ARCHITECT

by Stephen C. Midouhas

Daub also seems to have been at the right place at the right time. The most prominent firm Daub was employed by was the office of Howe and Lescaze. William Lescaze and his partner George Howe were the architects of the Philadelphia Savings Fund Society Building, located in Center City Philadelphia. The building was completed in 1931.

For those who know Philadelphia, it’s the high-rise located on Market Street, with the giant red neon PSFS sign on its top. It’s now the Loews Hotel. The building’s style was a very American take on the International Style. Called the United States’ first modern skyscraper, it is considered to be the most important skyscraper built in the country during the first half of the 20th century.

During that time a fellow architect named Alfred Clauss was also in Howe and Lescaze’s office. Clauss had just come from Mies van der Rohe’s studio in Germany where he helped with the design of the iconic Barcelona Pavilion.

Clauss’s wife, Jane West Clauss, was also a very good architect who had just departed from Le Corbusier’s office in Paris. His Chapel at Ronchamp is spectacular.

Daub later formed a short-lived partnership with Clauss. However, their two years together were critical to both their careers, as they both were selected to exhibit their work at the 1932 MoMA exhibition.

It appears that this group of highly talented architects were very close. Many partnerships including Daub & Clauss and also Lescaze & Daub emerged out of those relationships developed at the office of Howe & Lescaze.

Before delving into Daub’s career, I’d like to consider Long Beach Island’s architectural history.

Henry Hudson, the great British explorer, is credited with naming the intersection between the Atlantic Ocean and its adjacent bay, Barnegat Inlet, while his ship, the Half Moon, was anchored off the beach on September 2nd, 1609.

Based upon many found artifacts, including fishing implements and arrowheads, the Lenni-Lenape tribe spent their summers on the island centuries before any Europeans cast their eyes on its shore. By 1609 the Colonists used the island in much the same way as the Native Americans did. They gathered salt hay, fished, and whaled, amongst other activities. I have an arrowhead that my wife Robin picked up in the wash while walking the beach one summer afternoon. It dates back to the PaleoIndian period, approximately 8,000 to 11,000 years ago.

The earliest buildings served as hunting and fishing lodges, housing visiting hunters and fishermen. These simple buildings were similar to “The Shack” that we watched slowly decay into oblivion when entering Long Beach Island via the causeway over those many decades. All of the building materials were brought to the mainland shores via railway and then ferried across Barnegat Bay on sailing boats and later on steam driven launches. The buildings were constructed by the local residents, who doubled as carpenters when required. They built only what was needed for shelter, with a few basic comforts for the guests. Good enough was good enough.

Later, houses grew larger as the newly wealthy Scandinavian immigrant fishing boat captains built their homes in Barnegat Light. Thus, the name “Viking Village”. Simple cedar-shingled, fishing shacks grew larger and larger. Sitting porches were added, and eventually came the more ornate, colorfully painted, wood decorations of Victorian Era homes. Wealthy families from Philadelphia and its surrounds soon began summering on Long Beach Island in their newly constructed, architect designed, “cottages”.

During the Victorian era (1880 to 1900), many sub-styles of Victorian homes emerged, both over time and in various places in the United States including San Francisco, Cape May and Chicago. The StickEastlake Style and the Queen Anne Styles were common.

However, the Shingle Style is probably the closest defined style of the houses found on Long Beach Island. There are still excellent preserved examples to be found on Long Beach Island, mostly in Beach Haven.

Architects of the sixties and seventies riffed on the Shingle Style when building their post-modern houses on Long Beach Island.

As history seems to do, when looking back, past eras seem shorter in years, and the following era seems to emerge so quickly. Time compresses over time. So, it is with the Victorian era ending only 30 years before the modern era comes to Long Beach Island. Fashion, even in architecture, has a short shelf life, though architects are always striving to build “timeless” buildings.

As it turns out, Daub brought modern architecture to Long Beach Island when he built his own house on Long Beach Island around 1932. Unfortunately, though technically still in existence, it has received additions and alterations that render the original house unrecognizable. This is typical of many of Long Beach Islands’ best modern homes. Few still exist in their original form, many have been rendered unrecognizable, and sadly, most have been demolished and replaced with houses that are unworthy to occupy the same place.

Daub did not bring the typically hard-edged International Style to our island. Instead, he created understated houses. These were true “beach houses” that addressed the casual lifestyle that we islanders still strive for and enjoy. His houses were anchored to their natural locations, but also to the long tradition of wooden buildings on Long Beach Island.

Daub completed numerous houses on the island, including this outstanding one that is perched on the unadulterated dunes. Clad in board and batten siding, Daub added the curved wooden fence to gracefully lead one to the entry of the house.

A rare photograph of the interior shows his use of natural light, wood paneling, a custom wall-mounted cabinet, linoleum flooring, and also Daub’s beloved dog, Ruby.

I’d like to take the Lloyd Good House of 1933 as the focus of this piece. Of the Daub houses, this house is the most well documented.

When the firm of Howe and Lescaze disbanded, George Daub became a member of Mr. Lescaze’s new firm. William Lescaze and his associate George Daub built the Lloyd Good House. The house was constructed on naturally vegetated sand dunes overlooking the Atlantic Ocean in Harvey Cedars. It was recognized internationally as an outstanding design. I say this because Daub is credited along with Lacaze when it was published in the landmark book, Functional Architecture -The International Style 1925-1940 in 1990 by Taschen Publishing.

Evidentially, Lescaze’s firm was George Daub’s last place of employment. One can assume that the Lloyd Good House was mostlikely his last project at Lescaze’s firm. And, one can also assume that the Lloyd Good House was the vehicle by which he rode out of Lescaze’s firm to start his own architectural practice. Maybe even with Lescaze’s blessing? Based upon his later work, it is highly likely that George Daub was the chief designer of the Lloyd Good House. This is a common way that many Long Beach Island firms are birthed to this day. For example, the modern architect Gym Wilson, who is still practicing, opened his studio on Long Beach Island in 1979. By the mid-eighties, out of his office, came the Long Beach Island practices of Michael Ryan, Jay Madden, John Whitten Davis, Sam Gordon and also, my own practice. However, we are all indebted to George Daub.

Let’s take a look at the Lloyd Good House to identify the specific things that form the architectural language of the modern beach house from that era. First is the flat roof. Versions of the flat roof can also be a slightly sloped flat roof, but never a gable roof. Even better is a flat roof that projects out to shade a deck. Using thin columns set back from the edge of the roof painted a darker color, gives the illusion that the roof slab is magically cantilevering from the main building. The surface is clad in shingles of one sort or another. In this case asbestos ones. This was a very sensible choice of siding at that time.

Shingles are like scales on a fish. They overlap, shedding the water row by row. Sometimes they are used as a device to relate the building to the simple shingled buildings of the past.

Notice the white horizontal boards making up the guardrails around the upper decks. Daub pulls the dark finished vertical supports away from the corners to make the horizontal rails look like they are floating.

There are no gutters. They would disrupt the crisp volume of the enclosed spaces and the roof slabs. Instead, the rainwater is collected in small collectors on the roof itself, and taken to the ground by a simple straight metal pipe.

Double hung windows are rarely used. They are just too traditional. The casement type windows are used because there is no horizontal bar to disrupt the view at eye level. Instead, the casement windows use one sheet of glass that swings open like a door to capture the cool ocean breezes. The fixed glass “picture” windows offer wider views of the ocean, dunes and the bay to the West.

Notice that the basic form of the house is not one solid “box”. Instead, its form reflects the asymmetrical floor plan. The asymmetry is not arbitrary. It is used to provide private spaces (bedrooms and bathrooms) and the more “public” living spaces that fit the lifestyle of a “modern” family. The shifting of the “boxes” also creates more outside corners than a simple four-cornered box. Those corners are then fitted with corner windows that allow light from two directions to “animate” the space while giving views one would not have without the shifts in the floor plan. This is a classic example of “form following function”, the Bauhaus’ famous dictum. The way the house “functions” determines how the house is “formed”.

The “boxes” enclosing the living space are also stacked one on another creating opportunities for various decks and porches that connect the inside of the home with the outdoors.

Finally, the house responds to the shape of the sloping dune, by stepping down the site where one enters the house at the higher driveway level and steps on to the path to the beach from the lowest deck at the bottom of the dune. Most of these components are still incorporated in many of the better examples of modern and neo-modern homes built on Long Beach since 1935.

It also takes a certain type of person to embrace the simplicity of living that an older modern house demands. Most rooms tended to be small by today’s standards, there were only one or two bathrooms with simple fixtures, no air-conditioning, smaller galley-type kitchens, and simple finishes inside and out. They are from a different time with different values. In many ways they are not much different than living in a traditional coastal cottage, which also are disappearing. While doing my research I found a short article in the real estate section of the August 1, 1937 edition of the New York Times that features the Lloyd Good House. It describes its use of shingles, corner windows, built-in cabinetry, etc. In many ways it could be describing one of my recent homes.

For those who enjoy reading, The Outermost House by Henry Breton is a classic. Published in 1928, it chronicles a season spent living on the dunes of Cape Cod in a simple little cottage.

I have always admired the Long Beach Island Foundation of the Arts and Sciences (LBIF) Building, with its open arched roof, and its raw simplicity. Until recently, I never knew it was designed by George Daub. It seems that Boris Blai, Russian sculptor (born in Ukraine) and the founder of LBIF, and Daub knew one another through their common interest in The Philadelphia Art Alliance. They obviously had a mutual love for Long Beach Island. So, it makes sense that Daub would be the architect for Blai’s new “Art Foundation”. I’m not sure whether it was before or after the construction of the Foundation’s building, but Daub also designed Blai’s Long Beach Island home.

Incidentally, my mother did ceramics at The Foundation in the 1950’s. One of her pots sits on my desk in my studio.

Daub also designed the best building on Long Beach Island. Well, at least it was for the children of the 50’s and 60’s. The Millside Milk Bar served ice cream! Located near The Foundation in Loveladies, it was an elegant modern building with huge sheets of south-facing window glass, a large overhang that shielded those windows from the glaring sun, and a very state-of-the-art fabricated metal sunscreen that shaded the lower windows on the west flank of the building. It was a building rich with details, like the exposed rafter ends and the two large cantilevered steel beams. Having summered on Long Beach Island since I was born in 1949, I had the privilege of experiencing a time when expectations were lower, buildings were simpler, and the island was less crowded. It was a place where a middle-class family could afford to own their own summer cottage. The older cedar clad houses (both traditional and modern) were everywhere. No one was asking for a “maintenance free house”, which actually is an oxymoron. The truth is that all houses are always in some state of aging. Even vinyl siding ages. But, some materials just age toward beauty. Usually, the natural ones.

My childhood island home was a simple “salt box” on 25th Street in Spray Beach. It was a duplex with my parent’s best friends living upstairs. There was no phone, no TV, just an AM radio. The floors were unwaxed oak. The sand was swept out the front door. Except when it was storming (or the mosquito truck was spraying insecticide), all the windows were open to provide, what was known then as “a cross breeze”. That is what I still consider a beach home. Simple and uncomplicated. And, for the most part, that was the way the majority of homes were constructed up until the 1980’s. Each time I walked to the beach I passed the iconic Ant Hill House, located in Spray Beach. So simple and so beautiful. It could have been 1860 instead of 1960, it was so untouched. And it was good enough.

Above Long Beach Island Foundation of the Arts and Sciences

Loveladies, NJ

George Daub

1948

Harvey Cedars

Bathed in glass, outlined with multiple decks, this ultra modern house captures the timeless, rolling waves of the Atlantic. Streamlined and minimal, it provides easy living in luxurious spaces.

Architect

Arnold Boyle, AIA

Walters

Architecture

Builder

Walters Homes

Interior design

The Red Chair

Landscape/

Outdoor Living

Kline Brothers

Landscaping

On the first level, five bedrooms and four baths are seamless through a soft palette of grays and white warmed by golden wood ceilings.

An open staircase with under step lighting leads to a second level of coastal life. A sun-fused great room opens to the surrounding deck with walls of windows and views of the sea. A luxury kitchen features a dramatic black marble center island anchored by modern metal seating for seven. A luminous open chandelier lights a dining table for ten.

Also on this level is a private main bedroom suite with its own deck and an impressive bathroom!

Further connection to the pristine beauty of Harvey Cedars is a winding staircase to a roof top deck. Everyone there enjoys the purples and pinks of sunsets on the bay.

Outside terraces offer a raised swimming pool, outdoor kitchen and firepit, plus multiple places to lounge, for beach lovers of every age.

Easy, open settings for conversations by the sea

The open staircase with under step lighting leads to a second level of coastal life

A private main bedroom suite has its own deck and an impressive bathroom

North Beach

Yes, the entire pool-facing wall of this beautifully modern beach house swings open. Called a custom upward acting door, the intricate action has to be seen for sure, gliding above you at the touch of a button.

Architect

Kang H. Chang, AIA

KANGModern Architecture and Design

Builder

A. Richard Aitken, Jr.

Builder–Contractor

Interior design

Frank

DelleDonne

Interiors

Landscape

MelilloBower-Carman

Landscape Architecture

Known to the family as the guest house, it opens to a luxury pool and the matching main residence ahead on the beach.

Interestingly, although the houses are styled the same, the guest house is not reverse living, opening freely (and stairless) to the outside.

Inside, an inviting circular white seating arrangement is anchored on swirling sea-inspired carpeting. Looking further inside, past a 3 ft silver shark, is dining for fourteen around a walnut table. An Italian marble counter seats an additional eight. There are four bedrooms upstairs, en suite to assure privacy for guests. A family room in sea blue is on the same upstairs level, looking down at the good times through pocket windows.

Above the luxury kitchen is a “No Vacancy” neon sign that captures the spirit of beach living in the North Beach guest house.

North Beach

A bluestone path leads you to the hidden opening that is the non-traditional entry of this home. The custom oak stairs wind around the elevator to the second floor.

Architect

Samuel Gordon

Architects, P.C.

Builder

Scott Peraria Builders, LLC

Interior design

NFR

Consulting

Landscape/ Outdoor Living Bay Avenue Plant Company

Although there are no walls, the path to the bedrooms or the his and her offices are decorated in soft gray tones. To the left, a pocket door conceals the entrance to a semi private suite while the end of the path holds a pair of ensuite bedrooms. The rippled tiles on the walls of these bathrooms mimic the aquatic patterns from the nearby beach.

The third floor chef’s kitchen commands the space. While the main path leads directly into the living room, the pièce de resistance is the dining room that overlooks the rear yard with a view out to the ocean. By opening the two glass walls, ocean breezes flow into the transformed screened-in porch. Also on this floor are the screened-in BBQ deck and the indoor-to-outdoor shower.

The rear yard contains a half dozen gathering spaces carefully designed by the architect. Shade is the key here to allow for maximum comfort and fun for all.

This “net zero energy” home is adequately shaded on all south facing windows and powered by a geothermal heat pump system along with solar panels to keep this house carbon neutral.

Erika Aaron & Marc Fliegelman

Patty Adell & Jeffrey Sussman

Michele & Fred Ballet

Mary & Mike Beckett

Sheila & Michael Bergey

Keslie Patch-Bohrod & Dr. William Bohrod

DeBorah Brill & Family

Tracey Cameron & Jim Murtaugh

Bonnie & William Clarke

Amy & Kevin Covert

Suzanne & Michael Emmet

Tracy Evert & Daniel Fraser

Paula & Adam Fein

Lynn & Harry Fryckberg

Joan Galiardo & Family

Reenie Gebhardt & Len Goldberg

Nancy & Carl Glaeser

Joyce & Alvin Glasgold

Wendy & Richard Glazer

Jamie Hand & Ted Hynes

Jennifer & Barry Jaruzelski

Kim & Adam Kamens

Daniella Kerner & Stanley Lechtzin

Michael Lasky & Family

Constance & David Lees

Lynn Lemond

Joy, Lee & Victoria Luedtke

Suzanne & Robert Levin

Debbie & Tom MacArthur

Patricia Mathews & Norm Epstein

Madeline & James McClure

Ruth & Howard Miller

Guna & Robert Mundheim

Ilene & Ray Nolte

Elinor & Harold Oertell

Sue Pohanka & Jay Madden

Dina Pruzansky & Mike Herman

Jean & Wayne Rath

The Samit Family

Benée Scola

Sandy & Jules Slotnick

Barbara Spina

Sandra Strine & Kenneth Stein

Jessica & Todd Strine

Barbara & Joel Werbel

Colleen Wyse & Stephen Klasko

A. Richard Aitken Jr.

Builder - Contractor

Amiano & Son, Design - Build

Bay Magazine

Bayview Harbor Marina

Between the Sheets LLC

Interior Design-Luxury Linens

Callan & Moeller Construction

Closet Factory

Elite Smart Home LLC

ELLE M Designs | KITCHENS

The Harrington Group, Inc.

The Ivanov Group @ Keller Williams

Jay Madden Architect

JDM Andrews Construction, Inc.

Joy Luedtke Real Estate, LLC k+co Living

Lackland Self Storage

LBI National Golf & Resort

Progressive Fence & Railing

Reynolds Garden Shop

Samuel Gordon Architects, P.C.

Sand Castle Bed & Breakfast

Scott Peraria Builders LLC

Techno Sound & Video

The Cheese Shoppe

T. Hill Contractors LLC

Thomas J. Keller

Building Contractor LLC

Walters Custom Homes

Woodhaven Lumber & Millwork

Born and raised on LBI’s North End, Joy has been marketing and selling the finest properties on LBI for over 30 years. Joy’s thriving partnership with her son, Lee, adds an unparalleled third-generation approach to the firm. With roots dating back to 1972, when Jean Luedtke first became licensed, Jean’s tradition of ethical, first-class representation lives on through the family business. The firm’s alliance with second-generation developer Michael Ziman of Ziman Development produces some of the finest homes along the Jersey Shore. If you’re considering buying or selling, please contact us.

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