FL Southern College, FLW photo: J. Metheny
It's true. I always have. Something about that entire era from the 40's to mid-60's still fascinates me. I've even wondered if I lived in that era in a previous life. Who knows, maybe I did.
Something about the design of everything had style and grace in it's function. There was a calling to higher design standards as the Atomic Age began. Everything followed suit, from the cars to furniture, store's signage, and even how men and women dressed to leave the house. Good design and class was a must. Architecture was only a small part of it. This was a time in history that was polite, yet unapologetic in it's high demand for elegance. Ornamentation was replaced with sleek lines and seductive curves which made their mark on everything.
I was once asked a great question, "Why aren't MCM houses still being built?" I blurted out the first thing that I still believe to be the true, "Consumerism!" Yes, I stand by that answer.
Most MCMs didn't have basements, enclosed garages, or storage sheds out back. What a man owned was displayed in his house or stored in the carport storage with the lawn mower or in a few small closets around the house. One can only conclude that people simply didn't require so much "stuff" back then.
But I don't blame it all on a person's need to constantly go out to buy more. Things are no longer built to last, so we're sometimes forced into buying sprees to replace that third or fourth broken item that we still have somewhere in our house! My aunt and uncle still use the toaster they got as a wedding gift. Fifty. Years. Ago.
Some things we've been forced to accept. Consumerism has required bigger basements, bigger garages- bigger everything, and then maybe a rented storage shed down the road. Unfortunately for the residential architect, the demand for more square footage presides over quality and detail of meaningful design (in many cases). I miss this great era that I only caught the tail end of as a child. I would love to go back to the smaller, one-story homes with a carport or two, where a client's budget easily allowed screen walls, finished tongue & groove wood ceilings, exposed beams, and floor-to-ceiling glass on the private side of the house.
Hopefully this less complicated way of life will return and usher in a second wave of elegance that has no concern for size- only quality.
Thanks for reading. More to come.
Jon
Comentarios