Historic Architecture

 

Model #1: The Lightner Monica Museum Bristol Paper, Watercolor Paper, Yellow & Brown Ink, Balsa Wood, Wood Glue 12” x 10” x 9.5”

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Lightner Museum November 8, 2024 Henry Flagler commissioned Hotel Alcazar, which was completed in 1888. It was designed by John Merven Carrère and Thomas Hastings, architects of the Gilded Age, who took inspiration from St. Augustine’s Spanish heritage. Following the winter season of 1931, Hotel Alcazar closed its doors as a result of the 1929 Wall Street Crash and the Depression. Sixteen years later, Otto C. Lightner purchased the building, making it the permanent home for his eclectic collection of artwork and furnishings. The Lightner Museum of Hobbies opened to the public in 1948.

Casa Monica Hotel November 8, 2024 The Casa Monica Hotel, which used design principles from Moorish Revival and Spanish Baroque Revival architecture, opened on New Year's Day of 1888. Franklin W. Smith’s hotel was in serious financial trouble only four months in, which prompted Henry Flagler to purchase the entire facility and rename it the Cordova Hotel. Flagler connected the Hotel Alcazar to the Cordova Hotel with a bridge, which was ultimately torn down after the Hotel Alcazar closed its doors in 1931. St. Johns County Commission purchased the facility, restoring the building and opening the St. Johns County Courthouse in May of 1968. Three decades later in February of 1997, Richard Kessler purchased the building and remodeled the structure, returning it to a resort hotel. Architect Howard W. Davis focused on saving the building’s Moorish Revival style, and the Casa Monica Hotel was opened in the winter of 1999.

I took inspiration primarily from the Lightner Museum along with some details from the Casa Monica Hotel. The Lightner Museum’s twin towers piqued my interest as they’re at the forefront of the building. I wanted to incorporate these into my model, which I did by changing the shape of the towers into heptagons and adding two shorter towers on the backside of my model. I found the alignment and order of the windows on the museum’s towers interesting, so I decided to replicate these shapes on my towers. To mirror the arched shapes throughout the museum’s structure, I created arch cutouts and window and door shapes. The appearance of these elements on my model rely on the yellow color that’s seen on the Lightner Museum. I appreciate the unique shape of the museum, so I built my model getting shorter as it moves backward in a similar way to the museum’s structure. While my first architecture model is based heavily on the Lightner Museum, I was also inspired by the Casa Monica Hotel’s facade that displays the resort’s nme and overlooks Cordova Street. I enjoyed observing the center window shape and protruding step-looking detail, which is why I chose to incorporate these elements into the front of my model. When looking up from the entryway to the Casa Monica, reddish-brown beams right above these details are noticeable on the facade. I liked the way these beams stood out against the otherwise white building. This being said, I included these lines by adding brown beams made from balsa wood and ink onto the roof of my model.

I chose the Lightner Museum as the main source of inspiration for this model because I think it’s nice how similar the museum’s architecture is to Ponce Hall, formerly known as Hotel Ponce de Leon. I learned that Henry Flagler commissioned both Hotel Ponce de Leon and Hotel Alcazar, which is now known as the Lightner Museum. The Casa Monica Hotel became the second building I focused on for this model because of its proximity to the museum. Interestingly, the Casa Monica historically has a direct connection to the Lightner Museum via a bridge built by Henry Flagler.

Model #2: Villa Monica Bristol Paper, Watercolor Paper, Red Ink, Balsa Wood, Wood Glue 11.5” x 9.5” x 8”

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Casa Monica Hotel November 8, 2024 The Casa Monica Hotel, which used design principles from Moorish Revival and Spanish Baroque Revival architecture, opened on New Year's Day of 1888. Franklin W. Smith’s hotel was in serious financial trouble only four months in, which prompted Henry Flagler to purchase the entire facility and rename it the Cordova Hotel. Flagler connected the Hotel Alcazar to the Cordova Hotel with a bridge, which was ultimately torn down after the Hotel Alcazar closed its doors in 1931. St. Johns County Commission purchased the facility, restoring the building and opening the St. Johns County Courthouse in May of 1968. Three decades later in February of 1997, Richard Kessler purchased the building and remodeled the structure, returning it to a resort hotel. Architect Howard W. Davis focused on saving the building’s Moorish Revival style, and the Casa Monica Hotel was opened in the winter of 1999.

Villa Zorayda November 8, 2024 In 1883, Villa Zorayda was built as Franklin W. Smith’s winter home. It utilized the Moorish Revival style of architecture, which was inspired by Spain’s Alhambra Palace. Villa Zorayda was the first concrete structure in Florida and the first building created from the poured concrete method with cement and crushed coquina. The building and part of Smith's collection were sold to Abraham Mussallem in 1913 and it became the Mussallem’s residence by the late 1920s. Following name and function changes and decades of this building being in the Mussallem family, it reopened in 2008 as a museum and returned to the name, Villa Zorayda.

The Casa Monica Hotel and Villa Zorayda influenced my design decisions for the second model. Balconies are a rather prominent detail on the Casa Monica, so I decided to create some on my model. The main balcony that I made is directly inspired by the one above the valet parking entrance to the resort that’s located on King Street. I found it really unique that the Casa Monica is located on the corner of King Street and Cordova Street. I chose to recreate this detail by building rectangular forms that could fit together as if they were on the corner of two streets. Given this decision, I wanted to incorporate the different window shapes from the Casa Monica and Villa Zorayda. On Villa Zorayda, the rectangular windows that are round at the top drew me in because I’ve never observed anything like them before. I thought the lines formed by the bars over the windows on the villa were visually interesting, which is why I used this idea on my model. The bright red also stood out to me when I went to take photos of the building, and I used ink to mix a color that combines the reddish-terracotta that's seen on the Casa Monica and Villa Zorayda. The entryways to the model are inspired by the entrance on Villa Zorayda as well as the Casa Monica Hotel’s arch-esque shapes on the interior. As I included the window shape and beams from the facade of the Casa Monica in my first model, I decided to do the same on my second model in an attempt to create a connection between the two. 

Historically, Villa Zorayda was built roughly five years earlier than the Casa Monica. Both buildings contain features of the Moorish Revival style of architecture. This detail is really interesting to me as one building is primarily white with a smooth texture and the other building displays the primary colors brightly with mosaics and a rougher texture. Ultimately, I was inspired by the position of the Casa Monica Hotel and the window shapes and color on Villa Zorayda.