Gehry on the Block - Traditional Context or Cutting Edge?

Do we want a Frank Gehry on our block? Or do we want another bland colonial? Or a McMansion? Every situation is unique, but there is one golden rule: Be a good neighbor - if you can.

Choosing the right style for a new addition or improvement often leads to a debate: Whether to design in the same context as the original house, or update in a more contemporary way to better fit our needs and aspirations.

STREETSCAPE:

The streetscape is part of the public domain and it represents a consensus of the residents' acceptable environment. In older established residential areas the sudden appearance of a huge mansion or high-tech structure can be unfair to those who must dwell in the shadows of this new edifice:

I suppose all the old styles were once considered cutting edge, but lifestyles have changed dramatically in the last half century. Remodeling is usually done to make a home more livable and accommodating to these changes. Many fine old homes are the product of deft additions by several generations as their needs changed and building technology advanced. The best were gracefully enlarged or refurbished in the spirit of the original - in part because building techniques had not changed much until recently.

Today most Americans live in suburbs built more or less homogeneously within a time frame. Some of these "burbs" were hastily built and not so beautiful, but they did have consistency. Clever design can incorporate contemporary needs within the old context of the old design vernacular. However this may not satisfy the owner's desire for a break with tradition.

In a new modern subdivision, an overly historical new home may also look out of place:
Since the 1960s we have had the opportunity and materials to build in radically different ways and with any style in any location. After all a man's home is his castle. But there are some boundaries to the castle grounds, and it is good to remember that the whole neighborhood may be impacted by an inappropriate addition.

There are of course exceptions - those who live behind high walls, or in deep forests, or on large estates - may do as they wish without offending:

But for most of us, not only do "good fences make good neighbors" - but so does good design.


This article was originally printed in "Remodeling" magazine published by Hanley Wood - July, 2007