-
Pittsburgh Architecture Gallery- Pittsburgh, PA
Pittsburgh’s architecture is absolutely amazing. So many different styles, so many reuse projects, so many bridges. A manufacturing and industrial powerhouse in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the city benefited from the vast fortunes made by industrialists such as Andrew Carnegie and Henry Clay Frick. Built organically, the city is a tapestry of time, with beautiful Gothic Revival and Beaux Arts buildings mixed with the more modern skyscrapers that define the Pittsburgh Skyline. Although not what it once was, the city has risen from the ashes and reinvented itself- today it’s a fun, photogenic city, with a unique spirit and excellent tacos.
-
Squire’s Castle- Willoughby Hills, OH
From a distance, Squire’s Castle looks straight out of a Fairy Tale. As you get closer, the reality is a bit darker, a bit more Blair Witch. While still undeniably beautiful, it’s clear the building is long abandoned- a sad stone shell, open to the elements. What remains is a haunting glimpse of the past, a melancholy reminder of a grand Gilded Age estate that never materialized. In 1890, Feargus B. Squire, vice president of Standard Oil, purchased 525 acres in Chagrin Valley, Ohio for the purpose of constructing a grand English style estate. He immediately started to improve the area, building roads and bridges, followed in 1895 by a…
-
Chicago Architecture Gallery
Some cities are just obscenely photogenic. Blessed with good architectural bones and stunning skylines, they look good from practically any angle. Chicago is most certainly this type of town; the photographic opportunities are limitless. Markedly different depending on the season, it is a city of contrasts. Towering glass skyscrapers share the streets with Victorian Brownstones; grand green spaces sit adjacent to bleak rail yards. It is an old city with soul, that absolutely shines in front of the camera.
-
Franklin Park Conservatory- Columbus, OH
Like the Victorians, I go crazy over conservatories. To me, Palm Houses are absolute perfection. Grand, soaring structures, that bring the tropics to you. There are few better places to be on a cold winter day, except of course someplace actually tropical. After a Glass Palace was featured at the 1893 Chicago Columbian Exposition, cities across the country scrambled to build one of their own. Thankfully, a few of these beauties are still standing, such as Rawling’s Conservatory in Baltimore, and Franklin Park Conservatory in Columbus. The land where the conservatory now sits was purchased in 1852 by the Franklin County Agricultural Society, to be used as the site of…
-
Falls Park on the Reedy- Greenville, SC
I do love a good urban park. A green space amidst the city chaos is always a welcome respite. Greenville has an absolute gem in Falls Park on the Reedy. A scenic river cutting right through town, the park combines natural beauty with a thoroughly modern suspension bridge. It also contains relics from Greenville’s mill based past, making it the perfect place to explore. Life in Greenville has always been centered on the Reedy River. Although the area was long a hunting ground for the Cherokee, once European colonist arrived, the town grew around the river. By the late 1800s several cotton mills were operating in town; by 1915 Greenville…
