003 - Developer Modern: The Anti Architectural Movement
Developer Modern.
It is what it is. Livable. Safe. A basic version of what some might consider to be “current”. Most importantly to the typical bottomline driven developer it’s a sellable commodity based on a simple formula. Build a white box. Big as you can. Cheap as you can too but give it a pretty kitchen. Make the window frames black. Give it a flat roof and some overly thick and under thought out cantilevered eaves. Definitely throw in one of those upside down “L” shapes on the front facade. That’s what they’re doing these days right? Riiiight. Oh and don’t forget to add that front door with the horizontal windows. And if you’re really spending wild then throw in a matching garage door and maybe a slate-clad wall. Done, done and done. You’ve done it. It works fine. Just fine right? Riiiight.
If you’re tone deaf then please let me introduce you to passive aggression. See above.
No, this isn’t a bash session to piss on other design styles. I hate when people do that. Be nice or be gone. As long as you design with intention & an honest process your peers don’t have to like your style to appreciate your work. Good work is good work and respectfully there’s a small handful of good people in town holding the good work tow rope. Thank goodness.
Anyone who can’t acknowledge others’ good work likely has an inferiority complex. While I’d love to discredit their insecurities, it’s probably safe to say we’ve all been there. Every one of us started somewhere wondering who we were & how TF we were gonna make it, nevermind separate ourselves. Artists, architects, creatives, photographers, makers, musicians, etc. etc. etc. etc, we’re all designers. We all, ALL of us, have insecurities. Especially the arrogant ones.
Competitive nature is one thing. U want to battle me in the studio? Let’s go. But there’s a difference between a staunch competitor & a schmuck hater. Don’t be a schmuck.
No schmucks. No exceptions.
Root for your rivals. If they do good work then root for them. Collaborate with your contemporaries. Especially in this market. The more honest work Tampa produces collectively the better positioned our home buyers will be to make good decisions and the better off our city’s architectural history will be written.
We need more good work though and lots of it. We need more style in this town and that’s the problem. Developer modern isn’t a style at all. It’s just the best term I’ve been able to come up with to explain the current and unfortunate state of residential development here in Tampa. It exists as anti-architecture. Zero authenticity. No longevity. I’ll say it again. Developer modern isn’t an architectural style. It’s a phase in a basic developer’s lifecycle and like the busted Med Rev fuckery we experienced in the early 00’s, we’ll be stuck with it until the next buzzword in “custom” home design comes through town. That is, unless we can convince developers to loosen up their bottom line belts and educate themselves on what an affordable, not shitty, modern home looks like. Responsible design. What a concept.
***END BLOGGISH TYPE RANT***
Got some feelings on all this? Hit me up. Let’s stew.
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