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Now
that we’ve looked at all the elements that make up a
house or building let’s put it all together. Why don’t
all of our houses look the same? Schools? Churches?
Well, we know that it depends on when it was built and
where, but why not just something that suites it’s function
? Why do we also make it look nicer by adding
decorative elements and have different styles
?
Style
developed first as Vernacular
, or the style of the region. Houses and
other buildings were constructed of local materials
and built by local builders, most often by the home
dweller. Architects were only used when larger projects
were being built such as cathedrals and large government
buildings. Wealthy people began to call on architects
to build them very large, ornate houses such as the
Palace at Versailles , France . They would bring in
skilled craftsman and employed different decorative
elements using rare and expensive materials. As construction
methods have grown more complex and technical, especially
with the advent of indoor plumbing and then electricity,
houses and other buildings have had to be built by skilled
builders and architects rather than just the home dweller
or local townspeople.
Today,
we see our houses as an extension of our selves. The
style of our house is seen the same way as how we choose
to dress and what we drive. New houses can be built
in a completely contemporary style or can be in the
style of an older building method.
Some of the more popular historic styles
include the following:
Craftsman
and Bungalow: Craftsman-style architecture
was inspired primarily by the work of two architects,
Charles
Sumner Greene and Henry Mather Greene , who practiced
in California from 1893 to 1914. It was based
on the Arts and Crafts movement in England led by William
Morris (1834-1896). This movement believed modern
problems were caused by the Industrial Revolution and
supported a return to handcrafted arts. A. Page Brown
built the first bungalow in 1895 near San Francisco
. The bungalow represented a simpler, more efficient,
low-maintenance house, and the characteristic front
porch encouraged outdoor living. A bungalow has a low-pitched
gable roof, wide roof overhangs, exposed roof rafters
and wood structure, a porch under the front roof overhang
and tapered square column supports.
Bungalow
Colonial
Revival and Cape Cod : After the 1876 U.S.
Centennial, there was a renewed interest in Colonial
architecture, perhaps from a desire to return to simpler
times. Often a structure was considered Colonial simply
by application of Colonial details to other vernacular
types, such as a foursquare. What makes Colonial Revival
architecture is a pedimented front door, windows that
are symmetrically balanced, double-hung, and multi paned,
classical details and a single side-gabled roof. In
the 1930s, when the trend was for small, economical,
and mass-produced houses, Cape style homes became popular
throughout the United States . In the twentieth century
version of this Colonial style, the chimneys were often
placed at the side rather than the center and the shutters
were strictly decorative.
Colonial Revival
Queen
Anne : The term "Queen Anne"
was first used in England to describe medieval structures
with classical ornamentation and decoration. English
architect Richard
Norman Shaw developed the style using English Vernacular
architecture, which was solidly built and of simple
wood construction. The style came to the United
States in 1876 and spread throughout the country. Queen
Anne architecture has asymmetrical elements, textured
surfaces, classical ornaments, towers and/or turrets,
wraparound porches and/or balconies, art glass, and
high brick chimneys.
Queen Anne
Shingle
Style: Shingle-style architecture can be considered
a uniquely American invention. A quieter, simpler, and
more horizontal style than Queen Anne, it started in
the Northeast with an interest in American Colonial
architecture. Highlights of Shingle Style include continuous
wood shingle surfaces, wavy wall surfaces, extensive
porches, eyebrow dormers, rusticated stone, and round
arches.
Shingle Style
Tudor:
Tudor is loosely based on a variety of late
medieval English styles. Some consider it to be a combination
of Jacobean (James I, 1603-1625) and Elizabethan (Elizabeth
I, 1558-1603). Unlike the Queen Anne style before it,
Tudor was mainly a masonry or masonry covered style.
During the 1920's and 1930's, with innovations in brick
building techniques, even small inexpensive houses could
be built in the style, and it became extremely popular.
Tudor houses range from large rambling complexes to
small cottages. Nearly every U.S. city boasts a Tudor
neighborhood. Elements of Tudor architecture include
half-timbering, a steep roof, grouped tall, narrow,
multi-paned windows, a massive decorated chimney, and
brick construction.
Tudor
American
Vernacular Foursquare or Denver Square : After
the silver crash in 1893, the move in architectural
tastes was toward more somber styles. And, with the
rise of the middle-class suburb, house after house was
built in the Vernacular Classical style. Typically,
they take the shape of a foursquare-a house whose basic
form in both plan and elevation is a square or box.
Added to this are a front porch and any classically
inspired ornament. So popular were these houses that
they often took on regional names, such as the Seattle
Box, and in Denver , the Denver Square . Here, most
have a rectangular plan with hipped roof and attic dormer.
There are two second-story windows, usually identical
and the space between them often filled with decorative
brick or terra-cotta panel. Most of Denver 's older
suburbs, such as Capital Hill, Cheeseman Park , City
Park , and West Highland are filled with Denver Squares.
Denver Square
Did
you notice that each style was
defined by its’ shapes and elements?
That it was the materials and
functional elements like roofs and windows that helped
decide what form or style it
was? Let’s look at some popular twentieth-century styles:
Spanish
Revival: these homes romanticized the simple
Spanish churches of colonial America . They featured
red tile roofs, parapets, decorative railings, and carved
stonework. This style comes from the entire history
of Spanish architecture, from Moorish to Byzantine to
Renaissance. Spanish revival buildings have stucco archways
and tiled courtyards. North America 's Spanish homes
reflect the entire Mediterranean world combined with
ideas from Hopi and Pueblo Indians.
Ranch
and Split-Level Ranch: These homes reflect
the informality of Western culture. Because these homes
are uncomplicated, it is often said the Ranch style
has no style. Ranch style is often ignored
because it has become so common. "Ranches"
are found in the suburbs throughout North America ,
making the style synonymous with the concept of tract
housing: fast-built, cookie-cutter homes. They have
a horizontal layout, deep eaves, large windows, attached
garages, and a lack of decorative details.
Postmodern
and Neo-eclectic: This style evolved from
Modernism but without being so minimalist and anonymous
as Modernism. Postmodernism is characterized by two
or more styles that co-exist. This can be a mix of traditional
and invented forms, of functional and decorative, or
of familiar shapes used in new ways. Postmodern houses
often don't have anything in common with one another
and are always unique. Borrowing from a variety of historic
traditions, neo-eclectic houses are customized
using a mixture of features. Neo-eclectic homes are
not usually experimental and do not reflect the artistic
vision you would find in a truly original, architect-designed
postmodern home. These homes are often built quickly
and cheaply.
Alternative
Homes: A-Frames, Earth Homes, and Dome Homes
are considered to be alternative styles because they
are less common and are houses for people looking to
live differently than most people. The steep slope of
the A-frame roof is designed to help
heavy snow to slide to the ground. The roof extends
down to the ground and doesn't need to be painted. A-frame
houses have limited living space and are usually built
as vacation homes for the mountains.
Earth
homes are just that, they are often built
of earth and supported by either a traditional frame
or maybe even tires or hay bales. Some are houses that
are built like normal but then covered in dirt as the
final exterior. These homes are considered more environmentally
sound. Dome houses are efficient,
inexpensive and durable. They are often made of metal
plates but can also incorporate traditional wood and
glass. For just a few hundred dollars, a family can
be housed in a corrugated metal dome.
Let's Build!
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