Dwell January/February 2024

Back in 2021, recently vaccinated but not yet dining indoors, I came across a listing for a house in New Orleans. It looked like a typical shotgun from the late 19th century, a wooden box with some gingerbread filigree. But it was huge, as if someone constrained the proportions in Photoshop and dragged a typical home to four times its size. Swiping through photos, I realized that it contained a massive ballroom where a normal living room might be. It got even weirder. The kitchen had a curved archway. And was that an omega symbol in the wallpaper? Some kind of signet or sigil in the parlor? The house became a bit of an obsession. What was this place? But as with many a Zillow romance, I cast it aside…

Madeleine Davies Writer “Occult Following,” p. 62 During the pandemic, Madeleine Davies, previously an editor at Eater and Jezebel, swapped New York City for New Orleans to pursue a master’s degree in historic preservation at Tulane. This issue saw her taking a break from academic assignments to dig into the history and recent renovation of a 19th-century building owned by actor, writer, and producer John Cameron Mitchell. Renovations “can frequently go really bad when dealing with historic materials,” says Davies. “Even though I’m very new to the historic preservation field, it made me warm and fuzzy inside to see how hard they were working to keep the spirit of this home while also making it John’s.” Ameena Walker Writer “Great Minds,” p. 42 Born and raised in New York City,…

“Beautiful, breathtaking home and expert renovation.”David Rodgers via dwell.com I am frankly bewildered and disturbed by the decision to have a feature article on a Philip Johnson house [“The Next Chapter: A Philip Johnson house in upstate New York grapples with the architect’s legacy and looks to the future.” November/December 2023]. I was not aware of his history, so the vague hints in the article motivated me to read more about his past. I was disgusted to read about his involvement in Nazism. Johnson was quoted as stating that he can never atone for this part of his life, but when did he try? It appears that after disavowing Hitler and the Third Reich, he went on to a successful and lucrative career as an architect and curator for the…

Love open shelves but not across a window! @mightyqtn The next home-owner is going to fix that ASAP. @janicehillinger I hate that I love it. @okaygardener Shelving across a window is energy-blocking to me, though I can see how it would look fire in a specific scenario. @jennicahelene Open shelving is already impractical. Blocking the view merely adds insult to injury. @kdeputy1 Not practical at all. You can’t clean the window properly, you lose visibility and, depending on what you put on the shelf, light too. @lupembechech Someone has to dust that! @christine.jenson. scottsdale Always better to see a clear view vs. looking at dusty tchotchkes. @design.travel.life That’s a great way to display my blue glass collection. @robj.sk I don’t care about my view when at the sink. (How long…

From the Ashes. After Japan’s devastating 1923 Great Kantō Earthquake, which triggered fires that destroyed thousands of buildings in and around Tokyo and caused an estimated death toll of 140,000, the government rebuilt the capital with a heavy emphasis on preventing future tragedies. New regulations required shops to use fire-resistant materials in their facades. Many proprietors chose mortar, which they would carve like marble into ornate decorative patterns and shapes. Another popular option was copper plating, which patinaed into a deep green. The term kanban kenchiku derived from the fact that the iconography on the facade acted as a signboard advertisement for the store. Art Deco Inspo. As Junya Miyashita, author of Japanese Signboard Architecture Illustrated, points out, kanban kenchiku was not the invention of formally trained architects, but arose from…

Smart devices are integrated into every product or process you can think of, from ordering groceries to turning on the air-conditioning before you come back to your place. But too often aesthetics are an after-thought. Not for us. No matter what kind of residence you have, we have you covered with design-conscious devices that are as concerned for your decor as they are functional. Here are our recommendations for a few specific types of home. The Japandinavian Cabin Whether you’re in the Catskills or Joshua Tree, your style lives somewhere between Kyoto and Copenhagen. Your minimalist house or meditative cabin is just the right amount of rustic but with clean lines, well-honed details, and only the essential furniture. If your favorite color is blond oak or maybe charred wood, you’re…