A
matter of style
Of course,
a building's appearance relies on more than structural requirements
and the functions taking place within. Like all artists, architects
manipulate the basic art elements of line, shape and space, color, and texture, and sometimes embellish the basic shapes of their designs with ornamentation. Styles—the
"fashion" of architecture—develop around how individual
architects and other untrained builders put all of these pieces together.
Housing styles also reflect the influences of the community, the owner's
affluence and tastes, the availability of plans and materials, and social
and political factors of the day.
Houses are
a great place to start a study of appearance and style, since they are
so varied and close at hand. It also helps that everyone has intimate
knowledge of his or her own house, and is an unacknowledged authority
about how it works! We'll use examples from Houses
Around Here, but houses are well-represented in many of the
other neighborhood programs and you can easily substitute
segments one of those.
Houses:
Keeping up appearances
All houses,
from one-room log houses to high-rise apartments to mansions, essentially
function as containers for family life. So the shape and embellishment
of these houses and how they are arranged into neighborhoods gives us
a wealth of information about the people who live inside, and the communities
they belonged to. For example, the Greek Revival and Italianate row houses lining the Mexican War Streets of the North Side or
the steep stairways of the South Side Slopes are a clue to their
origins in a time when everyone was a pedestrian and walked to work,
school, and shops nearby. Their compact size kept walking distances
short and allowed many families to live in a neighborhood. Their styles
were easy for carpenters to adapt to different building types without
the help of scarce professional architects.
Jim Judkis for Pittsburgh History &
Landmarks
|
Vernacular houses individualized over time, cling to the South Side Slopes. |
Detached
houses, on the other hand, like those found in the suburbs, are
larger with grassy lawns surrounding them. These houses were built for
middle class families who around 1900 began moving out of the city into
the more spacious suburbs, like Wilkinsburg, Knoxville, Westview, or
Dormont. They commuted downtown to work by train or trolley. (See Rivers
and Valleys for more about transportation and geographical development.)
Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation |
Knoxville was originally a "streetcar suburb"
where middle class families moved in the 1890s through the 1910s
to enjoy larger houses and greener lots. |
The houses
of these more affluent families Highland Park and Shadyside showcase
some of the ornate styles that were popular during Victorian times: Gothic Revival, Queen Anne, Second Empire, Romanesque,
and Colonial Revival.
Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation |
Suburbs that developed around 1900 were a showcase of Victorian
architectural styles. It was an age of exurberant embellishment,
multiple texture, peaked towers and broad porches, dormers, cupolas,
and bay windows galore! |
 Description of related video segments
Company
towns
Outside of
the city, company houses were common in the days of coal mining and steel production. They were given that name because the houses
– long economical rows of identical structures – were built
and owned by the company who owned the mines. Company managers found
this device an effective method of control over immigrant workers who
might consider quitting (i.e., you quit your job, you lose your house).
The almost style-less style of most company houses and similar utilitarian
houses is often called the Vernacular style, meaning it is a
common, simple design built by carpenters or homeowners untrained as
architects. These structures still exist in Pittsburgh's surrounding
areas, and families still live in them -- although they no longer are
controlled by the mining companies, most of which are defunct, and their
new owners spend quite a bit of effort making them uniquely theirs.
Susan Donley |
Company houses, like these in Vintondale,
were built identically with economy in mind, but owners still
found ways to make them their own (top). Bottom: Immigrant miners
built their domed orthodox church in the highest point on a steep
street. |
The
suburbs
Middle class
families in the early and mid 20th century had several interesting options
for making a move to the suburbs. Swift, the local company that originated
a way of selling and building "pre-fab" houses, allowed customers
to pick from several styles ranging from "revival" styles
like, like Cape Cod, Colonial, and Tudor to International Style-inspired
ranch houses. Swift homes became extremely popular in the 1950's
and were being built in 28 states throughout America. Ultimately, more
than 300,000 Swift homes were built worldwide.
Another example
of Pittsburgh's lasting contribution to the development of suburbia
was Chatham Village, on Mt. Washington. Built in the 1930's,
it is one of the earliest examples of planned communities. This concept
of planned communities can be attributed to the Buhl Foundation, who
wanted to build garden communities for people of moderate incomes. It
was such a success that Chatham Village became a model for planned communities
around the world.
 Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation
|
Chatham Village, on the top Mt. Washington, was a model
of planned middle class community in the 1930s. 197 housing units
shared a common space in the middle with walkways closed to traffic.
Its style was eclectic: it borrowed from several styles. |
Description of related video segments
Architect-designed
houses
The houses
in planned communities, if not exactly identical in appearance, at least
bear a strong family resemblance. At the opposite end of the spectrum
were the unique features of houses designed by Pittsburgh architects,
including Frederick
Scheibler, Frederick Sauer, Frederick Osterling,
and Walter Roberts.
Like people,
houses often change over time to reflect growing or diminishing status.
In 1892, a respectable upper middle class brick house underwent an appearance
"upgrade" at the hand of architect Frederick Osterling to match the increasing fortunes of its owners. The result was Clayton,
the grand mansion in Point Breeze that served as home to industrialist Henry Clay Frick and his family from 1882 to 1905. The home
has been restored and today holds many original Frick family treasures,
perfectly preserving life as it had been for Pittsburgh's privileged
classes at the turn of the century. Clayton opened to the public as
a museum in 1990, and through photos and artifacts, visitors can trace
the growth of the region through industry and social customs. The Fricks,
by the way, moved on to an even bigger mansion in New York.
Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation |
Clayton, the home of Henry C. Frick, is now restored and
open to the public in Point Breeze. At the time it was remodeled
in 1892, the surrounding neighborhood was home to the mansions
of the likes of the Mellons, George Westinghouse, and Andrew
Carnegie. |
Less ostentatious,
but just as unique is the work of several twentieth century architects
who had a fondness for designing houses. One unique dwelling is a collection
of stone castles in Aspinwall that has been renovated into apartment
buildings – but the unique style paid homage the castles in the
homeland of the buildings' architect, Frederick Sauer. Sauer
immigrated to Pittsburgh from Heidelberg, Germany, in the early 1900's
– just one example of how immigrants helped to shape the look of
the city by bringing with them a little bit of home.
Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation |
"The Castle," in Aspinwall, was architect Frederick
Sauer's intepretation of the architecture of his German homeland. |
Architect Frederick Scheibler was a rare architect who actually enjoyed
working on middle class and low-income housing, as well as houses for
higher-paying clients. The Old Heidelberg Apartments in Point
Breeze, his largest work, combines Modern shapes and textures (stucco)
with classic ornamentation like tile decorations and eyebrow dormers.
It works! Today, there is almost a waiting list of people who want to
live in it! Scheibler is just now being recognized for being a pioneer
of Modern architecture.
Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation |
The Hellmund House (1915-16, Swissvale) shows architect
Frederick Scheibler's experimentation with Modern style elements--
asymmetry, unusual combinations of colors, textures, and geometric
shapes. |
Description of related video segments:
Style
detective work
Regardless
of designer, the appearance of the tiniest city row house with scrubbed
stoop and beautifully planted window boxes or the sprawling suburban
estate with manicured lawn and stone Colonial Revival house—tells
much about the values and attitudes of the people who built them and
lived in them.
Savvy "architectural
detectives" can guess when a house was built almost entirely by
its appearance. Just as you can date your family photos by the clothes
people were wearing in them, you can learn to judge the age of buildings
by learning their styles. Architectural styles are the fads and fashions
of the built environment and with a little practice you'll be able
to identify those rounded stone arches as 1890s Richardson Romanesque
as surely as you peg those 1970-era bell-bottom jeans! Try guessing
the age of buildings in your hometown with this [link] Architectural
Timeline of southwestern Pennsylvania. |
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