By Michael-Leonard Creditor / flexible fotography
While it is true, as the architectural maxim states, that form follows function, design leads the way. And design needs no justification; design simply IS. Just look at the designs of Nature if you don’t believe me.
I look at architecture as design. When I look at an entire structure, I see the pure lines, angles, and curves of it as well as the overall building that it is. I examine smaller sections of a structure for pure design. The art of architecture is that I may see shapes in the buildings that aren’t really there in the buildings. Often, the interplay of light, another pure design element, creates design that isn’t really there. I guess it’s what used to be called art abstracts. It’s simply seeing the designs that aren’t there in the buildings.
Actually, I see design in everything; while I photograph with light, what I photograph is often designs. Not only in architecture, but really in everything. On one level, my job as a photographer is simply to show the designs.
That’s the goal, anyway. Here are some examples of when I think I made the goal. Let’s begin with light.
Do I have more faves than these? Oh, you betcha! These are only some of them that are architectural. Most of the design examples are in pairs or trios.
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Artichoke LampWhen I first saw the large lighting fixture at a resort hotel in 1979, I didn’t yet know about this famous Finnish design. But I knew enough to photograph it. -
Curve of LightThe next year, I made this image in the lobby of the then-newly remodeled Portland Civic Auditorium. It’s been a favorite of mine ever since. I think the title says it all. -
Linear SkylightAnother example of light being formed by something built. -
Green TowerA transmission tower bathed in old-style street lights; I think they were called mercury vapor. Slide film reads their light as extremely green - even more than fluorescent light. I was appalled the first time I encountered it, but then began a series of “Green Light” photos that all make use of this color shift. -
O’Connell BridgeBridges are truly wonderful things. The engineering involved has always been something akin to sorcery and today there are bridges with central spans longer than a mine. And while many bridges are completely utilitarian, a beautifully designed bridge is truly beautiful. This small roadway bridge in Sitka, Alaska lent itself to my camera’s minimalism. -
Eastgate Mall BridgeYes, I love the Coronado Bridge, but this overlooked little gem of a concrete arch structure is so beautiful in its minimalism that it, too, is a fave. -
Blue PyramidOf course, the remarkable design quality of a pyramid can’t be overstated. Even as overused as it has been in the last 10 or so years, there are still good uses. The sports center at Cal State Long Beach is a traditional proportion pyramid. -
County Building PyramidPart of the municipal complex of Las Vegas county, the proportions of this pyramid make it seem squashed, lending it to a horizontal camera position. -
More Like A PyramidThe proportions of the famous Transamerica “pyramid” are, obviously, extremely skewed in the other direction. For a long time I didn’t consider it a true pyramid, (hence the quote marks) so I tried to make it.... -
Geisel Library, UCSDI admire the sheer horizontal audacity of this building’s design. But, in this photo it can also be seen as stepped pyramids ascending and descending from the horizontal center. -
Beach House ModernYes, it’s the house at the end of Sandy Lane in Del Mar. However, it didn’t have that notoriety yet when I shot this in 1994. -
Marine ViewPerched above I-5 in Del Mar, this house on Marine View Drive really does have an ocean view. -
Stadium ParkingYes, it’s the parking lot at our own stadium. Not only is the structure itself full of wonderful design, it even extends to the configuration of parking. How many places can you say that of? -
Las Vegas Visitors CenterA great example of Googie architecture, as well as some great formed concrete -
TWA Has LandedShot through the window of a train station, this vantage shows the bird-like quality of the world-famous Eero Saarinen design. Please notice that the pedestals near the roadway look like a raptor's legs and talons if were on the ground. -
Kea Lani ResortDesigned in sort of a Moorish style, this complex on Maui afforded me many different studios on its grounds. Adobe, Sky, and Clouds and Wall With Window were also made here. -
Embarcadero CenterUsing lighting design as an architectural element to outline the center’s structures at night is literally brilliant. Using a photographic tool to turn that back into a pure design element... I dunno, maybe. -
Ziggurat LightsUsing lighting design as an architectural element to outline the center’s structures at night is literally brilliant. Using a photographic tool to turn that back into a pure design element... I dunno, maybe. -
Grand Slam CanyonHere’s another example of using lighting design to suggest something that you can’t really see in the darkness. -
Space-Saving SpiralsIt will probably come as no surprise that I love the design of spiral staircases. Like roundabouts, they are much more common in other lands than here in the orthogonal USA. This is a set of similar stairs at the rear of residences in Singapore. Please mote they go in opposite directions. -
Yellow SpiralsIs a more modest spiral staircase. -
Blue Edge DiscsIs the most minimalist expression of the design. Many points to anyone who can identify what this actually is. It’s in Balboa Park. -
Smart Saw-ToothOne of my favorite bits of architectural design is right downtown. -
Wall With WindowI never tire of the sinuous shapes of this architectural flourish -
Adobe, Sky and CloudsThis adobe wall always looks to me like it should be in Arizona or New Mexico, but it’s actually a resort on Maui. -
Split Rear CorvetteThe only departure from architecture in this photo essay, the split rear window Corvette (1963-67) remains one of the most beautiful - and audacious - automotive designs ever. It is possibly - only possibly, mind you - surpassed by the ’71 boat back Buick Riviera of similar design only because putting it on a stodgy Buick was quite astonishing. -
Vanishing Point #1I maintain that perspective is an element of design. At least in photography I think it is. -
Façade #1Among the earliest façade photos I ever took, this is the first one that I thought achieved the design goal. -
Hawaiian RegentHotel tower in Honolulu. Sure, repetition is a design element, especially in a large building, but come on. -
SymetricalityTwo wildly different views of the same building. -
DisorientationTwo wildly different views of the same building. -
Accordion Fold FacadeUsing perspective again but in the opposite direction, shortening rather than lengthening the design. Major kudos if you can identify this San Diego building. -
Poised for Take OffThis image hits a design trifecta for me: great art-Deco architecture, wonderful lighting, and it looks like something else. -
9 West 57th Street NYCThe façade of the building actually is curved; along with the perspective, this creates a marvelous vanishing point.
All photos © michael-leonard creditor / full-size images @ flexible fotography
I’d like to finish with a few of my “Numbers & Letters” series. In the same vein as all the others, these are images where a letter of the alphabet is not the intended design, but the design I see. Sometimes, it is simply a factor of the angle of the light or my vantage point, but in all these there is no doubt that the design of the letter is there.
BTW, I still have no images for letters G, N, and R-S-T-U.
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‘E’ ApartmentsAn example of why smart phones are so great for photography: it is now sooo easy to “always have your camera with you.” -
Small ‘h’ (with serif)I guess this could be a highly stylized small ‘n’ since I don’t have one, but I prefer a highly stylized small ‘h’ instead. *insert razz smilie here*. The shape also reminds me of the old King Features Syndicate cartoon character The Little King. -
Airport ArmrestAirports have long been a location for future-looking architectural designs; sometimes that extends to interiors, furniture, and fixtures. Lindbergh Field has some nice architecture, both in Mid-century Modern Terminal 1 and the more truly modern current additions. -
Green ‘W’Is the first image in what became this series. It’s the 3-story lobby of a building reflected in the ceiling; the wings of the ‘W’ are a café on the mezzanine (you can see the umbrellas reflected there, too). The camera is on the floor pointed up, so I didn’t know what framing I would get when I shot it, but I did expect the green shift -
‘X’ or AsteriskAnd this is the latest in the series, shot just earlier this year. Points if you know the building. -
Catch Some ‘Z’sThis is the same building as Accordion Fold.
All photos © michael-leonard creditor / full-size images @ flexible fotography
Michael-Leonard Creditor
Born in Tucson AZ; reared in Brooklyn NY; lived in Portland OR; currently inhabiting Clairemont.
Three main professions: photographer, folklorist, radio program host.
Philosopher, Humanist, and life-long Liberal.
Latest posts by Michael-Leonard Creditor (see all)
- Warm-Weather Christmas | A Photographic Look - December 12, 2018
- Some of My Faves | A Photographic Look - November 14, 2018
- Yes! Some Good San Diego Architecture! | A Photographic Look - October 9, 2018
