I have a confession to make. I bought my townhouse for the windows. Yeah the place is nice and the location is mostly quiet but it was the windows that made me fall in love with it. There are only three but they are wide and expansive and look out over a forested area. I remember touring the place, thinking I could possibly live here, until I saw the master bedroom window. And I was in love. We bought in August so it was lush and green outside and the nearby creek was just too pretty. When I open the windows at night I can hear the sound of the brook.
What got me thinking about all this was a recent article in Dwell magazine. I occasionally pick up home magazines because I love residential architecture. And I particularly love two different (and I mean very different) styles. The first is the cottage. Small, cheerful, warm, and bright. The second is modern. Sparse, cool, simple, and... well bright. I've realized that what I love abut both of these styles is the windows. In fact, in 95% of the pictures I pull out of these magazines, the windows are what captured my eye. The other 5% are outdoor living spaces. I am clearly infatuated with mixing the indoors and the outdoors.
The article in Dwell was covering Mies van der Rohe's Lafayette Park in Detroit. This was a planned community in Detroit filled with modern apartments, townhomes, and condos. And they're almost all glass. Here is a picture of the townhouses.
My first introduction to Mies was in college. I went to Drake and started my career in the school of journalism. That was before I realized that intense daily deadlines and I do not get along. But the school of journalism was held in an interesting glass building. Every outer classroom was floor to ceiling windows. I was in heaven. The building, interestingly enough was designed by Mies van der Rohe. It was a source of pride for the school. And a source of happiness for me.
Meredith Hall-Drake University
So I think I could possibly live in a glass house. I love the remoteness of the houses and the idea of constantly being surrounded by views of trees, animals, and nature. Mies created some of the greatest glass and steel skyscrapers around. But it is his glass house, the Farnsworth House, that I love the most. If price wasn't an issue, I'd live there.
The same with this goethermal house in North Carolina.
I'm not sure I could live in the Philip Johnson glass house but that's mostly because it is just for tours.
But I'd love to live with those windows. I just have to remember not to throw stones.
