Revisiting Richard Meier

Visiting the Rachofsky House in Dallas I immediately fell into a blissfull calm as my eyes set upon the white uninterrupted walls. For months I have been in a mind numbing project chasing arhcitectural 1/4" reveals joining disparate materials of choice. Any architect will tell you that the reveal as a construction strategy is a bane and burden when its exactness becomes a sloppy mess. The reveal can be found in most Starbucks, hotel lobbies, banks, corporate lobbies, airports, museums, restaurants--you get the picture.

Before arriving to the house, I had done some research on the internet and consulted my yellowing white Richard Meier monograph book. This would be my first experience with a Meier house. The Meier houses, through photographs, have been my first encounter with his white blocks of relentless grids, inhuman volumes and the whiteness. The Rachofsky House returned my optimism to experimental spaces, anthropomorphic rhythm, and the defining anchor of house--the human body. Also, the house made me like Richard Meier again and with good reason.

Upon entering the house, the volumes of spaces are saddled around the second floor "living room" that houses large art works. This is the largest space in the house and all other spaces either look onto it, surrround it, cantilever over it or turn their backs to it. I believe its visual, spatial and experiential power is derived from the attentive surfaces--its enclosure, its frame, its openings. The walls and ceilings are rarely interrupted except by glass, small pinpricks of downlights and doorways. Otherwise the walls and ceilings are a continuous plane moving through and around spaces highlighting the best intrusion of them all, the human body. When a human figure stands at the third floor, the soaring volume immediately stands in good behavior. It becomes domestic, the Brady Bunch house, it wants bodies, families, a party. Let's face it, the Rachofsky House's main resident is art and there is nothing messy about its inhabitant. This house, unlike most homes, is begging to be public.

Nothing New at the Kimbell Cafe and I Think that's Fine

I have had numerous discussions with people who frequently eat at the Kimbell Art Museum's Cafe and I hear the same moan, " The food never changes. It's always the same!" When I hear this comment I think of Eisenberg's Sandwhich Shoppe on Fifth Avenue in New York City. People go there for the same things: the tuna melt, the lime ricki, matzo ball soup and the pastrami. It is always the same all the time. If things are repeated well especially food I think its a great reason to go. However, the Kimbell Cafe serves its food in a wonderful, modern space which makes going there a real treat.

The Kimbell cafe has the wonderful quality of serenity, only a combination of light and air could provide such an environment. The architect, Louis Kahn, located the cafe adjacent to an open air courtyard enclosed by glass on all four sides. Unlike the nasty courtyard next door at the Cafe Modern, the courtyard allows diffuse sunlight to pour onto its wood floor giving the space an amber glow while wisps of sunlight seeps onto the concrete above. It's a simple space. The architectural gesture of form is direct and appropriate for a restaurant. And the choice of materials are spare without being greedy with its affect.

Ovation: Dining and Entertainment

We visited Ovation Restaurant on Camp Bowie this past weekend when our friend wanted to introduce us to her new favorite restaurant. She told me about her favorite dish in detail so when we went I followed her lead.

We arrived for lunch into a dimly lit space. Most restaurants try to utilize all the natural light they get from the usual storefront windows. But Ovation's space is truly focused on the nightly entertainment. Therefore, all outside light has been blocked off, ceilings and walls are dark as well as the furniture. The presence of a small stage area and equipment can be seen from all the tables. I can only remember colorful glass pendant lights scattered around the bar area but not much more appeal. I suspect the food and entertainment are the two things to come for at this restaurant. We did not hear music but we did have a fabulous lunch.

My friend and I had the blackened grilled salmon which sat on a bed of potatoes, spinach, and onions. The salmon was wonderfully seasoned and perfectly cooked.

A Break from Blogging

Daily blogging can wear someone down but interviewing for a job can be worse, a complete wear and tear--it's exhausting. For those who work, I know, have no pity for someone who does not work a full time, get-in-a-car, sit-at-a-desk, listen-to-supervisor job. But starting tomorrow, I will continue to post musings on public spaces in and around Fort Worth.

Saginaw: "the city on the right track"

This semester I enrolled in a ceramic class at TCC Northeast Campus so driving to the perimeter of Fort Worth allows me the visual pleasure of scale, divergent civic programs, heavy industrial and residential to co-exist. I don't know how the many daily activities manage to live within this vast playing field unlike the light industrial, mix-use residential of Greenpoint in Brooklyn. There has always been a practical and logical idea of locating massive industrial structures outside the city limits i.e. noise, traffic and pollution.

I like to drive through a planned community of identical houses with the gigantic grain storage structures anchored on my horizon. I want to drive my car right into it as close to the beast as I possibly can till its shear size further draws me into its many separate parts. All the parts are big. These grain facilities are the largest in the world owned by Cargill, Inc; they operate 24 hours, seven days a week. Saginaw is the last stop on the southern route to Fort Worth so these railroads are very busy. The eighteen wheeler trucks are in constant flow through the major arterial streets onto highway 820. The intense movement of transportation on McLeroy Boulevard leaves no room for the domestic regards of a residential neighborhood. I believe the absence of the big box retail chains make the residential versus heavy industrial scale appear to be out of a Batman movie set. But I like it alot.

I have not understood Saginaw's claim to be "the city on the right track" or which group of interested people find it to be on the right track--could they be the developers?

Can a Dentist Visit be Worthy?

I know; yes, I don't like them either. In fact, I try to ask,and insist on paying, for sweet air for a routine check up and cleaning. My dental interactions have mainly been when I lived in New York City and have had adult work done with my Chelsea dentist. I liked him for many reasons but the two that stands out were: we were both going through a break up at the same time (to different people) and we both detested the Bush Administration. However through the years, I have become increasingly sensitive toward dental work and the last time I visited him; he did not let me have ANY sweet air for reasons that were unclear to me, then and now. So physical memory prevails until today.

Jessica insisted we connect with a local denstist besides she is a very strict six month check-up-girl. For me I could wait for an annual visit. However we went to Dr. Sorokolit's office, www.drsorokolittdds.com, and we both had a great experience. My dental hygienist, Hayley Holland was extremely gentle, knowledgeable and forthcoming with the number of times she actually flosses. For me, the hygienist's touch is a precursor to a dental visit and I was relaxed and happy. And my dentist was Dr. Catherine Chaumont who eased my worry about a previous crown, not to mention, she praised my teeth. More importantly, I felt like she took some time this morning to listen. This was important for me because I just heard about a new book called, "How Doctor' Think" by Dr. Jerome Groopman regarding how doctor's make decisions regarding their patient's care. And those first few minutes in the beginning of a doctor/patient meeting can "set up" a patient's eventual treatment path in the mind of a doctor.

Being an architect, I have to spend some time ruminating about their space. It's no fault of the unhappy offices that reside just north of Rosedale; the construction is lenghthy, horrible and ill planned after several years. However the 1050 Fifth Avenue building is internal, meaning it has a central courtyard, which in the Texas heat it must help with heat gain. Not to mention it's better to enter an office from the exterior instead of those stuffy corridors, like the Medical Arts building on Eighth Avenue--it's gloomy and need of ventilation. If I was a teenager, Suite G may hold some promise; it has two comfortable-looking sofas and a gigantic video game machine. Both of which I did not physically encounter since my appointment time was quickly met. The patient rooms were typical except a thoughtful detail at the overhead light fixtures, a glowing animal picture. Perhaps a touch to ease young patients but as an adult--I hate glare.

The Fort Worth Zoo

My brother's family arrived this week while passing thru on their way to Colorado Springs. They wanted the kids to stretch their tiny legs and get a sniff of the animal kingdom. Luckily we went on Wednesday which is half price day, the crowds were fairly tame except for lunch and snack time.

The front part of the zoo's attractions are similar to most that I have visited; the primates, rhinos, the ghastly warthog but the Texas Wild! is the exhibit that I most enjoyed and found to be educational for someone who just moved to Texas. The exhibit is broken down into Texas' five main environments along with the animals that inhabit those areas. The landscape of Texas has so many variations and extremes that the plant life as well as the animals are as dynamic. The information on the cards are brief but enough to begin a relationship with Texas and its wildlife. We are still getting used to the idea of racoons and possums circling our neighborhood and camping under our house.

A Clearing of the Soul: A Backyard Solution

In September 2006, we purchased a small house built in the mid-1920's with four previous owners before us. Owner Number 3 had erected on top of a low existing rock fence a horrendous physical barrier--a barbwire fence. I understand from our neighbors that our neighborhood used to have the characters of the "wild west" so a painful barrier would keep them away but geez. Furthermore owner Number 4 allowed the dominant trumpet vine to overgrow onto the barbwire hence destroying the scale of the rock fence and making the vine The King of the Backyard. Owner Number 5, that is us, felt the weight of the barbwire especially with the ongoing global friction of monitored borders. We wanted the barbwire fence to come down and the trumpet vine controlled to a manageable beauty. Of course, I have just read Joe Eck's gardening book so I have been feeling like I know something about my yard.

The beginning of spring has brought plenty of sunshine, the birds, daffodils and the clearing of flower beds. The dry, light grey, skeleton of the trumpet vines was ripe for my human dominace and finally the barbwire was coming off. As the hours and the days passed, the rock fence has come to be a special border between my neighbor and the back alley. The space beyond has widen the breadth of our view as well as our idea of place. The backyard's potential as a habitable space for plants and an extension of our house can be seen and taken stock. However, my poor neighbor feels completely exposed and vulnerable in this new arrangement; I can see all of his stuff from past trash pick up treasures. Everytime we see each other, he gives me a similar solution to the problem I just removed from my very sight. I suppose physical memory is difficult to change after many years.

Late Nights at the Dallas Museum of Art

Late Nights at the museum is presented by Starbucks Coffee; a night when the entire museum is open till midnight. We went this past Friday to hear the keynote address by Yve-Alain Bois for the Matisse: Painter as Sculptor symposium. The entire museum was filled with people, all kinds of people. All kinds of families. They were eating, drinking, listening, socializing, shopping, thinking, talking on cellphones and looking at art. It was very clear that the museum does not take their Late Nights production lightly, in fact, every bit of real estate was used to entertain, educate, and satiate. Since the Museum of Modern Art started charging $20 for admission, I have come to expect alot of art and have allowed myself to get moody if the art is bad. But the DMA does everything in its event planning that prevents moodiness and hopes you enjoy the art. For $10 or less in admission, Late Nights with Starbucks while in a museum is the place to be on a Friday.

A Wine Bar on Forest Park Blvd : Sapristi!

This bistro and wine bar has an exclamation mark as part of its name so I was not sure what to expect since I typically do not gravitate towards points-of-strong emotion. We were looking for a bar that we could drink, be merry and hear the other person which is becoming a challenge in most intimate spaces. Sapristi's small wine bar of six stools was quiet and adequate so hooray for our fulfilled needs hence the exclamation mark. I was happy to see a restaurant that was still serving food till 10:00pm in Fort Worth and even more happy to see people still eating at the restaurant. The dining space has a yellow ochre hue to the walls and diffused incandescent lighting which subdues the space. The ceiling heights does not soar into the duct work and the kitchen is not open to the dining area, two things that create alot of noise. My friend, who is a chef, perused through the menu and determined we should return to try the food. After having a bottle of wine within a comfortable space, we all thought coming back was a good idea.

Fairmount Southside : Trash Week is Worthy

Heaps of monkey grass, construction debris, discarded plants, old bricks, children's toys, two-legged furniture and what nots are all on display and for the taking during this neighborhood's third Monday of the month large trash pick up. My neighbor has claimed they have built their greenhouse from discarded construction debris and if you saw it, you would not dispute this claim. Recently we did some repair to our wood siding so demolition was inevitable to replace with new wood. So we heaped our piles of wood during trash week and we had four knocks on our door that night from treasure seekers. Its a ritual to drive around looking for needed materials. I love it.

Blanton Museum of Art and Brazos Parking Garage

The Blanton Museum of Art and UT's Brazos Parking Garage make a pair, an unhappy one, but a pair--a spatial pair. The experience of the museum begins, for most of us in cars, at the parking garage. The garage has minimal roles to play, it lets you park your car and takes your money. The one role that is rarely explored nor designed into a garage is its "in between" role of wayfinding. Personally I think we should ask a lot more out of our parking garages especially at their premium rates. Kevin Lynch's 1960 research book "Image of the City" coined wayfinding and imageability both terms having explicit relationships with the human experience with a city's parts notably its edges and paths. Lynch's "paths" are comprised of the sidewalks, trails, ground patterns or any other texture that allows people to travel; these components of guidance help shape a person’s physical memory of a place. After descending from the garage stairs, the choices of paths are many but the paths leading to the Blanton Museum are confusing perhaps because they are tertiary amidst the other paths. But getting there is not the only problem, the Blanton Museum has a definitive backside to its building and the rear faces the garage. The "back of house" is the entry facade for those who drove in a car so that becomes a memory or not. A groundwork sculpture was installed at the rear of the building therefore walking toward it would seem logical if seeing art was the motive for the trip, not to mention, a clue for the entry doors. The only public entrance can be found on the "front" of the building by way of a small sign pointing toward its direction. A variation of wayfinding to a public building should be direct and logical facilitated by the guidance of paths and edges.

Austin: In 17 Hours

Since moving to Fort Worth, I often hear from people who do not live in Texas ask, "Have you been to Austin yet?" And from people who live in Texas, "You should go to Austin." So Jessica and I made a quick trip to Austin, we had seventeen hours to spare in a day.

We arrived in time for dinner so I picked Manuel's Downtown. A family friend who lives in Austin recommended this restaurant. I have read the food reviews and being an architect I paid close attention to comments like, "the back room is romantic." I am always curious how the experience of space make customers more romantic. We arrived after dinner hours but the place was still active with people which I am always happy about, in Fort Worth it seems dinner hours rarely go past nine. We sat in the back room but not so romantic, in my opinion. Colored neon lights wrap the room underneath the perimeter of bench-style seats, who wants restaurant carpet highlighted with colored lights? Not nice. But the food was excellent as well as the vibe.

For breakfast, we selected Magnolia Cafe on S Congress Avenue for its Austin's institutional rave reviews. The interior is definitely a kaleidoscope of uninhibited art on all its surfaces but it does not take away from the food. I am not a food critic but I think anyone who has tastebuds would find something on their extensive menu to please.

Montgomery Plaza: A Missed Paseo

On a recent Friday night, friends and I had drinks at The Modern then dinner and dancing at Gloria's restaurant at the developed Montgomery Plaza. Kimco Developers Inc. developed 46 acres of open-air big box retail, eateries and parking. The old Montgomery Ward retail and catalog order building was a six story behemoth marred by the March 2000 tornado that came through Fort Worth. The developers chose to carve a six story vehicle and pedestrian passage through Montgomery Plaza while Target looms in the distant joined by a vast parking lot. Whenever I go to Montgomery Plaza, I prefer to drive-thru the planned urban drive with twinkling criss-cross lights overhead--I feel like I am in an amusement park than a cosmopolitan city but who cares. After eating we decided to take a stroll to remove ourselves from the pulse of Gloria's. I thought this is going to be a perfect litmus test of the developer's pitch, "a pedestrian friendly urban center." Granted the complex feels empty since most tenants have not completed their interior renovations but the pedestrian walk around the building feels raw and blue. Raw because outside the interior traffic passage, the building forgot to be "urban" instead it's an edge keeping the parking lot at bay. It looks and feels like a strip mall. And blue because the lights overhead are primarily fluorescent or metal halide. But these two flaws are not the worst offenders of missed opportunities but the planned main street to nowhere for pedestrians is an offense.

The desire to take a stroll is hampered by the vast parking lot that separates Montgomery Plaza and the visually connected, Target Super Center and other box retailers. This large, open interstitial space could be a wonderful pedestrian experience replete with benches, paving patterns, grass, shady trees and lights. The infrastructure is there but the design follow-thru was not executed on the part of Kimco Developers Inc. It's a valid reflex not to want to stroll next to parked cars but we spend most of our time around them already. For a parking lot to be an active social space could only keep people around longer to shop and eat--consume. Already there is a small population of an untapped market, the non-office professional i.e. sales reps, insurance agents, care givers and stay-at-home parents who use parking lots as offices and lunch spots within the confines of their parked cars.

Parton's Pizza : Made with Pizza Lovin' Care

While growing up in the late '70's our family went to Pizza Hut, the thin 'n crispy style was my father's favorite so we had it all the time. It's still the style of pizza that I enjoy but find rarely amidst thick spongy types. Parton's Pizza has a tasty vegetarian pizza with jalapeno peppers sprinkled throughout making a slice spicy and tangy. The pizza is the main reason to go but the atmosphere is something that has long disappeared from commercial eateries- a personal touch. The walls are plastered with snap shot photos, posters of olde-tyme Parton's, buffet specials, smoking signs and holiday festive cheer; the ceiling has a very similar theme. The checkerboard table cloths pair up with heart shaped chairs and the booths are surrounded with red metallic vinyl also with checkerboard table cloths. Pizza Hut sold their soul in 1977 to PepsiCo, Inc. to become a tasteless giant; I hope Parton's Pizza remain on S. Cherry Ln. serving tasty slices in their quaint space.

The Modern: I want to like this building

I have been to The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth several times wanting to like the building. The materials that were chosen, the landscape design, the circulating pond, its very presence within the Cultural District, I like all of these things. But as a spatial experience, I always leave the building wanting but never completing the emotion of true satisfaction. The two architectural moments that I think are worthy are the views of the pond from the entrance lobby and a long curious stair located on the west side of the building--hidden. In the searing Texas heat a glorious interaction of the entrance lobby's grandiose scale paired with the stillness of the surrounding pond pulls a person to the outdoors. Moving people outside can be difficult in a museum but Ando does it with water and Piano does it with greener than green grass at the Nasher. A stair almost as long as the building located on the west side of the last glass gallery is worth checking out. Most buildings are concerned with valuable real estate so long stairs are usually not a design option but Ando was able to provide a surprise after many boxes of glass galleries.

Fred's,Texas Cafe: A bar that Brooklyn would love

The cool hipsters of Williamsburg, Brooklyn would find this place the authentic to their contrived spaces of diner chic. Fred's seems to be patronized by every cross section of people wanting a drink or a burger or company. The bar and grill is located in a small building shaped like shed and the outdoor bar area has been bounded by a loose fence. The front elevation is my favorite detail of two long rectangles of glass and rounded corners; almost symmetrical about the entry door. It's perfect for the shed building type. Inside has the pulse of this bar diner, its small but it packs in booths, a bar counter, stuffed animal heads, declarations of all kinds on the walls and ceilings. Its great. I only drink the local brew, Rahr but there is plenty to drink and eat.

Trinity Trails: A Pleasant Respite

Trinity Trails span 25 miles of paved and gravel paths throughout Fort Worth traversing neighborhoods, downtown and industrial parks along the Trinity River.

In Paris, it's the people that make the place

The Paris Coffee Shop is located on Magnolia Avenue in the cool 'hood of Fairmount Southside amidst the growing hospital boxes. Already much has been written about this coffee shop but the space around the counter sets it apart from other diners. The woman that has always served us (would love her name) has a familiar nature about her. I am not commenting on her perky bright smile because she has a smile its just not perky and bright. Her presence has a feeling of place. She hovers and glides above the counter with a coffee pot, hot plates, condiments and a watchful eye to a diner's needs.

Parthenon Pantheon: What's the difference?

I was reminded tonight (twice since we have arrived to Fort Worth) that Texas Tech is in Lubbock and the University of Texas is in Austin, nevermind that its located in other cities in Texas. Since I have never been to Lubbock or Austin the two cities seem like distant whispers, I was told that Austin,is in fact, south of Fort Worth. Who knew.