Archive for the ‘architecture’ Category

June 04, 2014

Why Fake Vintage Buildings are a Blow to Architecture, Historic Neighborhoods, and the Character of a City

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Imagine a fake Mona Lisa hanging at the Louvre next to authentic masterpieces. People with an untrained eye (that would be most people) would have no idea that it was fake, they would think it was real. And what if it was painted by a company standing to profit from making you believe that what you’re seeing is the real thing? What is wrong with this situation? What is wrong is that it is a lie. It is a deception. It is making people believe something that is not true, that they are gazing upon the real, authentic masterpiece,…

April 20, 2014

What Frank Lloyd Wright Houses Teach about Views, Siting and Designing from the Inside Out

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet “Frank Lloyd Wright went to great lengths to make sure his houses never faced north,” said Robert McCarter, a Ruth and Norman Moore Professor of Architecture at Washington University in St. Louis, on Friday at his lecture for the Gordon House Conservancy called The Evolution of the American House. McCarter also said that Wright liked to use drapes in homes not only to cut the draft but to create visual privacy while at the same time maintaining auditory connectedness. The architect was particularly sensitive to how occupants of his buildings experienced sound. The Gordon House This weekend’s lecture was…

November 25, 2013

The Architect of Camelview Theater and Why the Building is Architecturally Significant Afterall

by: Walt Lockley

Tweet The architectural significance of Camelview Theater has been doubted by many, impacting whether people think it’s worth saving. Contributing writer Walt Lockley did some digging and discovered that the architect of Camelview Theater was actually a significant and talented midcentury modern architect who has designed some amazing buildings throughout the country. He also explains how Camelview Theater fits within the larger context of the architect’s work. Find out more about Edo Belli and how he came to design a theater in Scottsdale, Arizona in 1972. Walt Lockley was born in Texas, educated from the back seat of a 1972…

November 19, 2013

The Understated and Awe Inspiring Churches of Pietro Belluschi

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet I kept hearing of Pietro Belluschi as a name of an architect I need to know about ever since I moved to Portland. To give you an idea of how prominent and successful this Portland architect became over his fifty years in practice, here is a list of impressive commissions he got: the Equitable Building in Portland, the Portland Art Museum, the Bank of America World Headquarters in San Francisco, and the Julliard School and the Lincoln Center in New York. I came upon one of his buildings for the first time on a Biking About Architecture tour by…

October 07, 2013

Steel and Glass Skyscrapers Are Invading Vancouver

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Architecture school at Arizona State University from 1993 to 2001 (when I was an undergraduate and graduate student there) had a very clear leaning towards the modern aesthetic. Not only did I learn about structures, architectural history and cladding systems, I learned that modernism is good and everything else isn’t really that good. So the modern aesthetic, with clean minimalist lines using materials like glass, steel and concrete was driven into our heads as the thing to aspire to. Le Corbusier, Mies Van der Rohe, and Walter Gropius were lionized. Frank Lloyd Wright, even though he was so influential…

October 03, 2013

Le Corbusier’s Studio Apartment in Paris, 1931 – Part II

by: Alison King

Tweet Today’s post is the second in a series about Learning from Le Corbusier by guest writer Alison King of Modern Phoenix. If you missed the first part, catch it here. Learning from Le Corbusier, a Series – Part II In our previous installation (link here) we encountered the first of Le Corbusier’s three Points of New Architecture: piloti, open floor plans and ribbon windows. We left you at the threshhold of Corbu’s apartment and were just about to enter his studio space, pictured above, showing you details you just can’t find in coffeetable books. Now we enter his most…

September 25, 2013

Why We Should Save Camelview Theater, One of the Last Remaining Historic Theaters in Phoenix

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet I was writing an article on endangered animals when I heard news that Camelview Theater in Scottsdale, Arizona is in danger of being torn down in favor of making room for a 2000+ seat megaplex theater, which would be part of an expansion of Fashion Square Mall. Just like endangered animals will be gone forever if we don’t save them, the same is true for historic buildings. According to Nick Blumberg of KJZZ, “Camelview may be on the chopping block. Dan Harkins leases the land from Camelview’s neighbors, Scottsdale Fashion Square. The mall wants to expand, and that might…

August 29, 2013

Le Corbusier’s Studio Apartment in Paris, 1931

by: Alison King

Tweet Today’s post is the first in a series about Learning from Le Corbusier by guest writer Alison King. Alison is the founding editor of ModernPhoenix.net and Associate Professor of Graphic Design and History at the Art Institute of Phoenix. In 2013 Modern Phoenix celebrated its first ten years of publishing original articles, photographs and primary sources. Alison wrote “Everyman’s Modernist”, the authorized biography of Ralph Haver AIA, and is currently creating a definitive inventory of all buildings designed by Arizona architect Al Beadle with the assistance of his family and friends at BeadleArchive.com. Learning from Le Corbusier, a Series – Part 1 Charles-Édouard Jeanneret…

August 21, 2013

12 Reasons I’m Still in Love with Portland After 6 Months of Living Here

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet I moved to Portland from Phoenix about 6 months ago because I fell in love with this city and I was in need to of a fresh start. Portland hasn’t let me down. I’m still in love with it and here are the reasons why: 1. I love that I can be outside almost all year round I just returned from a visit to Phoenix. Because it is August, you can’t really spend any time outside, since it’s too hot. You’re relegated to going from your air-conditioned home to your air-conditioned car to the air-conditioned store. The blazing sun…

July 29, 2013

Post-War Architecture Task Force Seeks to Actively Protect Midcentury Modern Buildings in Phoenix

by: James Gardner

Tweet *We’d like to mark the passing of architect Frank Henry on July 28, 2013, a Taliesin Fellow who was instrumental in saving the David Wright House. Our condolences to his friends and family. His passing is a true loss for the architectural community in Phoenix.* Today’s post is by contributing writer James Gardner: A group of citizen experts involved in historic preservation in Phoenix have formed a task force specifically to protect post-war (1945-1975) architecture. Led by Modern Phoenix mastermind Alison King, the aptly named Post-War Architecture Task Force (PWATF) just held its first face-to-face meeting on Monday, July 15th….