Mies Van de Rohe’s Farnsworth House Model

Mies van der Rohe, famous for his quote, “Less is more," designed Farnsworth House in 1945. Constructed in 1951 in Plano, Illinois, the sleek and simple structure has become one of America’s architectural icons. You can own a wooden replica of the glass residence thanks to Marcus Bree of Little Building Co.  According to Bree, “My plan is to create a range of products that do justice to these great buildings and their architect's works. My architectural models have a truth to the materials they are made from and the look and feel that they could have come from the architect's own studio.” You can get to know each component of the building as it’s a kit that you construct. “I've been making architectural model kits for a few years now and it is something I'm passionate about,” Bree said. “It combines my interest in the built environment and architecture with my love for designing and developing new products.” He has completed a Kickstarter campaign for the new miniature and will begin producing them soon. I wrote previously about other models produced by Little Building Co.

Building Name Change Effects Souvenirs

What's in a name?  After 36 years being known as the Sears Tower, the iconic Chicago structure was officially renamed the Willis Tower. From the building first named "Burj Dubai" to the former "Freedom Tower," name changes impact the collectability and economics of souvenir buildings. Burj Dubai became the Burj Khalifa during its grand opening events. Gift stores in the area, caught off guard by the new name, had to scramble to change or reproduce new souvenirs with the correct name. According to The National, "Shelves in stores in Karama, the souks and even official merchandise stands yesterday were still laden with goods bearing the Burj Dubai name. Traders said sales of trinkets featuring the world's tallest tower had noticeably dropped. Orders have been rushed through for large containers of souvenirs bearing the new name, Burj Khalifa, but as the merchandise is manufactured and shipped from China and Thailand, traders were expecting a wait of at least a month until they arrive." Muhammed Salahuden of Fields Birds Fashion in Karama said, "Once I put in a new order, it can take up to two months for it to arrive. I want to get Burj Khalifa souvenirs but I will have to get rid of these first by making them cheaper or giving them as gifts." He said he was fortunate that "some people are not aware of the name change and I still managed to sell five crystal towers, but sales were a lot higher last week". The smallest Dh20 souvenir had been reduced to Dh15 while a larger Dh60 version had been slashed to Dh40. He said he is looking into the possibility of having the "Dubai" part of the name scratched off crystal souvenirs and re-etched with "Khalifa" at an engraving factory in Ajman. "It would save a lot of money if we could do that," he said. Benjamin Katana, who runs a stand in Dubai Mall called I Love UAE, said sales of gold-painted and crystal towers marked Burj Dubai had dropped by half from the previous week. "The most expensive is a gold one at Dh900 as it is studded with real crystals," he said, "and I'm not sure how quickly that will sell now. However, I did sell a smaller version of it for Dh450 yesterday." Before it was discovered to have an incorrect quote, The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial had miniature replicas of the monument for sale. Both the online and physical gift shops at the monument are no longer selling replica of the statue. They were pulled from shelves when the quote mistake was brought to light. For those who bought a replica early may now have an instantly rare replica. The skyscraper under construction now in lower-Manhattan site of the former World Trade Center was planned to be called, "Freedom Tower." Now, the building's official name is the same as its address - One World Trade Center. I've seen souvenir buildings with the Freedom Tower name already being produced. What will future souvenir models the new One World Trade Center have as their name? 

WPA Plaster Models of Historic Houses and Buildings

Works Progress Administration, or its abbreviation WPA, was a program created by executive order in 1935 to provide jobs for millions of unemployed Americans during the U.S. depression. It was instituted as part of President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal and was changed in 1939 when it was moved to the Federal Works Agency. Artists were hired to create murals, paintings, drawings, and sculptures for public buildings and educational purposes. Among the items made were a collection of plaster building replicas. Pieces are marked with WPA and sometimes have the artist's name included. There is a wealth of information online and in various institutional collections. The Broward County Library in Fort Lauderdale, Florida contains the collection "Education by Design - The Bienes Museum of Modern Book WPA Museum Extension Project Collection."  In addition to photographs of the WPA buildings in their collection there is also a copy on this site of the "WPA Museum Extension Project Catalog, 3rd Edition, 1940".  Pages 19-25 list the 104 WPA model buildings that could be ordered in 1940. The Spring 2008 edition of "Pennsylvania Heritage" journal produced by the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission has an article written by Mr. Curtis Minor, "Art with a Purpose: Pennsylvania's Museum Extension Project, 1935-1943".  It includes a section, with photographs, of the model buildings component. Shippensburg University in Shippensburg, PA houses in their Archives and Special Collections "The Pennsylvania Museum Extension Project."  A description of the collection on their web site includes links to photographic images of the WPA buildings included in their collection together with those from the Shippensburg Historical Society. The Keystone Library network has a collection with many photos. West Chester University also has a collection of WPA models. We all know of the White House, but do you know about the President's House? This Philadelphia mansion served as the 'White House' for the lion's shares of the Washington and Adams presidencies. A WPA plaster model was made of this historic house. Previously, I wrote about perhaps the grand-daddy of all WPA models, the replica of Independence Hall. Thank you to both Joe K., for some of the photos displayed here, and Russell K. for contributing some great information and links.

Ceremonial Mace with Architectural Design

When you hear the word, ‘mace,’ what do you envision? A brand of tear gas or pepper spray? A spice similar to nutmeg? A weapon with a heavy head on a solid shaft used to bludgeon opponents?  Well, all of these are true, but there is only one that architectural fans might find of interest. The ceremonial mace an ornamented mace used in civic ceremonies and they sometimes have an architectural design. The White Tower Mace was used during a commemoration service for the 500th Anniversary of the death of King Henry VII at Westminster Abbey in England, see photo above. Colleges also use building-like ceremonial maces including Elon University, Iowa State University, Augustana College has a wooden version and the Madrid Museum has ceremonial maces and lantern dating to the 15th Century. 

China’s Duplitecture: “Original Copies” of Famous Buildings

I recently wrote about full-scale replicas of iconic structures and souvenirs that go with them. We can include Las Vegas, which can take replica architecture to an extreme with pyramid hotels and replicas of the Statue of Liberty and Empire State building. Now China is joining

in the landmark copying act. In the Tianducheng housing complex near Hangzhou, China, you’ll see a peculiar sight: the Eiffel Tower. Bright replicas of the White House also dot Chinese cities from Fuyang to Shenzhen. These examples are but a sampling of China’s most popular and startling architectural movement: the construction of monumental themed communities that replicate towns and cities in the West. It’s “duplitecture,” so named by author Bianca Bosker, who writes about the practice in her new book:  Original Copies: Architectural Mimicry in Contemporary China (Spatial Habitus) Another book with a similar theme is:  Shanghai New Towns: Searching for Community and Identity in a Sprawling Metropolis (English and Mandarin Chinese Edition)

Full-Scale Replicas of Famous Buildings Around the World

As everyone knows, the Notre Dame Cathedral is in Kentucky, the Leaning Tower of Pisa is in Illinois, the World Trade Center is in Trinton Falls, N.J., and the Eiffel Tower is in Paris…Texas, that is. While these are not the original structures, they are all large, sometimes full-scale replicas of the famous landmarks. Also in an odd twist, sometimes miniature replica souvenirs are made of the large replicas. The full-scale replica of the Parthenon in Nashville, Tennessee makes resin replicas of it’s replica (see photo above). There is a house in McLean, Va. just out side of Washington, D.C., that is a full-scale replica of the White House. It includes the Oval Office, Lincoln Bedroom, and Portico. A filmmaker in Bangladesh is building a full-scale replica of the Taj Mahal. A ½ size Leaning Tower of Pisa was built in Niles, Illinois in 1934 as part of a recreation park for employees of the Ilg Hot Air Electric Ventilating Company. In 1960, part of the park was donated for the construction of the Leaning Tower YMCA. One-third scale replica of the Notre Dame is located in Covington, Kentucky and named the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption. Construction began in 1894, but the cathedral project was terminated in 1915 and is incomplete. Replicas of the Eiffel Tower are all over the world, from the U.S., to Europe, to Aisa and South America. Here is a list so you can visit each one. So, if you’re tired of collecting replicas that are just inches tall, you can now buy or build larger duplicates of your favorite landmark architecture.

American Surety & Park Row Cast Iron Building Replicas

While we can all recognize the Flatiron and Woolworth buildings from their cast iron bank replicas, two others always seemed generic to me. Until Steve V. pointed out that one was a replica of the Park Row building in Manhattan. Attributed to the coin bank & toy maker, A.C. Williams, the cast iron miniature has 4 towers on top rather than only 2 like the real building. This bank was made in a few different sizes. The real Park Row Building is on on Park Row in the Financial District of the New York City also known as 15 Park Row. The building was designed by R. H. Robertson, a pioneer in steel skyscraper design. One of the first structures to be called a skyscraper, the building was completed in 1899 and was one of several new office buildings located on what was known at the time as "Newspaper Row," the center of the newspaper industry in New York City for 80 years beginning in the 1840s. At 391 feet (119 m), it was the tallest office building in the world from 1899 until 1908. The foundation of the Park Row Building was made of 3,900 Georgia spruce piles driven into wet sand and topped by granite blocks. The design recalls the double-towered Baroque churches of Europe, and more explicitly echoes the architecture of the church of the Monastery of São Vicente da Fora of Lisbon.

Another cast iron bank resembles the American Surety Building and was made in a few sizes. The real building was constructed 1894-1896 by architect Bruce Price, and was one of Manhattan's first buildings with steel framing and curtain wall construction. At its original 21 stories. Price described his design as "a campanile with four pilaster faces, the seven flutes being represented by seven rows of windows". The building is set on an irregular, trapezoidal lot, and designed as a Neo-Renaissance tower clad in Maine granite with a 3-story base, an 12-story shaft, and a 6-story cap. (Its 4th and 15 stories are transitional.) The base is an Ionic entrance colonnade topped with sculptures in a classical style. Above rises a middle section of horizontally banded piers with vertical strips framing the windows, which culminates in a row of figural sculptures extending from the 14th to 15th stories. A further six-story cap (subsequently modified) featured a colonnade of Corinthian pilasters, stone cornice, and a crowning parapet of gilded metal acroteria on the setback 20th and 21st stories. In 1920-1922, New York architect Herman Lee Meader supervised alterations which included a new L-shaped annex that widened the tower from 7 to 11 bays, and addition of several stories, which greatly modified the original cap.

Two other common cast-iron coin banks do seem generic - a domed building and a pyramidal-roofed buildings both which have the word, 'bank.' Can anyone can identify these two buildings? If so, share the information via the 'comments' link below. 

10 Buildings That Changed America

Watch 10 Buildings that Changed America on PBS. See more from 10 Buildings that Changed America.

A new program on PBS explores architectural styles and their influence on buildings across America. From the Thomas Jefferson-designed Virginia state capitol building that first declared our architectural independence from Great Britain to an iconic Prairie-style home by Frank Lloyd Wright. Fom the factory that housed Henry Ford’s first Model T moving assembly line to the original indoor regional shopping mall. Fom H. H. Richardson’s iconic Trinity Church in Boston to Frank Gehry’s game-changing Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, we see the influence of America’s best architects all around us – in the homes where we live, the offices where we work, our public buildings, and houses of worship. Many have been shaped in one way or another by a handful of imaginative, audacious, and sometimes even arrogant Americans throughout history whose bold ideas have been copied far and wide. Sometimes in a flash of inspiration these architects have dared to strike out on their own and design a radical new building that has permanently altered our built environment. 10 Buildings that Changed America is a journey that will take you across America and inside these groundbreaking works of art and engineering. It is also a journey back in time to discover the shocking, funny, and even sad stories of how these buildings were created. And it is a journey inside the imaginations of ten daring architects who set out to change the way we live, work, and play.

Building Fragments in Chicago’s Tribune Tower

After reading my post about Souvenir Architecture Fragments, reader Chris B. informed me of stone fragments at Chicago’s Tribune Tower. Almost 150 fragments from famous structures and historic sites around the world and all 50 U.S. states are embedded in Tribune Tower's first story exterior walls. They include chunks of the Great Wall of China, the Great Pyramid of Cheops, the Berlin Wall, the White House, the Coliseum, and even a moon rock. 
Along the south wall you'll find the most recent addition to the tower; a steel beam fragment from the World Trade Center destroyed in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. The tradition began in 1914 when Col. Robert R. McCormick, the Chicago Tribune's longtime editor and publisher, was covering WWI. Touring a medieval cathedral in Ypres, France that had been damaged by German shelling, he grabbed a piece of stone. Many of the pieces were gifts to Col. McCormick and some were brought back to Chicago by foreign correspondents. These pieces of history reflect the aspirations of the Tribune Tower's creators: To make the fledging skyscraper one of the world's greatest monuments. Ultimately the stones provide a popular, vicarious 'round-the-world' tour that helps represent the Tribune's global reach.

Animated Architect ABC Video

Do you know you're ABC's of architects?  If not, you will after watching this video.
The ABC of Architects from fedelpeye on Vimeo.

Wooden Box Replicas of FLW Buildings

The Larkin Administration Building was Frank Lloyd Wright's office building built for the Larkin Company in Buffalo, New York in 1906. Tragically, the real building was demolished in the 1950's. You can own a miniature model of this building hand-crafted from wood. This is not an exact model but an homage to that wonderful building. The top of the box lifts off revealing an inner tray lined with lacewood. This in turn lifts out to uncover two more trays that lift out as well. These two trays are divided so as to suggest the inner atrium in the original building. The last two compartments are in the end sections of the roof. All six compartments are lined with black velvet. A similar replica is made of the Unity Temple, the Frank Lloyd Wright designed church in Oak Park, Illinois. According to the web site, Jay Rogers of Cambridge, Massachusetts, building these building boxes. These remind of the Cigar Humidors made to look like famous buildings or the wooden desk I wrote about previously. 

Buffalo City Hall Building Miniature Replicas

This imposing art deco marvel has an observation deck on top that affords a 360 degree view of the city of Buffalo and Lake Erie. The real building opened in 1931 and designed by architects Dietel, Wade & Jones. At 378 feet from the street to the tip of the tower, it is one of the largest and tallest municipal buildings in the United States. The building has 32 stories, 26 of which are usable office space, and is 398 feet high from the street to the tip of the tower. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999. A miniature resin replica was produced recently as a give-away for attending a Buffalo Bison baseball game in the city. InFocusTech also makes a version in metal. (I recently visited Buffalo, N.Y. and toured some of the rich architectural heritage of Buffalo. This post is part of a series about miniature architecture of that city. The other posts can be found here.)

Frank Lloyd Wright Archive Moving to New York

Architect Frank Lloyd Wright was a collector. He collected everything and anything related to his work. He saved his doodle on a Plaza Hotel cocktail napkin of an imagined city on Ellis Island, his earliest pencil sketch of the spiraling Guggenheim Museum and his architectural models. The archive of his work in various forms is moving to New York for preservation by the Museum of Modern Art and Columbia University’s Avery Architectural & Fine Arts Library.  Reader, Howie G. sent me a tip about this news. The collection includes more than 23,000 architectural drawings, about 40 large-scale, architectural models, some 44,000 photographs, 600 manuscripts and more than 300,000 pieces of office and personal correspondence. 

The Shard: Western Europe's Tallest Building Opens in London

As the world's cities continue to reach for the sky, a sleek, 1,016-foot structure was officially opened in London, England. Italian architect Renzo Piano, who designed the building, gave the building the name The Shard when he referred to it during the planning stages as a "shard of glass." Others have dubbed it "The Cheese Grater." The design was inspired by Canaletto's paintings of the Thames and the masts of tall ships that once graced the city. The 12-year, 1.5 billion-pound project will include a five-star hotel, restaurants, 600,000 square metres of office space, and shops. There will be 10 flats on floors 53 - 65 which will be the highest homes in Britain. The project came close to cancellation in 2007, amid the credit crunch. Qatar came to the rescue - funding 95 % of the construction and adding the Shard to its portfolio of London properties, which includes the Olympic Village and Harrods. There is an observation deck for visitors on the 69th floor that will open to the public in February 2013. Check out this informative video via Sky News and more views from the BBC website. I have not seen any souvenir replicas of the Shard as yet, but will be on the lookout. If you see any, let us know via the comments link below.  

Skyscraper: Art and Architecture Chicago Exhibit

Reader Isbell sent me this tip about an exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago entitled, Skyscraper: Art and Architecture Against Gravity. According to the museum’s website, the show “examines contemporary works of art that take as their subject the form, technology, myth, message, and image of that iconic building structure, the skyscraper. While the exhibition has particular relevance to Chicago, the city that is widely known as the birthplace of this architectural type, artists throughout the world—in addition to authors, filmmakers, poets, and undoubtedly architects—have been enthralled by the human desire to build farther and farther into the sky, testing technological limits while embodying a yearning for spiritual connection to the heavens. Artists’ endeavors to explore this desire have taken many forms, from video and film to sculpture, painting, and photography.” The show runs through September 2012. 

Tel Aviv’s Bauhaus Architecture

Israel’s city of Tel Aviv has the largest collection of buildings built in the Bauhaus architecture style of Germany. Bauhaus architecture flourished in Tel Aviv in the 1930’s because 17 former Bauhaus students worked as architects in the city. The Washington Post wrote about Tel Aviv’s Bauhaus neighborhood. Check out more photos of actual buildings in the city. Bauhaus-style ceramic replicas of Tel Aviv apartment buildings are scaled 1:1000. One example is a miniature of Tel Aviv-Yafo City Hall that measures 1 5/8 inches tall and 3 inches wide and is marked on the bottom with “Typical Local Bauhaus.” The Bauhaus Center’s gift shop still sells some of the miniature replicas and the occasionally show up on eBay.

Architectural Birdfeeders

An encounter and subsequent purchase of a birdfeeder in the shape of a White Tower restaurant got me thinking about what other building-shaped birdfeeders might exist. I did some Internet sleuthing and discovered a variety of designs from modern houses to skyscrapers to towers. Similar, but not as well known as White Castle, White Tower Restaurants were founded in 1926 and served five-cent hamburgers mostly on the east coast and mid west. Seattle’s Space Needle, the 1962 World's Fair's emblem of a "sky's-the-limit" future, became popular with local residents. Seattleites build all sorts of replicas, including Otto Horschuch who constructed an aluminum bird feeder in the shape of the famous landmark. Some birdhouses are mass-produced of plastic. While others are hand crafted including a replica of the Empire Building is both a nesting box and a bird feeder and is Located in historic courthouse square in Santa Rosa, California. A contemporary house styled birdfeeder is sleek and white. I’ve written in the past about architectural birdhouses.

Colorado Federal Savings Souvenir Building Bank

From bank to burgers. This building, with its mid-century accordion-style roof, has seen a few changes in its day. Originally built as The Colorado Federal Savings bank, it is located at 200 16th Street in Denver, Colorado. The building was designed by architect William Muchow. The interior of the building was substantially altered to be used as a McDonalds after the bank ceased operation. An article in Architectural Record noted that William Muchow Associates of Denver designed the building to contrast with its merchant neighbors by including large expanses of masonry without windows. The building, which featured quartz terrazzo exterior panels, also integrated function and aesthetics with economic considerations. The concrete folded-plate roof provided a less costly way to span the interior without columns. The building is on the National Register of Historic Places. A souvenir replica coin bank of this building was manufactured in 1958 by Banthrico. They are made of copper-toned pot metal and measure 6-3/8" x 3-3/8" and 2-3/8" tall. I wrote about this souvenir figural building coin bank before and its distinctive roof.

Blackpool Tower Renovated

Blackpool Tower has recently undergone a 10-month, multi-million pound refurbishment. The yea-long regeneration project, aimed at encouraging families to stay longer in the resort, is part of a £20m investment for the tower and promenade. The observation platform at the top of the Grade I-listed structure becomes the Blackpool Tower Eye. Also added is what has become the newest craze in observation tower features, a glass floor. The SkyWalk rewards visitors will be a spectacular, never seen before, bird's eye view of the famous Blackpool Promenade and coastline hundreds of feet below. I’ve written before about souvenir replicas of the Blackpool Tower.

Smart Phone Apps for Architecture Fans

You can search and browse architecture online and also take the knowledge with you. Downloadable apps for both the iPhone and Android are available. Brad S. sent me this tip. Called, OpenBuildings, you can find, learn and share architecture around you. According to the site, it was “created by architects, the Buildings App gives tourists and architecture enthusiasts a mobile encyclopedia of more than 40,000 buildings across the globe to discover at their fingertips, complete with expert commentary and insight. The app enhances your experience by using GPS to identify your location and highlight interesting ‘Nearby’ buildings. The architecture in the app’s database supplies information, images and videos about historical buildings and modern architecture, which have been crowd-sourced from architects from around the world. It is the most up-to-date and detailed database of buildings in the world today. You can find and get directions to interesting architecture nearby, add photos to buildings you are visiting, make comments, check-in and also share with your friends; in addition the app shows you daily featured buildings from around the world. With "Buildings" in your pocket, you can indulge your passion for local architecture and enjoy a more profound understanding of the history of the buildings around you than ever before.” There are other apps available with architectural themes.