Treehouse

Our house is a treehouse, and it especially feels like one now with all the windows removed.

On nice days the carpenters pull down all the masonite and it is open all the way through. It is quite a feeling!

We got our letter today about our bid for the state tax freeze application. At this stage, they do not feel our house qualifies because of the changes we made to the front windows (see this post on structure) and the amount of removal we have done on the interior. We anticipated this, but I am still a little disappointed, mostly from a preservation perspective.

After going through this process, I wish there was a middle ground, where a more moderate tax incentive is offered to homeowners who preserve a period structure on the exterior. The interior preservation is so worthwhile for posterity, but is not always in the homeowner's best interest. For contemporary use, resale value, and to carefully update our home to current code, we elected to make some changes that are significant on the inside. But on the outside, the house is virtually unchanged and will be the same as it has been for fifty years from the perspective of the Village or the neighbors. And I think it is worth providing an incentive to keep the variety of styles, ages, and housing types in our Village and the neighboring cities and communities. Without any incentive to preserve the building, it makes financial sense to raze homes and build anew, so that the structure, insulation, wiring, ducting can be brand new and up to current standards.

Once the project is complete, we may go back to them and show what we have done and ask them to consider our application again. And at the very least I'll write a letter, and renew my membership in the local preservation organizations that are fighting this fight every day.

Certificate of Rehabilitation

So we are going ahead with an application for a certificate of rehabilitation from the state. Property taxes are pretty steep here, and once the valuation on the house goes up we could be looking at significant savings over the next ten years if we freeze at the lowest valuation (next year). Also, I am interested and curious to have a conversation with the state architects about our project, and to determine how the changes we are making to the house do or do not fall in line with expectations for historical preservation. Our house is just a baby in historical preservation terms and modern and traditional architecture diverge in many ways. Here are the guidelines:

Illinois Standards for Rehabilitation

1. A property shall be used for its historic purpose or be placed in a new use that requires minimal change to the defining characteristics of the building and its site and environment.

Good on this one. It's a house, we are using it as a house.

2. The historic character of a property shall be retained and preserved. The removal of historic materials or alteration of features and spaces that characterize a property shall be avoided.

We are removing elements and altering spaces, and this gave me pause. So far, however, conversations about this with the state are relatively positive. It seems preserving a certain proportion of critical elements in public spaces and the house overall is key.

3. Each property shall be recognized as a physical record of its time, place, and use. Changes that create a false sense of historical development, such as adding conjectural features or architectural elements from other buildings, shall not be undertaken.

I love the purity of this one. Absolutely.

4. Most properties change over time; those changes that have acquired historic significance in their own right shall be retained and preserved.

This is the one I have been thinking about the most. We are the first ones to alter this house after the original owner and builder. If we think 200 years down the line, our architects are the ones who are making changes that will acquire that layer of historical significance. How many Villa Savoye-inspired rocket ranches on pilotis are there in Illinois, anyway? The changes they are making, particularly lining up the structural grid (more on this in the next post) are important. I feel we are making the house more true to its bones.

5. Distinctive features, finishes, and construction techniques or examples of craftsmanship that characterize a property shall be preserved.

Note that it does not state explicitly that they need to remain in place. We have removed the paneling and light fixtures to re-wire and re-insulate. Virtually all the material in good condition will be re-used and much will go back in the same place it came from: sustainability, design and budget practicality all align here. However, some materials have been removed, and some material will be installed in new locations.

6. Deteriorated historic features shall be repaired rather than replaced. Where the severity of deterioration requires replacement of a distinctive feature, the new feature shall match the old in design, color, texture, and other visual qualities and, where possible, materials. Replacement of missing features shall be substantiated by documentary, physical, or pictorial evidence.

Luckily we do have pictorial and drawing evidence for the few removed elements (from our time and the Gutnayer's time), so one could return the house to an earlier state if desired.

7. Chemical or physical treatments, such as sandblasting, that cause damage to historic materials shall not be used. The surface cleaning of structures, if appropriate, shall be undertaken using the gentlest means possible.

Yup.

8. Significant archaeological resources affected by a project shall be protected and preserved. If such resources must be disturbed, mitigation measures shall be undertaken.

I wonder if the vintage Sunfish that is still on the side of the house qualifies as an archeological resource.

Sunfish, anyone?

9. New additions, exterior alterations, or related new construction shall not destroy historic materials that characterize the property. The new work shall be differentiated from the old and shall be compatible with the massing, size, scale, and architectural features to protect the historic integrity of the property and its environment.

I appreciate this idea. So architectural and modern in its essence—what is new should be new—related, compatible, but having its own distinct design.

10.New additions and adjacent or related new construction shall be undertaken in such a manner that if removed in the future, the essential form and integrity of the historic property and its environment would be unimpaired.

Nice and logical. Touch lightly and make future restoration easier to do. Our additions touch lightly in this way.

We still aren't sure if we will get it: we won't know for a few months and the state has asked for more drawings. At this point it is difficult to predict what will happen with taxation rates and property values, so figuring out cost/benefit is a bit...speculative. We maintain the attitude that we will continue to do what is best for the house, preserving as much of its character and material as we can while shoring it up and making it ours.

it begins!

 

here we go!

The dumpster and portapotty are in place, the fence is up, the demo guys are working on the interior today. Design meeting tomorrow, design drawings shortly thereafter.

So I have been thinking a lot about the fireplace wall and did a few quick photoshop perspectives to represent some of my thoughts. Apologies for the low quality of the photographs. I used my iPhone.

I love the light that comes in from the bedroom. I want to keep that entering the main space.

what is this mystery translucent material?

I love these resin products from 3form. Expensive, but so cool.

I added some solid wood to the right of the stone to represent the secret stair, which will be a permanent stair up to the roof, rather than the pulldown that is there now.

 

Here the translucent material reveals the stone a bit, for color and texture.

The connection at the top of the stairs is definitely closed.

 

Here the stone is covered by paneling but there is a peekaboo translucent section into the playroom.

 I tried shelves on this wall but it just felt busy and cramped. I think we also might need to consider embracing our inner pink and not covering up the stone.

The brass planter is off and the circular stair no longer blocks the view to the window. It lines right up!!

Aaaaah....

But now the tall central axis seems too tall.

Any reason it needs to be this tall? cut it off? Take it to the ceiling as one of our extra structural supports?

beautiful steel uncovered in the entry.

Can we keep it revealed?

Here's the crazy marble off the dining room table. Again...maybe embracing our inner pink?

I'll try to find some interesting examples of good design using this palette.

Keeping the Torch of Architecture Burning

Gutnayer drew christmas cards in ink on vellum and printed them as blueprints every year to send out as Christmas cards. The house figures in each one, as do the kids, Alice, and their activities that year. They are whimsical and so rich with great drawings. He has a symbol of the house as a torch that re-occurs in cards over multiple years.

I have been looking at a lot more of his projects and have started trying to identify them in Google Maps. I am building a public map that you can search for, I think. He did a high rise in Chicago and one in Evanston, and designs for two major highrises on in the 4200 block of Marine Drive that you can see from Lakeshore Drive. Given the volume of drawings in the house for these, I am quite sure they are built, but the Marine Drive project may not be his, I cannot tell yet. I need to go look at it and compare it to the drawings. His buildings seem to consistently have four bays in the front and exterior columns with volume underneath. Our house is consistent with that expression. The other interesting project he worked on was the transitioning of Louis Sullivan's Auditorium Building into Roosevelt University in the 1970s. Kathryn and I went to look at this building the other day, and it appears he did a lot of design of infill classrooms, lockers, mechanical, etc. He also designed a small workshop theatre and some other spaces. Now that I have seen the building and understand its significance I cannot wait to go back and look at the drawings. (Me in the studio:"why is this Louis Sullivan photograph in the studio? and why is it in a roosevelt university interior rendering? where is roosevelt anyway?") Obviously my education in Chicago architecture is just beginning. But Kathryn and I got a lot under our belt in a few short hours: the Mies apartment buildings at 860 Lakeshore (just steps from the American Girl Store!), Mies' Crown Hall at IIT, the Auditorium Building, and the Robie house. And those are the ones we got inside, not to mention the many we drove by while kids listened to storytapes in the back seat.

So, the torch of architecture. Gutnayer had a lot of passion for art and design, and he kept it very alive in his work and his personal life. I love the symbolism of the torch. It reminds to be a bit more attentive to keeping energy and excitement active in my own life and work. He lived so fully. We should all aspire to that.

Illinois Heritage

So today the historic preservation architect came and visited the house. He knew all about the names and dates of the fixtures, the plywood, and so many things. It seems unlikely that we will preserve as much as necessary to receive the landmark property tax freeze, but it was very interesting to learn things about our house from him. And, there is the opportunity for dialog: houses form the 50s are a little harder to nail down in terms of preservation constraints than the late 19th century farmhouse. So we will see...

He identified this lamp, which we have been holding onto, because, why? well, it seemed too sort of big and odd to get rid of. And sure enough: it is (marked on the bottom) as a Laurel lamp designed by Frederick Weinberg. Google these things and some run in the 2-3K range. Wow! Another beautiful thing he identified is the plywood called 'driftwood' on the ceiling of our sun porch, which does look like driftwood, and is an early type of specialized textured ply.

Technology

J. Marion used state of the art technology in his home. We hope that continues to bode well as we start to peel away the layers of materials to get down to the structural elements. A couple of our favorite elements are his stereo, which had built in speakers in the sideboard in the dining room:

Those who know Reed and remember his speaker system in our old house will understand that this made total sense to us. I will post pictures of the stereo, which is a big box with the turntable inside. It came with construction drawings which I found in the living room storage along with a series of articles about building bomb shelters.

There are two giant dimmers like this one:

 

They feel wonderful to operate. You can sense the scale by comparing them to the lowly standard wall switches just to the left. This is a serious piece of lighting equipment.

This OSB composition board has caught the eyes of the architects. I love it. They have said that is a pretty early application of this material. It is the wall material in the kids bedrooms.

On Saturday the Illinois Historic Preservation architect comes out to talk to us about what we would need to replace/restore/retain if we were to apply for Landmark status and benefits (a ten year property tax freeze!) We are looking forward to meeting him. We will be holding our breath about the replacement of the blown aluminum windows (the 40 feet of them on the front facade in particular) which is a big ticket item already and could get much bigger if we are required to keep everything quite close to the original. We'll see...

Slow Going

We are in the process of choosing an architect, working through the choice between two different firms. One is a design/build firm and the other would likely come with a construction manager as part of the process. It is a slow process being thorough about making a balanced choice. They are both great options and it is really hard to choose which way to go. It feels a bit like looking at two big, expensive wrapped gifts and trying to pick one.

So, in the interim, Ive been working on getting J.Marion's papers into safer, drier, warmer places than our house, and it looks like we will have some success. I have found lots of his houses around to drive by,and buildings too. As the dispersal of the images become imminent, we are figuring out what we might like to keep ourselves.

The same questions will come up regarding interior details. Here are some good ones that we hope we can keep, and some that will surely go, but give us a sense of J. Marion and Alice's funky style.

The master bedroom. Lamps and built in headboard with blanket storage and closet on the rear side.

 

master bath tile.

second bath tile and velvet stripe wallpaper.
J. Marion specified some awesome wallpapers in his projects.
Silver foil sunsets in one kitchen, huge musical notes in another kitchen.

the circular stair.

Even beautiful with white carpet and plastic tread.

Originals

(11/05/09) I recently found two more interior photographs and a little more information about when and why they were taken. Gutnayer put his house on the market in 1973, and these photos were the interior shots from the sales materials (which look like old test results from elementary school: how marketing has changed!). He wrote a letter to the agent cancelling their agreement around selling the house because they could not get an offer at their asking price ($156,000). Lucky for us, I think. So below I have added the other two interior views. Don't miss the huge paintings in the dining room. I will try to identify them from his art inventories.
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I got a request for more images, so here they are. We are working on making our architect choice and I am meeting with landscape architects: gotta plant some new trees to replace the cottonwood tree cover that came out. The operative word for our house with the designers has become 'tree house'. Also news on getting the house local landmark status will be coming up: I am starting discussions with a local historian who does those requests.

Here are some images of how the interior and exterior of the house looked in the 50s. And a photo of Gutnayer's immigration card.

J. Marion. DP stands for Displaced Person.

early view of the house.

That window is 40 feet long. I want to expose it all, but we will see what the architects think. Right now it is broken up by some bookcases (that might be bearing some structural weight!) and a maid's room. You can also see the original roof garden structure which is no longer there.

 

interior looking west.

 

interior now.

Paintings on the wall to the right are Courbet and the like.

African art all over as well. Couch and coffee table remain.

View to the east. 'Structural' bookshelf to the right.

 

that same spot now. So much wood, and so many different kinds!

interior, dining room. Table and chairs are still here.

I'm hoping to find a buyer for them somehow, someway.

master bedroom.

that crazy growth to the left of the door?
who knows...must be a sculpture because it is no longer there.
Can you imagine sleeping with that figure looking at you?
I wonder if they had a name for her.

Some visitors seem mildly icked out by the master bedroom opening on the living room, and there is inevitably an uncomfortable joke made about the evening's entertainment! I think I spent enough time in unconventional houses as a kid (those 70's treehouses in Marin and Sea Ranch come to mind) that I am not phased by this layout. The bedroom will be a great art gallery, because all it can really have in it is the bed. The wall to the right inside the bedroom has a picture rail: I hope we keep it as an artwall.

A backside only a mother could love

I am hoping the architects come up with something wonderful for this rear facade. There is talk of connecting down to the garden from the back somehow.  The intersection of the brick volume and the main house volume is so odd. But the screen porch above my studio (the two parts of the brick piece) feels wonderful inside, and I look forward to candlelit dinners in there in the summer.

My studio is starting to feel like a studio, and is getting a lot more light! A cork floor and some white walls and I am good to go. While I think I am doing ok without painting, I am really not. I wander into the solvents aisle at the art store and think about stocking up, and Im hoarding jars at home. I think I will be moving in as soon as is possible.

Welcome to our world

Ive been posting on Facebook for awhile about our home remodel project: it is time to get serious and move it onto a longer forum where I can explain my cryptic posts.

I'll tell the story throughout the blog, but here are the basics: In April 2009, we decided to move to Illinois for jobs at Northwestern University from beautiful Seattle WA. We had completed a remodel in 2007 that we loved. After our wonderful friends and neighbors, it was the hardest thing to leave in Seattle. As Reed noted, we get to keep the friends--the house we never get to have again. So we knew we wanted to find a special place to live in Illinois: near NU, good schools, near good natural areas and near the train for those schoolday trips to the Art Institute.
We looked and looked and in June 2009, with our move date of August 1 looming, we still had not found a house. July rolled around, and still no dice. We decided that Reed should go back and look, one last time, for rentals and potential purchases.

At some point in June our agent told us about this house she had heard about that was in an estate that we might be interested in. Reed saw it in July, and went back three times that week to mull it over. It was the family home of an architect named J. Marion Gutnayer, who passed away at 95 in 2005. His wife Alice, a high school French teacher, passed in 2007, and the house had been sitting empty, unheated and full of most of their possessions, for the past few years.

Reed made an offer and we purchased the house from the estate while we were moving: I don't remember clearly, but I do remember reviewing terms at Gordon Ranch in Montana, so it must have been in early August 2009. I did not see the house in person before we bought it. Having completed our remodel in Seattle together, I trusted him.