WONDERFUL PORTLAND (PART 2)

I promised more about Portland, and here it is. Portlanders are proud of their city's bridges, and with good reason. At least one of them, the Steel Bridge, is a genuine work of art.

Unfortunately it would take film rather than still photography to capture the way the perspective morphs as you approach this thing. Coming on to it, the whole structure seems to animate before your eyes. Architects take note: naked steel girders are aesthetically pleasing. Witness the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

Portland is one of those cities that provokes artists to have utopian dreams. My own vision for the city is one of downtown Steampunk (above), combined with suburban Craftsman houses, Chinese gardens, hippie breweries, and high tech enclaves ...all mixed with that unique Northwest flavor that's the envy of everyone who's seen it. Rather than one style I picture the town as a marvelous platypus of all the town's historical influences.

Now, on another subject,  I'll ask if anyone out there recognizes this building, above.

Right! It's the Timberline Ski Lodge on Mount Hood (above)! Exteriors of this resort were used in the film, "The Shining." I and my posse spent a few hours there.

After the movie came out the resort was inundated with guests who wanted to recreate scenes from the movie.  According to the net, the hotel resisted at first then did a turnabout and got in on the act. Now you can even be married there "Shining Style" with the hotel's assistance.

Guests bring their own tricycles and evil twin costumes.

Holy Mackerel! Does the house provide the axe? If so, that's service!

The hotel architecture is an attraction all by itself. Everywhere there's massive, thick timber. You feel like you've stumbled into Paul Bunyan's house.

The lobby ceiling is to die for. As time goes by I'm more and more convinced that ceilings are the most important factor in a room. 

And the furniture...it's one of a kind. The hotel was built by skilled WPA workers during the Depression.

No building of this type would be complete without a portrait of the intrepid  founder, and here it is. I wish I had a poster-size copy of this for my wall at home.

Of course the main attraction is Mount Hood, seen here from the vantage point of a comfortable sofa in front of a window. There's the ski lift on the left. If it's hard to see, click to enlarge.

THE NEXT NEW THING (PART 2)

Here it is: my prediction for the next new thing, the sweeping change that will alter everything in the next 10-20 years. It'll effect the way you dress, the way you speak, what you name your children, the kind of house you live in...everything. That sweeping change is........

...STEAM PUNK! I know, I know...you think Steampunk is a niche thing, something a few fans do at sci-fi conventions. Until recently I thought the same thing myself, but then I stumbled on the Steampunk sites on the net.

They're all over the place! Don't take my word for it; check them out for yourself. Check out the number of times it appears in design and architecture magazines. Check out the number of anime films and manga that are devoted to it. Check out the fan art.

 Don't be surprised if you wake up one day to discover that post-modern architecture has morphed into Victorian Steampunk (above). The two styles are more compatible than you might think. You can find a lot of hybrids right now.

Ordinary stores like Restoration Hardware and Ikea are carrying Pseudo-Steampunk lines. They don't call it that, but that's what it is.

This (above) is from Pottery Barn's Fall catalogue. It's an updated version of a Victorian living room, something Jules Verne would almost have found comfortable.

Make no mistake about it: Steampunk is in our future. It'll morph into a more pure form (above) with each passing year.

Eventually even your computer (above) will look like something out of George Pal's "Time Machine" movie.

Cars (above) will look a lot different. Inside they'll be high-tech for sure, but on the surface they'll resemble something your great grandfather might have seen when he was a kid.

Expect clothes (above) to change. Expect a return to etiquette. Far from resisting the new fashions, goths and emos will embrace them.

So that's my prediction for the not too distant future. Ignore it at your peril!