“God is in the details,” a quote famously attributed to Mies van der Rohe, means a layout’s idea must be thoroughly and always represented through the entire fabric of the design down to its smallest details.
I received a superb email the other day by a girl who had been occupying areas for interesting architecture. She had stumbled upon one of the houses designed by my architecture firm and wrote, “What I have mostly seen has been in the arena of ‘has potential,’ ‘a near miss’ or ‘completely missed chance.’ Until today.”
I believe the has-potential and near-miss houses are often due to poor detailing. I remember the first time, as a pupil in Michigan, I walked through a Frank Lloyd Wright house. Of course the house was impressive, but what struck me what I recall most — was that the consistency of the thought, how Wright taken his architectural thought (substances, rhythms, geometries) through to the smallest details. The house had integrity and depth, like a novel with wonderfully deep and meaningful characters. One may have a terrific idea for a story (has potential) but when written with bad character development, the story will drop flat (a near miss). A poorly detailed home is similar to a novel with shallow characters.
These five jobs help exemplify the importance and potential impact of architectural information.
kbcdevelopments
1. This is a tremendously well-detailed house. Nothing about this endeavor, from top to bottom, is poorly considered. A number of substances come together with a symphonic result — that isn’t easy to do. A considerable amount of thought and work goes into a project to ensure it is clean and simple.
My favourite detail within this endeavor (which probably goes most unnoticed) may be the small recess where the outside wall and the roof link, creating a shadow line that highlights the floating nature of the roofing. Had the recess been too small or too big, or had the fascia been overly thick or too thin, this detail could have failed.
kbcdevelopments
Horizontal lines emphasize the tide of the wall on precisely the exact same project — a potential near miss that instead hits the goal.
PLACE architect ltd..
2. Another well-detailed, well-thought-out project. Every detail, connection and material chosen furthers the overall idea, creating credibility and consistency.
The overhead door expands on the industrial semblance, as do the exposed steel trusses, woven steel fabric and metal.
Website lines architecture inc..
3. Material selection is key to appropriate detailing. The project shown here has beautifully chosen materials for its circumstance. The thin fascia, wooden beams and wooden columns are appropriately sized, and the links aren’t overdesigned.
Website lines architecture inc..
The interior of the exact same endeavor continues the detailing with exposed beams, linear windows and wood flooring.
Website lines architecture inc..
A well considered detail above the garage doors creates a rhythm, a lyricism.
The construction zone, ltd..
4. Sometimes a detail can be enlarged into something special.
From the Sonoran Desert, color is vitally important. A trellis offers shade and may be designed or detailed in a million ways. Here the trellis is comprehensive in such a manner that it becomes its own work of art without veering in the overall aesthetic thought of the house. Still authentic, still consistent.
The construction zone, ltd..
The parts of the trellis move in the breeze, making shifting shadows.
Spry Architecture
5. Much like the opening pages of a novel, this entrance sets the point, offering a hint, a foreshadowing of what is to come. The entrance is simple, nothing extraneous: a rusted metal column, beam and cover. Nothing is wrapped in stucco; there are no extra layers.
To the right is a speech marker: 16 ft of rusty metal bolted to an exposed concrete stem wall with 12-inch-tall water-cut numbers. The sunlight shines from beneath the speech marker, casting a shadow of the numbers streetside.
This small detail sets the stage for the house, which is modern, tidy, linear. The speech marker points to the total idea.
Spry Architecture
Finally, while detailing, one ought to think about the convergence of substances. Here we have sand-finished charcoal-gray stucco converging with stainless steel and decomposed granite, substances often utilized in the desert. Color and texture combine to paint a simple mosaic. Details finish the thought and meet the design’s guarantee.
A project that’s well thought out, in which every detail is carefully considered, will have an integrity that’s often lacking in architecture.
Tell us What are some of your favourite architectural details? Upload a photograph or share your thoughts below.