2020 has been a crazy year. As a nation, we’ve gone through a lot of new experiences that will have ripple effects for a generation to come. As these events have unfolded, we’ve witnessed them largely from the confines of our homes. Because of this, we’ve...
Homeownership has long been a key part of the American Dream and, as such, is integral to our identity as Americans. With this consideration, what do our homes say about us as individuals and as a society? Similar to how a historian can study the design...
Over the last few decades, few homes have garnered more attention than the McMansion. First appearing in the 1980s, the term “McMansion” has evolved over the years to generally refer to a new home which feels too large for its property and out of scale...
Great buildings are hard to read at first. They have an order and rhythm distinctly their own. The Salk Institute of Biological Studies, designed by Louis Kahn, is such a building. Sitting atop the long grassy bluffs of Torey Pines, and overlooking the...
As the temperatures begin to fall, most of us are consumed by the upcoming holidays, various school activities, and winter weather plans. The thought of tackling that new home renovation or construction project drops down the list…
How should a modernist live in a traditional town? In an area abundant with beautiful older homes, a more modern residence can often look out of place. Even though they may wish to express their inner modernist, many homeowners are…
There is something about the remnants of a decaying structure struggling to hang onto the thread of modern life that attracts my avid interest. In this, I am not alone. Tourists the world over travel thousands of miles to wander amongst the ruins of past...
I have come to believe that everyone has their own personal style. For me, I realized long ago that I was a modernist at heart. There is something about the volumetric treatment of a building’s form and its clean, simple detailing that makes me feel content. When I...
I grew up in a small town in southern Illinois. With a population of only 1,800 residents, everyone seemed to know everyone else. There existed a local pride and few people journeyed beyond the constellation of neighboring small towns and villages scattered...
Each year, Gabriela and I try to escape for a long weekend in Cape May, a beach town at the southern tip of New Jersey. For a change, one year we thought we would see what an autumn visit would be like . . . desolate. Like many towns along the eastern shore, Cape May...