January 31, 2011/Mid-Century Modern /by Mid-Century Mike

More Moderns on the Water in Maryland

Following my post yesterday on a house by noted Seattle architect Wendell Lovett, here are two more modern homes on the water in Maryland. You can tell I am dreaming about summer and buying a place on the water. Both these homes–one is from the early ’70s and one is from the late ’80s–are more what people consider “contemporary”-style homes rather than your classic mid-century moderns from the 1950s and 1960s. This house from 1989 sits on almost an acre right on the Chesapeake Bay. The price has dropped from $1.3 million to $1.099 million and needs work. It has been on the market for nearly 1,000 days. This 1972 home is listed for $700K and sits on nearly a half an acre on Lake Ogleton near the Severn River. It has dropped $100K and been on the market for more than 200 days.

January 29, 2011/Mid-Century Modern /by Mid-Century Mike

Modern Snapshot: Mid-Century Wheaton Woods Baptist Church

Some shots from today of the Wheaton Woods Baptist Church located here in Rockville. Nothing spectacular, but a solid mid-century modern church. Or, as this site I discovered recently would call it: Mid-Century Mundane. The site “was created to explore a specific genre of architecture that has largely been ignored. While architecture of the mid-century and recent past have become more appreciated in recent years, there is a category of vernacular building that uses a modern architecture vocabulary and contributes to a sense of place, but is generally not considered significant or as a candidate for preservation.” Scroll the site’s images. I found a number of shots from the D.C. area.

January 19, 2011/Hollin Hills Virginia /by Mid-Century Mike

Old House Online Examines Hollin Hills’ Modernism

It has been quiet in Hollin Hills during the past few months. The last new listing came on the market 75 days ago. While Hollin Hills is hibernating for the winter, here’s a new piece from Old House Online about the neighborhood by Charles Goodman and Robert Davenport. Thanks to my friends at the Takoma Avenue Historic District for posting. (Yes, there are five Goodmans in Takoma Park; they are in the National Register of Historic Places like Rock Creek Woods and Hammond Wood. ) The residents of Hollin Hills have been working on securing the neighborhood’s own historic designation.

January 16, 2011/Mid-Century Modern /by Mid-Century Mike

Biscayne Boulevard: ‘Tropical Modern’ Paradise

When I was down in Florida for the holidays, my wife and I left the kids with grandma and grandpa and took a cruise along Biscayne Boulevard to take in the MiMo (Miami Modern) architecture. In 2006, the city of Miami designated Biscayne Boulevard from NE 50th Street to NE 77th Street as the Biscayne Boulevard Historic District. “Before the rise of Brickell Avenue, Biscayne Boulevard was Miami’s prestigious suburban address, ” the authors of MiMo: Miami Modern Revealed write. “A string of stylish Subtroprical Modern office buildings lined the street side by side with colorful motels. The strip fell into a long period of desuetude during the 1970s.” The area suffered from “benign neglect” with little new development keeping the mid-century modern structures intact, although many we saw were vacant with lease signs out front. While the area has seen a bit of gentrification, it is still rough around the edges.

Our first stop was the 1963 Bacardi Building by Cuban-born architect Enrique Gutierrez. The iconic blue-and-white ceramic tile floral patterns were done by Brazilian artist Francisco Brennard. Ten years later, Bacardi added more office space in the annex, a two-story office building cantilevered of a central core. The glass murals are a abstract depiction of the rum making process.

There are 28,000 hand-crafted tiles on the building.

Just down the block from the Bacardi complex, we found a vacant mid-century modern apartment building and a cool office building with metal brise-soleil (sun screen).

Further north, we found the 1965 TechnoMarine Building (architect unknown) with its distinctive wave-like screen block. The building houses office upstairs with retail space on the ground level.

While the TechnoMarine Building had some tenants, other office buildings we saw were not so lucky.

The 1962 Gulf American Building (below, architect unknown) had been the most prominent office tower beyond downtown Miami. It eventually became the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Building. It is now vacant.

We took the above picture from the parking lot of the 1953 Biscayne Plaza Shopping Center by Robert Fitch Smith. The center was Miami’s first suburban strip mall.

You can still see some original details such as the floating staircases.

The visually interesting bridges were actually office space.

One of the most prevalent types of mid-century buildings along this stretch of road is the motel. During the 1950s, Biscayne Boulevard (part of U.S. Highway 1 that runs from Maine to Key West) catered to travelers heading into Miami from the north looking for some fun in the sun.

The 1953 Motel New Yorker by Norman Giller.

Bye from Biscayne Boulevard. Atomic sidewalk markings along the historic district.

January 9, 2011/Mid-Century Modern /by Mid-Century Mike

Chloethiel Woodard Smith’s Modernist Harbour Square

Some of the most breathtaking views in Washington can be had from the top of Chloethiel Woodard Smith’s mid-century modern Harbour Square (1960-1966) along the Southwest waterfront. During the D.C. Preservation League’s tour of Southwest in October, the group had a chance to take in the views from the roof of the complex. (One of the participants on the tour lives in Harbour Square and escorted us up.)

Designed as an upscale component of Southwest’s urban renewal during the 1950s and ’60s, Harbour Square has nearly 450 condos around a monumental reflecting pool as part of Smith and Dan Kiley’s modernist landscape.

Smith, who was a major force behind the redevelopment of Southwest, and Kiley’s work is just steps away from Hideo Sasaki’s Waterside Park along the Washington Channel.

Want to have a piece of this view? I see close to a dozen units on the market, ranging from this 1 bed/1 bath for $195K to this 3 bed/2.5 bath unit with water views, Poggenpohl cabinets in the kitchen and contemporary bathrooms. It is listed at $1.175 million. This unit listed for $610K gets a special mention because the agent mentions Smith in his marketing and because of some very nice pictures.

Here are a couple of shots of the lobby of one of the buildings. Large expanses of glass bring the outside in while new versions of period appropriate furniture are ready for you to relax in after a hard day of taking in the views from the roof.

January 4, 2011/Preservation /by Mid-Century Mike

Saving the 1970 Brown Planetarium

Named as one of Arlington County’s most endangered historic places for 2010, the 1970 David M. Brown Planetarium in Arlington is facing closure amid much needed capital improvements that the county’s school district said it cannot fund. The mid-century facility is the sole freestanding school planetarium open to the public in the D.C. area. While a $100,000 gift to a local group working to keep the facility open has achieved the goal for now, $160,000 is still needed. You can help support the group’s efforts here.

January 1, 2011/Mid-Century Modern /by Mid-Century Mike

New Year Modern Calendar Contest

Happy New Year. I hope you have a very happy, healthy and modern 2011. To start the new year off, I am running a contest for a 2011 MoMA Chairs calendar as seen above. (Actual chair not included.) All you have to do to enter is post a comment below, on Facebook or send me a message on Twitter telling me about your modern New Year’s resolution. Do you want to visit homes designed by your favorite architect? Buy that piece of mid-century modern furniture you have been pining for? (Eames Lounge Chair for me.) Or do you plan to read every issue of Dwell ever published? All who enter will be placed in a hat and picked at random. Submissions due by midnight on Tuesday, Jan. 4. Good luck.

Month: January 2011