architecture

Friday, June 12, 2015

Quality is in the details: Bunny Mellon

Now that the sale of the century (thus far) has ended, Mrs. Paul Mellon at Sothebys, we can all sit back from the hysteria and try to learn from this extraordinary taste-maker.  I read from both camps, that the items were just 'ordinary' and/or worn and then also that they were of the highest quality and perfection.  For what it's worth, I heartily agree with those who found the sale overwhelmingly good.
While I never got further than my auction catalogs, friends of mine attended the sale (and texted me these pictures) and attested that though the furniture was indeed not top notch condition (of course not, it is essentially used/2nd hand furniture!) there was no question to the quality of the items; in particular the details which is where this kind of simple perfection excels.
Even the simplest upholstered pieces featured astounding couture details; from ruffled trims to coordinated buttons.  Even the boxed upholstery of the (blurry) French chairs below had squared cushions to match their frames.
Thanks to Josh for sending me these images from the sale.  Now that the auction has ended the discussions will mostly be of the (boring to me)monetary values placed on the items. These high  prices achieved attest to the level of taste acquired by an aesthete in her 103 years and may we all now try to learn a bit from her years of wisdom.

Sunday, March 8, 2015

Magazine covers

Do you think a magazine cover such as these would sell well today? No 'celebrity' Kardashians or overly air-brushed photographs of interiors; rather a well rendered image by an artist on a topic covered in the issue.
Imagine a special issue of Architectural Digest or Elle Decor on which Jeremiah Goodman produced the cover. Am I crazy or would this be a wonderful thing and have the design world abuzz? I'm not talking inside the magazine, just the cover; don't take away my pretty photographs!  If magazines are always looking for something new, isn't doing something this 'old' the latest thing?
Another 'old' thing I would love to see in a design magazine spread; Detailed floorplans (oh how a boy can dream.......). Everyone loves a floorplan! Yes or no, am I crazy (I realize thats a whole other question!)?

Wednesday, November 26, 2014

2014 Holiday Gift Books, 4 of 4

This year I'm presenting a selection of 40 holiday gift books from the same number of publishers, presented alphabetically in chunks of 10. Some none-too-serious recommendations of who might like the titles are indicated. See the others here.

Click covers to visit Amazon - or click titles to visit publishers' websites.
For the educator – tenured or adjunct:

Educating Architects: How tomorrow's practitioners will learn today
Edited by Neil Spiller, Nic Clear
Thames and Hudson
Hardcover, 352 pages

For the lover of great architectural drawings:

Graphic Anatomy 2
Atelier Bow-Wow
TOTO
Paperback, 174 pages

For the architect of resistance:

Extrastatecraft: The Power of Infrastructure Space
Keller Easterling
Verso
Hardcover, 252 pages

For the urban sociologist:

New York's New Edge: Contemporary Art, the High Line, and Urban Megaprojects on the Far West Side
David Halle, Elisabeth Tiso
University of Chicago Press
Paperback, 160 pages

For the philosopher and urban theorist:

Toward an Architecture of Enjoyment
Henri Lefebvre, edited by Ɓukasz Stanek
University of Minnesota Press
Paperback, 248 pages

For the lover of curves:

Alvar Aalto: Second Nature
Edited by Jochen Eisenbrand, Mateo Kries
Vitra Design Museum
Hardcover, 648 pages

For the many who can't get enough of Kowloon Walled City:

City Of Darkness: Revisited
Ian Lambot, Greg Girard
Watermark
Paperback, 216 pages

For the historian/theorist:

Forty Ways to Think About Architecture: Architectural History and Theory Today
Edited by Iain Borden, Murray Fraser, Barbara Penner
Wiley
Paperback, 280 pages

For the infrastructure nut:

Infrastructure: A Guide to the Industrial Landscape
Bryan Hayes
W. W. Norton
Paperback, 568 pages

For fans of rough concrete and flat-top haircuts:

The Architecture of Paul Rudolph
Timothy M. Rohan
Yale University Press
Hardcover, 300 pages

Shopping in DC: GoodWood

In anticipation of 'Black Friday' later this week I thought I would share with you some of my shopping from this past weekend. I stopped in one of my usual haunts on DC's U Street NW, Goodwood.
GoodWood used to be more of a vintage furniture store but has turned itself into an authentic version of what Anthropology tries to be. The styling in the store is always artful and really fun to walk around. As with most vintage shops there is something for everyone hidden around the next corner, no matter your taste.
I love this antique cabinet which holds antique china, tea, and teapots. I wish I had a cabinet like this in my apartment for my collection!
 These antique Minton cups and saucers were selling for only $8 a set and there were dozens of them.
One of the most interesting item(s) was this pair of faux "faux bois" French armchairs which are very Michael Taylor'esque.
Some details of the chair -really charming- I wish I had a place for these! Also notice the vintage carpet on the floor: lots of affordable antique rugs.
This lovely antique French mirror is deceivingly tall - it wouldn't look out of place in any embassy in town.
Unfortunately there was only one of these mid-century sconces with a Greek key motif or I would have snapped it up!  Someone had done an unfortunate paint spattering to the shaft but thats easy to undo with some sandpaper and a can of black spray paint.  Did you do any fun shopping this past weekend?

Tuesday, November 25, 2014

2014 Holiday Gift Books, 3 of 4

This year I'm presenting a selection of 40 holiday gift books from the same number of publishers, presented alphabetically in chunks of 10. Some none-too-serious recommendations of who might like the titles are indicated. See the others here.

Click covers to visit Amazon - or click titles to visit publishers' websites.
For the fan of construction and technology:

Sagrada Familia: Gaudi's Unfinished Masterpiece. Geometry, Construction and Site
Edited by Josep GĂłmez Serrano, Maria Rubert and Oscar Riera Ojeda
Oscar Riera Ojeda Publishers
Hardcover, 312 pages

For the lover of classic monographs on great architects:

Sigurd Lewerentz, Architect
Janne Ahlin
Park Books
Hardcover, 208 pages

For those wanting to delve beyond the eye candy:

Shooting Space: Architecture in Contemporary Photography
Elias Redstone
Phaidon
Hardcover, 240 pages

For the Critical Regionalist:

Local Architecture: Building Place, Craft, and Community
Brian MacKay-Lyons, Robert McCarter
Princeton Architectural Press
Hardcover, 224 pages

For the Classicist:

Americans in Paris: Foundations of America's Architectural Gilded Age
Jean Paul Carlhian, Margot M. Ellis
Rizzoli
Hardcover, 252 pages

For the beginner:

The Language of Architecture: 26 Principles Every Architect Should Know
Andrea Simitch, Val Warke
Rockport Publishers
Paperback, 224 pages

Yet another one for the beginner:

Twenty-Five Buildings Every Architect Should Understand
Simon Unwin
Routledge
Paperback, 278 pages

For the architect/cinephile: 

Christoph Schaub – Films on Architecture
Texts by Martin Walder and Christoph Schaub
Scheidegger and Spiess
3 DVDs, 320 minutes, w/24-page booklet

For the landscape urbanist:

An Atlas of Recycled Landscapes
Michela De Poli, Guido Incerti
Skira
Paperback, 270 pages

For those with strong coffee tables:

Ando: Complete Works 1975–2014
Philip Jodidio
Taschen
Hardcover, 720 pages