Fresh food

This is a nice Wikipedia photo of the West Side Market. The Market is a true Cleveland icon. It has been saved, remodeled and praised.

As a child my mother would take me from Scranton Road and Clark Avenue, by trolley, to the Market. The large vaulted, ceramic tiled interior space had all kinds of permanent vendors selling all kinds of meat, cheese and produce. There were whole carcasses of all kinds of animals. It is a real experience. If you go there often enough you get to know the vendors and there is always an interesting conversation.

What I remember most though were the outside vendors. Wrapped around two sides of this building were farmers' stalls, open to the air, that were occupied several days a week. These were my wonderment. The farmers would split open their summer melons and offer slices to assure you of their quality. There was much given away in the hope of a sale.

These outdoor stalls at more contemporary markets have no where near the character and ambiance of those at the West Side Market.










These white tents have to be set up and taken down by each vendor. They might provide a nice bright soft light on the sales area but little beyond that.










This is a corner entry and an interior photo. To my liking there have been too many upgrades over the years. The "outdoor" stands have been enclosed with tacky metal roofed enclosures. Cleveland winters are brutal and greenhouse farmers that work the winters are certainly far more comfortable. In the past there were canvas coverings and fires going in 55 gallon drums to keep everyone warm. The interior, with its wooden stands, brick piers and vaulted ceramic tile ceiling is truly unique.

Here's a birdseye of the stands that wrap the market building.

So the winery gets permanent stands. Yes it might be expensive. But it may just fix a memory of an elegant, rich, fresh, aromatic, lively market in the mind of another small child.

Olives

As part of the landscape of the winery and vineyard there needs to be a few alternative crops. Because this venture is intended to have a very long life, planting, maintaining and harvesting olive trees seems appropriate.

During my stay in Orlando, we used to frequent a farmer's market in Winter Park on Saturday mornings. One stand featured a variety of olive oils from many different countries. As time went on we tried a number of varieties amazed by the various flavors.

Fine olive oils provide a wonderful compliment to so many foods.

I don't know much about these trees but a few things I've read indicate that they are fairly disease resistant and easy to maintain. They must be hardy since very old trees can be successfully transplanted. I was surprised to see 20 year old trees listed as a standard catalog item.

It would be nice to line the entry road to the winery with olive trees, set back far enough so as not to drop fruit on the roadway but balanced enough as a part of the entrance. At least that's one thought.

Empathy

How many times have you heard someone say "Even I can do that."

A good friend of mine sold AutoCAD software at one time. He had to take classes, learn the basics of how to use the program so that he could explain it to potential buyers. After awhile he decided that, since he knew how to use the drawing software, he would design his new house. HE knew how to "draw" and HE wouldn't need any help. HE could do it on his own. So I politely kept my mouth closed.

About a year later he told me that he would never design and build a house again.

I have heard this kind of story many times. We all possess certain skills and affinities. To assume that any of us can do anyone else's work because it looks simple is a rather silly idea.

I've learned to love music, painting, building, ice skating, writing, poetry, etc. not because I am good at any one of these but because I have tried them and they are not easy and I appreciate the great talents in other people. When it looks easy it is because the professionals have so much practice that they make it look easy.

A Place of My Own

Is this a book on architecture?

Not really sure. But as an architect I find myself having an ongoing conversation with the author while I'm reading. Mr. Pollan is a wordsmith, a writer and in my opinion a very good one since I've read almost all his books. I'm not quite finished with this one.

Because he writes he seems to have to justify everything about his "place" with in depth research and lengthy analysis. His insights are great, probably ones that have been around for awhile but I've never noticed since I'm not into the same kind of reading habits and subsequent analysis.

At my current page in his book he seems to be finally coming to the conclusion that architecture, although it has taken on the air of erudite philosophy in recent history, is not about words. It just is.

One of my classes in college was Design Process & Methods. It essentially was the argument for Pattern Language. One class had to do with the neutrality of the environment, including architecture. In essence it said that what matters is what we bring to any environment. All the history, experiences, remembered sensations, good and bad memories can be evoked by a place if the architect is deft enough in his/her assemblage.

Mr. Pollan's first reaction was clearly indicative of this condition.

"I tried it first, approaching and entering the building the way we were meant to, and the experience took me aback."

He continues by describing the physical conditions around him and his movements in the space finally saying, "I noticed how, on turning into the light-filled opening beneath the lifting-off ceiling, you could not help but let out a chestful of air, as your body perceived and then entered into the most welcome release of space going on all around it."

He will go on to tell us where in his history these responses come from. Well at least most of them. There are some that are wired into us by our culture and some that are personal and some that come through the experience of one's involvement with the process.

And that brings up another interesting point of discussion. But I'll leave that for another time.

The Devil Wears Prada

There's a line in this movie that is rather fascinating. Apply this to anything that you're involved in. It starts out with Miranda (Meryl Streep) criticizing some clothes:

This has sequins, but it's denim. It's of no use to anyone. We need to give women clear choices about -- (to ANDY) What are you looking at?
ANDY
Me? Nothing, I--
MIRANDA
You think you're above this, don't you? We're talking about skirts and you're smirking.
ANDY
I'm not smirking.
MIRANDA
Inside, you're smirking.

And now the room is totally silent. Everyone there has had this happen to them at one time or another, and they're just grateful this time, it's not them.

ANDY
No, no, no. I'm not. I'm not above anything. That's my motto. I swear.
MIRANDA
You see that droopy sweater you're wearing? That blue was on a dress Cameron Diaz wore on the cover of Runway -- shredded chiffon by James Holt. The same blue quickly appeared in eight other designers' collections and eventually made its way to the secondary designers, the department store labels, and then to some lovely Gap Outlet, where you no doubt found it. That color is worth millions of dollars and many jobs.

What happens in architecture today, and wine making and many other professions is that the STARS provide the latest and greatest and everyone down the line rides the wave. Next year it's something new and everyone follows that path. It's just that the path is eventually dominated by cost and the high-end design is reduced to the quickest, most base method of production.

The simplest example in architecture is the International Style. Even the best architects had problems achieving the simplicity of this envelope. But the developers, understanding the significant savings potential from the previous ornamented buildings at the turn of the century, jumped on the band wagon and promulgated the style to the Nth degree. And it still flourishes today among the developers interested in short-term profits.

What is so offensive though is that much of our lives are driven by FASHION, or this concept of FASHION. This season it's skirt lengths are above the knee and next season it's Malbec. How much manipulation is there in wines today in order to achieve what the masses desire?

Surprised

I am surprised that there is no interest in what goes into this blog. Well it probably be better if it was updated, added to at least 5 days a week rather than every month. OK let's give it a try and start to implement some of the tools that I am learning about blogging.

Otherwise this thing will not go anywhere and it's getting t the point where the vineyard is becoming all important.

Beside the vineyard there will be other interruptions as seem appropriate or as I feel the need to simple put ideas forward.

Here's one that I bet no one picked up on. This is a new one for me.

I often think about the kinds of things I would teach if I had the opportunity. Since I am an architect my focus would primarily be in that field. So here's one: In a course called professional practice I think I have a new approach. Typically this is a small course that covers specifications, some general business concerns but never really hits on the problems of what architecture is all about. So my thought is to have student, in 2's or 3's or 5's for architectural firms. What type of firm, what are the legal arrangements, where would the firm practice and why, what kind of work would be done, clients, what kind of marketing, who hires, who fires, who gets paid and how much, what kind of growth, what happens in a recession? And on and on. There are issues of software, hardware, communications, office standards, hours per week, vacation time and sick time, bonuses and profit sharing. What happens with a rogue designer. When an employee brings in a job.

A lot of work, eh? The kind of work that almost all young architects and interns say they never receive in school.

Water Wheels

Considering that the several properties being considered for the vineyard have natural springs I have to carefully look at an old favorite energy generation system: hydropower.

I've always liked this idea and researched it about 30 years ago. There certainly have been advancements in efficiency but the premise is the same: moving water turning a wheel.

One of the most intriguing aspects of the type of electrical generation is that it lends itself more to the music. Ah, the sound of water.

My daughter once suggested designing a roof that would sing when it rained.

There are so many possibilities here that it will be worth trying a number of different ones.