By Jody Drake

Two years ago, I was doing research for a play I was writing for the Riordan State Historic Park in Flagstaff. During that research, I discovered that the Riordan Mansion was a famous example of an Arts and Crafts home. Now, at best, I had a vague understanding of Arts and Crafts architecture. Since Blue Rose Theater is producing the play, "A Table in the Forest", I thought it would be a fine time to share this tidbit of interesting side research.

The Arts and Crafts Movement was an artistic and philosophical movement that began in Great Britain in the 19th century. It was a reaction and rebellion against the industrial revolution. British pundits, such as Augustus Pugin and John Ruskin, fought against the mass production technologies and believed that they devalued individual workers, stripping creativity and human touch from products. William Morris, a poet and artist, was hugely influenced by these ideas and is usually credited as the founder of the movement. Morris advocated a functional style of architecture and art that emphasized simplicity and quality craftsmanship. Natural materials were often used, in strong contrast to the prevailing Victorian Fashion.

The Arts and Crafts philosophy spread across Europe and to America. In France, it became known as "Art Nouveau" and took on a sensuous style, mocking plant shapes. "Glasgow School" was the movement's title in Scotland with Charles Rennie Mackintosh as its chief artist. Here in America, Gustav Stickley was an early and influential Arts and Crafts proponent. Stickley would evolve the movement to the 'craftsman' style, following the blocky stylization of the English more than the sensual lines of the continental "Art Nouveau."

Stickley published a magazine, "The Craftsman," that included general plans for Arts and Crafts style houses. While some purists insist that only homes built using Stickley plans can truly be called 'craftsman', many homes were designed in a style similar to Stickley's. Several of these architects designed the interior furniture as well as the house in order to create a unified design. The mission furniture of Gustavo Stickley, while looking blocky and square by itself, in the context of a 'craftsman' home, completes the design at the human scale.

When you walk into a 'craftsman' home, there is a sense of spaciousness created by the openness of the rooms and the rustic or bold square style design, completely different from the Victorian houses still being built. The primary inspiration for the craftsman style was to look to nature, using local materials, local building traditions, and to design and construct after the manner of honest craft traditions: iron and copper blacksmithing, pottery, course weaving and rough hewn materials. The relatively short history of the United States presented a special American problem; there was no medieval architecture or Cotswald cottage to look to for inspiration. However, there were colonial log cabins, the Spanish missions of the Southwest and even Native American rugs and pottery. So, the movement adapted to the environment.

Examples of these homes are not only found in Flagstaff, but throughout Arizona. In Prescott, examples of Arts and Crafts style architecture can be found on Pleasant Street and Mount Vernon Street, as well as homes in the original Hassayampa Country Club. The Arts and Crafts Movement was a dramatic rebellion against the formality and excesses of the Victorian period. Socially, it was a period of growth for the middle class, and stylistically it marked the advent of modern design.

The Sharlot Hall Museum's Blue Rose Theater will offer a look into this dynamic time of change with "A Table In The Forest." This play gives an intimate look into the lives and times of the Riordan family of Flagstaff. Performances will be March 17th and 18th and March 24th and 25th, 2006. Call The Sharlot Hall Museum at 445-3122 for tickets or visit the website at www.sharlothallmuseum.org.

(Jody Drake is the director of the Blue Rose Theatre at Sharlot Hall Museum.)

Sharlot Hall Museum Photograph Call Number:(pb165f13i8) Reuse only by permission.
Located at 1093 Old Hassayampa Lane in the Hassayampa Historic District, this house is a good example of Arts and Crafts architecture in Prescott. Photo courtesy of Robert M. Girard