Michigan: Day One

As I noted last week via the blog and Twitter, and my colleague Amanda so aptly showed in this slideshow, I was in Michigan last week. It was my first trip to the state and I had a hell of a time. Though about half of my time was spent in and around Holland shooting part three of our Full Spectrum series of videos at Herman Miller, I did head northeast of there for some time in Midland. I went to Midland to see the work of native son, architect, and scion of the Dow Chemical family Alden B. Dow. He did over a hundred buildings in a town of about 40,000 from the 1930s to the 1970s, and never had I seen a town whose aesthetic and feel owed such a debt to just one architect. I got a great tour of the Alden B. Dow home and studio (go if you can!) as well as a tour of town from the home and studio's director Craig McDonald. Have a look at this slideshow to see what I did.

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This is the drafting room in the Dow studio. Note the red accents (they'll show up again later) and the long line of desks. The ceiling is pretty low, but the wall of windows is wonderful. The room is set up with drawings by kids who come to the Dow studio as part of an architectural summer camp the studio hosts.

Made of left over cinder from Dow Chemical's coal-burning furnaces, the unit block became an important material in Alden Dow's career. He arranged the rhomboid blocks to as to appear square in the Dow house, and painted them a bright white.

A nice pic of old Alden himself.

I love this graphic representation of how Dow's initials became his logo.

Dow belived that kids should be encouraged to play as much as possible. The lower level of the house is all about color and joy, though notice the nice niches created in the back wall by simply removing a unit block.

Here's another view of the downstairs playroom. It also doubles as a theater where the Dows would show movies or films Alden made of his travels and work.

$The residence and acknowledged masterpiece of 20th-century architect Alden B. Dow in Michigan begins with a visit down a small flight of stairs to the Submarine room, which is just about flush with the level of the pond outside. The pink ceilings refract the light off the water.$

The residence and acknowledged masterpiece of 20th-century architect Alden B. Dow in Michigan begins with a visit down a small flight of stairs to the Submarine room, which is just about flush with the level of the pond outside. The pink ceilings refract the light off the water.

Here you can see just how close you are to the pond once you open a window. The lily pads were really at full tilt and in the distance in the water you can see unit blocks that guests can walk on quite far out into the water.

Here's a model of a house that Dow designed for some clients who never ended up building it. One of his daughters later took up the design and now uses it as a beach house. Dow called it the W House.

A very playful man, Dow designed a number of puzzles. this one can be constructed four ways. You can buy them in the gift shop of the Dow home and studio.

Alden Dow did this mural for the Midland farmer's market, but apparently they didn't like it. He moved it back home and it hangs now in his archives.

The grandeur of the main living room is hard to capture in a single photo. It's an expansive space used for parties and entertaining. There's very little formal about it, a theme that runs through Dow's house.

I couldn't resist snapping a photo of the inside of one of Dow's clothing drawers. He kept a record of his weight over the years. Even as an older guy he never got heavier than 151. Pretty trim.

There is a lovely interior courtyard that snakes out back. Here you can see where the drafting room meets up with Dow's office; the small door leads out of his personal office to the outdoors.

Dow loved red accents, and they repeat all over the house. I like these on the exterior very much. The detail mixed with the patinated copper gives a great effect.

This bridge at the Alden B. Dow Home and Studio goes from the terrace of the Dow home over the pond and out toward the large public park Dow Gardens.

This screened-in porch is on the second level of the house and overlooks the big pond. I love the colorful Bertoia furniture. The end tables were done by Dow himself.

The Dow children climbed all over this house, and it's gently pitched roofs make it a veritable playground. I climbed up one of the chimneys, though the steps were pretty far apart. I got up, but I could see it being a challenge for children.

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