I wondered if there was a term for bricks turned in this manner so I e-buzzed the exquisite Dave Lewis with my question:
Dave, since we were once madly in love and you still publicly acknowledge me by calling me your Ex, could you kindly tell me if there is a name or term for the way these bricks were placed?
His response:
Well, sort of. This is just ornament; creative use of regular brick. Brick standing on end and showing the sides are called "soldiers", so you might well see a "soldier course" laid up in a wall. Brick laid on end with the full, flat (largest) side showing would be a "sailor", but these are far less common.
So I think these would be soldiers, since the whole side is showing, but not the full flat face. It does add some elegance to the structure, don't you think? Ohhhh, those shadows are soooo important! I wonder if the architect took the orientation of the building into account.
Steve Wilke-Shapiro, care to comment?
I'll always love you Dave (while coveting your Jadeite collection, Oh, Mama!
1 comment:
What a beautiful detail! I concur with Dave's terminology - I would probably label them as soldiers.
About the architect using shadow on purpose, I would be a little skeptical since the street grid (and therefore the general building orientation) were laid out prior to the construction of the actual building. It's also entirely possible (if not likely) that the building wasn't designed by an architect. Don't tell the AIA.
Keep up with the awesome photos. I miss me some of that St. Louis brick!
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