The article discusses the historical impact of the Berkeley Hillside Club, founded in the late 19th century by architects and thinkers like Bernard Maybeck and Charles Keeler. Their mission to create homes that blend with nature became known as the First Bay Tradition, influencing prominent architects in California. The article highlights 1309 Arch St. as a key example of this architectural style, which faced controversy and challenges within its innovative but conflicted artistic movement, representing a significant moment in California's design evolution.
Keeler was worried that the ethereal beauty of his new home would "become completely ruined when others come and build stupid white-painted boxes all about us."
Maybeck's historic response was that Keeler would have to "see to it" that all the houses around them would be "in keeping" with their design.
As with many cutting-edge artistic movements, the First Bay Tradition faced internal struggle in seeking to define a unified mission and culture.
In 1309 Arch St., we see a case study of that struggle. It's difficult to imagine that when this Arts and Crafts beauty was built in 1908, the home and its design were denounced.
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