american gothic authenticity and the diner!

MONDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2010 AT 4:34AM

For me American Gothic is my attempt to wrestle with American Architecture and what defines the essence of that architecture. We are a nation trying to define ourselves two hundred years later. We are not japanese, we are not chinese, we are not indian. Are we french? Worse still, are we british? These are the sticky questions that i investigate with American Gothic.

The quintessential american building type is the diner! Why is this you Ask, begrudgingly, because instinctively you know it to be true. The diner building typology is rooted in that most American of products, the product of transportation. Both poetically and physically they embody America's spirit of travel, and our love affair therein. On point, let's take a gander at arguably the most american of paintings NIghthawks by Edward Hopper. This painting is about something seemingly innocent, catching a bite in a diner.

Yet, it contains something lurking beneath this innocent veneer, something sinister. something counter culture. This is what i am trying to get at, get to, uncover with American Gothic.My American Gothic series has grown out of six collaboration with builder designer Matt Ford of Esplanade homes. He is a longtime resident of the houston heights. This is a neighborhood populated with small, dare i say, historic 2 bedroom bungalows. I have a love hate relationship with the american bungalow. This building type teeters on the edge of comfort and cute absurdity. Hence, the American Gothic series. It's a reaction against architectural gingerbread, keeping up with the Jones's and following the herd.Now the populace of the historic heights have named it thus. This is where my foray into American Gothic originated. We are a nation obsessed with history. Just think of all the historic landmark placards that litter our cities. They actually say historical marker. We could start a cottage industry in france based on the need for historical markers, they would have to be on every building, and we would make a fortune. Need i say more?

And so i delve headfirst into what is Americana? If your looking for answers, look elsewhere. This is a paper more about questions than answers. It is about the question of American Architecture and the American home. This essay has been rolling around in my head for damn near a year now. I must thank kee kee for the kick in my pants and forcing me to rant. You see, kee kee lives in the "real" American Gothic house. You know the one from the kitschy painting of the same name. This painting has finally made it into the much coveted Taschen Art Book.

Now my take on reality and what is "real" versus the manufactured crap that infest our cities and goes by the wretched name of shopping centers, will be explored elsewhere.Through the alchemy of the internet, kee kee found me and my american gothic series. I think she was googling herself! Please refrain from this lewd behaviour in public! Anyway, onward and upward. So, kee kee leaves a comment on my napkin sketch post. She poses the question, "I think it's pretty safe to say, you would need a Gothic design element,say like a gothic shaped window to be the next ag house" Ahhh, my dear kee kee, you really don't know me, my middle name is danger!I am much more concerned with what lies beneath that gothic arch. What lies behind those cute ridiculous shutters that we paste to our homes? Is it a home with beautiful children being raised? Or is it a home atop a lot full of the buried bones of the next Jeffery Dahmer? Houses are wonderful things aren't they? So what defines an architectural style anyway? Flying buttresses? Glass Boxes? Mediterranean tombs of manufactured stucco niceties?For me Americana means hitting the open road. Looking for meaning as we make our way from east to west, and finding that authentic americana in the roadside diner. Drive on America!

other random images from my diner search….

Interesting fact I’ve learnt: Diners came about at the time when there was a BIG automobile boom and everyone was flocking to buy shiny new metallic cars. It rendered many trains redundant… and some smart people turned it into… dining places! Wow! What entrepreneurship. And recycling. All it took was some ingenuity. Hmm… wonder what opportunities this recession will pose…

Cars parked at an automated drive-in diner, where individual conveyor belts transport food directly to the driver, California, circa 1950.Photo: FPG/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Marbella, Spain: 1st Genuine American Diner ProjectPosted on February 20, 2008 by Admin

Our friends at Yummy Koncept have announced their latest project. What’s going to be the first genuine 50′s Diner in Marbella is under construction.Laurent Sabouret from Yummy Koncept explains: ” I have lived in San Francisco and Chicago for 3 years and since I was a little boy I always been a fan of the typical Stainless Steel diners. When I was in the States, I was a regular customer of all the diners that would count the city and I would always pay attention to all the details. I have accumulated numerous pictures and documentation about American Diner’s and have a particular interest for the 50′s one. When our client explained he wanted a genuine American Diner, I had no doubt that we were the right people for the job”. Laurent took its inspiration from various existing diner such as “Mel’s Drive In“, “Fog City Diner” and “Johnny Rockets“.Read more »

"Gas Station Sign" by Tony Stapleton: 2nd place at the Wickford Art Association "Abstract" Show, November, 2010. Honorable Mention, Portsmouth Arts Guild "Beyond the Lens" Show, May 2010.http://www.newportphotoguild.org