What Ever Happened to Hip in Sherman?

I have lived in Sherman for about five years now. Moving to any new town means learning the environment, history, and culture of the place (especially when you are a designer and every building you work on has an effect on and is affected by its context.) For me, driving around for hours on a Saturday afternoon on what you might call a sort-of urban expedition yields a wealth of information that, when combined with stories of Sherman’s past leaders and visionaries, gives you an interesting account of how our culture has evolved. Specifically I’d like to take us back to the mid-century architectural scene.

I don’t know all the specifics, nor are they necessarily relevant, but I do know that Sherman was experiencing unprecedented growth. We had some key leaders and visionaries who where developing the industrial park and tech corridor to our south. We had Perrin Air Force Base coming in, bringing with it a surge in population and economic growth. And we were already a regional commercial center. With all this new growth came new development, too. At that time American’s were forward thinking and progressive, and had thrown out the classical motifs of the past in favor of the super-hip modernist style. Sherman was no exception. We were looking to Beverly Hills to see what types of buildings we wanted here in Sherman. Indeed there are some exceptional examples of modernist architecture in town. For example, the old bank building at the corner of Washington and Crockett Streets downtown is indeed an icon worthy of including in any anthology of modernist architecture. It features a sweeping, cast-in-place concrete roof shaped like a star that cantilevers over the street. Raymond Thomas, the architect of the building, designed several modernist masterpieces in Sherman, including the church over by Fairview Park that features a concrete roof just as daring! Several office buildings downtown were constructed in the International Modernist Style, including the Modern Building, the Travis Street Mall, and 320 North Travis Street Office Building.

Our residences and neighborhoods were super-hip, too. The modernist neighborhood just on the other side of the creek on West Washington featured low-slung roofs with broad overhangs, lots of glass, and a new informal layout of spaces to match the new casual lifestyle. Denison Architect Donald Mayes built a few, and by and by the whole neighborhood looked to Frank Loyd Wright and the west coast to define its style.

Flash forward to today. Modernism led to Post-modernism. In Sherman today, development is largely what we refer to as “neo-eclectic.” That means we are attempting to build in historicist styles, like Spanish Colonial, or Tudor, or French Country. Very few “modernist” houses have been built in the last couple of decades. Moreover, our interiors are appointed with antique-like Victorian imitations and over-stuffed paisley sofas, hand scraped wood floors, and faux painted walls. All is intended to look “old world.”

A similar interesting phenomenon is occurring in the construction of our office architecture. We have our architecture studio in the five-story Boardwalk Building in downtown Sherman. And to me, there is something stylized about that situation. When I leave my home and go to the office, I can observe a discernible difference between the two environments. However, much of the office architecture in our culture today begins with the idea that “I want my office to feel like a home.” We are no longer looking to Beverly Hills for inspiration and building modernist icons. Instead, we are using the same Victorian armchairs we have at home in our offices, with elaborately layered crown molding and faux painted walls.

I wonder why? By the way, Sherman is not the only place experiencing this phenomenon. There has been a backlash against modernism by much of America’s popular culture. I submit that there are a few reasons why Sherman culture has headed “neo-eclectic” and is no longer interested in “super-hip:”

1)Modernism was perceived as “uncomfortable” and “cold.” Experiments in sculptural furniture and new manufactured finish surfaces seemed inhospitable. As a result, we headed in the complete opposite direction, with as much stuffing, padding, tassels, and moldings as we could get our hands on.!
2)The reduced details and lack of ornamentation left people with a sense of longing for the elaborate details of past architectural styles. The sleek and streamlined left us without the picturesque front façade with dormers and shutters. It didn’t so much look like “home” anymore.
3)The new architectural style was confused and lacked a clear language. I mean, there were no rules, so just as many building were done badly as were executed well. Case in point, when many of the downtown buildings were “modernized,” entire facades were covered over with stucco. Windows were filled in, and huge fields of metal panels covered ornate brick patterns.
4)Good old-fashioned peer pressure. C’mon, you know you’re susceptible! No one else seems to be doing modernism, so I’m not going to either…

And there’s one key change in our culture that might be considered. We no longer look to the same role models to define our style. Beverly Hills and Manhattan, for some reason, are no longer on our radar. I say this because the modernist style is absolutely at its best right now in 2010. We just aren’t paying much attention to it. Regional modernism, such as the work produced by San Antonio based Lake-Flato Architects, is both forward thinking and comfortable, clean and elegant, modernist and Texas specific. And modernist designers everywhere are designing comfortable, clean-lined furniture and interior spaces that are all but inhospitable. Remember Ikea? Some of it is very comfortable!

I know many of you watch popular TV programs like “House MD” and “Boston Legal.” Both of these feature super-hip modernist office interiors. However, you’d be hard pressed to find many modernist professional offices in Sherman. Most are traditional in nature, with gold-studded rivets on the armchairs, wood paneled walls, maroon and forest green, and representational paintings of fox hunts on the walls.

As a designer, it’s my job to observe these trends. I am not saying modernism is better, nor am I suggesting that there’s anything wrong with the historicist styles of the past. I simply find it interesting that, while other progressive metropolitan areas continue to feature a mix of modernism and neo-eclectic, we are almost exclusively neo-eclectic and have abandoned our super-hip modernist roots. Except for some of our arts, culture, and educational institutions… but that’s a topic for another day.

In conclusion, let me merely suggest the following: build a house and design your office to match who you are in the most authentic way possible. If you are a super hip technology company, then have a super-hip high-tech looking office, and a super-hip house, too! If you are an immigrant from the French Riviera who grew up in a fifteenth century castle, then find out the attributes of that castle and by all means, replicate them! And if you are a farmer, what’s wrong with a simple clapboard farmhouse with the charm and nostalgia of a great front porch and a screen door? As with any cultural phenomenon, the interest is in the mix.

Other Articles You Might Like:

1. Sherman Arts and Culture District Many Sherman citizens may not realize that we have...
2. Sherman,TX Department of Tourism The City of Sherman, TX has a Department of Tourism...
3. Downtown Sherman Preservation and Revitalization, Inc. Downtown Sherman Preservation and Revitalization, Inc., is a non-for-profit, Board...
4. City of Sherman Utilities The City of Sherman has a Utility Billing department that...
5. About Sherman, Texas… Welcome to the best city in Texas!  We’re proud to...