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Lost ArtsCirca-1925 Colonial Revival.by John Griffin
Assertive details vie for attention. The arch-headed, bracketed canopies that cover front and side doors exemplify fine craftsmanship and graciousness. Even the screen door with its arabesque iron grille is a visual treat, but don’t neglect to note the similarly well-wrought woodwork details. The single pair of shutters centered over the entry with their decorative cutouts give the entry additional attention without aggrandizement. The trellises obscure the entry canopy’s bracket, but rather than removal I’d simply relocate them to the back of the house, immediately framing this central portal to complement rather than compete. Inside is equally well-crafted. The front door opens upon a paneled screen topped by a short railing that withholds the landing of the staircase from immediate view, while providing the backdrop for a welcoming hall tableau. Hefty box columns terminate the screen while framing the entrances to living and dining rooms. The plan is simplicity itself enriched by the details. The living room runs from front to back with a fireplace at the far end. An inglenook created by additional columns and beam frame and draw the seating area in close to the hearth. A door at the end of the living room that connects to the kitchen might be better removed to further the sense of enclosure in this area. A glassed porch off the living room expands the seating areas available. The other side is a dining room to the front with windows wrapping two sides. Behind is the kitchen and breakfast area. A recent renovation of the kitchen, though efficient, lacks continuity. Since all the other woodwork in the house is painted, taking a brush to these cabinets seems an easy fix. Upstairs, the master commands most of the front. A door connects this room to a roofed deck over the sunroom that could be glassed in for a private sitting room. The second bedroom is comfortably scaled, the third smaller. This latter room connects to the master and with its fireplace offers a great space for home office and library while still being the occasional guest room. The architectural details are more abundant in the public rooms
but the creativity of room arrangement, window placement, and
roof form is evident throughout. It’s clear this house wasn’t
casually conceived or executed. Thoughtful spatial compositions
and a rich vocabulary of woodwork tells you this house was designed
to enhance the art of living. 1899 Court Avenue |
he Twenties will remain the most distinctive decade of this century
for architecture, both residential and commercial in America.
Both the Romantic Revival styles (Colonial, Tudor, Mediterranean,
et al.) and the futuristic deco exhibit more inventive use of
space and materials than has been seen since. It wasn’t just a
booming economy that made this possible. It was a restless playing
with form and details. We seem, in a time of equal building frenzy,
to only crave bigger. Workmanship and subtlety are lost arts.
This is not an expansive house, rather one of well-crafted spaces
rich in details. The front clearly states this is no bland box.
The roof bulges twice, to creatively capture every inch of space
on the second floor. First a gambrel rolls barn-like over the
space and then broad shed dormers front and back allow windows
on all four sides. The love of light that remains so indicative
of the century is well illustrated here by the multiple groupings
of the 56 (!) windows that punctuate this bright composition.
