Evening star., 1948-01-28
DETACHMENT of the White House
A Distinguished Architect Points Out Some Mistakes
in the South Portico Balcony Scheme

TO the Editor Of Tho star:
would like to place myself on record as
protesting the current Disagreement Of the
White House against adverse opinion Of the
Fine Arts Commission and against q growing
volume of protest by the press and general
public. Others have discussed the general
principle Of supporting the body established
to safeguard our national monuments will
call attention to specific points Of design in
volved.
From the viewpoint of the architect, we
should consider the balcony in relation to the
portico as whole and to its inner and outer
parts. Taking first the latter relationship, the
column stands as a symbol of strength and
dignity, able to stand free and support weight
of masonry at great height. 1t is as much
symbol in this respect as q spire is a symbol
of aspiration. An arch may be interrupted at
its spring line but the beauty Of the column
is its proud independence-and this has been
true whether its origin has rested in Egyptian
Karnak, Green Acropolis, or Roman Forum.
Where our architectural ancestors found 1t
necessary to relate tall columns closely to q
structure, they provided walls, piers, or secon-
dairy columns to carry intermediate loads In
Charleston, which has been cited as precedent,
there are any number Of delightful second
story balconies but practically all are supported
by superimposed small columns, not tall
columns split in half Precedent can, of course,
be found in the University Of Virginia quad
rangle. There, however, the balcony is but
part Of continuous colonade. Another extreme
is stereotyped speculative form of paired
columns supporting two or three front porches,
common in certain sections 1t is submitted,
however, that classic column supporting at
q halfway point modern reinforced concrete
slab, Is most inconsistent in good architecture.
Notwithstanding the comfort Of the back porch,
one should not hang it on q national monu-
ment to which It's owr RS, the people, point
with pride.
Porch Atop the Monument.
It would be comparable and about as con-
sistent on the basis Of providing a pleasant
place for summer evenings-to build an obser-
vation platform q few inches above the apex
of the Washington Monument, an entirely
feasible undertaking with our modern concrete
and steel construction. 1t would serve great
many more people, and cost lot less per
person, than the excrescence proposed for the
White House.
The interior Of the portico is now charming
feature of rounded wall surface, with long
curving shadows over a studied composition
of windows-five upper windows with simple
architraveS and five below OF stately propor-
tions, with dignihed pediments, three curving
and two triangular. Today, visitors to the
White House come out on an imposing portico,
beautiful In its simplicity open and generous
in its proportions. Tomorrow. unless the trag-
sdy is checked, they will come forth on mean
space Of no dignity-with ceiling bearing down
oppressively and within inches of the window
pediments-as the photographs of the begin
nings so plainly show-and they will see only
the bottoms of the inclosing columns protrud-
ing, like clumsy legs from festooned petticoats.
Considering the portico in relation to the
structure as a whole, the function of such
grouping of columns, whether in colonades.
as in the Treasury, or in porticos, as in the
Capitol and White House, is to add dignity
and impressiveness to the structure. As the
building stands, its proportions and simple
dignity are altogether charming with the
order" as the column feature is called, in
accord with the height of the structure.
Regardless Of "doctored photographs" which
play down the insistence Of the balcony porch,
Its introduction will divide the portico into
two distinct parts and take from one Of our