Tag: Veranda

Neo-Romanian balcony veranda assemblies

Valentin Mandache

Bellow are two examples of ample Neo-Romanian style balcony veranda assemblies built one and a half decade apart (the first image, immediately under the text, shows a late 1930s construction, while the one bellow it dates from the first half of the 1920s). They exhibit the evolution of this style from heavy forms, built using traditional materials like compact bricks and masonry (1920s) to somehow slender and airy shapes made possible by the use of reinforce concrete and lighter, modern bricks. The common denominator is the near burdensome, but flamboyant decorative register composed of elements inspired from the late medieval Wallachian church (Brancovan era) ornaments like the Ottoman Islamic arches, short Byzantine columns or the rope motif among many other enchanting details.

Neo-Romanian style balcony veranda assembly, late 1930s house, Cismigiu area, Bucharest (©Valentin Mandache)
Neo-Romanian style balcony assembly, early 1920s house, Dorobanti area, Bucharest (©Valentin Mandache)

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I endeavour through this series of periodic articles to inspire appreciation of the historic houses of Romania, a virtually undiscovered, but fascinating chapter of European architectural history and heritage.

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If you plan acquiring or selling a historic property in Romania or start a renovation project, I would be delighted to advice you in sourcing and transacting the property, specialist research, etc. To discuss your particular plan please see my contact details in the Contactpage of this weblog.

The wooden veranda of a Neo-Romanian style house

Valentin Mandache
The wooden first floor veranda of an early 1930s Neo-Romanian style house, TVR area, Bucharest. (©Valentin Mandache)

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I endeavor through this series of daily articles to inspire appreciation of the historic houses of Romania, a virtually undiscovered, but fascinating chapter of European architectural history and heritage.

***********************************************

If you plan acquiring a historic property in Romania or start a renovation project, I would be delighted to advice you in sourcing the property, specialist research, planning permissions, restoration project management, etc. To discuss your particular plan please see my contact details in the Contact page of this weblog.

Town House with Peasant Style Veranda

Valentin Mandache
The veranda of a late 1890s house from Targoviste, southern Romania, inspired from similar structures adorning local peasant dwellings. (©Valentin Mandache)

I very much like the balanced proportions of the wooden veranda presented above, where the most interesting feature is represented by the three identical ornaments carved with ethnographic motifs that come together at right angles within upper centre level of the structure. Their shape has a vague Art Nouveau slant, which is probably in tone with the increasing popularity of that style in Romania of that period. The house featuring the veranda, shown in the photograph bellow, is mainly a Little Paris style edifice (what I call the French c19th historicist styles provincially interpreted in Romania), with this unusual peasant inspired component grafted on it. The whole assembly dates from a period of “battle of the styles”, if I can put it that way, when the national romantic architecture embodied by the then nascent Neo-Romanian style developed within the Art Nouveau current, started to make important forays all over the country. This particular house is a timid, but delightful provincial experiment with those  new trends and ideas.

1890s town house with peasant style veranda, Targoviste (©Valentin Mandache)

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I endeavor through this series of daily articles to inspire appreciation of the historic houses of Romania, a virtually undiscovered, but fascinating chapter of European architectural history and heritage.

***********************************************

If you plan acquiring a historic property in Romania or start a renovation project, I would be delighted to advice you in sourcing the property, specialist research, planning permissions, restoration project management, etc. To discuss your particular plan please see my contact details in the Contact page of this weblog.

Neo-Romanian Ethnographic Verandas

Valentin Mandache
Neo-Romanian ethnographic wooden verandas photomontage; examples dating mainly from 1920s, Bucharest (©Valentin Mandache)

A main source of inspiration for the Neo-Romanian architectural style is the rich ethnographic art of the Romanian peasants. The geometric pattern wood carvings that adorn the peasant houses in the vast Romanian countryside are some of the most exquisite expressions of this art. The trend to include these decorative elements in the urban setting of the Neo-Romanian started in the early part of the inter-war period as a vivacious Arts and Crafts current inspired from the abundant local sources. It was promoted by many architects, such as the remarkable Henriette Delavrancea-Gibory. The six examples of verandas, which I selected for the photomontage presented here (see also the slide show bellow), is just a small sample from the multitude of such artefacts adorning the Neo-Romanian houses of Bucharest.

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I endeavor through this daily series of images and small articles to inspire appreciation of the historic houses of Romania, a virtually undiscovered, but fascinating chapter of European architectural history and heritage.

***********************************************

If you plan acquiring a historic property in Romania or start a renovation project, I would be delighted to advice you in sourcing the property, specialist research, planning permissions, restoration project management, etc. To discuss your particular plan please see my contact details in the Contact page of this weblog.

Art Deco Apartment Block with Rooftop Veranda

Valentin Mandache
A small, but flamboyant Art Deco style apartment block in Bucharest with an ample rooftop veranda, dating from early-1930s; North Cismigiu area. (©Valentin Mandache)

I had just joy in discovering this small jewel of Bucharest Art Deco architecture. It is another proof of the level of skills achieved by the local inter-war era architects and the sophistication of their clients, a situation rarely encountered nowadays in the rough and ready post-communist Romania. The rooftop terrace is delightful, modelling the top deck of an ocean cruise liner, affording sweeping panoramic views of central Bucharest and also an excellent place to spend the pleasant summer and early autumn evenings peculiar to this part of South East Europe.

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I endeavor through this daily series of images and small articles to inspire appreciation of the historic houses of Romania, a virtually undiscovered, but fascinating chapter of European architectural history and heritage.

***********************************************

If you plan acquiring a historic property in Romania or start a renovation project, I would be delighted to advice you in sourcing the property, specialist research, planning permissions, restoration project management, etc. To discuss your particular plan please see my contact details in the Contact page of this weblog.

Rich Floral Theme Neo-Romanian Veranda

Valentin Mandache
An exquisite veranda, where the main decorative theme is represented by the abundant flowers on the frieze, of a well preserved early 1930s Neo-Romanian style house in Gara de Nord area. This is probably the best surviving such example in Bucharest. (©Valentin Mandache)

***********************************************

I endeavor through this daily series of images and small articles to inspire appreciation of the historic houses of Romania, a virtually undiscovered, but fascinating chapter of European architectural history and heritage.

***********************************************

If you plan acquiring a historic property in Romania or start a renovation project, I would be delighted to advice you in sourcing the property, specialist research, planning permissions, restoration project management, etc. To discuss your particular plan please see my contact details in the Contact page of this weblog.