Mexico, Follies, and Multi-family Housing

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Okay I am here in the library of the Spitzer School of Architecture picking out books that look interesting. I found one on Architctural Follies in America, one related to Olafur Eliasson and Kjetil Thorsen Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2007, One on the Patios and Gardens of Mexico, and Three on Multi Family Housing.

30 Books in 30 Days Parts 7, 8, 9 & 10

Architectural Follies in America (or Hammer, Saw-tooth & Nail) by Clay Lancaster was published in 1960 by Charles E. Tuttle Company of Rutland Vermont. Broken into 13 illustrated chapters, AF in A reminds me of the set of children's encyclopedias my brother had as a child in the 70's. The table of contents speaks volumes and reads as follows:

I. The Folly Tradition (Tower of Babel, The Villa Palagonia, Desert de Retz, The Palace at Brighton, The "European Palaces" of Yuan Ming Yuan, Castles of Ludwig II, Follies in America)

II. Follies of Old Massachusetts (Brown's Folly, Dexter's FOlly, Harris' Folly)

III. Follies of the Early Republic in Pennsylvania (The Marble Palace, Picnic House)

IV. Archaisms (Pitts' Folly, Wedding Cake House)

V. Oriental Exoticisms (Trollope's Bazaar, Iranistan, Longwood)

VI. Built upon the Rivers (Floating Palaces ant the Inland Watercourse, Steamboat Gothic)

VII. Geo-Forms (Barrel Houses, Corners Plentiful, Fowler's Folly and the Home for All, The Octagon Mode, Hexagon House)

VIII. The Bubbles (Chadwick's Folly, Wright's Folly)

IX. Monument to the West's Wild Past (Schieffelin's Tombstone)

X. Ivory Towers of Babel (Palmer's Castle, Linden Towers, The Winchester Mystery House)

XI. Cereal and Pachyderm Architecture (Corn Palaces, Elephant Hotels)

XII. Importations, Integrations and Imitations (Imported Houses in America, Citadel of All Religions, The Leaning Tower of Niles)

XIII. Shoddy Follies: Originals of the 20th Century (Bottle Houses, Carvilles, Japanese Aeorplane Bungalow)


I first heard of Olifur Eliasson a couple of years ago when PS1 had an interesting show almost simultaneously there were waterfalls placed around Manhattan (or at least one in the East River). Here is a book about a spiral pavillion in a park in London sponsored by Bloomberg. The same company (I believe) founded by Michael Bloomberg who recently won re-election in NYC mayoral race. Apparently the Serpentine Gallery has commissioned pavillions every year since 2000. There is a nice interview here along with construction photos, photos of previous pavillions, and references to other spiral shaped architecture. (Wright's Guggenheim, Koolhass library, Tatlin's Model of the Monument to the Third International, Bruegel's painting The Tower of Babel)and photos of the completed project which apparently has a circular opening in the roof.


Multi-family Housing: Treating The Existing Housing Stock by Robert Kolodny was printed in 1981 by the National Association of Housing and Redevelopement Officials 2600 Virginia Ave. N.W. Washington D.C. 20037.It's thirteen chapters include: The Importance of Multi-family Rental Housing as a Residence Type and Housing Resource, A Thumbnail Sketch of the Nation's Multi-family Rental Housing Inventory, Lessons from the Treatment of Troubled Publicly-assisted Housing (Advisory Services for Better Housing NYC) and Tenant Ownership (Co-operative Conversion of NYC Tenements). This book is meant for people who design and run housing revitalization and neighborhood revitalization programs. Kolodny points out that there are Social advantages to density housing and much to be said for mixed economy and mixed pattern of tenure in housing.

Apartment Houses by Joseph H. Abel and Fred N. Severud was published by progressive Architecture Library in 1947 and addresses Architectural Design; Structural Design; and Heating, Elevators, Landscaping. Full of diagrams, photos of Corbu style towers and Miami Hotel style buildings Apartment Housesgives a good idea of what Architects were thinking/doing in the 1940's. (We can see now which ones have stood the test of time.)

Apartments, Townhouses and Condominiums edited by Elisabeth Kendall Thompson of Architectural Record was published by McGraw-Hill Book Company 1958 (under the title Apartments and dormitories) and then again in 1975. It covers high and low rise building as well and designing for high and low incomes. This book is verily bursting with b7w photos and diagrams of all kins of MFD's.

Patios and Gardens of Mexico by Patricia O'Gorman (1979, Architectural Book Company)is also full of great B7W photos of fantastic gardens and courtyards that make Mixican Architecture so great.