dbigtex56

Anonymous donors.

"Entertaining donors" and "$9000 bed" in the same article. No wonder she's always smiling. That's the least vulgar comment I could come up with.

Let me freeze-frame that famous scene with Sharon Stone. Hmm... I don't think that's a hand puppet, but the lighting's not too great. Sure doesn't look like that statue, all skweejawed and stuff.

Oh, but she is. From the Chron article: "Burrows, who as "Julie Bond" appeared in the 1995 movie Once in a Blue Moon and as a hand puppet model in the 1992 film Basic Instinct, lives in Nashville. Adickes worked from photographs he took of her." Imagine how difficult it must be for her to edit her resume'. Which leads to a question - would "Big Hand Puppet On Main Street" be too wordy and confusing? And how does it feel to be immortalized in such odd ways twice in one lifetime?

"Texas, in the best role of traditional Judeo-Christian charity, provided benefits," Mr. Bond said. "I think it's time we get back to being a good neighbor and not a paid companion." Yes, we're good, God fearing whores with hearts of gold, Mr. Bond. Don't make me get all scrappy on yo' butt. We want our money. It's about time that this common-law marriage between Houston and New Orleans was recognized - or won't it be because it's not between One Man And One Woman?

(emphisis added) Townhome or bungalow, it all comes down to parking. "One Man, One Car" might be Houston's motto, and unless there's some assurance that every adult has a place to stash his or her car, there's no crowding more of them into the same space. Even assuming that you could find six adults who were willing to occupy the same 3 bedroom townhome, they'd end up killing each other over who gets to park in the 2 car garage. Funny, people will share a bathroom, but not a car or a parking space. A bungalow provides the same number of parking spaces as two town homes (two in the driveway, two in the street vs two 2-car garages, no on-street parking). Net change: zero. I don't know if this is a recognized theory, but it's been my observation.

Speaking of the way that our downtown skyline is perceived, 4th Ward, etc. ... In the early 80s the vantage from which Houston's skyline was often photographed was W. Gray at Valentine. That slight bend on W. Gray gives a perspective which made downtown appear to be emerging from a sea of dilapidated shotgun shacks, especially when viewed through a telephoto lens. This was as tempting to photographers as the striking (and all-too-familiar) view of downtown from Eleanor Tinsley park. Kind of got on the locals' nerves that this is the image of Houston which often showed up in the national press. Not exactly as flattering as San Francisco's Postcard Row. Once Kathy Whitmire was elected mayor, that block of shotguns got bulldozed, pronto.

See below: And you're right about it being right for Houston in some weird way; no self-respecting city would allow such laughably sentimental k-r-a-p, and not many small towns would, either. Of course, if Mr. Adickes had had the foresight to put 'Elegance' on wheels, it would qualify as an Art Car, and we'd all be ga-ga over it. Imagine 'Looking Forward' breaking loose from its pedestal, unstoppable, silently gliding alone through the deserted streets of Houston under moonlit skies, past palms and live oaks festooned with Spanish moss; pausing to serenely gaze through the sleepless bedroom windows of terrified children, then mutely moving on, on like the Undead. Big Head On Elm Street...? I digress.

How dare you get back on topic! I'm pretty sure the answer to all of your questions is 'yes'. That is, you're asking the right questions, and I have some answers, almost. According to my authentic, original 1982 Transco Tower promotional poster, it's "A Project of Gerald D. Hines Interests and Transco Companies Inc." Gerald Hines was very much involved with the design of this building, and it's from his concepts that Johnson & Burgee developed the final design. Do not ask me to name my source; I read this somewhere about 20 years ago, and can't be expected to remember everything. But yeah. It was in a newspaper article from that time. Mr. Hines has always had a keen interest in and appreciation for architecture. The team (Johnson, Burgee and Hines) wanted to do something audacious. Like George Mitchell, Hines had a vision that Houston would continue to expand and built accordingly; for the former it was The Woodlands, the latter Transco Tower. The inspiration for Transco, I'm told, is the lighthouse. It makes sense. A landmark to which people are drawn from vast distances. The rotating beacon atop Transco/Williams is a sly reference to that concept. Rather than a literal interpretation of a lighthouse, Hines wanted an icon of urbanity. What better than the forms of Manhattan skyscrapers? Transco definately shows influences of the Empire State Building and especially the New York Daily News building (Raymond Hood): Even the Transco promotional poster recalls the Hugh Ferriss rendering. So yes. It was built to celebrate its site in a sea of nothingness; and its role as a beacon to which a city would eventually come has been realized. Its destiny has been fulfilled. Was that too long winded?

rps: thanks for posting the pictures. And ruining my day. Seriously, you're doing a public service, like those people who post pictures in convenience stores of known criminals. "Surely," some may exclaim, "you're not comparing the remodeling of a house with lawbreakers!" Yes, I am. There ought to be a law, as the saying goes. By pointing out the folly of trying to 'fix' something that's not broken that makes people consider and appreciate what the house represent(ed) in its original form. When this awareness is shared with others, it's a step towards preventing such errors in taste and judgement in the future. For tiny, tiny people, maybe...looks awfully low. Right after they replace the real trees with fake ones.

Welcome to Houston, and welcome to HAIF. There's a lot of raw material from which to select. The Third and Fifth Wards (areas north and east of Downtown) have high concentrations of the sorts of properties you describe. There are industrial parts on the east side of Houston near the port, which are still affordable in part due to the railroads which crisscross the area. There's a large, diverse and inclusive art community in Houston. Are you familiar with Project Row Houses? Or The Orange Show?Art Cars? You came to the right place.

AKA pica. "Individuals presenting with pica have been reported to mouth and/or ingest a wide variety of nonfood substances, including, but not limited to, clay, dirt, sand, stones, pebbles, hair, feces, lead, laundry starch, vinyl gloves, plastic, pencil erasers, ice, fingernails, paper, paint chips, coal, chalk, wood, plaster, light bulbs, needles, string, cigarette butts, wire, and burnt matches." Sounds like the worst Baskin-Robbins ever. Perhaps the white clay has a high chalk content? or some trace mineral...? Or maybe women is nuts? I had a friend who ate burnt paper; but only from one particular free local newspaper. True, she had her issues... She was complex and multilayered, like sedimentary soil. There. Back on topic.

50,000 views on this topic! I usually don't point such things out but felt the number was notable enough to justify it.

They're going to have to elevate the thing another twenty feet or hire a 24 hour guard to save it from graphic 'public comment'.

Vaughan's points are valid. I'm not happy about that, but you can't fault someone for telling the truth. The problem with establishing a preservation district or policy for MCMs in Houston is that the economics are different than in previous efforts to save historic/significant buildings. In many cities, what are currently preservation districts had become virtually abandoned slums, and ownership had reverted to city tax rolls and banks. At that time, the roles of 'good guys' and 'bad guys' were more clear cut; some people flatly didn't like "that old stuff" and were eager to bulldoze 19th century houses out of sheer ignorance - or arrogance. A lot of effort was expended to document what was there, and to educate people as to its value. Lenders and governmental entities were persuaded to offer incentives that ultimately produced profitable loans and put depressed properties back on the tax rolls. Preservationist saved structures that would otherwise have been lost for no good reason. Preservation often does involve spending other peoples money. If the other people are banks or government, this gives preservationists a foothold. It's sometimes just a matter of changing minds. But if I was an elderly person in poor health (or even a greedy heir) whose primary interest is receiving top dollar for my house, I'd resent interference by outsiders trying to tell me what to do with my own property. Moral arguments seldom trump the Almighty Dollar. There is no shortage of people willing to spend it in areas which feature the better MCMs. Yes, it makes feel angry and sick to see a beautifully designed MCM bulldozed to construct some Gawd-awful stucco caricature of Tuscany. What we're doing here - right now - is part of the solution. If we can make people aware that good architecture is worth saving, even at the expense of square footage or trendy amenities, we've taken a step towards saving them. There's hope - have you noticed that MCM houses are suddenly being featured in a lot of advertisments? When the public catches on and gains an appreciation, the current flurry of demolitions may be slowed. I only hope it doesn't come too late.

"It's in contrast to all of that other k-r-a-p," he said. "It's an attempt to elevate aesthetics where it was 15 or 20 years ago. Aesthetics went out the window and it's looking to come home." Mom...David spelled the 'k' word... So is the title "Elegance" or "Looking Forward"? Neither is an improvement on BHOMS - and it still looks like a 14 year old girl's doodle during study hall.

Upcoming projects: Big Foot On Walker Big Breasts On Caroline Big Fetus On Canal

Thanks for clearing that up. Will try to catch the Free Radicals at Helios.

Part of the reason that Houston's skyline is so striking is that there's enough room between the builidngs to allow them to be seen in their entirety. This would not be the case if surface parking lots (or low-rise structures) weren't scattered throughout downtown. If our skyscrapers were packed solidly together, it would just be a jumble.

Also known as scrotum worship.

Sorry for dragging politics into it, but is this in Tom DeLay's district? Maybe that's why his constituents loved him so much - purdy freeway exchanges, bought with federal funding.

This isn't the "You Get What You Give" Free Radicals, is it?

Big Head On Main Street has piqued my curiousity. Nothing has shown up in Google News as of yet, so I made a phone call to Patricia C. Johnson, art critic at the Houston Chronicle. She was out of the office. I left a message asking for information, and if she intended to comment on it in her column. I then tried the Houston Press, as their offices are a mere two blocks away from BHOMS. The gentleman who answered the phone said that some of their employees had questioned the construction workers who installed it, but as of yet they have no information. He also said that there will be no mention of the sculpture in this week's Press due to deadline constraints, but that there should be something in the following week's issue. So here's my idea: let's barrage the Houston Press with email inquiries from HAIF members with the heading "Big Head On Main Street?" and see what happens. With luck, they may see the humor in it, and mention it in a column. Perhaps the name will stick. Also, we may get a plug for Houston Architectural Information Forum at the same time. The guy who writes "Hair Balls" seems like a likely fellow - here's his email address: rich.connelly@houstonpress.com

Thanks for setting a time and date, Native. Hope to see everyone there. I voted for the Maple Leaf, because it's had HAIF interaction (and because it's walking distance) but vote your conscience. IMHO Midtown has an edge because there's other nearby places to go afterward, if one chooses to.

Didn't take long for the art critics to chime in. I'd tell them, "It's a Big Head on Main Street." We don't know yet. It's entirely possible that he paid someone to put it there. But seriously. Now that the thing's there, how do we go about getting rid of it?