Jeffersonian architectural style was developed by Thomas Jefferson This style was mainly admired during the early American period. The typical features of his designs are the use of octagonal forms, red bricks, use of Chinese railings and the elevation of the main floor which is always above ground level. Jeffersonian architecture is also known as “Palladian” architecture, as it is heavily influenced by the Italian revivalist architect, Andrea Palladio. Jefferson architecture involves the typical use of the octagon and octagonal forms in his designs. Jefferson employed them as a design motif-halving them, elongating them, and employing them in whole as with the dome of Monticello, or the entire house at Poplar Forest. Jefferson architectural designs are a reflection of his personal preferences and tastes. Jefferson believed that in order to make a building look impressive or magnificent, it was important to learn how to make it so without spending a lot of money. Even after Jeffersonian designs went out of vogue for other public buildings, they continued to have an influence on many Protestant church designs on the East Coast through the mid-twentieth century. The style is still employed on some southern college campuses, particularly in Virginia, and has enjoyed a certain re-emergence among some newer twenty-first century evangelical church complexes. Jefferson appears above all as a lover of freedom, whether in politics, in religion, or in research; but the freedom he thus loved from youth was essentially the freedom of reason to reach its logical conclusions, not freedom to degenerate into formless anarchy. Jefferson’s home, “Monticello” was built with many French and European influences absorbed in it. Palladio’s influences are seen in the orders of the columns and molding as well as the dome of the exterior of the house. Jefferson re-constructed Monticello many times in his life, while making trips back and forth from Europe, each time wanting to try something different that he had been experienced to in France and other countries. Jeffersonian architecture is famous for its classical and elegant designs. So, read the above article and know more about Jeffersonian architecture.
Posts Tagged ‘Design Motif’
Jeffersonian Architecture
December 18th, 2009Modern Landscape Design in Houston Texas
December 8th, 2009Modernism, in the context of landscape design, is a result of forms and functions that reflect the need for outdoor living spaces that enhance contemporary lifestyles. As Garrett Eckbo, one of the central figures in modern landscape architecture, said, landscape design is the “arrangement of environments for people.”
Contemporary garden design tends to focus on scale as opposed to formal landscape designs that are based on axial relationships. It also foregoes the more classic landscape design forms and larger scale from Greek, Roman, and classical architecture traditions. This design motif became popular in the 1950′s baby boom, particularly in California where weather and lifestyle was very conducive to this innovative style.
In modern landscape design, boundaries between areas of color, textures and shapes are undefined-or conversely, sharply defined. Color and composition create the emotional response. Combining freshness and flair, these designs use dramatic geometric shapes to create a point of view that is fluid and natural. Water and light are often used, as in artfully-lit outdoor water fountains, to enhance the sensual loveliness and liveliness. The designs are arresting, both close up and far away.
Form and Function in Modern Landscape Design
As the maxim says, form follows function. Modern landscape design is an aesthetic that shows only what is necessary while often leaving surfaces exposed. The simplicity of modern design reveals itself in that every form has a function, even when that function is merely to engage the senses.
It is possible, sometimes desirable, to use modern design techniques without creating a high-tech look. That is, to make use of horizontal and vertical planes that manufacture a modern sculpture effect-and let colors and plantings evoke a warm, welcoming feel. It is that juxtaposition-hard and soft, linear and non-linear, energetic and restrained-that is the essence of modern landscape design. “Less is more” is the modern landscape design mantra. A huge plant palette is not necessary. Rather, it is how plants, materials, and textures are used and mass them together that create the contemporary effect.
The architecture of the house needs to be carefully considered when using a contemporary garden design. If the house is bold, the grounds need to be strong also.
The home and landscape can be tied together through selective use of plantings or the intelligent placement of a hardscape feature, such as an organic approach to the front door.
Using Today’s Technology in Your Modern Landscape
Naturally new technologies in building materials are a big component of modern landscape design, which can mean a new approach using old materials or a new approach using new materials. Often, it is the contrast of material usage that suggests modernism.
Concrete, with its sturdiness and malleability, has won a firm place in contemporary garden design. Its cool, gray color alone establishes its credibility. Its uses run the gamut from flooring to columns to stark, amorphous benches. In addition to concrete, advances in steel and glass technologies, plus construction methods, can be even further exploited within the modern landscape design.
Often materials, such as stone, metal, plastics, steel and glass, are left in an exposed or raw state. Part of the beauty of these materials derives from their interplay with nature-the way steel rusts to a warm, burnt look, for instance.
The Spaces of Modern Landscape Design
Landscape themes such as English, Asian, Zen gardens, natural, Japanese or modern identify not only your property but also your tastes and style. Color, form, line, scale, and texture are your means of expressing those landscape design preferences.
Your choices can be demonstrated in the plants and hardscapes you choose. Beauty can be a maple imported from Japan. It can also be the wild grass native to the Texas coastal plains. You may have outdoor works of art to display in your landscape. Or you might use a stream that ends in a waterfall as an ever-changing sculpture of sound and movement. Landscape lighting is another crucial tool of contemporary garden design as it creates ambiance and lets you enjoy your landscape night and day.
Other uses of space in contemporary designs include:
Outdoor rooms for living. These living areas, in effect, make your home bigger. They also serve to create transition areas that connect the indoor and outdoor spaces. In this regard, this style is similar to a Mediterranean landscape design with its underlying principle that the outdoor living area should be just as enjoyable and functional as the home’s interior.
Outdoor kitchens. The center of outdoor entertainment, outdoor kitchens provide a natural gathering place. Their design should complement both the house and the landscape. Above all, their design should be functional.
Luxury swimming pools. When designed from a modern viewpoint, luxury swimming pools are anything but a boring rectangle or kidney-shaped pool. They become sophisticated and exciting, eye-catching and mesmerizing. Often, you can combine them with an outdoor water fountain that eliminates some redundancies while adding vitality to your overall design.
Thoroughly Modern
Modern landscape design is even more appropriate today than it was 50 years ago. Jeff Halper with Exterior Worlds says, “Contemporary garden design has gotten only better with time. With today’s busy lifestyles, there is less time for gardening. Also, we need to use our gardens for multiple functions these days-sanctuary, entertainment, a place for children to play safely. Modern landscape design addresses all these wants and needs.”
Robert Irwin, the landscape architect of the Getty Center in Los Angeles, puts it this way: “…maybe the world is an art form [and] the gardening of our universe” reveals our participation in that work of art.
By: Jeff Halper