Making America Beautiful Again — Trump on Architecture
I know I vowed in October 2018 not to write another article about Donald Trump or politics… and I have kept my promise until now! Now I can’t keep quiet, now I won’t keep quiet.
Recently a draft executive order was leaked that will require all new federal buildings to conform to classical styles — “Making Federal Buildings Beautiful Again”. In it Trump lambastes modern architecture calling it “just plain ugly”.
This executive order has nothing to do with aesthetics or architectural beauty and has everything to do with President Trump wanting to stroke his massive ego and an attempt to leave a tangible legacy.
In 1962, Daniel Patrick Moynihan wrote a directive called the “Guiding Principles for Federal Architecture”. In it he said that the government should inspire people through the architecture of federal buildings. One of the primary policies was a lack of an official style. Instead federal buildings were supposed to be ‘organic’ and also reflect the character of the city in which they were to stand. Buildings should “reflect the regional architectural traditions of that part of the nation”.
The executive order states, “Federal building designs should … inspire the public for their aesthetics, make Americans feel proud of our public building …Classical and traditional architectural styles have proven their ability to inspire such respect for our system of self-government.”
Do we really need to rely on classical or traditional styles to instill a sense of patriotism?
Federal Modernism has been around since the 1950s. If classical buildings were truly important to national pride then why hasn’t the US experienced a serious national crisis yet?
When you look at Trump’s history this executive order becomes very suspicious. Trump, a real-estate mogul owns several notable properties across the U.S. You can see that Trump is not a classical architecture enthusiast. Financially this policy also does not work, Classical Architecture costs much, much more than modern architecture to build.
Trump frequently rants about how “our country has taken second fiddle” and how other nations are exploiting the U.S. It looks like Trump is trying to transform discontent with global affairs into American nationalism.
This was first reported by Architecture Record on February 4th, to date the Trump administration has remained silent about the draft executive order, but this hasn’t stopped architects, critics and academics from unleashing a storm of protest. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has a petition in process to stop Trump’s agenda. In the first week 1100 Architects wrote to the President.
Indeed Classical Architecture often carries dark political undertones and has a long past association with totalitarian governments. Many people drew comparisons to Adolf Hitler who used neoclassical architecture in his personal spaces and public buildings together with his architect Albert Speer.
A lot of commentators have tried to make the case that neoclassicism isn’t always fascist. However Fascists love neoclassicism and many social media accounts devoted to classical architecture have a large overlap with white supremacists…
“New Federal building designs, should … inspire the public for their aesthetics [and] make Americans feel proud of our public buildings … Classical and traditional architectural styles have proven their ability to inspire such respect for our system of self-government.”
Draft Executive Order“The AIA strongly opposes uniform style mandates for federal architecture. Architecture should be designed for the specific communities that it serves, reflecting our rich nation’s diverse places, thought, culture and climates. Architects are committed to honoring our past as well as reflecting our future progress, protecting the freedom of thought and expression that are essential to democracy.”
AIA in response to the Draft Executive OrderArchitectural styles-with special regard for the classical architectural style-that value beauty, respect regional architectural heritage, and command admiration by the public are the preferred styles for applicable Federal buildings.”
Draft Executive Order
Other styles such as the Mediterranean, Spanish Colonial, Romanesque and Gothic are encouraged with latitude allowed for other styles to be used under ‘extenuating’ circumstances. Only two styles brualism and deconstructivism are excluded for federal buildings.
American Classical buildings tend to be icebergs — the colonnades and porticoes are just entrances to endless annexes and layers of basement and sub-basement. The demands of modern government office buildings — energy efficiency, security requirements and maintenance preclude ornamental fripperies. Even if it was feasible most practices experienced in Classical Architectural design would have to work alongside more seasoned firms who would insist on modern materials thus blunting the historical effect.
The US does have a long tradition of classical architecture. Thomas Jefferson enthusiastically adopted this style for the country. In 1772 before independence Jefferson built Monticello a Palladian style house in Virginia. Two decades later when Pierre L’Enfant drew up the plans for the Capitol Building in Washington D.C. they were laid out in the neoclassical style and evocative of Monticello.
Gradually the buildings expanded, wings multiplied and sprouted wings of their own and domes bloated. When Ammi B. Youngs original 1837 design for the Boston Custom House needed to be enlarged in 1915 architects Peabody and Sterns added a beaux arts skyscraper…
“One of the most blatantly authoritarian things the government has yet attempted,”
Wired“The state [is] imposing its will on the creative freedom of its citizens.” — The Dallas Morning News
Classicism is not a style…
It appears that the Trump administration doesn’t fully grasp what classical architecture actually is.
Page four of the draft defines classical architecture in these terms:
“Classical architecture style” means the architectural style derived from the forms and principles of classical Greek and Roman architect, and as later employed by such Renaissance architects as Michelangelo and Palladio; such Enlightenment masters as Christopher Wren and Robert Adam; such nineteenth-century architects as Charles F. McKim, Robert Mills, and Richard Morris Hunt; and such 20th-century practitioners as John Russel Pope and the firm of Delano and Aldrich.”
Classicism isn’t a style but an approach to design.
“Working effectively in the classical language requires a good deal of training and discipline, very few architectural schools teach in this realm today,” — Richard Longstreth, George Washington University
The University of Notre Dame in Indiana is the only architecture school in the US that is dedicated to teaching classical architecture. (Miami & Yale Universities both teach classical architecture alongside a modernist curriculum).
“The proposal potentially reduces an entire architectural philosophy to a caricature.”
Michael Lykoudis, Dean of Notre Dame
Classical buildings don’t even need to have columns — take the Queen’s House in London for example.
Classical Architecture didn’t even originate in Western Europe. The Greeks begged, borrowed or stole from other cultures especially Egypt and Persia. The Romans in turn borrowed from the Greeks.
Nathaniel Walker, an associate professor of architectural history at the College of Charleston in South Carolina demonstrated how ancient buildings like the Adajal Stepwell in Gujarat, India, The Guanyin Pavilion in China, the Grand Palace of Sayil in Mexico and the Leptis Magna in Libya are all in the classical style.
“Classical architecture is still relevant today because it goes beyond Greece and Rome and into every continent,”
Nathaniel Walker
It ultimately boils it down to three things: usefulness, durability, and beauty. “If you follow those three principles, then you’re arguably a classicist,” says Walker.
It’s ironic that Trump, known for his modern glass towers has embraced Neoclassicism as a style for federal architecture.
In 1983 Trump commissioned Philip Johnson to design him a tower block shaped like a castle complete with drawbridge and moat!
So what is this all about? It’s about power and revenge. Trump’s hatred and envy of his predecessors — especially Obama has sparked this latest initiative. The 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (the Stimulus Bill) initiated dozens of new courthouses, land ports of entry and field offices and Trump’s new administration has built a wall…
“Anytime you have a powerful tool, whether it’s bronze, hydraulics, or gun power, it can be used for good or for ill, classical architecture-with all the poetry of structure and the natural botanical forms that cause our souls to sing-can and has been abused.”
Nathaniel Walker
Mack Scogin Merrill Elam’s Austin Federal Courthouse, is deemed ‘ugly’ and dismissed as a blight and inconsequential.
Is this all a storm in a teacup? Trump’s administration has no public works program to speak of. Repeated attempts to pass major new infrastructure legislation have got nowhere. The most recent big-spending proposal has been panned as “big, bold and unlikely” by Politico and it puts more emphasis on highways rather than buildings.
This is all an attempt by America’s vainglorious leader with his almighty inferiority complex to leave his mark.
Call Claire — +27 82 399 0180
bluedesigns5@gmail.com
www.bluedesigns.org
I love Architecture. I think it’s vital to talk about all aspects of Architecture — whether it be planning, construction, design or green building. I have written 3 E-Books & over 110 articles. Please feel free to let me know if you have any queries regarding architecture, planning & construction & I will assist you.
I am originally from the UK and moved to South Africa in 1999. I started Blue Designs in 2004 after working as a driver for Avalon Construction on a luxury home in the Featherbrook Estate. In my spare time I am an artist and writer.
Other Articles I have written include :-
My Imaginary Speech Addressing The United Nations
Building Green? Here are some tips.
Common Mistakes People make when Designing a House
The Advantages of Sustainable Building
Considering Buying or Renovating a Heritage Home? Pros and Cons
Renovation vs New Construction — which is Greener and Better for the Environment?
Bizarre Buildings Part Two — Space Age Fantasy
Weird and Wonderful Buildings Part Three — Three Buildings that make Music
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Sources -
http://dbknews.com/2020/02/17/trump-architecture-executive-order-nationalism/
https://qz.com/1801058/what-is-classical-architecture/
https://frieze.com/article/what-trumps-desire-make-architecture-beautiful-again-really-means
Originally published at https://www.bebee.com.
