Arizona Biltmore cottages

Nestled in the garden courtyard of the Arizona Biltmore hotel are a number of textile block cottages.  These date to the original construction of the hotel in 1929 and believe it or not, were designated for guest's children and nannies to keep them from under foot. Today they are the most desirable addresses within the resort.

The lush grounds are as perfect as a golf course and in fact hold a number of putting greens within their bounds. Each cottage is different and of varying sizes but I especially liked this low slung version above.

I overheard a guest excitedly telling some friends how the hotel had placed him in one of these cottages as the rooms were all full in order to fulfill his reservation. He had a living room, dining room, kitchen, and 2 bedrooms at his disposal (as opposed to one rather standard sized hotel room, no matter how luxurious)!

Those were some lucky nannies! Like the hotel itself the roofs of these bungalows function as terraces.

 The original cantilevered copper awnings are rather spectacular.

 As it is a garden in the midst of a desert water features are to be found everywhere.

 This lush greenery wouldn't be out of place in Beverly Hills or Greenwich.

A number of the larger cottages are actually split into separate units, accessed at different points to remain private.

 I love the textile blocks with copper detailing which are a great foil to the lush vegetation.

Don't forget to visit the cottage court if you find yourself at the Arizona Biltmore!

Hidden from view

I came across this identical row of townhouses on a side street in Georgetown recently which I had never noticed before. They're fairly nondescript row-houses of the type to be found all over the city but it's interesting to see how they have changed in the past century. All have been painted and one in particular has a sort of 'Grey Gardens' vibe to it. While I think this is rather wonderful in its way I'm sure the neighbors don't think so! While I work on lengthier posts while life continually gets in the way, what do you think of this type of 'garden' or lack of gardening?

Arizona Biltmore Hotel

Sitting here in snow and ice it's hard to believe that just a few short weeks ago I was in paradise or at least the closest thing in winter: Phoenix, Arizona! One of the most well known sites in Phoenix is the Arizona Biltmore Hotel resort.

While many believe that Frank Lloyd Wright was the architect of the Biltmore Hotel it was actually Albert Chase McArthur, a mentee of Wrights and formerly in his employ. Frank Lloyd Wright consulted on the design for 4 months in 1928 which included his textile blocks. The hotel opened in 1929.

Wright developed these concrete textile blocks 6 years earlier for use in Los Angeles. Concrete blocks are formed with decorative patterns which give these buildings their distinctive appearance.

Oddly enough Wright did not get his way for once in design matters; the blocks here were designed as rectangles rather than Wright's squares by McArthur's insistence.

The grounds are exquisitely manicured as you can see in these pictures. The hotel sits in a desert but you'd never know it by the amount of surrounding green.

To take advantage of these grounds and the glorious winter weather all of the roofs function as patios for the rooms offering views of the grounds and in some cases the mountains beyond.

 The copper detailing mimics the textile block pattern.

Across the main entrance one can see the Wrigley mansion perched on a hill which is now owned by the resort and used as a private club.

 Some of these large roofs have nearly enough room to play a game of football!

The views are breathtaking. As you can see in some of the photos the resort has expanded from the main building over the years to include other wings and buildings - all designed in the same Wright-ian Prairie style.

Replicas of Frank Lloyd Wright's "Sprites" from his Midway Gardens project in Chicago (1915) dot the grounds as do many other Wrightian references.

 Can you imagine spending an entire winter here as people were wont to do in the 1930s & 40s?

 The textile blocks are a great backdrop to the vegetation.

 While visiting don't miss the fabulous swimming pool where Marilyn Monroe was often photographed.

 No detail is overlooked at the resort, not even the gate to the pool area!

In more recent history Senator John McCain conceded defeat for the Presidency of the United States on the hotel grounds in a newscast ( November 4, 2008) - yet another reason to enjoy the resort!

Inside the spaces are cool and dark. Other than the 2 story lobby spaces ceiling heights are low. Don't forget that although Phoenix can be delightful in the winter the hot summers are brutal and the building responds to that architecturally. Air conditioning was installed in the 1960s enabling the hotel to operate year round.

 These unusual columns surround the lobby, seen here from the second floor.

I loved the art deco mailbox still in use in the lobby.

The stairs throughout the hotel are open and airy. I wonder if the metal railings were added to the textile block guardrail later for code purposes (36" height) or were original?

Detail of the interesting stairs.

The textile blocks are used in many different ways. In some areas they are used as a sort of window with embedded glass (above), in other places they function as light fixtures, while on the exterior they make up the shell of the building.

I'll be bringing you more photos of the grounds of the Arizona Biltmore in future posts as well as my previously promised post on Taliesin West!

Phoenix: living with or against nature

My trip to Phoenix left me with a lot to think about; architecturally that is! Of course my visit to Taliesin West had a lot to do with this; Frank Lloyd Wright's summer camp and architectural school. When an architect or builder decides to build a house, fundamental decisions are made as to how one approaches the land or nature as I'll call it. Are you with it or against?

In the top photo is a very glamorous example of going against nature The house is walled in, keeping the desert nature out as well as any desert critters I would suppose.  Everything inside the compound is presumably lush and green as if in Connecticut. This is not exactly what I'd call 'embracing nature' or what is natural to the area.  Around sprawling Phoenix (why must they live so FAR apart?) one sees the opposite example in rather comic ways such as decorating ones lawn with a rusty tractor and overgrown cactus.

You know I'm a classicist but modern architecture works so well in the desert landscape. I love how this very modern house seems to rise out of the rocky hillside. In the low hills surrounding Phoenix one has wonderful (if somewhat smoggy) views of the city and desert plains while at the same time affording romantic views up into the fabulous mountains and hills.

To my eastern eyes already accustomed to our frigid gray winter these exotic landscapes were a joy; Reddish soil, green cactus and interesting plants not to mention the wonderfully warm dry air.

It was rather hard to judge which were good neighborhoods and which were poorer ones as the city suffers from a block to block character which stretches off rather endlessly into the sunset. At the foothills of the mountains north of the city were some of the more interesting gardens and houses and so I'll assume that these were among the more affluent neighborhoods of the city.  How people chose to live here was interesting.

Located at the foot of the mountains one has scenic views upwards while views south sloped towards the city which seems to lack any skyline. However the sprawl stretches out uninterrupted in a way which I found rather scenic and beautiful in its own right in the way it mimicked the flat desert floor.

Rare pockets of green were to be found on a lot per lot basis such as this interesting house which probably feels like living in a tree house surrounded by these gorgeous Palo Verde trees.

The tale is often told of how Fallingwater came to be, the well known summer house of the Kaufmann family outside of Pittsburgh designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Mr Kaufmann approached FLW to build his family a summer retreat near his beloved stream and waterfall so he could enjoy it more fully. FLW famously decided to build the house ON the waterfall in order that the family would always be surrounded by it and the sound of the falling water would be a part of their daily life.

In a similar fashion many houses around Phoenix were not nestled around the hillsides but actually built on the crests of them. While it was hard to get a close look at these houses, many appeared to have been actually designed in the style of Wright. While the desert landscape is arguably a complete 180 difference from the lush rural Pennsylvania highlands the idea remains the same.

These hilltop houses blend in so well with their surroundings they are often nearly invisible such as this house above (which appears to be Noah's Ark! look for it on the left).  Contrast this relationship to the sprawl at the foot of the hills and their interaction with the landscape. I'm sorry if this is perhaps overly theoretical but it gives one something to think about no matter which section of the world you find yourself living.

I must say that I found Phoenix to be a pretty wonderful part of the world! Join me in my next posts where I'll bring you Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West and you can see how one architect chose to deal with building in the desert for himself.

The Heard Museum, Phoenix Arizona

In the same historic neighborhood that I blogged about earlier this week HERE is the most famous museum in Phoenix, The Heard Museum of American Indian art and history.

Founded by Dwight and Maie Bartlett Heard in 1929 the museum dedicates itself to the art and culture of native people, particularly in the Southwest.

Much of the building was built later by noted Southwest architect Bennie Gonzales in his distinctive style which blends so well with the climate. Courtyards, arches, screens, and arcades are reminiscent of both native styles as well as Mediterranean architecture.

The central courtyard is probably one of the most beautiful spaces in Phoenix. Birds sing from trees which shade one from the glare of the sun while tinkling water trickles through an interesting central water feature.

One of the most noted restaurants in Phoenix lies here and I spent an enjoyable January afternoon outside eating delicious Posole in the sun while Washington DC suffered a cold snap which I barely escaped!

The older parts of the building feature 1920s Spanish style ironwork and details such as this charming Juliet balcony. I was such a northeastern tourist and the sight of every orange tree just made me giddy.

The eclectic work of Gonzalez blends in well with the older Spanish style of the original building.

 What I assume to be the original entrance featured these handsome ironwork gates.

 And another small shaded courtyard now was silent with the entry activity confined to the large addition.

Definitely check out the Heard Museum on your trip to Phoenix to learn more about native cultures and don't forget to try the Posole and prickly pear lemonade!