The Housing Facade Is Just A Facade

This column bemoans the stark architectural differences between the insides and outsides of suburban houses.

1 minute read

June 25, 2007, 10:00 AM PDT

By Nate Berg


"Modern suburbia means one architecture for external walls, but an altogether different one inside, where we live. Why should this be so?"

"Visit new Vancouver suburban houses and you will see window designs resonating with European history."

"But inside, these houses are starkly modern. No embellishment is to be found, except for occasional touches around the front door or fireplace mantel. The interiors of our houses have become like modernist art galleries, neutral surfaces upon which we hang our lives, flat screens upon which we project the melodramas of our families."

Friday, June 22, 2007 in The Globe & Mail

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

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