The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-16
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At this season of the year the 'call of the country IS very loud in the hearts and minds of humanity. there is tre- mendous tide that is flowing in the dl- rection of the suburban home and the talent of andscaper and architect has been taxed to the utmost in recent years, furnishing modern designs and arrange ments for the idea suburban home
 Birmingham boasts of many talented architects, but noue has more substan- tial, more beautiful or more modern work to his credit than MT. William Leslie welton, among which may be mentioned the magnificent Tutwiler hotel and the mammoth American Trust building, both of which are among this cty's hand somest and most at active buildings,
 Because of MT. Weton's wide experience and versatility a word from him con corning the modern suburban home, will be of great interest: he has studied in the best architectural schools of the Uni ted States and Europe, travelling exten- sively and observingly in many foreign countries. He has applied his designing skill in the many beautiful examples of
 
 increase the fame of our fair city. He has designed over 200 residences built in Greater Birmingham. In addition tu his ability as an architect, he is an artist in pen and ink, oil and water color painting; he has won prizes in decorative design: contributed articles to leading pro- fessional papers, is an exhibitor at art exhibitions, a member of the Architec- tural league of New York; and has pat ents as an inventor of building special ties
 In talking with Mir. Welton recently about the design of the modern suburban home, he said, among other things;
 There is perhaps no subject of more intimate and universal interest to the greatest number of people as the subur- ban house. It is safe to say that the United States leads the world in sub urban or country home development. American architects are solving the prob- lem of the house of moderate cost with more skill and versatility than our neighbors in England and France. Eng land and France are our only European competitors in domestic architecture. What associations the word home com Jures up and what a wide variety Of buildings the name includes, from the Arabian cave dwelers rude shelter to a dwelling like Hampton Court palace.
 '"The study of mems habitation surely is a subject of engaging inquiry, because it is certain that the place in which man dwells is, in a real sense, an ex- pression of himself"
 Let us in the first place. I suggested, "confine our talk to the moderate priced suburban home-not the palatial country home or even the moderate priced town house-but strictly to the design of the modern suburban home.'
 That, in itself, alone, is a subject of such wide scope that in a limited con- versation, we would have to differenti- ate,' Mir Welton acquiesced. Tn the first place, let me say that many pros pective small house owners still think the architect a useless expense and costly luxury. He is not policeman, clerk of the works, foreman or a privi- legged parasite to add up the cost Of the building, but an artist with business instincts who will see that equal justice is done to both client and builder. The prospective suburban house owner is be- ginning to realize that an architect, if he is alive and up-to-date, cannot only save money in any given building opera ton, but can, by his skill in design and experience in construction work, pro- duce a more convenient, well-built and attractive house than can the builder architect" Too often the case of the suburban house is as follows: The build CT architect catches a prospective owner and says to him. I can make these plans for you and wont charge you cent and will build you pretty front and a much more practical house. than any architect can. The pitfall to the prospective owner is the saving of the
 
 When he moves into his house. he finds his rooms arranged without reference to vistas; doors and windows badly placed. stairs that would take an athlete to climb, or with insufficient headroom, and the whole thing a generally bungled up nondescript nightmare with plate rails and cozy corners galore and the whole covered with a riot of cheap, conven- tional useless and meaningless ginger bread" ornament, smeared over places that should be plain mantle pieces of abnormal proportions; doors opo~inp into fire places and epidemic of features" really having organic function what soever. After the 'builder-architect' fol- lows the paper hanger covering all sur faces with fugitive decorations and incon- grous patterns again followed by the mistress of the house, who adds nick hacks without limit, killing the last yes tige of harmony. So then good design IS of prime importance. Design may be defined as the orderly expression of an idea In accordance with the acknowledged principles tempered by common sense
 Beautiful designs have undoubtedly been made by those who would be at loss to define the law of balance or who have never solved problems of the kind the designer is asked to solve" he con tinued. "They are the persons who have the same intuition for good design that the artist has for color harmony, or who possess that undefnable something known as good taste. But for every worthy thing done by those men, numbers of feeble. immature productions are cast forth into the world by others who lack the intuition on the one hand and who have no conception of the principles of design on the other
 Experience in laying brick or a mastery of the slide rule will not make an architect" Mir. Welton said. "Philos- ophy will not teach a scientific man how to enjoy a beautiful picture or dull artist how to paint one. Like poe try and music, the desisning effort must spring freely from impulse found ed upon training and experience. Train ing and experience inspire a designer to compose or design with the proper