Architecture in the Mountains (Grand Lake, CO)

Working in the mountains is inspiring. It can also be challenging. Out latest high country project is set on a steep site at the edge of Rocky Mountain National Park, overlooking the town of Grand Lake, Colorado. An inspiring site, but, with a daunting grade change, a worthy challenge. Throw in a megalithic rock and a strict budget and the challenges multiply.

House by the Rock, Grand Lake, Colorado. 

The rock, about the size of a "tiny house", sits partially in the building envelope and partially in the setback area. Incorporating it into the structure was a tempting option, but its position was not amenable to that approach. Instead, we used the geographical feature to form a sort of entry court at the front door. Our name for the design, House by the Rock, embraces the rock as a welcome natural element. It also pays homage to one of our favorite renegade works of architecture, Alex Jordan's House on the Rock. Also in mind was a project by Frank Lloyd Wright we have always admired: the Hardy House.  

Front and rear elevations.

The rear of the house is stabilized by a series of retaining walls and terraces with a cantilevered balcony above. Three levels of outdoor living "rooms" (the upper deck, lower terrace, and hot tub patio) look out on the primary views.  All major interior spaces also focus on the panorama of mountains, lakes, and forest. 

Groundbreaking is scheduled for the spring of 2021. 

Surveying the site. 

Frank Lloyd Wright's Hardy House, located in Racine, WI.
Illustration by Marion Mahoney. 

Roy Horn, 1945-2020

This week we lost Roy Horn of the Las Vegas entertainment team of Siegfried and Roy. He was a victim of Covid-19.

As readers of this blog may remember, Siegfried and Roy provided my office with one of our most interesting architectural opportunities: designing a compound on forty acres they owned on the north side of Las Vegas. We had already been working on a large addition to their Jungle Palace complex for fund raising events and entertainment. In 2003 that project was suddenly brought to a halt when Roy was seriously injured during a performance at the Mirage resort. Roy experienced a stroke on stage; one of their white tigers, Montecore, rescued him and dragged him to safety. According to Roy, the tiger saved his life.

Cabana and pool. 

We heard again from Roy a year later. Facing a lengthy recovery, Roy decided he needed a new retreat on one level and Siegfried wanted to live close by to supervise his care. We designed a series of pavilions clustered around an existing weekend cabin. The compound consisted of a cottage for Roy, another for Siegfried, a commons building for entertainment, and a chapel. All was connected by vine-covered trellises and surrounded by fountains, waterfalls, and a spring-fed lake. Over the years, our work also included a poolside cabana, storage facilities for their stage productions, a ten-car garage and entrance gate, and a wild animal habitat. I mention all of this because when I think of Roy Horn I am flooded with memories of this extraordinary project and the many meetings we had with him and his staff of talented people. It was also an opportunity to work with my friend Mickey Akerman and his team at Amirob Studios who created the interior design themes for the project.

Roy's pavilion with chapel in background. 

Roy was a demanding client, but his creative talents inspired and encouraged the best work from all those who surrounded him. The experience of working with him is something never to be forgotten and never to be repeated. We will miss Roy Horn. The world is diminished without his presence.

Commons pavilion. 

West water feature.  

Chapel bell tower. 

Complex connected with vine-covered trellises and surrounded by water. 

The Crazy Architecture in Dubai

When I was a kid I read as much science fiction as I could get my hands on by authors such as Robert Heinlein, Arthur C. Clark, Andre Norton, etc.  At the same time, real life magazines like Popular Science, which I consumed like candy, promised a future filled with flying cars, personal robots,  and fantastic architecture.

Magazines like Popular Science were big on modern
architecture and the inventions that went with it.

The covers of pulp science fiction often featured
architectural extravaganzas in futuristic mode.

I also devoured sic-fi movies like The Day the Earth Stood Still and Forbidden Planet (the best movie ever made).  It didn't help that my fourth grade teacher, Mr. Karp, predicted all sorts of inventions that would come about by the time I grew up. Specifically, he said it was all but certain a transporter machine the size of a telephone booth would whisk human beings from one place to another in the same manner a conversation traveled through phone wires.  I am still waiting for this invention to materialize.

Sci-fi movies then and now featured futuristic design. A set from Forbidden Planet, above. 

In other respects, it seems that the science fiction of yesterday is the reality of today.  I marvel that we actually seem to be living in the world of tomorrow. Hand-held computers, personal robots (I have a Rumba that cleans my floors every day), and other stuff of the future is here now.  Even our architecture resembles the cover of a science fiction novel from 1955. Not everywhere, but in many places.  Especially in Dubai with the Burj Kalifa tower, the Burj Al Arab Jumeirah hotel, and the Palm Islands. Now an upcoming project in Dubai continues the science fiction esthetic: Aladdin City. It's a little bit crazy and a lot of fun. The total cost of the project has not been announced. It will have air-conditioned bridges with a moving floor to connect the structures.  The highest of three towers is thirty-four stories.

The three towers of Aladdin City, Dubai. 

Aerial view of Aladdin City. 

A YouTube video about the project can be found here: Aladdin City.  The project will include offices and a hotel. So, you'll have a place to stay if you want to travel to the future.

LaVerne Lantz Architecture on Tour

The Frank Lloyd Wright Wisconsin Heritage Tourism Program is a not-for-profit organization created with the assistance of the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the State of Wisconsin Department of Tourism.  Its mission is to promote, protect, and preserve the heritage of Frank Lloyd Wright in his native state of Wisconsin.  One of the major endeavors of the organization is sponsoring  an annual tour of Wright and "like Wright" homes throughout the state. This year the nineteenth   annual event features nine sites in southeastern Wisconsin, five of which were designed by architectural designer LaVerne Lantz.  

First Lantz residence, Delafield, Wisconsin.

Readers of this blog may remember my articles on LaVerne Lantz from April 2009.  I am pleased to say that the inclusion of Lantz's work on this tour is a direct result of those articles.

Second Lantz residence, Delafield, Wisconsin. 

Wurster resdicence by Laverne Lantz. 

Wurster residence.

The work of LaVerne Lantz has never before been featured in any retrospective.  The tour organizers (in particular, George Hall who scouted the sites) are very excited about these inclusions. The self-guided tour, called "Driving Mr. Wright" will be Saturday June 7th.  Two other events are associated with the architectural tour. On Friday, June 6th An Evening of Architecture and Artisans includes a behind-the-scene visit to the Ephraim Pottery studio for demonstrations and Q&A. On Sunday, June 8th a panel discussion, Working with Mr. Lantz: An Architectural Retrospective, will be held in Johnson Creek, Wisconsin. I will be one of the panelists. 

Morey residence by LaVerne Lantz.

For detailed information on all properties on the tour along with a complete schedule of events please link directly to the sponsor's web site: www.wrightinwisconsin.org.

Images: George Hall 

Architecture is Like the Movies

One of the best architecture magazines on the market today is Hospitality Design, published by Nielson Business Media. It is a trade publication that specializes in hotels, restaurants, resorts, and spas, intended for professionals who design or manage such venues. While not specifically an architecture magazine, it features architecture and interior design regularly and lavishly.

The hospitality industry is highly competitive. To stay on top, popular venues are revamped every few years. The half-life for architecture and interior design in the hospitality game is short. New ideas are introduced at lightening speed and creativity thrives in this environment. At top restaurants in New York and L.A. and big resorts on the Vegas strip, there are ample funds to support leading edge ideas. Good design is used as a marketing tool without hesitation - in fact, with a sense of obligation. For these reasons, Hospitality Design features exciting architectural concepts in nearly every issue. It is a "must read" for me.

I was struck by a statement in a recent issue by hotelier Grace Leo: I see myself as a movie producer - but I produce hotels. I orchestrate everybody's efforts to make the vision a reality.

Comparing the creation of a hotel to making movies strikes close to home.  I have often used the simile, aarchitecture is like the movies.

Architecture is a complex art. It interweaves the talents of many different professions, trades, and consultants. Like the movies, all of these entities must work in concert at top capacity to produce a hit. A great movie must have a great script (the design) but also a willing client (the producer), talented actors (craftsmen), and a capable director (the builder). Add to this the many extras, bit players, FX artists, etc. that are necessary to make a movie and to make architecture. If any part of this assemblage falls short, a movie will be less than a blockbuster and a work of architecture will scar the landscape.  The movie world does not want another Water World. The built

Victor Emmanuel Monument. A study in architectural excess.

environment does not need another Victor Emmanuel Monument.

When Hollywood has a premier, everybody notices, but nobody has to watch.

When a building has a premier, it is hard to avoid and
it tends to stick around for a long time.

The simile is also something of a plea for tolerance for those works of architecture that fall short. Sometimes good architects produce bad works, but it is not always the architect's fault. Interior design can make a a good building look bad or a bad building look good. Landscape architecture can do the same. The budget has to be sufficient. The client must be willing and, sometimes, brave. This is not an excuse for architectural misfires, but a recognition of the importance of assembling the right team. Quality, talent, commitment go a long way in making good movies. They are requirements for good architecture. 

It is tempting to think of architectural successes as a brilliant tours de force that spring from the minds of lone auteurs. Certainly, credit should be given to great talents when it is due. In reality, however, the list of credits is usually quite long. 

Would You Like Some Architecture With Your Fries?

Have you noticed that McDonalds has been upping its image lately with newly-mod architecture?
The kitsch of yore is gone, replaced with Starbuckian elevations and furnishings. I don't quite know what to make of it. Seeing a stylish McDonalds is like meeting a monkey in a tuxedo. Will I have a more rewarding experience just because the packaging has improved?

Of course, McDonalds was never not modern. It's just that now it has moved from naive and corny to aspiring sophistication (of a sort).

Here's the dilemma: I am always an advocate of better design in any context, but when good design filters down to McDonalds is it trivialized?  Have the semi-curved roof shapes and organic interiors favored by so many contemporary architects become so common that McDonalds - the lowest common denominator of pop culture - can use them with impunity?

McDonalds is still the same old McDonalds, trying to disguise itself as something better. Plus ce change, plus ce le meme chose. I am still looking for the "McCafe" I see in their ads: cool people drinking customized coffee drinks to the soothing saxaphone of a jazz musician. It doesn't exist, and I'm frustrated every time I search for it.

When you travel across the country every McDonalds menu is still predictable. The restrooms have the same fixtures, the order counter never changes, the ketchup bars are identical. Of course, the food is unvarying. We will never be disappointed at a McDonalds because it always delivers exactly what we expect it to. And now we are gently being offered the same repetitive mod look across the country and we are not offended. It is the pink slime of architecture: a processed filler that keeps us in a numb state of acceptance. None of this new design imagery at McDonalds is in any way challenging or inventive. It lacks the most important quality of good architecture: spatial experience. The new McDonalds architecture is surface treatment with no substance. Just like the food.

Images: MJK

Women in Architecture

When I entered architecture school at the University of Oklahoma there was one woman in my class. During our freshman year she was taken aside by a professor/advisor and told "there is no place for women in architecture." She was advised to drop out or change her major.  This seemed shocking to me, but it was Oklahoma. And it was a long time ago.
Fast forward to the twentyfirst century and times have changed. Women are underrepresented in the field of architecture, but they are certainly not a rarity. However, young women considering a career in architecture still need role models and inspiration. For those reasons, I am pleased to post the following news release of a lecture by a very talented architect, Stephanie Forsythe. 

STEPHANIE FORSYTHE LECTURE AT WOMEN IN DESIGN’S FALL MEETING AT THE DIKEOU POP-UP SPACE

Annual event to be held Wednesday, September 26th 2012 with a reception starting at 5:30 p.m.

DENVER – September 12, 2012 – Women in Design (WiD), a Denver-based non-profit dedicated to improving opportunities for women in professions serving the built environment, welcomes Stephanie Forsythe, owner and principal of molo studio as the featured speaker at its fall lecture. The lecture will be held the evening of September 26th at the Dikeou Collection Pop-up Space located at 1321 Bannock Street in the Golden Triangle neighborhood.

Softwall #1.

Forsythe is an internationally recognized and award-winning designer and Canadian architect who incorporates research of materials into the exploration of space making. As a design and manufacturing studio, molo’s goal is to create objects that “define intimate temporal spaces”. Based in Vancouver, molo's high-profile projects include The Northern Sky Circle, an outdoor room made from snow in Anchorage Alaska and the Aomori Nebuta House, a cultural building inspired by the craftsmanship and spirit of the Aomori Nebuta Festival in Japan. In addition to these architectural collaborations, molo designs and creates products that house people and enhance our spaces, such as softseating, made from 50% recycled fiber kraft paper and softwall, which provides a tactile experience to defined spaces. Though designed for long-term use, softseating is 100% recyclable and has magnetic ends, allowing it to be adjusted to fit to various spaces and needs, or connect to itself to form a cylindrical stool or low table or long winding benches. Made of tissue paper, softwall uses a honeycomb structure that expands to create a completely freestanding wall, hundreds of times larger than its compressed form. It provides translucent light or a more “cocooning” experience depending on the choice of white or black tissue paper. More information on molo’s projects and products can be found at molodesign.com.

“WiD is thrilled to have Forsythe speak at our premier event. She’ll share her unique perspective of product design and space making by presenting work created for clients around the world. It’s a rare opportunity to see such a presentation in Denver,” said Cheryl Bicknell, co-chair of WiD. WiD will host a reception starting at 5:30 p.m. with the lecture to follow at 6:30 p.m.

Nebuta House.

Tickets are $20 for WiD members and $35 for non-members. Members must log on to widdenver.org to receive the discount.

Event sponsorship opportunities are available, with additional details on WiD’s website or from the contacts listed below.

Founded in 2005, WiD is a network nearly 200-members strong and growing. For more information about Women in Design, please visit widdenver.org or contact Executive Co-Chairs Cheryl Bicknell or Jennifer Gray at cheryl.bicknell@widdenver.org or jennifer.gray@widdenver.org. 

Nebuta House.

Denver Modern Architecture INTERVIEW

Next Saturday, June 2nd, is the second annual Denver Modern Home Tour. Click on this INTERVIEW link for brief comments on my entry. Contact me or the tour WEB SITE for more information and tickets.

Tour entry: 3300 South Dahlia, Denver, CO.

Patio and fireplace.

Great room.

Photos: Rob Munger

Modern Architecture Tour in Denver

Our entry in the Denver Modern Home Tour, 3300 South Dahlia.

The second annual Denver Modern Home Tour is coming up on Saturday, June 2nd. Once again, we are honored to have one of our projects included: 3300 South Dahlia.

The tour is sponsored by Modern Home Tours, LLC based in Austin, Texas. Modern Home Tours was founded by partners Matt Swinney and James Leasure.  Through interesting and informative tours in dozens of cities across the United States and Canada, they invite people into some of the most exciting examples of Modern architecture and design in the nation.  The tours present the opportunity to learn about the cutting edge of home design.

The Modern Home Tours website says, "We love Modern.  Modern design, Modern architecture, modern living.  More than just an aesthetic, 'Modern' embodies new construction techniques and materials, and new ways of addressing old problems.  'Modern' is not just what you live in, but how you live. From attainability to sustainability, the singular thread that connects 'Modern' is an outlook that embraces new possibilities in living and lifestyle."

As of December 2011, Modern Home Tours has added former managing editor and now contributing editor for Architectural Record,  Ingrid Spencer, to the team. Acting as a consultant and expert on modern architecture and design, Ingrid helps to curate the homes on all of the Modern Home Tours and provides guidance to ensure that modern design is constantly at the forefront of each tour.

3300 South Dahlia.

Check out their website for more information on tour project, tickets, and maps: http://denver.modernhometours.com/

Photos:
Rob Munger

Architecture Created in Light

1. Light Festival, Ghent, Belgium.

If you haven't discovered it already, TED is a great source for interesting lectures on your computer or as an ap on your hand held device. I keep it on my iPhone for down-time in the airport. TED is a nonprofit devoted to "Ideas Worth Spreading." It started out in 1984 as a conference bringing people together from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Since then its scope has broadened. Along with two annual conferences -- in Long Beach and Palm Springs -- and the TEDGlobal conference in Edinburgh UK each summer, TED includes award-winning talks on its video site. Many of them are architecture-related topics.

Pantheon, Rome. 

Notre Dame du Ronchamp by Corbusier.

A recent lecture by Roger van der Heide is worth checking out on TED: "Why Light Needs Darkness." Mr. Heide is a lighting designer who offers an insightful way to look at the world -- paying attention to light (and to darkness). His lecture is illustrated with examples from classic buildings (the Pantheon) to modern icons (Ronchamp). His vision is about the play of light around us. His ideas remind me of the book "In Praise of Shadows" by the Japanese novelist Jun'ichiro Tanizaki. Originally published in 1933, "In Praise of Shadows" was translated to English in 1977. It explores the meaning of dark in contrast to light in art, sculpture, architecture, and literature.

 55,000 LED lights...

Architects are used to considering sunlight inside and outside of buildings and since the nineteenth century we have been able to consider the effect of artificial lighting on architecture. But only recently has light become a building material in itself.  Consider the architectonic forms designed for the Light Festival in Ghent, Belgium. The Luminarie De Cagna created an LED cathedral in a neo-renaissance style. The structure employs 55,000 LED lights and is 91 feet tall at its peak.  It is tempting to fantasize about true renaissance architects like Michelangelo or Bernini might have done with the same materials.

.... in Ghent.

Denver Modern Home Tour

MICHAEL KNORR & ASSOCIATES is honored to be selected for the first-ever Denver Modern Home Tour.

1. Denver Modern Home Tour.

On Saturday, October 22, 2011 from 11:00 am - 6:00 pm, join us to tour 8 of Denver's most recent examples of contemporary residential architecture. We have previewed all of the properties and think you will find something interesting at each location. There is a broad array of design choices, sizes, and neighborhoods. 

Please come by our featured property, 4501 E. Dartmouth, during the tour. For advance TICKETS go to this link: http://denver.modernhometours.com/

For a MAP and INFORMATION on all eight homes go to this link: http://denver.modernhometours.com/tour-homes/

We look forward to visiting with you on the 22nd!

2. Denver Modern Home Tour.

Photos:

Rob Munger

Architecture on Your Mobile Device

This blog is now mobile-device-friendly. If you happen to check out these posts on a smart phone it will present itself in an easier-to-read format. Thanks for reading either on your computer or your mobile!