idcentury MODERN HOME in PIERREMONT
by adam bailey
Midcentury modern homes—built with simple materials and designed around open, flexible spaces—are highly sought after, but often need repairs and modern updates. Faithfully restored, this rehabbed home in Shreveport’s South Highland neighborhood proves how timeless the midcentury modern design can be.
52
APRIL 2021
| SBMAG.NET
One of the prevailing themes of midcentury modern architecture is an emphasis on function and form. The style itself originated for both practical and aesthetic reasons. After World War II, returning soldiers required housing. As a result, large suburban developments filled up with homes that were relatively quick and cheap to build. While many of these developments on the east coast featured more traditional style homes like Cape Cods, other parts of the country (mainly California) saw a boom in more modernist homes that would come to be called Mid-Century Modern. This style of home wasn’t the cheapest and quickest house you could build, though. The design elements were equally important, and a fairly stark contrast from the popular Colonial Revival movement that preceded it. Instead of looking to the past, the country was in a period of transition that had everyone looking to the future.
