Carpenter Architects

Two hundred years ago there were few architects to direct carpenters in the way to build a proper home. That was just fine. Homes in general were simple and carpenter architects paid a lot of attention to detail and proportion.

There were books written by architects, that provided guidelines and formulas for the creation of homes, but those were a point of departure and did not anticipate every condition that the carpenter would encounter. Those early builders were trained well and took pride not only in the execution of their trade but also in the design of the buildings they created.

Few homes of that period have not been added onto over the centuries. The earliest additions almost universally were built well and are in keeping with the design and craftsmanship of the original home. Twenty-first century additions on the other hand, often are of poor quality materials, workmanship and design. When asked to renovate a period home, we find that much of the time, those later additions have deteriorated and must be removed.

I am always impressed with the ingenuity, and craftsmanship of those nineteenth century builders and the beauty and proportion of their work. There was a tradition of fine home building that only a few carpenters and contractors maintain today. For a wood and stone building to last 200 years, the details had to be right. Even without perfect maintenance, these beautiful homes survive and remind us that the places we live can have elegance and grace and be made to last centuries.

Photos courtesy of Historic American Buildings Survey

God is in the Details

My college architectural history professor would repeat this phrase as if it were the key to Architecture itself. This quote is attributed to renowned modernist architect, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. I believe he meant that the true beauty of a structure can be found in the details of that structure. His steel and glass structures are elegant and graceful at a distance and maintain that beauty in their details when you walk up and touch them. When I think of buildings that I like, the things I remember the most are the details. It might be the curve of a staircase, the drip cap of a window, or the brickwork in a chimney.

It is the details of a structure that can take it from the ordinary to the extraordinary. Here in Dutchess County we do not have any great Van der Rohe buildings, but I imagine you like myself, feel the difference when you walk into a home that was built in 1810 and one that was built in 1975. I am often asked by clients to take a home that they consider boring or “cookie-cutter”, maybe a 1970’s colonial and give it character… some personality and style. This can be accomplished by simply changing the details. We can take out the windows and trim and replace them with the exact same amount of material, but by placing them thoughtfully and detailing them correctly, we create an entirely different effect. The details at the eaves and gable ends can be reworked in ways that last longer and give the home presence. Unlike the 1810 home that has been kept in original condition, a 1970’s home after 35 years can feel dated or worse, begin to fall apart if detailed very poorly.

There is no question that complex details can be expensive, but with care, the same amount of material and a little thought can transform the mundane into the special. Ironically the simpler the building the more important the details and proportions become. You might hardly notice an odd detail on a Queen Ann Victorian facade, but I tend to notice every detail on an austere Shaker farm building.
When you consider that homes we build today may be in use by our great-great grandchildren or beyond, it makes sense to spend a little more time thinking about the details

(Originally published in Dutchess Magazine) Photos by Rob Karosis and H.A.B.S.