Lol, perhaps I was being a little unfair calling the house a “monstrosity”. After all, it’s intentionally ugly, basically a giant architectural in-joke. For instance, the windows and chimney are intentionally placed at awkward positions as a sort of ironic twist on traditional residential architecture. Unfortunately, the end result just ends up looking goofy rather than clever.
Also, it’s a little unfair to blame this house solely on Stern, it’s a collaboration with John Hagmann.
Anyway, the house is the architectural equivalent of a mullet: business in the front, party in the back:
If you’d like to see a more successful and slightly less goofy early Robert A. M. Stern house check out the Wiseman residence, an ironic postmodern pastiche of the traditional shingle style:
The ironic and snook cocking phase of Post-Modernism is idiocy for idiocy’s sake, about as well-thought out as a tween eating Tide Pods out of scorn for the wisdom of his elders. Now ‘cutting edge’ architects like Steven Holl are carrying that torch.
Stern is simply amazing. He’s the anti-Kaufman. Whereas everything that GK designs is worthy of Gehenna, everything that Stern designs is worthy of Mt. Olympus.
