of this is the beautiful Baltimore Basilica(1821).

Second Bank of the United States.

Baltimore Basilica.

Greek Revival architecture in Buffalo is not extensive, but there are some non-residential buildings that can be categorized in this style. A wonderful example of the use Greek Revival architecture in the public sphere is Dr. E. J. Meyer Building, located at 135 Linwood Avenue in Buffalo.

The E.J. Meyer Building shares several elements in common with the Parthenon. Both have porticos supported by columns. The fluted columns of the E.J. Meyer building are of the Ionic order.

Compare this to the Parthenon.

Also common to this style of architecture is the use of a pediment above the portico.

Compare the tympanums (space inside the pediment) of the E.J. Meyer building with the Pantheon.

A window for light.

A decorative frieze.

Note the entablature above the columns on the upper right-hand side.






There appears to be a cornice and architrave, but no frieze.







Compare this to the Parthenon.



All of the entablature elements appear to be present.

A decorative element distinctive to Greek Revival architecture are large doors and windows that are exquisitely detailed.

Note the elaborated doorway.

This incorporates elements of the entrance (entablature, columns, pediment, portico) with glass detailing around the door itself- transom lights and sidelights.

Also of interest are the windows.


Very nicely detailed. The window is topped by a pediment and a cornice. This is supported by a console carved in scroll modillions.

The Ancient Greeks bequeathed us many gifts: language, literature, philosophy, art, and forms of government. Some are more visible in daily life then others. The Greek influence in architectual styles is so commonplace as to render it unnoticable at times. Yet the attention to symmetry, soaring spaces, elaborated facades, and delicate detailing is what makes Greek architecture and its many stylistic descendants so timelessly appealing.

(Main) Street Furniture

I took a stroll down Main Street in the Village of Williamsville on Monday afternoon. It was cold but sunny, with cleared sidewalks and scattered pedestrians. Slushy piles of grayish snow were covering the ground and parts of the crosswalks, but ambling dogs and zigzagging joggers were the only obstacles that I encountered. The street furniture that I viewed in a few blocks was impressive- not only in number and variety, but also in chronological age. Indeed, the evolution of the street itself could be seen over time. As I walked I noticed utility poles made of two different materials: metal and wood.


























A metal pole is on the left, and a wooden pole is on the right.




Public lighting varied in types as well. I noticed four types:


1) an older style of street light (either vintage or made to look that way) atop a metal post that had holders for hanging flower baskets;

2) a newer style of street light that I have seen on the highways and byways all around the U.S.;

3) individual business-supplied lighting on the building facades; and

4) individual business-supplied lighting in front of the businesses.

Some examples of different types of street lights.

The older style lamp post is in the left foreground, while the newer type is in the right-hand side background.

Different styles of business-specific lighting located on the facade or freestanding.

Looking at the section over Glen Falls, I believe that the bridge sidewalk is a relatively recent addition. I surmised this due to the fact that the bridge only supports the road, not the sidewalk. Also of note is fact that the bridge sidewalk does not line up exactly with the street sidewalk.
The front of Creekview Restaurant (the yellow house) appears to jut out at the end of the bridge sidewalk.

Another new addition to the street (less than ten years old) is the plastic gas pipeline by the bridge.








Although I have always associated metal manhole covers with sewers, I found many along Main Street of differing sizes that were for gas and even traffic lights.




























Street furniture serve various purposes.

1. Relaxation (wooden, stone and metal benches)


2. Educational (newspaper vending machines)


3. Informational (street clocks)


4. Decorative (flower pots, trees)


5. Sanitation (garbage cans)


6. Governmental (post office boxes)


7. Locational (bus stops, building numbers, business signs)


8. Directional (W or E on Main Street, street signs)


9. Traffic-oriented (speed limits, turning lanes, no parking etc.)


10. Patriotic (U.S. Flag)


11. Vision (street lights)


12. Utilities (poles, manholes)


13. Pedestrians (traffic crosswalk signals)


14. Historical Landmark Marker
    

Most of these types of street furniture have been around for at least a century.

These recent versions all appear to be less then half a century old.

Here are some examples of street furniture in clusters.



Picture 1. Street lamp post with rods to hang flower baskets off of; center lane sign; two P.O. Boxes.


Picture 2. Flower pots and garbage cans.


Picture 3. Clock, parking signs, wooden bench, Rt. 5 East sign, and street light.


Picture 4. Bus stop, speed limit sign, utility pole, and P.O. Box.


Picture 5. Street lamps, newspaper vending machine, and street number on building.


Picture 6. Fire hydrant, tree, traffic sign, bench, and business sign.


Picture 7. Utility poles, stone benches, no parking sign, street sign, crosswalk signal, street light, bus stop sign, business signs, and historic landmark sign.


A type of street furniture that I think is relatively new (within the last twenty years) is the brick edging on either side of the sidewalk (adjoining the shops and the street itself). I believe that this replaced the greenery to eliminate the expense of lawn upkeep for both the village and the individual businesses.



Following the old maxim of the more things change, the more they stay the same, I feel that the Main Street really hasn't changed that much in the last fifty years in terms of street furniture. The types used have basically stayed the same, and have been updated over time due to technological advances (cable, internet, and telephone lines) and/or cost-benefit analysis (long-term but more expensive metal poles over short-term but cheaper wooden poles). That being said, I do not see Main Street changing that much over time for two main reasons. The first one is space. Although it is a major throughfare, unlike the recently expanded Sheridan Drive, there is no way that additional lanes can be added. Secondly, the Village of Williamsville views Main Street as a major factor in the way it defines itself, and is determined to preserve its quaint small town charm for historical and monetary reasons. Indeed, several Village occasions- from festivals to fundraisers- are held along Main Street.

The Story of a House: Money, Class, and a dash of Conspicuous Consumption.

Food, clothing, and shelter are some of the most basic human needs. Yet the quality and quantity of these three necessities varies widely with the multiple variables involved- race, gender, era- and, most prominently, class. When it comes to housing, money and class have traditionally been signified by aesthetically pleasing architecture, high-quality materials, size, and attention to detail.

A good example of a house of the "moneyed classes" is the Clement House/Red Cross Building. Located at 786 Delaware Avenue in Buffalo, this mansion was constructed in 1914 in the English Tudor Revival style.


The four elements of "Money and Class" houses can be seen in this mansion.

Just focusing on the facade, we can see the use of size to convey grandeur and status. High-quality Onondaga limestone has been arranged for textural interest on the outer walls.

A two-story bay with parapet is also displayed. Note the use of (expensive) leaded windows and the carved rosettes on the parapet.

Directly above the parapet is a Dormer with a finial.

Bays and parapets are prominently used in the facade, and the detailing that goes into them is quite impressive.






Also of interest in the facade are the paired chimneys with caps and the Tudor Revival arches in the balustrade .







This form of conspicuous consumption can still be seen today in the ostentatious McMansions that dot the landscape. However, these newer homes use the only idea of what should constitute a house of "Money and Class." This involves the use of size (the bigger the better) and random architectural components thrown together, giving the impression of a giant Picasso of a home- all mismatched elements, vastness without proportion, style without substance.