National Park Seminary tour

Last weekend I had the pleasure of attending a fascinating historic housetour at National Park Seminary with my friend Maxine who I have mentioned a few times before. She's lucky enough to live in this unique neighborhood and invited me to join her!

The seminary, located at the northern tip of Rock Creek Park outside of Silver Spring, has a long history, many uses and owners, and now has been redeveloped as a condominium and townhouse community (more on that later). 

The site started as an estate but in the 1880s a resort was built here, high in the hills above Washington DC, so that people could escape the heat of the city. You can see the original inn below.

The resort was a failure due to difficulty in reaching the site and an economic recession at the time.

It was soon bought by a couple in the 1890s who started an exclusive girl's school on the site which remained for many years until being requisitioned by the army as auxiliary hospital space.  These odd structures you see here were club houses and out-buildings which, similar to the Columbian Exposition in 1893 were meant to educate the girls on different cultures; expose them to things they hadn't seen before. Pretty cool, huh?

They are all now private houses or still for sale by the developer who has given new life to the Seminary.

There has been a lot of negative feedback, many believing the developers have disregarded the detailing and history of the building.  They claim the developer turned the main building into a generic suburban condominimum.  Given the high cost of renovations, I forgive them this offense as the exterior restoration has been impeccable.  Many of the interior details have been retained, as you will see later in this post. This is a HUGE undertaking and I applaud their efforts -certainly better than wrack and ruin, no?

You can see the disrepair the campus had fallen into above in some of the un-renovated parts of the property (which are still available for sale); Serious, gross neglect on the part of the army.

Above you can see how the developers funded much of this work by turning some of the open land into townhouses detailed similarly to many of the more unique buildings.

My friend Maxine lives in one of these new townhouses which are nicely finished.  In this group above, you can see how they copied details from existing buildings (the dilapidated buildings in the center).

The main building, as I said earlier, is an enormous structure added onto over the years. The main inn remains the nucleus which the girl's school extended somewhat randomly in Victorian fashion. Above you can see the grand ballroom to the left which was surrounded by dorm rooms.

On the opposite side of the inn were mechanical and service spaces connected to the main building with this enclosed bridge.

Greek temples adjacent to French chateaus next to Tudor revival - it's quirky and fabulous.

Can you imagine something like this being built today?

To the left of the drive here is the "American Cottage" which a young family is currently renovating to suit their needs.

The stone work throughout is really nicely detailed and restored;  Original sculptures dot the grounds.

The Grecian temple you see behind the main building is attached in rambling fashion (of course) and now houses 2 apartments that I would die to see!

Near the mechanical spaces is this 'colonial house' below which is available. In better shape than some of the abandoned buildings you can see it still needs a thorough renovation! What a fun project this would be.

This stairhall below is on the first floor just off the porch, the center fan topped french doors is a coved living room following the shape of the transom. On the opposite side is a large kitchen and the main entrance.  Still quite a bit of the original building left to save.

The proceeds of the tour were to fund rehabilitation of the statuary.

This lead lion is hollow (who painted these yellow??).

This Indian is in far better shape.

This bronze sculpture is really lovely.

The aloha building (more apartments) has semi-caryatids surrounding the porch.

While much of the interior doesn't follow the original plans, details such as staircases, paneling, and fireplaces have been saved (even if they sometimes make no sense in the new layout).

This carved stone plaque below was in the 'president's mansion' entryway in an enormous inglenook. The house is now split into 12 generously sized apartments!

Wonder what it's like to live in one of these converted structures?

One of the first to be snapped up was the chapel; separate from the main building but attached by walkways.

The bulk of the interior is open living space with a corner filled-in with a mezzanine office over a master bedroom suite.

A truly unique space although maybe a bit too much 'church' was kept for my personal tastes.

The altar makes a perfect spot for the grand piano.

Remember the ballroom I mentioned earlier? It seemed like a fitting way to close.

Originally the upper levels were all dorm rooms (now they are apartments and storage spaces).

These plaster brackets are in perfect condition. The stone fireplace at the far end has sadly been painted but is still gorgeous.

So tell me, what do you think of this development? Would you live here?

The Lamps of Louis Comfort Tiffany

Just in time for Christmas, Vendome has released a new book looking at the Lamps of Louis Comfort Tiffany by 4 experts in the field, Martin Eidelberg, Alice Cooney Frelinghuysen, Nancy McClelland, and Lars Rachen.

Art glass lamps have received a lot of ire in the past few decades, due to the plethora of bad, cheap copies (remember the lamps Wendys had in their restaurants in the 80s?). However, none other than modernist architect Philip Johnson has said that "These objects are now regarded with fashionable horror. Such horrors are, however, unjustified. It is only that the proper perspective on the period is lacking" (page 35).  This book adds plenty of gorgeous perspective!

The authors delve into Tiffany's inspiration, his garden on Long Island, and other works the Tiffany studio was producing; not to mention over 70 examples of some of the most amazing lamps you've ever seen.  Definitely add this to the shopping list, you won't be disappointed!
Photography by Colin Cooke

Another ICAA tour!

Next Saturday, October 13,  join the ICAA Washington Mid Atlantic Chapter for a tour of three private residences on Maryland’s scenic Eastern Shore. First is a house at Follys Cove for a tour led by architect David Jones, who transformed a 1950s Cape Code style house into a symmetrical house distinguished by a dramatic classical portico which frames a water view.

Second is Timberlane Farm, an elegant example of Georgian Revival architecture. Architect Wayne L. Good recently completed a major renovation and will lead the tour featuring the house’s renovations and the addition of a pool pavilion complex.

Last will be Lombardy, a 250 acre estate with a Colonial Revival mansion. Over a five year period Neumann Lewis Buchanan Architects restored the house to its original splendor, renovated an eighteenth century guest house and barn, and sensitively designed new outbuildings. The house was featured in Period Homes Magazine.
I'm unable to attend as I'll be at Highpoint Market again, but hope some of you can attend and send me the details!  R.S.V.P. to susan.sapiro@classicist-washington.org.

An early modern country house: Upmeads

Yet another interesting not so small house from "Small country houses of to-day" is Upmeads, designed by Edgar Wood in 1908.Like many of the other houses in the book, the house has been lovingly cared for in private hands and remains in nearly the exact condition in which it was built. Down to the monogram of the original owners who commissioned the house above the front door. The only change I can see is that a chauffeur's apartment has been sympathetically added on top of the original garage in the forecourt. The house is shocking for its' base modernity. Can you believe this was built in 1908?Flat roofed with a boxy plan, it is a hint of what was to come in the future.Perhaps the house was a bit before its time even as Weaver proclaims in the book "The house is unusual to the point of oddness". Even the rear terrace remains intact.Lets step inside to the original interiors (as far as I can tell). The entryway features beautifully softly groin-vaulted ceilings and herringbone oak floors.Doors have been installed between the original hall and vestibule in favor of curtains (one of the concessions to the time period).Weaver makes much of the custom fireplace mantels in the book and they still exist. I love being able to find these color photos to fill in the blanks left behind by the B&W photos.The lincrusta and other wallpaper found throughout the house appear to not be original.The groin vaulting continues in the 2nd floor hall.New heating systems have obviously been installed.More lincrusta upstairs.Color images and some history found via Manchester History and interior photography via Andy Marshall.

The Three Gables: an Architect's own house

In the comments on Acremead yesterday from the book "small country houses of to-day", Little Augury remarked that the house wasn't really very small. I hadn't thought of it but she is absolutely right! I suppose it was small in the 'Newport Cottage' sense of the word. Today I wanted to share a truly small house.

Built by the architect Cecil Hignett in 1907 for himself and his family, this house was early in his career and created his reputation. Shortly thereafter struck out on his own and had a successful career from what I could gather.

I was able to find that the house still exists and is a grade II British listed building but was unable to find any more recent photographs. The front porch and the rear 'garden room' have been filled in and incorporated into the center hall but the thatched roof and leaded glass windows remain.This house was an early example of indoor / outdoor living now so prevelant, where the hall could be opened up to the garden with a wall of doors. But this was 1907!The living room was actually a 'great room' of sorts as it served as a living and dining room. Hignett incorporated the cozy inglenook seen below, which was very much of the arts and crafts style.I think we can all agree this country house is actually on the small size and a cozy little cottage at that!

Acremead: then & now

While reading through "Small Country Houses of To-Day" by Lawrence Weaver, I came across another charming house named Acremead in Kent, England. Surprisingly the house was designed by a firm over a century ago which still exists, Smith and Brewer.One so often sees these great old houses in books and I wondered if the house still survived and in what condition. A quick google search found the house did indeed exist and looks more charming than ever!The rear facade has received a few additional windows which in my opinion only help the composition.The current owners have added a pavilion in the low garden, seen above, with work by Escape Landscape Architects where I found these recent photographs.Weaver, in his discussion on the house, commended the architects and landscapers for the clever use of a difficult, hilly site. The house was designed long and narrow with a terraced back yard which exists to this day.The gutters were originally piped into this charming lily pond, but I am not sure it still exists in the current garden.Here in this side view of the house you get a sense of the hilly siting.The new work is well done and who could argue with the addition of a pool!How much easier sleuthing has become with the aid of google!

Red House revisited

Some of you may remember last year when I wrote a brief post on the Red House, the (brief) home of William Morris designed in partnership with Philip Webb in 1859. While flipping through the book "Small country houses of to-day" by Lawrence Weaver circa 1910, I came across a critique of the house with photos and plans from that time period.The house had not yet achieved the cult status it enjoys today and the critique is fair and unbiased. Rather than emphasizing the artistic merits of the design Weaver looks at it from the useage of a family home; A fair analysis as this is what it was designed as (not the museum it is today). While certainly overall a positive look at the house, he points out fatal flaws such as a west-facing kitchen which becomes overheated while preparing dinner. Also that the primary rooms face east and north and remain dark and dreary throughout the day. Certainly not what Morris or Webb intended!Siting of a house is certainly the most important aspect of design and is so often forgotten in favor of siting the house practically with no regard as to how it is to be used. For example, bedrooms should face east to receive the morning light (or the opposite if so prefered) with living rooms facing south to enjoy the most natural light. Rooms such as kitchens and baths which are used all day long naturally belong on the northern exposure where natural light is received throughout the day in equal doses. That leads to the problem of ventilation which so often is currently relegated to mechanical systems which never work 1/2 as well as natural ventilation (windows).Also included in the article are many photographs of original furniture, Morris-designed, which were left when the house was sold. The 'settle' above shows a number of large leather bound books -don't you wonder what those are? Weaver also raises the question why the minstrel gallery was built above the bench but I think it is so charming that it negates further questioning!Always such a pleasure to see a house before and after where the house is so well maintained. I hope you enjoy the Red House as well!