Catalog of the Most-Loved Places

40 - Pienza, Italy

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 14:47:48 -0400

I visited Pienza for the first time on a whim on March 26, 2002 with Wanda, our son David, and a high school friend of his (it was Spring Break.) We were on a “follow the beauty” tour through Tuscany... we’d stop in the next town on the map, and the more beautiful it was, the longer we stayed. We spent most of the day in Pienza.
Wanda and I returned in July of 2003 after having learned a lot more about the town. This time, we were with the Seaside Pienza Institute on a fascinating architecture and culinary tour that began and ended in Milano.
Our first evening in Pienza was bathed in that famous Tuscan sunset, and I shot the entire Via Rossellio before nightfall. Over the next several days, I catalogued every building in town.
This volume includes Via Dogali through Vicolo Serve Smarrite alphabetically. Most of these are the quiet back streets of the town. There are approximately 380 images in this Volume; they were shot at 5 megapixels.

39 - Pienza, Italy

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 14:45:05 -0400

I visited Pienza for the first time on a whim on March 26, 2002 with Wanda, our son David, and a high school friend of his (it was Spring Break.) We were on a “follow the beauty” tour through Tuscany... we’d stop in the next town on the map, and the more beautiful it was, the longer we stayed. We spent most of the day in Pienza.
Wanda and I returned in July of 2003 after having learned a lot more about the town. This time, we were with the Seaside Pienza Institute on a fascinating architecture and culinary tour that began and ended in Milano.
Our first evening in Pienza was bathed in that famous Tuscan sunset, and I shot the entire Via Rossellio before nightfall. Over the next several days, I catalogued every building in town.
This volume includes Via Dell’Abbandono through Via Delle Mura alphabetically. Most of these are the quiet back streets of the town. There are approximately 290 images in this Volume; they were shot at 5 megapixels.

38 - Pienza, Italy

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 14:42:36 -0400

I visited Pienza for the first time on a whim on March 26, 2002 with Wanda, our son David, and a high school friend of his (it was Spring Break.) We were on a “follow the beauty” tour through Tuscany... we’d stop in the next town on the map, and the more beautiful it was, the longer we stayed. We spent most of the day in Pienza.
Wanda and I returned in July of 2003 after having learned a lot more about the town. This time, we were with the Seaside Pienza Institute on a fascinating architecture and culinary tour that began and ended in Milano.
Our first evening in Pienza was bathed in that famous Tuscan sunset, and I shot the entire Via Rossellio before nightfall. Over the next several days, I catalogued every building in town.
Most of this volume is Via Rossellino, the principal street of the town that runs between the gates at each end. It also includes Via Del Fosso, Via Del Giglio & Via Del Leone. There are approximately 350 images in this Volume; they were shot at 5 megapixels.

37 - Pienza, Italy

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 14:13:29 -0400

I visited Pienza for the first time on a whim on March 26, 2002 with Wanda, our son David, and a high school friend of his (it was Spring Break.) We were on a “follow the beauty” tour through Tuscany... we’d stop in the next town on the map, and the more beautiful it was, the longer we stayed. We spent most of the day in Pienza.
Wanda and I returned in July of 2003 after having learned a lot more about the town. This time, we were with the Seaside Pienza Institute on a fascinating architecture and culinary tour that began and ended in Milano.
Our first evening in Pienza was bathed in that famous Tuscan sunset, and I shot the entire Via Rossellio before nightfall. Over the next several days, I catalogued every building in town.
This volume includes Piazza Pio II, at the center of the town. It also includes landscapes, Largo Della Chiocarella, Largo Roma, Piazza Di Spagna, Piazza Galletti, Piazza M.D.Liberta, Piazza S. Carlo, Via Case Nuove, Via Condotti, Via Del Bacio & Via Del Balzello. There are approximately 350 images in this Volume; they were shot at 5 megapixels.

36 - Antigua Guatemala

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 14:04:52 -0400

Some time after shooting Bermuda, Alys Beach Town Founder Jason Comer grew concerned that Bermudian architecture might be lacking, not in detail, but in building type richness needed for the architecture we were developing for Alys Beach.
Andrés Duany suggested Antigua Guatemala and its wonderful zaguan house type. The courtyards there are some of the most sensuous on earth. The city, sitting in the shadow of a volcano, has become renowned as a place to learn any foreign language you can imagine in part because of the allure of sitting one-on-one across a small table from your instructor under the shade of the portal encircling your school’s courtyard.
This volume contains Avenida el Volcan de Agua through Plazuela Santa Rosa alphabetically. Incidentally, the “Volcan de Agua” refers to the nearby volcano, and its eruption in 1773. The crater formed a huge lake at the time, and the beginning of the event was an earthquake which leveled much of the city and breached the crater, sending countless millions of gallons of water straight into the town. The lava and ash from the eruption followed. So in a matter of minutes, the town endured an earthquake, a flood, and a volcanic eruption, any one of which would have been devastating. There are approximately 350 images in this Volume; they were shot at 5 megapixels.

35 - Antigua Guatemala

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 14:03:34 -0400

34 - Antigua Guatemala

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 14:02:06 -0400

33 - Antigua Guatemala

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 14:00:21 -0400

32 - Antigua Guatemala

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 13:56:22 -0400

Some time after shooting Bermuda, Alys Beach Town Founder Jason Comer grew concerned that Bermudian architecture might be lacking, not in detail, but in building type richness needed for the architecture we were developing for Alys Beach.
Andrés Duany suggested Antigua Guatemala and its wonderful zaguan house type. The courtyards there are some of the most sensuous on earth. The city, sitting in the shadow of a volcano, has become renowned as a place to learn any foreign language you can imagine in part because of the allure of sitting one-on-one across a small table from your instructor under the shade of the portal encircling your school’s courtyard.
This volume contains Part 2 of 5 Avenida Sur (5th Avenue South) through 5 Calle Poniente (5th Street West) alphabetically. One building of note in this volume is the Meson Panza Verde, an inn and restaurant that is possibly the most sensuous building I have ever seen. Of all the inns I’d like to return to someday, this one tops the list.
The name “Meson Panza Verde” refers to a nickname for the residents of the town; it means “green belly.” After the devastating earthquake, flood, and eruption that leveled the town in 1773, the government ordered that it be abandoned. The people who defied the order and stayed behind subsisted on avocados, hence the nickname. There are approximately 410 images in this Volume; they were shot at 5 megapixels.

31 - Antigua Guatemala

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 13:52:08 -0400

30 - Antigua Guatemala

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 13:50:15 -0400

29 - Antigua Guatemala

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 13:35:00 -0400

28 - Antigua Guatemala

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 13:22:49 -0400

27 - Bermuda Country Houses

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 13:18:07 -0400

Andrés Duany recommended that Alys Beach hire me to help develop their architectural language by photographing the most compelling patterns of the architecture of Bermuda.
Other than St. George, there was one additional excellent source of architectural patterns in Bermuda: the grand country houses.
This volume contains including Belair, Bloomfield, Carter, Cluster, Commissioner's House, Ferry Reach, Inwood, Milford, Old Walls, Orange Grove, Palmetto, the Parsonage, Spithead, Springfield, Tankfield, The Lodge, Tom Moore Tavern, Tucker, Verdmont, Waterville & Winterhaven. There are approximately 410 images in this Volume; they were shot at 5 megapixels.

26 - St. George, Bermuda

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 13:16:01 -0400

Andrés Duany recommended that Alys Beach hire me to help develop their architectural language by photographing the most compelling patterns of the architecture of Bermuda.
Very little of the good stuff remains in Hamilton, the largest city. But I discovered that St. George is a treasure trove of classic Bermudian architecture... so good, in fact, that I catalogued all of the old town as part of the Alys Beach work. I was joined later in the trip by Andrés and by Galina Tachieva from DPZ’s office, as we worked out the details of the architecture.
This volume contains Penno’s through Wellington Streets alphabetically. There are approximately 420 images in this Volume; they were shot at 5 megapixels.

25 - St. George, Bermuda

Mon, 5 Jul 2010 13:00:31 -0400

Andrés Duany recommended that Alys Beach hire me to help develop their architectural language by photographing the most compelling patterns of the architecture of Bermuda.
Very little of the good stuff remains in Hamilton, the largest city. But I discovered that St. George is a treasure trove of classic Bermudian architecture... so good, in fact, that I catalogued all of the old town as part of the Alys Beach work. I was joined later in the trip by Andrés and by Galina Tachieva from DPZ’s office, as we worked out the details of the architecture.
This volume contains Aunt Peggy’s Lane through Old Maid’s Lane alphabetically. There are approximately 420 images in this Volume; they were shot at 5 megapixels.

24 - Eutaw & New Bern

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:43:16 -0400

Eutaw is another West Alabama treasure similar in its mix of delight and imperfection to Demopolis. It is notable in the high proportion of highly classical homes found there. Clearly, this place was once the home of great prosperity at some point in the past.
New Bern is one of the very few places I have ever visited in the United States where no bad buildings exist. This is due in part to the fact that it is a tiny town with very few buildings, but even then, to find every building from the most classical home to the most vernacular shopfront possessed of architectural integrity is a rare find indeed. It is also the home to Auburn University’s Rural Studio.
There are approximately 340 images in this Volume; they were shot at 5 megapixels.

23 - Demopolis & Cotton District

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:42:06 -0400

Years ago, I ran a conventional architectural firm, and we were regularly looking for new employees as business grew. I was at Career Day at Mississippi State, and during the lunch break, I decided to do a little exploring just outside of campus in Starkville, Mississippi. I’ve often found quirky little “university villages” with inns, pubs, and such, but what I stumbled across in Starkville stunned me.
The Cotton District is primarily private-sector student housing, shops, etc. It actually predates the New Urbanism, having been founded in the early 1970s by Dan Camp, a vigorously experimental place-maker who has moved all the way from builder-radical to Mayor of Starkville.
This Volume also contains the remainder of the Demopolis images: North and South Strawberry Street. There are approximately 370 images in this Volume; they were shot at 5 megapixels.

22 - Demopolis, Alabama

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:39:36 -0400

I shot Demopolis and New Bern, Alabama July 22, 2003 while returning home from DPZ’s Town of Lost Rabbit planning charrette in Jackson, Mississippi. The Lost Rabbit charrette held a year later by the New Urban Guild resulted in the rediscovery of the Transmission Device of Living Traditions. But that’s getting ahead of the story... Demopolis is one of the jewels of southwest Alabama; a not-quite-perfect little town that nonetheless is an ideal small town in part because of its imperfections. Demopolis, in other words, is the real thing.
Streets included in this volume are Capitol, Cedar, Chestnut, Commissioners, Main, Walnut, and Washington. There are approximately 660 images in this Volume; they were shot at 5 megapixels.

21 - Barrie & Toronto, Ontario

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:38:14 -0400

I shot Barrie, Ontario while in Ontario working as a consultant on DPZ’s Big Bay Point team. I also shot a selection of street segments in Toronto’s Yorkville Village when we went into town Saturday night of the charrette.
There are approximately 660 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

20 - Clinton & Edwards, Mississippi

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:37:31 -0400

Clinton, Mississippi and Edwards, Mississippi are two small towns I discovered near Jackson, Mississippi on a spare day between design charrettes and other work.
There are approximately 200 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

19 - St. Charles

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:36:43 -0400

I have for years pegged New Town at St. Charles as the Tipping Point of the New Urbanism for several reasons, including the fact that it’s the first time that a major developer has done a project of this scope simply because he knew the New Urbanism would be more profitable. Before that, nearly everyone developing the New Urbanism was a “true believer,” and there simply aren’t enough of them to go around.
I was on DPZ’s charrette team, and part of my task was to catalog St. Charles’ excellent Main Street, which is cataloged on this volume.
There are approximately 350 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

18 - Natchez

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:35:48 -0400

Wanda and I set off for the Mississippi River valley the evening after Christmas, 2001 on a “follow the beauty” trip. We knew the reputation of many a beautiful little river town, and assumed there would be plenty of places to photograph. We were right.
We made it as far as Beale Street in Memphis, then attended to some business in Shreveport the next day before driving on to Natchitoches, which we shot over the next 1-1/2 days, then shot plantations along the Cane River Lake towards Natchez, arriving into town around dusk.
We shot Natchez all day on the 30th and New Year’s Eve, returning home on New Year’s Day 2002. Streets in this volume include Rankin through Wall alphabetically.
There are approximately 400 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

17 - Natchez

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:35:08 -0400

Wanda and I set off for the Mississippi River valley the evening after Christmas, 2001 on a “follow the beauty” trip. We knew the reputation of many a beautiful little river town, and assumed there would be plenty of places to photograph. We were right.
We made it as far as Beale Street in Memphis, then attended to some business in Shreveport the next day before driving on to Natchitoches, which we shot over the next 1-1/2 days, then shot plantations along the Cane River Lake towards Natchez, arriving into town around dusk.
We shot Natchez all day on the 30th and New Year’s Eve, returning home on New Year’s Day 2002. Streets in this volume include Broadway, Canal, Commerce, Main, Market, Martin Luther King, Orleans, and Pearl.
There are approximately 650 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

16 - Beaufort

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:34:29 -0400

Beaufort is a classic low-country Carolina town, situated about an hour south of Charleston and an hour or so north of Savannah on the back roads. The town is so picturesque that I was stopped twice by movie scouts who wondered if I was one of them. Several notable films have shot scenes here.
I wasn’t a scout, of course, but was rather a consultant on the DPZ charrette team that was designing a new neighborhood for Habersham. DPZ does rigorous research on regional architectural source material; I simply took it a little further than normal by getting every building on these streets. There are approximately 660 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.
Incidentally, Beaufort is home to New Urban Guild architects Cooter Ramsey, Eric Brown, and Eric Moser.

15 - Vicksburg & Natchitoches

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:33:41 -0400

I catalogued Vicksburg in 2001 in preparation for the nation’s first SmartCode customization. Vicksburg’s SmartCode has never been enacted, but the volumes of images of the town have been very useful to me over the years since then. Streets in this volume include Walnut through Yerger alphabetically. This volume also includes Natchitoches, Louisiana, which is west/southwest across the Mississippi from Vicksburg in central Louisiana. I shot Natchitoches on a trip along the Mississippi River valley Wanda and I took during the last few days of December, 2001. We shot Volumes 17 and 18 of Natchez on the same trip.
There are approximately 810 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

14 - Vicksburg

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:33:10 -0400

I catalogued Vicksburg in 2001 in preparation for the nation’s first SmartCode customization. Vicksburg’s SmartCode has never been enacted, but the volumes of images of the town have been very useful to me over the years since then. Streets in this volume include East through Valley alphabetically.
Because of the city’s need for a thorough documentation of the city, these volumes contain a wider range of building conditions than do most of the other volumes of the Catalog. In other words, so long as there was evidence that the building had once been good, it was catalogued, even if in poor condition today.
There are approximately 710 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

13 - Vicksburg

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:32:20 -0400

I catalogued Vicksburg in 2001 in preparation for the nation’s first SmartCode customization. Vicksburg’s SmartCode has never been enacted, but the volumes of images of the town have been very useful to me over the years since then. Streets in this volume include 1st through Drummond alphabetically.
Because of the city’s need for a thorough documentation of the city, these volumes contain a wider range of building conditions than do most of the other volumes of the Catalog. In other words, so long as there was evidence that the building had once been good, it was catalogued, even if in poor condition today.
There are approximately 830 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

12 - German Village, Columbus, Ohio

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:31:34 -0400

German Village is the neighborhood just south of downtown Columbus, across Interstate 70. It is a neighborhood of simple brick structures... no-nonsense buildings that clearly communicate the heritage of the German immigrants that built the place in the 19th century. Breweries at the north and west borders of the neighborhood were the original big employers.
The original German residents left in World War I and World War II due to anti-German sentiment. Today, the neighborhood includes a very cool mix of Ohio State academics and the Creative Class. My sister Hazel, now a partner with PlaceMakers, lived there for several years; her home was my base of operations on my several shooting trips there. Streets on this volume include Rader through Willow alphabetically.
There are approximately 400 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

11 - German Village, Columbus, Ohio

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:30:51 -0400

German Village is the neighborhood just south of downtown Columbus, across Interstate 70. It is a neighborhood of simple brick structures... no-nonsense buildings that clearly communicate the heritage of the German immigrants that built the place in the 19th century. Breweries at the north and west borders of the neighborhood were the original big employers.
The original German residents left in World War I and World War II due to anti-German sentiment. Today, the neighborhood includes a very cool mix of Ohio State academics and the Creative Class. My sister Hazel, now a partner with PlaceMakers, lived there for several years; her home was my base of operations on my several shooting trips there. Streets on this volume include Jaeger through Purdy alphabetically.
There are approximately 670 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

10 - German Village, Columbus, Ohio

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:29:53 -0400

German Village is the neighborhood just south of downtown Columbus, across Interstate 70. It is a neighborhood of simple brick structures... no-nonsense buildings that clearly communicate the heritage of the German immigrants that built the place in the 19th century. Breweries at the north and west borders of the neighborhood were the original big employers.
The original German residents left in World War I and World War II due to anti-German sentiment. Today, the neighborhood includes a very cool mix of Ohio State academics and the Creative Class. My sister Hazel, now a partner with PlaceMakers, lived there for several years; her home was my base of operations on my several shooting trips there. Streets on this volume include Blenkner through Jackson alphabetically.
There are approximately 620 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

9 - German Village, Columbus, Ohio

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:29:15 -0400

German Village is the neighborhood just south of downtown Columbus, across Interstate 70. It is a neighborhood of simple brick structures... no-nonsense buildings that clearly communicate the heritage of the German immigrants that built the place in the 19th century. Breweries at the north and west borders of the neighborhood were the original big employers.
The original German residents left in World War I and World War II due to anti-German sentiment. Today, the neighborhood includes a very cool mix of Ohio State academics and the Creative Class. My sister Hazel, now a partner with PlaceMakers, lived there for several years; her home was my base of operations on my several shooting trips there. Streets on this volume include 3rd through Blackberry alphabetically.
There are approximately 610 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

8 - East Alabama & Mississippi Towns

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:28:33 -0400

This volume contains my first “follow the beauty” trip. I set out on Friday afternoon after work, not having any agenda except to follow the trail of beauty in eastern Alabama. I found a bed & breakfast Friday night in Mentone, Alabama and shot Valley Head and Fort Payne early the next morning, then headed south. Before returning home Sunday night, I also shot Cedar Bluff, Gaylesville, Heflin, Lochapoka, Notasulga, Piedmont, and Rock Run. This volume also includes Abbeville and Waverly, both in Alabama, and also Greenwood and Itta Bena, both in Mississippi, which I shot while I was there for a wedding.
There are approximately 740 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

7 - French Quarter, New Orleans

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:24:41 -0400

The four French Quarter volumes were shot over a period of several months in 2001, and comprise the first multi-volume neighborhood in the Catalog. Streets in this volume include Pere Antoine, Pirates’ Alley, St. Ann, St. Louis, St. Peter, St. Philip, Toulouse, Ursulines, and Wilkerson. The entire collection includes everything in the Quarter except Rampart, which is the border street to the north that has eroded architectural character.
There are approximately 830 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

6 - French Quarter, New Orleans

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:23:54 -0400

The four French Quarter volumes were shot over a period of several months in 2001, and comprise the first multi-volume neighborhood in the Catalog. Streets in this volume include Esplanade, Exchange, French Market, Governor Nicholls, Iberville, Madison, North Peters, Orleans, and Royal. The entire collection includes everything in the Quarter except Rampart, which is the border street to the north that has eroded architectural character.
There are approximately 830 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

5 - French Quarter, New Orleans

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:23:14 -0400

The four French Quarter volumes were shot over a period of several months in 2001, and comprise the first multi-volume neighborhood in the Catalog. Streets in this volume include Chartres, Clinton, Conti, Dauphine, Decatur, and Dumaine. The entire collection includes everything in the Quarter except Rampart, which is the border street to the north that has eroded architectural character.
There are approximately 910 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

4 - French Quarter, New Orleans

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:22:14 -0400

The four French Quarter volumes were shot over a period of several months in 2001, and comprise the first multi-volume neighborhood in the Catalog. Streets in this volume include Barracks, Bienville, Bourbon, Burgundy, and Canal. The entire collection includes everything in the Quarter except Rampart, which is the border street to the north that has eroded architectural character.
There are approximately 780 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

3 - Oakleigh, Mobile, Alabama

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:21:18 -0400

This volume contains the Oakleigh neighborhood of Mobile, Alabama. I shot Oakleigh while in Mobile for an Alabama AIA convention in early July, 2000, beginning a long history of cataloguing towns I’d originally come to for another reason. The Oakleigh neighborhood was once the Oakleigh plantation, but the landowners sold off the plantation bit by bit as Mobile grew.
Incidentally, my “great variety in a narrow range” epiphany occurred while shooting for this catalog. I can still take you to the place where I realized that great variety in a narrow range is the gateway to greatness, and is a portal that new developments so rarely pass through.
There are approximately 710 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

2 - Seaside Trail & Decatur

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 13:20:24 -0400

I call this the “Seaside Trail” volume because it includes a number of towns along US 331 from Montgomery southward to the sea. Some of these towns, most notably Defuniak Springs, were places Robert & Daryl Davis took Andrés Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk when they were researching in preparation for designing Seaside. They took these trips in the now-legendary Davis Land Yacht: an ancient red convertible Pontiac Grand Ville.
There are approximately 850 images in this Volume; they were shot at 2 megapixels.

1 - North Alabama Towns

Sun, 4 Jul 2010 07:00:05 -0400

This volume contains Athens, Belle Mina, selected streets in Birmingham, Courtland, Greenbriar, the Twickenham neighborhood of Huntsville, Mooresville, and Town Creek, all in Alabama.
These are the original images of the Catalog, shot beginning Tuesday, March 14, 2000. It began as an effort to prove a point to the Town Architect of a neighborhood where I was designing a home. But by that weekend, when I shot most of the Twickenham neighborhood in Huntsville, Alabama, the idea of the Catalog was born. I initially named it the Historic District Photo Catalog, but changed the name to its current name when I began to shoot Seaside, Florida, in order to include all of the most-loved places, whether new or historic.
The early volumes include 600 to 900 images because the camera I was shooting with back then, while state-of-the-art for digitals at the time, was only 2 megapixels.