Sadly enough, one encounters the first discordant note in Riquewihr, a post-war schoolhouse in as depressing a vein as ever French modern architecture at its foulest ebbs can produce. Luckily it is well out of view, and its ghastly form cannot gape on anything but an unemotional row of chestnut trees. But its presence provides an abrupt and significant contrast to the harmonious old buildings which compose the rest of the village, and makes
one thankful that it is a lone and unlovely intruder.
How wise are these good burghers to preserve the priceless individuality of their villages, despite the encroachments of commercialism! And how luckless, beside these restful places in Alsace, seems the average village which springs up today, possessing little raison d’etre except commercialism!
THE DECADENCE OF CRAFTSMANSHIP
Though so much is said and written on the subject of craftsmanship, the increasing absence of anything in the nature of intimate craftsmanship in architecture is one of the most disquieting features, states The Builder, London. Beyond the mere conventional use of the craftsman’s art, much more a survival of old habit than intrinsic purpose, there is little to be seen on modern buildings, which, so far as the craftsman’s tools are concerned, have little left of vital or intimate character. The time limit is no doubt a principal cause of this, that we no longer make haste slowly” in our hurry for results. There is a particularly unreal contention that it is a matter concerned with mental swiftness or otherwise, that one man thinks at a far greater pace than another. In this applica
tion the contention is a false one altogether, and merely condones what is, in fact, the lack of appreciation of the nature of architecture. If the architect is too often impatient of the artist, it is not because his mind moves more swiftly, but that he is less of an artist, that he does not feel the loss to architecture of that intimate side of thought and imagination which is so much the last splendor of a building. If so, this is not to say there are not distinguished exceptions to this state of things, to which fullest recognition is due.
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FRANCE CELEBRATES CENTENARY OF RAILWAYS
France is celebrating her railroad centenary this year. One hundred years ago French engineers, stimulated by England’s example in the field, built their first railway, and so placed their country in a position to introduce rail transportation to the Continent. It was a modest little railroad that was first laid, only twelve miles in length, but the first train s trip occasioned great excitement.
The steam locomotive had not yet made its debut in the country. Horses furnished the power, continuing in use until 1844. The 1.45-meter track then laid is standard gauge today for all French railroads, and approximates the standard gauge in Great Britain and America. This first line, the Etienne and Andrezieux, had but one track and was intended to serve the heavy coal traffic of the area. Five years passed before it began hauling passengers.
The first passenger railroad of France, the Paris & St. Germain, was completed in 1837, ten and three-quarters miles in length, and opened by Louise Philippe with elaborate ceremonies. Its tiny depot, facing the historic Chateau of St. Germain, one of the few early depots remaining in France, has become a point of pilgrimage for railroad men. A third in the group of France’s early railroads was the St. Etienne H Lyons, the first to use steam engines for hauling its trains. A railroad was built from Paris to Versailles in 1839 and another in 1840, and in quick succession after that short lines were built all over the country.
Consolidations and electrification are contemplated for French railroads. Hundreds of miles have already been electrified, not only in and around Paris but also out on the long-distance lines. The Midi has 600 miles electrified; the Paris, Lyons & Mediterranean, the system stretching south from the capital and serving the Rhone Valley, Marseilles and the Riviera, plans the ultimate electrification of 2,000 miles of its system.
The French trunk roads are well known for their speed. The famous Golden Arrow whisks the traveler 185 Ri miles from Calais to Paris in 190 minutes.
one thankful that it is a lone and unlovely intruder.
How wise are these good burghers to preserve the priceless individuality of their villages, despite the encroachments of commercialism! And how luckless, beside these restful places in Alsace, seems the average village which springs up today, possessing little raison d’etre except commercialism!
THE DECADENCE OF CRAFTSMANSHIP
Though so much is said and written on the subject of craftsmanship, the increasing absence of anything in the nature of intimate craftsmanship in architecture is one of the most disquieting features, states The Builder, London. Beyond the mere conventional use of the craftsman’s art, much more a survival of old habit than intrinsic purpose, there is little to be seen on modern buildings, which, so far as the craftsman’s tools are concerned, have little left of vital or intimate character. The time limit is no doubt a principal cause of this, that we no longer make haste slowly” in our hurry for results. There is a particularly unreal contention that it is a matter concerned with mental swiftness or otherwise, that one man thinks at a far greater pace than another. In this applica
tion the contention is a false one altogether, and merely condones what is, in fact, the lack of appreciation of the nature of architecture. If the architect is too often impatient of the artist, it is not because his mind moves more swiftly, but that he is less of an artist, that he does not feel the loss to architecture of that intimate side of thought and imagination which is so much the last splendor of a building. If so, this is not to say there are not distinguished exceptions to this state of things, to which fullest recognition is due.
******
FRANCE CELEBRATES CENTENARY OF RAILWAYS
France is celebrating her railroad centenary this year. One hundred years ago French engineers, stimulated by England’s example in the field, built their first railway, and so placed their country in a position to introduce rail transportation to the Continent. It was a modest little railroad that was first laid, only twelve miles in length, but the first train s trip occasioned great excitement.
The steam locomotive had not yet made its debut in the country. Horses furnished the power, continuing in use until 1844. The 1.45-meter track then laid is standard gauge today for all French railroads, and approximates the standard gauge in Great Britain and America. This first line, the Etienne and Andrezieux, had but one track and was intended to serve the heavy coal traffic of the area. Five years passed before it began hauling passengers.
The first passenger railroad of France, the Paris & St. Germain, was completed in 1837, ten and three-quarters miles in length, and opened by Louise Philippe with elaborate ceremonies. Its tiny depot, facing the historic Chateau of St. Germain, one of the few early depots remaining in France, has become a point of pilgrimage for railroad men. A third in the group of France’s early railroads was the St. Etienne H Lyons, the first to use steam engines for hauling its trains. A railroad was built from Paris to Versailles in 1839 and another in 1840, and in quick succession after that short lines were built all over the country.
Consolidations and electrification are contemplated for French railroads. Hundreds of miles have already been electrified, not only in and around Paris but also out on the long-distance lines. The Midi has 600 miles electrified; the Paris, Lyons & Mediterranean, the system stretching south from the capital and serving the Rhone Valley, Marseilles and the Riviera, plans the ultimate electrification of 2,000 miles of its system.
The French trunk roads are well known for their speed. The famous Golden Arrow whisks the traveler 185 Ri miles from Calais to Paris in 190 minutes.