This blog is a digital forum to discuss the link between history and the people, events, and ideas shaping our world.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
RPG 303: Art and Diversity of Place -- Blog Prompt 2
Casa Feliz, formerly known as the Barbour House and referred to as the "Crown Jewel of the City of Homes," represents the ultimate expression of the union between social and architectural desire.
I hate to break it to the owners of Casa Feliz, but perfection is relative. While their home is astounding and worthy of being called "a jewel" it is not everyone's type of jewel. Kind of like with women, some of us like Diamonds, some of us prefer Emeralds. A home like Casa Feliz is not there to please only those living in it, but also those living outside it. How peaceful can a home really be if there are random strangers coming up to your home to gawk at it? How much of a right do the owners of Casa Feliz have over their house? Think of all the maintenance that goes into it. Putting all of things into account Casa Feliz begins to sound more like Casa Triste, or a golden cage. The real question here is, just how much liberty do people have over what they do to their homes, where is the line? Liberty ending at the tip of somebody else’s nose seems to apply to homes as well.
Judging from the outside, "Casa Feliz" may seem like a worthy title for this house but as a home it may not be so. The house is astoundingly beautiful architecturally and big enough to encompass more space than a family really needs (to be honest). But is it really a 'happy home'? Certainly, I think there is a big distinction between a house and a home. The house may be the desire of many from the outside but on the inside it could be filled with emptiness and unhappiness. This huge house represents what society wants and is the "jewel of the city of homes". Socially, this house is be the envy of the neighborhood. Yet, I do not believe that happiness equates to the "biggest" house. Rather, I think that happiness (or a "casa feliz") comes from a loving home.
The union of social and architectural desire can be argued to be present in the Barbour House. But, like what my grandma has always told me, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I agree with Tyler that zoning is a necessity, and its a must for any city that wants to become a successful one. But with zoning comes censorship of imagination. In the James Gamble book, the author spoke of how the buildings Gamble designed were "impressive alone...but as a group of nearly one hundred created more than romance..they form a community". I think this is something our country has began to lose, a sense of community and/or place. In many states especially in Florida, developers only give the home owner a handful of house designs to choose from. And often the houses are already built so the location of your "chosen" home could be in an undesirable location; i.e. the end of the street or train tracks. The creativity and overall process of buying & building a home can be argued to being as simple as buying something at the grocery store.
I agree greatly with what has already been said. Casa Feliz is beautiful; however, it does not seem to warrant the title of home. After perusing the website for the house, you can see a myriad of events constantly happening with outsiders always surveying what is going on. I can weigh both sides of zoning laws and historic societies. On one side I love laws put down by the historic society in my hometown, which has saved much of the history of the town as most houses date pre-civil war. The history of a home can be more than just a structure, but what happened in that home. However, that is part of the uniqueness of Winter Park in how all the homes are similar but very different, much of which is due to a lack of such societies.
Casa Feliz is a beautiful home and I think it definitely shows a cohesive theme that brings a home and some social aspects that most homes wouldn't have together. I understand zoning laws but I have never liked the idea of someone saying what my house can or cannot look like. This probably stems from my neighborhood where there isn't a real zoning issue because we own the few acres of house around my house and have a nice yard and my neighbors are my grandparents. My yard is over grown with trees and bushes and basically whatever my dad feels like planting. I feel a person has a right as a home owner to make a home how they want and I see that same feeling coming out in casa feliz. With its red bricks, blue shutters, and the foliage surrounding the building I can see neighbors having an issue with its own special appeal that stands out amongst homes. I also agree entirely with everyone’s opinions of beauty is in the eye of the beholder and that it’s hard to live in a home that can be a prison to gawk at but I like the charm the building portrays to the viewer and it does its job as a social site and a home with its events and gathering of community.
I have not yet had the pleasure of visiting Casa Feliz, but from browsing photos I can clearly see why this architectural work is so popular and sought after for tours and events. It is a house that is beautiful and pleasant to look at. Pictures show it with a bright green mowed front lawn and meticulously placed bricks that all line up perfectly. If you were to ask my father, this would be his dream image of a house. But for me, Casa Feliz represents an attraction rather than a home. In its attempt to create a flawless union between social and architectural desire, it leaves out the most important part of a “happy house” – the family that lives inside of it. I understand that Casa Feliz is now a museum, but at a certain point the public needs to realize that they do not need a beautiful house museum to show them what they should want and strive for in a home. That decision should be left up to them, and not the social norms of society.
JGR was able to bring each of his client’s desires to life by exploring many different styles, including the Spanish Eclectic, French Provincial, and American Colonial Revival. Florida quickly became known as the American Riviera, with its Mediterranean climate and the Spanish inspired architecture style, and quickly developed into a winter home for the wealthy Northerners. Casa Feliz shows the rich texture of Spanish roof tiles, a bell tower and a heavy timber balcony, old fashioned bricks, as well as Mediterranean colors which reminded me of the country farm houses I’ve seen during my travels in Spain. The landscaping around the house is impressive, neatly organized and precise. Casa Feliz, means “Happy House” and reflects the “union between social and architectural desire” in the sense that it brought a jewel to the growing community of Winter Park and influenced the cultural and future architectural styles of the community. Roger’s designs are works of art, and many of his buildings, including casa Feliz look “timeworn” adding to his aesthetic desires. Rogers was able to create the client’s ultimate vision for their ideal home, which further promoted the union between social and architectural desire. Casa Feliz became part of the larger community, rather than a detached house within the landscape.
7 comments:
I hate to break it to the owners of Casa Feliz, but perfection is relative. While their home is astounding and worthy of being called "a jewel" it is not everyone's type of jewel. Kind of like with women, some of us like Diamonds, some of us prefer Emeralds. A home like Casa Feliz is not there to please only those living in it, but also those living outside it. How peaceful can a home really be if there are random strangers coming up to your home to gawk at it? How much of a right do the owners of Casa Feliz have over their house? Think of all the maintenance that goes into it. Putting all of things into account Casa Feliz begins to sound more like Casa Triste, or a golden cage. The real question here is, just how much liberty do people have over what they do to their homes, where is the line? Liberty ending at the tip of somebody else’s nose seems to apply to homes as well.
Judging from the outside, "Casa Feliz" may seem like a worthy title for this house but as a home it may not be so. The house is astoundingly beautiful architecturally and big enough to encompass more space than a family really needs (to be honest). But is it really a 'happy home'? Certainly, I think there is a big distinction between a house and a home. The house may be the desire of many from the outside but on the inside it could be filled with emptiness and unhappiness. This huge house represents what society wants and is the "jewel of the city of homes". Socially, this house is be the envy of the neighborhood. Yet, I do not believe that happiness equates to the "biggest" house. Rather, I think that happiness (or a "casa feliz") comes from a loving home.
The union of social and architectural desire can be argued to be present in the Barbour House. But, like what my grandma has always told me, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I agree with Tyler that zoning is a necessity, and its a must for any city that wants to become a successful one. But with zoning comes censorship of imagination. In the James Gamble book, the author spoke of how the buildings Gamble designed were "impressive alone...but as a group of nearly one hundred created more than romance..they form a community". I think this is something our country has began to lose, a sense of community and/or place. In many states especially in Florida, developers only give the home owner a handful of house designs to choose from. And often the houses are already built so the location of your "chosen" home could be in an undesirable location; i.e. the end of the street or train tracks. The creativity and overall process of buying & building a home can be argued to being as simple as buying something at the grocery store.
I agree greatly with what has already been said. Casa Feliz is beautiful; however, it does not seem to warrant the title of home. After perusing the website for the house, you can see a myriad of events constantly happening with outsiders always surveying what is going on. I can weigh both sides of zoning laws and historic societies. On one side I love laws put down by the historic society in my hometown, which has saved much of the history of the town as most houses date pre-civil war. The history of a home can be more than just a structure, but what happened in that home. However, that is part of the uniqueness of Winter Park in how all the homes are similar but very different, much of which is due to a lack of such societies.
Casa Feliz is a beautiful home and I think it definitely shows a cohesive theme that brings a home and some social aspects that most homes wouldn't have together. I understand zoning laws but I have never liked the idea of someone saying what my house can or cannot look like. This probably stems from my neighborhood where there isn't a real zoning issue because we own the few acres of house around my house and have a nice yard and my neighbors are my grandparents. My yard is over grown with trees and bushes and basically whatever my dad feels like planting. I feel a person has a right as a home owner to make a home how they want and I see that same feeling coming out in casa feliz. With its red bricks, blue shutters, and the foliage surrounding the building I can see neighbors having an issue with its own special appeal that stands out amongst homes. I also agree entirely with everyone’s opinions of beauty is in the eye of the beholder and that it’s hard to live in a home that can be a prison to gawk at but I like the charm the building portrays to the viewer and it does its job as a social site and a home with its events and gathering of community.
I have not yet had the pleasure of visiting Casa Feliz, but from browsing photos I can clearly see why this architectural work is so popular and sought after for tours and events. It is a house that is beautiful and pleasant to look at. Pictures show it with a bright green mowed front lawn and meticulously placed bricks that all line up perfectly. If you were to ask my father, this would be his dream image of a house. But for me, Casa Feliz represents an attraction rather than a home. In its attempt to create a flawless union between social and architectural desire, it leaves out the most important part of a “happy house” – the family that lives inside of it. I understand that Casa Feliz is now a museum, but at a certain point the public needs to realize that they do not need a beautiful house museum to show them what they should want and strive for in a home. That decision should be left up to them, and not the social norms of society.
JGR was able to bring each of his client’s desires to life by exploring many different styles, including the Spanish Eclectic, French Provincial, and American Colonial Revival. Florida quickly became known as the American Riviera, with its Mediterranean climate and the Spanish inspired architecture style, and quickly developed into a winter home for the wealthy Northerners. Casa Feliz shows the rich texture of Spanish roof tiles, a bell tower and a heavy timber balcony, old fashioned bricks, as well as Mediterranean colors which reminded me of the country farm houses I’ve seen during my travels in Spain. The landscaping around the house is impressive, neatly organized and precise. Casa Feliz, means “Happy House” and reflects the “union between social and architectural desire” in the sense that it brought a jewel to the growing community of Winter Park and influenced the cultural and future architectural styles of the community. Roger’s designs are works of art, and many of his buildings, including casa Feliz look “timeworn” adding to his aesthetic desires. Rogers was able to create the client’s ultimate vision for their ideal home, which further promoted the union between social and architectural desire. Casa Feliz became part of the larger community, rather than a detached house within the landscape.
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