thank you so much for this article, you really hit home, literally.
as a kid, i turned a cupboard into a doll house, with everything inside made by myself. hidden from sight, this was my sanctuary, the only place where i could create and control the narrative. it was empowering and saved my sanity.
making objects and creating spaces - that's what i've done ever since.
what a great article (essay? however you want to call it)
Thank you so much for writing-and for sharing
I'd add to it only this -sometimes, the only place you can somewhat control in an awful chaos is your home...even if it is a temporary place. Temporary and sometimes as small as a bunk bed
Frank Lloyd Wright radically shifted from his Midwestern Prairie houses to the brooding, Maya-inspired “textile block” houses in Los Angeles after the love of his life, Mamah Borthwick (along with her two children and four others), was brutally murdered in the Wisconsin home he built for them. I kept thinking about this while reading your insightful article. It’s hard not to think that kind of trauma would seep into his work. You can feel it too. Hollywood certainly has, using them as ominous backdrops for numerous villains (Blade Runner, House on Haunted Hill, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Day of the Locust, etc). And now, despite their cultural significance, nobody lives in them. Maybe they're just too sad.
A designer friend and I gleefully note how often Greek Corinthian capitals (usually as coffee tables) appear in gay interiors throughout recent history. I came to the conclusion that, since so many of us gay folks often grew up in environments where our interior worlds did not align with our exterior realities, we as children sought out visual cues that gave us emotional encouragement that, somewhere out there in the world and in history was a place where we could align ourselves and fulfill our potential. Ancient Greece (at least in the popular telling) serves as a natural magnet for this impulse, a seemingly more sophisticated culture where beauty, intelligence and same sex attraction was celebrated, a neoclassical anchor to secure us in a hateful world. Hence the popularity of Ancient Greek motifs in gay design and the ever present and gloriously beautiful Greek column coffee tables.
thank you so much for this article, you really hit home, literally.
as a kid, i turned a cupboard into a doll house, with everything inside made by myself. hidden from sight, this was my sanctuary, the only place where i could create and control the narrative. it was empowering and saved my sanity.
making objects and creating spaces - that's what i've done ever since.
Thank you for sharing. I’m happy it resonated with you. Your story resonates with me.
I am so grateful to have found you and you incredible articles. It feels like a breath of fresh air to discuss design as the art it is. Thank you.
Thank you 🙏
what a great article (essay? however you want to call it)
Thank you so much for writing-and for sharing
I'd add to it only this -sometimes, the only place you can somewhat control in an awful chaos is your home...even if it is a temporary place. Temporary and sometimes as small as a bunk bed
Thank you. I’m happy this paper resonated with you. I agree- Even as small as a bunk bed.
Frank Lloyd Wright radically shifted from his Midwestern Prairie houses to the brooding, Maya-inspired “textile block” houses in Los Angeles after the love of his life, Mamah Borthwick (along with her two children and four others), was brutally murdered in the Wisconsin home he built for them. I kept thinking about this while reading your insightful article. It’s hard not to think that kind of trauma would seep into his work. You can feel it too. Hollywood certainly has, using them as ominous backdrops for numerous villains (Blade Runner, House on Haunted Hill, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Day of the Locust, etc). And now, despite their cultural significance, nobody lives in them. Maybe they're just too sad.
Hello Loney... I'm glad this paper resonated with you. Thank you for sharing your insightful thoughts. FLW is such a great case study !
A designer friend and I gleefully note how often Greek Corinthian capitals (usually as coffee tables) appear in gay interiors throughout recent history. I came to the conclusion that, since so many of us gay folks often grew up in environments where our interior worlds did not align with our exterior realities, we as children sought out visual cues that gave us emotional encouragement that, somewhere out there in the world and in history was a place where we could align ourselves and fulfill our potential. Ancient Greece (at least in the popular telling) serves as a natural magnet for this impulse, a seemingly more sophisticated culture where beauty, intelligence and same sex attraction was celebrated, a neoclassical anchor to secure us in a hateful world. Hence the popularity of Ancient Greek motifs in gay design and the ever present and gloriously beautiful Greek column coffee tables.
Love this, yes!