Architectural Style: Spanish Revival
Posted on March 11, 2009 in the Real Estate category
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I bet you the Spanish priests would never have guessed over 300 years ago that the missions they were painstakingly building from inadequate materials and untrained labor would one day become an architectural phenomenon! They built those missions to convert, by force, the native peoples on the west coast of the United States, and after doing the job, the “cheap Spanish palaces” that they built would go on to influence American architecture indefinitely.
This architectural style was made all the rage at the beginning of the 20′s and well into the 40′s, by people in the west and southwest. There are countless structures built in this popular architectural style such as modern residences, commercial establishments and institutions, including schools and railroad stations. Some of them are the same historic buildings and historic real estate for sale you see today.
Certain design characteristics can be found in all the missions in California which was due to the lack of skilled construction workers and necessary building materials available. Every mission was characterized by massive walls with large, simple surfaces that had very few windows. All the missions had low tile roofs made of clay, protruding eaves, and long arcaded corridors with pierced arches and curved gables. Since Adobe brick can be very sensitive to weather, walls were covered in plaster in order to protect the adobe brick that lay underneath. This method protected the safety and upkeep of the missions.
Today, people use modern building materials to either authentically recreate the Spanish revival look, or they’ll create a sort of sophisticated faux rendition of the look. Mission San Fernando Rey de Espana has a wonderful long arcade corridor that rich people in Los Angeles would pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to recreate. Often people are going for the cosmetic exterior of the Spanish mission style, as opposed to the real deal. I don’t think anyone is going to commission their home to be built with adobe anytime soon!
A lovely Spanish Revival building in St. Louis was done by the architect T.P. Barnett, son of George I. Barnett who was another famous architect in St. Louis. The T.P. Barnett building also has Art Deco influences, making it one of the most interesting and unique buildings in the Grand Center region of St. Louis. Without doubt, this Spanish Revival building on Washington Avenue is a must-see stop on your visit.
The Spanish Colonial Revival Style is credited to be the efforts of George Washington Smith. Both his original Montecito home, as well as “Casa Del Greco” which was his second self-designed home located next door and built in 1920, are still in existence today as family residences.
After his paintings received much recognition in New York, Smith moved to California and designed and built his own home in Montecito, modeled after the Spanish farmhouses he so admired in Andalusia. The house he built, known as Casa Dracaena was beautifully successful, and images of the property were used as ads to sell certain kinds of tile and cement for other building projects. His neighbors started to want to live in similar buildings, and Smith became a full time architect to fulfill the demand. He became one of the most famous architects in the United States.
Smith is credited as the father of the Spanish Colonial Revival Style. His original Montecito home, as well as “Casa Del Greco”, his second self-designed residences next door, built in 1920, are still extant today as family residences.
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