Blog Archives
pool towel
A winter vacation to Phoenix was a really good idea.* It was warm. The wind didn’t blow, not even a little bit. The hotel was kitschy and comfortable (my favorite two things in a hotel.)
And there were carefully rolled towels on the chairs around the pool.
RISE Uptown Hotel
Phoenix, Arizona
photographed 12.26.2022
*Except for the part about expecting Southwest Airlines to get us home. I’ll skip through the narrative of THAT foolishness and summarize it this way: it takes 13 hours to drive home from Phoenix.
can we talk about Frank Lloyd Wright?
So, I have a degree in architecture.* You may think that means I am a fan of the most famous of all architects, Frank Lloyd Wright.
But the fact is that I am not a fan. Not even a little bit. I realize this is not a majority opinion.
Sure, his buildings were (and are) interesting to look at. He broke a lot of design standards. He was innovative.
But his buildings had (and still do have) problems. Like water leaks. Like structural problems. Like a lack of planning for future maintenance/upkeep. Like his giant ego that stood in the way of, well, a lot of things. Here’s a longer list, if you’re interested.**
We stopped at an FLW-designed church in Phoenix and it had easy examples of the stuff I just don’t like.
I am not a tall person. Not at all. This photo was made from my eye level looking at a wide concrete roof structure. Seems sort of low, right? It was. I could touch it. And again, I am not a tall person. FLW was, famously, not a tall man. And it really fells like he designed his buildings to be uncomfortable for tall (or normal-height!) people. (See note above re. his ego.) I found this quote, which I enjoyed reading: “Wright’s architectural modus operandi was to build things to suit himself, and to hell with the rest of mankind. He told his students, “I took the human being, at five feet eight and one-half inches tall, like myself, as the human scale. If I had been taller, the scale might have been different.” (The very best part is that he was actually 5′-7″, which is not the 5′-8.5″ he said, which is also amusing.)
Now, look at the underside of the roof structure? See those splotchy things? That’s where the concrete is spalling away, which is a thing concrete does as a result of continual water leaks. This is in Phoenix. Phoenix gets eight inches of rain per year. Yet still…there’s visible water damage on the building. (Not pictured is a place where the concrete had completely broken off of a column, leaving rebar exposed to the elements. That’s not generally considered a desirable outcome for concrete structures.
First Christian Church
Phoenix, Arizona
photographed 12.27.2022
*I know. It doesn’t seem right to me, either. And I am sure that my university is similarly bewildered.
**The article did say that FLW’s genius “justified” his design mistakes. I call bullshit.
the future has already sustained damage
This rendering of a new building – coming soon only one block away! – hasn’t held up too well. Let’s hope that’s not a hint about the future of the building. Or of Phoenix. Or any of us.
Phoenix, Arizona
photographed 12.27.2022
applause
During the demonstration of the orchestrion (a self-playing musical contraption), I watched this little girl. She was standing up, ready to hear some music, when she noticed that all the other kids were sitting down. I guess she decided that she didn’t want to be only one standing, so she sat down, but only momentarily: as soon as the music started, she was on her feet.
And, as you can see, she was applauding the performance.
Musical Instrument Museum
Phoenix, Arizona
photographed 12.26.2022
in love, in the rain
It seemed unusual to have a rainy day in Phoenix. But it rained off and on all day.
That gave me the chance to see this piece, “Woman in Love” (Bob Haozous, sculptor), in the garden at the Heard Museum with raindrops barely hanging on to its slick surface.
Heard Museum
Phoenix, Arizona
photographed 12.28.2022
One Day | One Image 