Of Inspiration, pt. 1

A week or two after we first got here, I drove down to Oxford, Mississippi (an hour and a half south of Memphis) to see Citizen Architect http://citizenarchitectfilm.com/ at the local film festival. The film is a new documentary about Samuel Mockbee and Rural Studio. Oxford is the home of Old Miss (University of Mississippi) and William Faulkner (who is everywhere there the way Elvis is up here). It's a decidedly fun and funky little town centered around an antebellum main square (similar in layout to Sonoma for the Bay Area folks). Its a nice little center of bohemian culture in the rural south. I met a few nice folks- local architects and such who were very welcoming to the new guy from nor cal- at the sold out screening. Here's a pic of Oxford:

This blog entry, though, is not about Oxford. It's about what Mockbee and the Rural Studio were able to build, and more generally about seeking an answer to the question: What am I to do here?

I've been inspired by the Rural Studio since I encountered the books of their work at the office of GHA (where I had my little base camp up until just recently). And the question in my head was often: How were these students able to build such beautiful, healthy buildings in one of the poorest and dare I say decrepit counties in the states?

We usually think of great architecture associated with big $$$. Think of the recent wave of awe inspiring museums and the starchitects who design them. However, having worked mostly on small commissions, I can attest that clients on a budget often have to stick to the most conventional building practices. Yet the buildings of the Rural Studio turn that conception on it's head: here are the poorest of the poor enjoying architecture that at first glance makes one think of New York or LA.

I can't provide a full answer to the question of 'how', but having been in Memphis for a few weeks now, one idea is reinforced: the underpriveledged and poor are more open to breaking the yoke of traditional built form than all but the very most progressive middle class folks. The vast majority of the wealthier people here are head and heart invested in their vision of the status-quo, which seems to be aesthetically symbolized in the traditionalist form of their homes. (Yes, it's starker out here where one can wander around Memphis for hours and not see a single modern design, but thinking back to Berkeley- even there, tradition prevailed.)

Perhaps I'll compare the aesthetic qualities of homes in the Bay Area and Memphis in a future entry. Right now, I'd like to propose something more radical: can Rural Studio quality architecture be built in Memphis? If so, perhaps it could follow the same blueprint--in particular, perhaps it could be built in the poor neighborhoods..... Here's a map of my neighborhood, where I've been jogging lately:

You'll notice a railroad track running east-west (about a block south of our house), this track was built before the neighborhood was built up with homes. I know this because I go jogging across this track (mostly an at-grade crossing). Here's what I see on the North side of the tracks:

This North side is the historic Central Gardens neighborhood. The houses range from quaint bungalows to lavish mansions, but there is not one building that departs from the traditional form...this is because Central Gardens is a National Historic District and has strict form based guidelines for building. In fact, many (most?) of the nicer residential districts in the city appear to be designated "Historic".

Now here's the scene on the south side of the railroad tracks:

The south side is steeped in poverty and blight, homes are arranged chaotically. What happened?- no one cared? Everyone just built whatever they wanted to? Built with cash money they had fastidiously set aside over many years? Perhaps they were poor folks' shacks slowly replaced my (semi-)modern buildings as generations gave way and money trickled in? Wood buildings don't last very long in the south unless they are well built and maintained. Bottom line: many of these homes are obviously no longer suitable for occupancy. They need to be torn down...and geographically this is one of the choicest parts of the city (central, close to everything). So why not build something good there. Something beautiful. Healthy, efficient, durable. What would it take?

Home Basics

After 15 years in the Bay Area, I'm realizing how spoiled I was by the climate, so here's an overview of staying comfortable in an apartment in the Memphis summer, (as well as a few of our spoils from the Antique malls (see previous post)).

Note- I'll be getting a little geeky here as buildings are my vocation (and sometimes avocation).

First, here's our place, it's the left side of a single story duplex, probably built in the '30s.  Single wythe of brick veneer over wood studwalls (with about a 1" air gap). It's a raised floor building over a crawlspace (not many basements in town), with an enormous attic. (There's a gigantic fan up there, in the middle of the building, that used to suck giant quantities of air through an enormous hallway ceiling grate, into the attic space, and out through the vents you see in the front (partially hidden by the trees). Seems it would depressurize the living spaces and pressurize the attic, anyone know why this would be a good thing?

Now the hardware: 1) Original single pane windows with storm windows in place, blinds, and ceiling fans in each room (window AC units not shown)

2) Dehumidifier: This puppy cranks out 5 gallons of water a day. Is this stuff pure? should I use it instead of my filtered drinking water?

3) Air purifiers- Black monster under table (entry table from antique mall: American made. Circa 1960's?)

Why air purifiers? Besides general mustiness: there must be hidden mold and mildew....and Marina's alergies to cockroaches...there's obviously some serious rot below the floors as evidenced by this creepy settlement of the floor (foundations are fine):

Moving on- kitchen window sealed shut (don't ask), no ventilation. We're basically eating raw food until we buy a house (or a grill for the back patio):

That's it for the nuts and bolts. But here's a few of the goodies we've picked up. Below: amazing '60s(?) dresser, (label says made in Memphis). Puts the giant IKEA thing we lugged cross country to shame (aesthetically at least):

A few mid-century cheapies for the dining room (still unpacking as you see):

This hand-painted box is super cool (will have to get more pictures of this kind of thing, but hand painting furniture and objects seems to be something of a regional tradition and a form of folk art I believe):

Oh, and here's a really awesome table (made from old doors) we picked up at the anual 'Adopt a door' auction last weekend, a fundraiser for the Memphis Heritage Society (note our cat (left) feeling at home):

Finally, here's a picture of the used Acura we just bought- 100k miles, but amazing car: should serve well for the long roadtrips to explore the region and visit family and friends north and east:oh yes

oh yes

Oh yes, and here's my home office- incubator of the future O___ Engineering of Memphis. (and blog central for now....)

Thrift store heaven...and hell.

No IKEA in Memphis, so we turned to the "Antique Malls" for our furnishing needs. But first we visited some upscale shops in our neighborhood: first stop was at a charming store with a lot of country style wares that probably would not have been out of place in most martha stewart friendly homes:

This store also had a nice upstairs 'mall' area (these are very common in the antique market here- rented out 'rooms' or stalls, managed through a main front desk), that was eclectic and fun, but still beyond our current budget and needs.

Then onto another few stores in this vein- catering to the upper middle class- amazing selection and good prices throughout (as compared to the Bay Area at least).

But our desire for lower prices led us to the 'Antique Malls'- and these were eye opening! Large, sprawling mazes of goods ranging from plain junk, to quality antiques, to mid-century wares, on through collectibles of all sorts- overall a topsy-turvy world of chaotic nostalgia:

We had a great time, these places may make up for the lack of both IKEA and a modern art museum in town. The nostalgia is thick and seductive. But as other bloggers I've been reading note, Memphis is a city ruled by nostalgia. Perhaps best symbolized by the presence of Elvis EVERYWHERE!

One last note about antiquing and bargain hunting here. The Thrift Shops can be a little disturbing with their random and chaotic piles of goods:

First of bugs, pests, and other vermin.

Let's just start with huge cockroaches. Some people here call them Palmetto Bugs- obviously an attempt to give them some charm and decrease the threat perceived. However, the first overall impression is captured perfectly by this video clip from "Damnation Alley":
Ok, they're not quite as aggressive, but in size and number- it's about correct. The exterior of our house was crawling with dozens of these shiny creepies after sunset. Apparently these local celebrities live outside and eat plant matter....Usually. Every rule has exceptions- for one, they will make way indoors during dry times to seek water.  Ooops: Memphis is experiencing an unusually hot and dry summer, we've only had one thunderstorm since we've arrived. (Here's the latest Weather Channel 10-day forecast: http://www.weather.com/weather/tenday/37501 ) And we've seen three of these dino-bugs in the house in the last two days (the first one ran out of the kitchen melting from the (organic) bug killer I sprayed on it's shiny back; #2 was stunned by a powerful swat with a rolled up magazine, but came back to consiousness as it swirled around the toilet bowl on its way to doom; #3 was impervious to the rolled up magazine...but I finally cornered it in the closet and crushed it (twice!) with a shoe.

Excuse me while I fill a bucket of water for the backyard. I know it will breed misquitos but look at our new 'NoSquito' device outside my (dirty-wow!) home office window:

What am I doing here?

Been in Memphis two weeks now, and finding a little bit of free time (unlike m. who's busily preparing for her new job) So just learning my way in Blog territory - and finding some great ones about Memphis, such as http://fearlessvk.blogspot.com/.

So two new territorries at the same time: Blogging and Memphis, and hoping this will become a forum for both.

p.s. My cat is obviously struggling with these issues as well. It just squeezed into the office chair I'm sitting in and made me wedge my butt over to the side... not comfortable. By the way, here she is shortly after arrival: an invaluable part of the transition team: