Saturday, June 02, 2007

What not to build

Even if your neighborhood insists on McMansions, they could adhere to high aesthetical standards. Regrettably they often don't. But sometimes it is hard to figure out just WHY they look akward. A terrific book called What Not to Build explains what's wrong, what's right and what could be better with newly built home exteriors. (Heaven only KNOWS what's going on inside!!)
This house is about 4 blocks away from ours. What do YOU notice?

2 comments:

Nancy said...

1. It's ugly
2. It's out of porportion
3. what's with the white stick and mud style combined with red brick??

shudder

Lori Witzel said...

Ahh, where to begin.

Most of the tract home architecture I see looks as if the desire for Dramatic Interiors, with high ceilings, Tara-esque stairs, etc. have left the architects' creative spirit bereft by the time they began designing exteriors.

My personal pet peeves?
No depth -- windows not set in/no ledges for cats or planters.
No harmonic rhythms -- if shapes and placement were drum-beats, the visual rhythm on most would be cacophony not flow.
Motifs unhinged from their locale -- for example, the faux-Tudor allusions here, in what I'm assuming is a Texas setting, just feels jarring to me. But then, the people who like it probably like the fact that they're being a tad British (at least, in their own minds.)
Windows whose size and placement are slaves to the marketing of rooms -- i.e., "a master bedroom must have a view" and thus the window is oversized and clumsy when piercing the exterior of the house.