Plain old rowhouses on the north side of W Street and Florida Avenue NW
Jazzy new urban living: minimalist condos and apartments on the south side of W Street and Florida Avenue NW
Getting serious about this week's challenge... Lisa Sarsfield left a comment earlier in the week about a picture of some rowhouses I featured and, as a result, unwittingly planted the idea in my head for how to interpret this week's two things. (And note to everyone: Sorry if this one was tough. I thought it would be sort of simple and fun, but I'm thinking it likely wasn't. I promise that next week's will be much, much easier and you'll enjoy it.)
Washington, D.C., like many East Coast cities, has a residential style that is largely traditional, colonial architecture. In the last five years, though, new architecture has been popping up all over the place in the form of minimalist glass and steel structures. I thought I'd juxtapose the old, late-1800s/early-1900s rowhouse look against the sleek new look going up all over town. The old is sort of plain and flat, the new is kind of jazzy and... erm... peanutty.
Okay, lame, I know. But there you have it. Plain and Peanut. And now, on to next week's challenge, shall we?
Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential, 1/08
10 comments:
wow, what a difference in architecture!
They are like night and day to each other! I love the old 'plain' ones. I bet they could tell stories! I love the detailing on them even though it looks a little... english! lol. I think that's because of the colours as well.
The new ones are very dramatic. Strong lines and bold colours.Just think that one day these will be your 'plain old ones!'
Can't think what I said that got the ball rolling! Am going to go check the post...
PS: I couldn't think of anything orginal to photograph although I did think of buying the kids a plain vanilla icecream just so I could photograph them!
Lara: It is pretty different. Fortunately, D.C. manages to have very few really ugly buildings. And, there's a height limit on all buildings. They're not allowed to build more than 12 stories, so the city has a very provincial feel to it.
Lisa: You commented on my "Row" photo and that inspired me. A picture of the kids with vanilla ice cream would have been a great addition. That said, though, sorry I made it so tough last week. Hopefully this week's is a little easier.
You are reaching on this one D.C. lol! It makes one wonder how the peanut will stack up against the plain in 100 years. Wonder is all we can do though. Photographically I like peanut best. The colors just reach out and grab me!
Bobbie: I was reaching a little, wasn't I? What I really wanted to do was go to Rehoboth Beach, DE, and take pictures of the ocean and the boardwalk, but it was a little too cold the other day. Plus, it's a three hour drive. That said, it's my own fault for choosing a word pairing that sounded fun at the time, but wasn't all that practical. (Although, I liked your interpretation of it.)
Wow - what a great entry!
I love the contrast.
Thank you!
~ Diane Clancy
www.dianeclancy.com/blog
Diane: Thank you!
D.C is definitely changing.
Nice informative works you have photographed as well.
Like it. Wondered how you were going to get 'peanut' into the second picture lol
WorldWide1: Welcome! I've been here five years and it's amazing how much it's changed even in that short time period. I hope the change is sustainable and long-lasting and not just some fancy, fleeting trend.
Bev: I wondered how I was going to meet this challenge, too! Thankfully, Lisa inspired me!
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