As far as great architecture goes there is of course the Guggenheim in New York, one of the great artifacts of American architecture. In 2006 the museum was being renovated, the scaffolds were up, and paint and surface stucco was being removed. When this was being removed there was a little surprise found beneath the surface paint which had been hidden from us for a very long time. Some years ago, some poor sign installer went to put the first letter of the name of the museum up on the wall, and someone screamed, "No, you idiot! Lower! Much Lower! Get it down close to the edge. And a quarter-inch to the right." Given that the building is the Guggenheim Museum, and that the architect was Frank Lloyd Wright, this photographic detail becomes especially interesting.
Tying letterforms to the soffit edge — emphasizing the horizontal line — was in my opinion Wright's intention early on, as evident in his drawings. I could be wrong, but I don't think he ever floated text. Wright tended to use text in an "active" way to emphasize building lines and datums; or packed in a square panel, expressing a planning module. Guggenheim Museum, perspective drawing by Frank Lloyd Wright, 1951.
I'm not sure that it was Frank Lloyd Wright who art directed this correction. It could have happened years later. As they say, though, design is in the details. These are the kinds of little decisions, one at a time, hundreds cumulatively, that make a great building great.
No comments:
Post a Comment