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Download The RECONSIDERING THE BINNING HOUSE by ADELE MARGOT WEDER B.A. The University of Saskatchewan, 1984 B.J., The University of King's College, 1989 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ADVANCED STUDIES IN ARCHITECTURE in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA January 2005 © Adele Margot Weder, 2005 n. ABSTRACT The 1941 Binning House in West Vancouver has long been hailed as a pioneer of Modernism in domestic Canadian architecture, and an inspiration for much of the West Coast Architecture that followed. Although it is usually described as product of Corbusian rationalism and a paradigm of low-cost dwelling, in fact it is neither. Rather, it is a composite of several competing strains of Modernism and aesthetic values prevalent in London during the year (1938-39) in which Binning resided there to study fine art. The Binning House is often misread as an austerely functionalist plan with an orthogonal layout, but a closer observation and actual measurement of wall and window angles reveals that Binning actually inflected the orthogonal, generating a splayed geometric layout with obtuse and acute angles in several corners, trapezoidal forms in the built-in furniture and studio clerestory window, and a dynamic sense of visual expansion and contraction. Binning's study with Henry Moore was evidently tremendously influential in this regard, as Moore avoided the machine-like aesthetic of the orthogonal and instead imbued his art with oblique, irregular and rounded lines. The oblique motif also manifests in Binning's own drawings of this time. Also empathetic to this approach was Berthold Lubetkin, whose Whipsnade Bungalow near London defied the doctrines of orthogonal functionalism. Binning viewed plans and photos of Whipsnade and other emblems of early European modernism at a seminal 1939 exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. This exhibition synthesized many of the ideas and forms that Binning had been exposed to in London and seems to have served as a catalyst for the house plan he was about to compose. In converging these various strains of early Modernism, Binning has transcended the dogma of architectural discourse and rendered it meaningful for a local, individual context. iii. TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ii. Table of Contents iii. Acknowledgements iv. I. The Binning House: Perception and Reality 1 II. B.C. Binning: Early Life and Formative Year Abroad 6 III. The Vancouver Context circa 1940 19 TV. Convergence of Influences 24 V. The Problem of Categorization 30 VI. Optical Qualities 36 VII. Conclusion: The Architectural Legacy 44 Illustrations 53 Bibliography 76 iv. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to extend special thanks to the following individuals, who are among the many that provided direct or indirect assistance in the research of this thesis: Dr. Sherry McKay, Christopher Macdonald, Jamie Chrones, Jessie Binning, Adrian Archambault, Peter Oberlander, Ami Haraldsson, Matt Cohen, Max Weder, Geoff Massey, June Binkhert, Abraham Rogatnick, Joanne Gates, Heather Howat, Josie Grant, Peeroj Thakre, Joost Bakker, Phyllis Lambert and staff at the Canadian Centre for Architecture, staff at the University of British Columbia Library and Archives, and staff at the City of Vancouver Archives. 1 I. The Binning House: Perception and Reality Of the many renowned early Modern houses on the West Coast of Canada, one of the earliest and most influential is the Binning Residence in West Vancouver. Designed by the artist Bertram Charles Binning (1909-1976) as a home for himself and his wife, Jessie Wyllie Binning, the house was completed in 1941 and is still the primary residence of his widow. Now, over sixty years since its completion, it is a venerated structure with a Heritage "A" listing, and figures prominently in most surveys of regional architectural history. Although Binning himself wrote occasionally on art and architecture, he never provided a detailed explanation of the inspiration and intentions regarding his own renowned home. (The architects CE. Pratt and R.A.D. Berwick were consultants and are occasionally referred to as the "architects" of the house. The design was fundamentally Binning's, however, and their role was primarily to assist and facilitate approval for its construction.1) Yet despite its renown, the Binning House has prompted critical assessments that have not always corresponded to the literal reality and human experience of the house. Among most historians and critics, it is assumed that his house is what it appears to be from a cursory glance: an economically built, simple and practical house, its flat roof and open plan making it one of the earliest examples of the brand of universal Modernism championed by Le 1 Rhodri Liscombe, The New Spirit: Modern Architecture in Vancouver, 1938-1963. (Vancouver: Douglas & Mclntyre, 1997), 40. 2 Corbusier and by the Bauhaus principles. "Binning quintessentialized Modernist concepts of house design, from Le Corbusier's Five Points to Sigfried Giedion's 'Space-Time Architecture", wrote Liscombe in The New Spirit.2 But Binning's plan does not follow Le Corbusier's Five Points very closely. The plan is relatively open due to the functional independence of wall and skeleton, but the mass is not elevated off the ground by pilotis; the facade, while "free" of applied ornament and traditional articulation, boasts its own variegated appearance by way of carefully positioned custom-shaped clerestory windows and a mural painted by Binning; there is no long horizontal sliding window; there is no roof garden. How, then, can we classify the Binning House, if not wholly Corbusian? What are the other architectural and social values embedded within? This thesis will argue that the Binning House is first and foremost a product of the Binning's exposure to the design milieu of London, England, in the late 1930s. As such, it is a product of multiple influences, informed not only by Le Corbusier and the Bauhaus but also by the neo-constructivist ideas prevalent in London at the time. Above all, it is not a paradigm of Rationalist x low-cost housing, as it is often simplistically described. Extensively photographed throughout the decades since its construction, the Binning House (fig. 1-1 and 1-2) has acquired an iconic quality in the history of Canadian architecture. Any modern-day assessment must take into account the qualitative factors which can enhance, or even distort, a visitor's perception of its innate architectural values. First, it has been exceptionally well maintained under the direction of Jessie Binning, who is devoted to the house 2 Ibid. 3 and continues to enlist professional cleaning, gardening and repairwork as needed. Second, Jessie herself, although now 98 years old, continues to be a charming hostess for visitors, and her personal warmth contributes to the perception of the house as a particularly successful home design. The exhibition of her late husband's paintings and artful mementos throughout the house further enhance its sense of intimacy and importance. Third, the house bears a historic importance of being one of the first Modern houses on the West Coast and also the occasional gathering-site of local cultural leaders and visiting architects, most notably Richard Neutra on two occasions in the 1940s. This historic role contributes to the sense of veneration by subsequent generations. These qualitative issues aside, the Binning House can also be assessed as a singular work of architecture in that its decorative wall murals, intuitive gestures and unusual plan (fig. 2) broke not only the conventions of the fusty traditionalism, but also defied the tenets of doctrinary functionalism. The Binning House remains in good condition in its original location at 2968 Mathers Avenue in West Vancouver. Over the decades, it has been occasionally altered: the original detached carport was transformed into a covered garage; its original varnished cedar cladding was painted an off-white colour; a trellis was appended onto the rear fagade; a second washroom was added off the guest-bedroom/ study area; and on two separate occasions Binning painted a new mural over his previous mural on the exterior wall beside the front entry. Fundamentally, however, the form and essence of the Binning House is very close to its original construction. The Binning House is a post-and-beam construction with a combination of cedar V-joint cladding and cedar siding. To the right of the front entrance, visitors are welcomed by a geometrically abstract mural of emphatic yellow lines, the third of a series of murals which Binning painted on that wall section, each one effacing its predecessor. Inside and throughout the house is a mixture of some factory-made and many custom-made components. The gallery and living room both feature built-in bookshelves and cabinetry; the study area has a small built-in desk. Ribbed glass in 24-inch square wood frames on the upper half of the central wall allows light to filter in from the living/ dining area to the gallery. The fireplace wall is built with fieldstone, and is articulated by a jogged surface and built-in niche. Historic overviews attribute the Binning House's renown to its status as one of the first flat-roofed houses on the west coast; to its social history as a gathering-place for local and visiting cultural leaders; and to its pioneering Modernism. Its architectural intention, approach and legacy are somewhat more problematic to ascertain. Surveying the interior space of the house, one experiences a subtle but unsettling feeling of disconnect between expectation and reality. The house appears to be an open, clear layout of orthogonal forms (and in fact is described as such in much of the general literature), yet the space seems at times to be expanding and contracting in oblique lines.
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