Outstanding 1970 design by Boulder architect Charles Haertling

Haertling did very few buildings in Denver, yet did 20 or 30 in Boulder

Many Boulder-ites attribute his Boulder buildings to Frank Lloyd Wright, but there are no Wright buildings in the state. None. Trust me. Anyone that tells you otherwise is mistaken.

I was in the nieghborhood last weekend and was alarmed to see that the new owner was constructing a fence on the property, obstructing the views seen in the photos above.

But. . . the severity of the fence fits perfectly with the “brutalist” style of the original design, so kudos to the new owner, job well done!

The unique roof of this church, St. Stephens Lutheran Church of Northglenn, CO, makes use of the mathematical shape, the hyperbolic parabaloid.

This outstanding gravity-defying structure was designed by Boulder architect Charles Haertling in 1964.

There is a webpage dedicated to Haertling’s incredible body of work.

On the Haertling site, there is a description of this church that is truly fascinating in its articulate expression of this church’s complexities.

I have previously posted photos of another Charles Haertling church, the Our Savior Parish Center.

Though not an example of modernist architecture, I thought I
would make this temporary page to show local residents
the view from the top of the local landmark, the D&F Tower
on the 16th Street Mall, in downtown Denver.

When it was built in 1910, it was the tallest building in the west.
The upper floor is only open to the public once a year for the
event Denver Doors Open, which was held two weeks ago.

This first view is looking north-west along the 16th Street Mall,
designed in 1982 by world famous architect I.M. Pei.

This shot is south-west and shows Brook Towers prominently on the left.

During the early 1970s, Brook Towers housed a nightclub called Ebbet’s Field, which hosted many touring music artists including Muddy Waters, Willie Nelson, the New York Dolls, Lightnin Hopkins, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Captain Beefheart, Howlin Wolf, the Flying Burrito Brothers, Kraftwork, the Outlaws, the Ramones and many more! The door to the place would often be run by Tom Waits and Chuck E. Weiss!

Looking south-east down the 16th Street Mall, on the left you can see patrons dining outside the Rock Bottom Brewery and on the lower right you can see the Federal Reserve Bank built by William Muchow in 1968.

And finally facing north-east, you can see Precision Fountain in Skyline Park, currently fenced off due to restoration.

Built in 1973 by Lawrence Halprin, Skyline Park was an underappreciated part of downtown Denver, let’s hope the restoration of this fountain maintains the integrity of the original sculpture!

The Daniels and Fisher Tower itself is a beautiful Venetian design.

These two pictures are from the lobby and show the ceiling and marble wall designs.

And, as an added bonus, from the lobby of the D&F Tower, you can head downstairs to a truly swank 1950s-style Burlesque nightclub in the lower level . . . Lannie’s!

It is run by famous Denver torch singer Lannie Garrett, also well-known for her dead-on imitation of Patsy Cline.

Go to the Lannie’s website and later pay the club a visit, Underground at the Clocktower.

This International Style office building, 1570 Grant Street
is tucked away just down the street from the Capitol Building in Denver.

It was built in 1956, and is one of the many front range office buildings built by William Muchow.

It is a great example of International Style in Denver, which reminds me of the City Annex Building just down Colfax, across the street from the park.

This other great example of International Style was built by Casper Hegner, Thomas Moore, Dudley Smith and G. Merideth Musick in 1949.

It was originally a school classroom building, but is now part of the Wellington Webb Building, which has this very recognizable sculpture in front.

1930 Zig Zag Art Deco masterpiece by Denver architect Temple Buell.
The material here is is the waterproof ceramic, Terra Cotta.

Temple Buell was a master architect, he invented the shopping mall
with his ideas for the Cherry Creek Shopping Center in 1946!

Temple Buell was also quite charitable, you will notice many Denver halls,
centers and theaters named after this great man.

I enjoyed the event last weekend, Doors Open Denver. A two-day yearly event, Denver opens it’s doors to many of it’s most important buildings, with volunteers giving tours and providing many valuable historical details.

My interior Paramount Theatre shots are a little dark as I did not want to disturb audience members with a flash as they were enjoying the show on the Paramount’s two Wurlitzer Organs!

The interior is filled with exotic ornamentation and beautiful ’30s-era tapestries.

A fantastic vaulted sunburst ceiling

Cut glass chandeliers

Remarkable tapestries (photographed in low light)

I have previously posted photos of another similar Temple Buell art deco masterpiece, the Horace Mann Junior High School, where he used brick instead of Terra Cotta

One of the main reasons I wanted to make this visit to the Paramount was to witness the twin-console Wurlitzer Organs! I love the sound of the Wurlitzer and own many LPs by artists such as George Wright!

The Wurlitzer organs were originally installed to accompany silent films, but when the theatre was first opened in 1930, the silent film was quickly replaced with The Talkie.

The Paramount Theatre currently houses two priceless Wurlitzer Organs which both raise out of the theater floor! I asked the masterful organist, Deloy Goeglin (playing in the earlier photo) how much these were worth and he said there is no way they can be priced as the only other similar organ is in New York’s Radio City Music Hall.

Denver organ events are run by the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the American Theatre Organ Society. Their next event at the Paramount is on August 10th and is free to members.

One nice thing about Doors Open Denver is that they often really let you get close up and personal. The Paramount encouraged you to walk around behind stage, get up on the stage, check out the dressing rooms . . . a wonderful experience.

Yesterday, I attended a lecture and book-signing for the new guide to historic modern homes in the Denver area, The Mid-Century Modern House in Denver, by Michael Paglia and Diane Wray Tomasso. This must-have guidebook is easily found in the Colorado section of Tattered Cover, alongside other Colorado architecture guidebooks by these authors and others.

The book signing took place at the Hoyt House in the Bonnie Brae neighborhood. This was the former home of architect Burnham Hoyt, built in 1947, just three years after he completed one of his greatest projects, Red Rocks Amphitheatre!

Hoyt House

This historic example of Denver International Style is currently listed for sale by
Mile Hi Modern! I am hoping it goes to someone worthy. His International Style Denver Public Library design was barely preserved in the ’90s (it has been incorporated into the Michael Graves building).

I had not intended to use any of the photos shown on this page due to the dismal lighting on the day I shot these, but I thought I should go ahead and make this temporary page to mark the release of this book and the availability of the wonderful Hoyt House. I will be retaking many of these photos in the next few weeks in the bright Colorado sunshine!

The Hoyt House reminds me of Hoyt’s earlier design in Cherry Creek, the
Sullivan House:

And here are some examples of the many outstanding historical homes nearby the
Hoyt House. (Again, the lighting on these is substandard, so this page will only be temporary).

And be sure to visit Shannon Stanbro’s site 5280mod.com. She is Denver’s only exclusive buyer’s agent focusing on historic modern architecture!

Horace Mann Junior High is an exquisitely detailed Denver example of Art Deco

Designed by Denver master architect Temple Buell in 1931

The design is reminiscent of Buell’s design for the Paramount Theatre the year before

Temple Hoyne Buell is known for many great Denver projects, including the original Cherry Creek Mall started in the late 1940s!

Almost hidden on a hilltop, is this beautiful example of Denver Moderne, the
Shangri-La Mansion.

Designed by Raymond Ervin in 1937, this mansion was inspired by a structure in the Frank Capra film of the same year, Lost Horizon.

Lost Horizon is itself almost a lost film as full prints no longer exist. The current restoration of the film is forced to use photo stills as stand-ins for missing scenes.

1986 sculpture by Herbert Bayer

sketchup

Denver landmark sculpture Articulated Wall

Created by famous Bauhaus artist Herbert Bayer in the final year of his life, 1986. It consists of 33 steps.

Bayer had relocated to Aspen, CO and lived there for 28 years

He signed his sculpture using his own famous Bayer font