A recent article on newsobserver.com reveals the possibility that The George and Beth Paschal House, a Modernist home on the National Register of Historic Places, is in danger of being sold for the value of the land on which it sits. If Preservation North Carolina can't find a sympathetic buyer, the home may be leveled and the land subdivided for as many as seven new two-story mansions.
Designed by then N.C. State University associate-professor, James Fitzgibbon, the home was built in 1950 and instantly became a curiosity to the people of the area because of its organic, yet man made appearance. As described in the article, Fitzgibbon:
came up with 3,340 square feet of wood, native granite and glass that shows the influence of Frank Lloyd Wright and blurs the line between organic and man-made. Its long, low-sloping roof fits snugly beneath huge white oaks and magnolias. With courtyards on each end, an atrium at the entrance and a patio in back, it blends smoothly into its surroundings. Interior walls are lightly stained plywood, and floors are of cork tile. The overall feel is of a mountain lodge set deep in the laurel, or a tree house close to the ground.
You don't get anymore perfectly PrairieMod than that! Photos of the house from Preservation Directory website real estate listing reveal the Organic and Principled qualities that Fitzgibbon infused in the home.
Frank Harmon, a Raleigh architect who used to teach at NCSU and took his classes to see the house each year states in the article:
"In many ways, it's the cutting edge of architecture today. You hear a
lot about sustainability: using local materials, natural heating and
cooling. And here is a building that's been doing it for more than 50
years. I personally think this is, flat out, the greatest modern house in North Carolina."
It seems North Carolina is at the same crossroads as many other States--how to protect their cultural heritage from the ravenous maw of greedy (and frankly unsustainable) development. One can only hope that a group or an individual who recognizes the importance of the Paschal House will save it, restore it and allow others to enjoy its amazing architecture for generations to come.
Photos copyright Preservation North Carolina
It would be a waste if they pursue on the tear down.
Posted by: Heating and Cooling Michigan | May 19, 2010 at 09:26 AM