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Blueprints of Ebbets Field, Home of Brooklyn Dodgers, on Display

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Ebetts Field

The blueprints of Ebbets Field, home of the fabled and departed Brooklyn Dodgers, are being publicly displayed "for the first time in decades," The Wall Street Journal reports, as Brooklyn College hosts an exhibit on the team that opens today.

The blueprints -- three of the original 18 plans for the structure, dating back to 1912 -- are said to be the centerpiece of the show. Other items displayed include "team photographs, cartoons and one of the last home plates used at Ebbets Field -- one with a memorable dedication to the owner who moved the team to Los Angeles after the 1957 season: 'May Walter O'Mally [sic] roast in hell.' "

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Among Ebbets Field's historic moments are as site of the first televised baseball game, in 1939, and the first major league game to feature an African-American player -- Jackie Robinson, in 1947. After 45 seasons of Dodgers baseball, the stadium -- located in Brooklyn's Flatbush neighborhood -- was demolished in 1960. A public housing project rose in its place.

The blueprints were discovered in 1992 by a writer named Rod Kennedy, who has a particular interest in Brooklyn. After locating many other sets of stadium plans for his business -- "creating tiny tin replicas of baseball stadiums" -- he set himself the task of finding the Ebbets blueprints -- "one of the holy grails of baseball memorabilia," according to Ron Schweiger, Brooklyn's official historian.

"They were found in some dusty basement of a municipal building," said Marianne LaBatto, acting archivist at Brooklyn College. "Rod Kennedy had them for a number of years and gave them to Ron Schweiger with the understanding that Ron would find a permanent home for them." Schweiger chose Brooklyn College, "and we're totally delighted by this," LaBatto said.



LaBatto explained that the college decided, "because [the blueprints] are such a wonderful piece of Brooklyn history," to build an exhibit around them, drawing on Schweiger's extensive collection of Dodgers memorabilia.

"We're going to have them on display but we also have a conservation lab, the only one in the City University of New York. This is important because a lot of the blueprints are damaged, because of the way they were originally stored." Hence at Brooklyn College the plans can be preserved as well as made available to the public, so that "anyone can come to see them, study them, and see what Ebbets Field used to look like." Aiding visitors in that endeavor is a 3-D model of the stadium on loan from the widow of a Brooklyn College alumnus. "It's very intricate," LaBatto said. "Whoever put it together spent a lot of time on it."

Although Ebbets Field (pictured above) has been gone for more than 50 years, its influence can be seen in such structures as Citi Field, home of the New York Mets. Its facade (pictured below) is essentially an updated replica of Ebbets' exterior.

Citi field

 

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House of the Week: Beyonce's 'Halo' Loft (VIDEO)

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We've done some solid reporting on the jaw-dropping pads where rappers and pop stars chose to film their music videos, from modern-day castles to glass-walled penthouses. No doubt about it, there's something about adding a little star power to an already exceptional home that makes it that much more exciting.

So when we got the chance to check out the loft that Beyonce chose to feature in the music video for her Grammy-winning song "Halo," we jumped all over it. Ceilings 25 feet high, a roof deck and a private indoor swimming pool? Uh, yes please. Later, we discovered the structure actually had way more going for it than just luxury amenities and star-studded associations -- built in the 1890s, it had housed one of New York's very first power stations!

Peek into the loft yourself.

House of the Week: Halo's New York City SoHo Apartment




















Like what you see? Beyonce's "Halo" loft can be rented for $100,000 a month.

Steve Halpern from Citi Habitats has the listing.

Got a tip for our House of the Week series? If you know of any exceptional or unusual property currently listed for sale that's video-worthy, please email krisanne.alcantara@huffingtonpost.com with your suggestions. (Due to the volume of response, we unfortunately are unable to reply to each submission.)

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Queen Anne House: A Turreted, Transitional Design (PHOTOS)

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By Bud Dietrich

At the end of the 19th century and early into the 20th, a popular home style in the United States was the Queen Anne. The Queen Anne was clearly a transitional style, creating a bridge between the exuberant Victorian and the restrained Colonial revival styles.

The Queen Anne home is characterized by its asymmetrical design. With a large projecting gable on one side and a tower on the other, the Queen Anne is a tall, upright and proud house.

At its base, the Queen Anne has a wide porch that welcomes the visitor and provides a place to rest and view the street. An abundance of large windows keeps the interior of the Queen Anne light and bright.

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What's Your Home Style?

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By Jody Brown

It can be hard to decide what your personal architectural style is. There are so many choices. And if you're trying to choose something important - like, say, the house you want to live in for the rest of your life - well ... you should probably get that choice right. But how can you tell what style you are? Is there a guide? Well, no, actually. There's the summary that the real estate people write, but that's basically science fiction. All ugly houses are called "contemporary." That's not helpful.

We need a better system. Something more ... scientific. So I'll give it a try. Using my vast knowledge of architectural styles and my keen powers of observation, I've compiled the following. Feel free to make changes in your life accordingly.

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Cape Cod House (Style Spotlight)

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By Bud Dietrich


Cape Cod homes can be seen all across America in differing variations to suit differing climates and norms. This is because the Cape Cod is, in its soul, the one house style that conjures for us dreams of seaside holidays, flower gardens, white picket fences and a simpler, more relaxed lifestyle.

Historically, the Cape Cod house started as a modest and efficient design in response to Colonial America's harsh climate. By keeping the design a simple, one-story rectangular box with a steeply pitched gable roof, the Cape Cod house used an economy of materials to achieve a maximum of interior space.

As Americans expanded west, they took this all-American style with them, and now there are examples of Cape Cods across the country. Initially a modest house, the Cape Cod expanded to keep up with the needs of wealthier and larger families.

The addition of roof dormers, both doghouse and shed types, easily added headroom and usable space to the second floor. When needed, a room or two would be added to the sides or backs of these houses. These additions would, in the best examples, be smaller than the original main portion of the house in order to maintain the scale and charm of a Cape Cod.

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Identifying a Cape Cod Style Home

 

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Inside Look: Live in a Former Nuclear Missile Silo (VIDEO)

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SiloAfter weeks of filming swanky penthouses (some with er, slides) and extravagant Manhattan lofts made famous by the likes of Beyonce, we were excited to take an "Inside Look" at a much more unconventional home nestled in the Adirondack Mountains.

And talk about unconventional! Beneath this home in Saranac, N.Y., lies a former Cold War-era nuclear missile silo and launch pad, built in the 1950s to house an Atlas-F intercontinental ballistic missile. Not your average, indeed!

In fact, we learned that the surface home is simply the "secret entrance" to almost 15,000 square feet of underground space that's built to withstand tornadoes, hailstorms, hurricanes and the odd Soviet pre-emptive nuclear strike. No wonder some say it's one of the world's safest homes!

Definitely one of the stranger houses we've been in, but still cool beyond belief. See for yourself.

Brian Dominic, Michael DeRosa and Mike Franklin of Select Sotheby's International Realty have the listing.

All parcels of land available for sale on the property appear as below (total $1.76 million).

Silohome complex on 19 ac: $750,000
Log Home on 4 ac: $259,000
10 acre runway lot w/ 42' x 46' hangar: $125,000
All 7 lots (approx 8 acres each): $476,000
Phase II 125 undivided acres to west of silohome: $150,00

See more pictures of the converted nuclear missile silo home below.

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Get the Inside Look at other amazing homes on AOL Real Estate.

Got a tip for our Inside Look series? If you know of any exceptional or unusual property currently listed for sale that's video-worthy, please email krisanne.alcantara@huffingtonpost.com with your suggestions. (Due to the volume of response, we unfortunately are unable to reply to each submission.)

Follow AOL Real Estate reporters Krisanne Alcantara (@krisannetraz) and Teke Wiggin (@tkwiggin) on Twitter (@aolrealestate)!

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Tudor House (Style Spotlight)

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By Steele Marcoux

What it is: First, let's clear up this confusing moniker. When referring to the architectural style, the term "Tudor" is actually historically imprecise. It refers not to typical buildings of Tudor England (early 16th century) but instead to a style popularized in the United States during the end of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. Furthermore, the style is more of a catchall term based loosely on a variety of elements from medieval English architecture, from humble cottages to stately manors.

Where to find it: In cities and suburbs all over the United States.

Why you'll love it: With its storybook details (think Hansel and Gretel) and countryside charm (even in the heart of major cities), there's no more romantic style.

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Identifying a Tudor Style Home

 

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Living Off the Grid in a Mail-Order Home

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Drew Kelly Photography

By Les Christie


House Arc may look like an egg-shaped antidote to McMansion mania, but this small mail-order home was really designed as a way to quickly provide housing to victims of disaster.

"We wanted to see how we could produce a house that would fit into a flat packing container that could be shipped to communities in need, like New Orleans after Katrina," said architect Joseph Bellomo, who worked on the modular home for 2½ years.

The result was House Arc, a 150-square-foot structure of hollow steel tubes. Not only can the 3,000-pound modular home withstand high winds, it can also be boxed into a 120-cubic-foot freight container and shipped off to its next destination.

House Arc is designed to be put together like a piece of Ikea furniture, according to Bellomo. In other words, anyone with moderate carpentry skills should be able to assemble it. If the home is no longer needed, it can also easily be taken apart and shipped somewhere else.

The curved design is so strong because it works like an arch, spreading the weight of any load, such as the pressure of a strong wind, across the surfaces rather than allowing it to concentrate on one spot.

For Bellomo, it was important for the home to be practical yet also attractive. Disaster victims are often relegated to substandard housing conditions, packed into trailers or even tents for months after they lose their homes, he said.

Bellomo was inspired to create the modular home after he made Bike Arc, a steel-arched shelter that riders could lock their bikes into.

Even though House Arc has a footprint of less than 100 square feet, it's roomier inside, thanks to walls that bow out and 9-foot-high ceilings.

The cozy mail-order home can also be added to a backyard to expand living space, say as a guesthouse. Or it could be used as a cabin in the woods.

But the cost is still high, at a base of about $55,000. However, Bellomo wants to automate the production process, which should cut the price at least by half, he said.

Options for the modular home include plumbing, ceiling fan and solar panels for the roof. At this point, customers would have to arrange for these installations themselves.

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House of the Day: Schoolroom-Turned-Penthouse in Harlem

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If going back to school is the last thing you'd ever want to do, it's probably because you haven't yet laid eyes on this incredible school-turned-penthouse. That's right, this impeccably stylish, $975,000 penthouse was once part of New York City's P.S. 90.

Though classes at the old Central Harlem elementary school (built circa 1905) are no longer in session, the conversion that's taken place on the former school's uppermost level -- now the penthouse suite -- is teaching us a lesson or two in style. With European oak floors boasting an exquisite herringbone pattern, nine-foot ceilings and "walls of windows," you could easily mistake this stunning, sunlight-drenched space for a Tribeca loft or an East Village penthouse. And with those luxe bathrooms featuring staggered bond-mosaic walls and Palmira stone baths? We give it an A+.

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If living in a former classroom isn't cool enough for you, the penthouse also comes with a 1,500-square-foot private terrace (bigger than the apartment itself, which stands at 1,392 square feet) that offers majestic Central Park and Manhattan skyline views.

Lucie Holt and Yana Milanova of Citi Habitats have the listing.

Click on the images below to see more homes for sale in New York, N.Y.



See more Houses of the Day on AOL Real Estate.

Got a tip for House of the Day? Know of an exceptional or unusual property currently listed for sale? Please email krisanne.alcantara@huffingtonpost.com with your suggestions and be sure to include links to listing details and photos. (Due to the volume of response, we unfortunately are unable to reply to each submission.)

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Aol Real Estate's Inside Look: Slide Home

 

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House of the Day: Pierre Koenig's Last Jewel

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Be still, the hearts of all modernist architecture enthusiasts: Pierre Koenig's last built project, an extraordinary four-bedroom, glass-walled home in Malibu, Calif., has just hit the market.

Priced at a cool $18.495 million, the home was described by Koenig as a "perfect jewel." The architect, whose sleek glass-and-steel creations became "emblems of the progressive values of Postwar suburbia," spent 11 years designing the beach house (his final design before his death in 2004). In typical Koenig fashion, the home is constructed almost entirely from steel, glass and concrete, and features its own drawbridge and an outdoor staircase leading down to the coastline. The home runs on solar power.

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Architecture aside, we love the home's quiet location, surrounded by lush greenery and steps away from the ocean. The home also boasts views of mountains and water from almost every angle.

Cory Weiss has the listing.

Click on the images below to see more homes for sale in Malibu, Calif.



See more Houses of the Day on AOL Real Estate.

Got a tip for House of the Day? Know of an exceptional or unusual property currently listed for sale? Please email krisanne.alcantara@huffingtonpost.com with your suggestions and be sure to include links to listing details and photos. (Due to the volume of response, we unfortunately are unable to reply to each submission.)

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Visit the Beaches of Malibu, California

 

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Craftsman House (Style Spotlight)

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Craftsman house style

By Steele Marcoux


What it is: Craftsman homes were primarily inspired by the work of two architect brothers - Charles Sumner Greene and Henry Mather Greene -- who worked together in Pasadena, Calif., at the turn of the 20th century. The Greene brothers were influenced by Asian architecture as well as the English Arts and Crafts movement (a reaction against the Industrial Revolution in its effort to promote the work of craftsmen and the handmade over the machine-made).

Where to find it: The earliest examples are in Southern California, but thanks to the popularization of the style through national periodicals like House Beautiful and Ladies' Home Journal and the subsequent availability of pattern books and kit homes, Craftsman bungalows became the most popular style of small house throughout the country from about 1905 through the 1920s.

Why you'll love it: Like many things that come out of California, there's something distinctively American about this style. Outside there are details galore, but inside there's a simple, wide-open layout that makes the most of typically limited square footage.

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Federal House (Style Spotlight)

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By Steele Marcoux


Federal home design style comes with another confusing name. In design, the word "federal" simply indicates the time period (1780-1820) when the style, known among architecture aficionados as the American phase of the "Adam" style, prevailed in the fledgling United States. The style borrowed heavily from contemporary European influences, particularly the English Adams brothers. The brothers had traveled to Italy and are credited with popularizing architectural details from original Roman and Greek buildings instead of their Renaissance interpretations.

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Where to find it: All along the Eastern Seaboard, from Provincetown, Mass., to Savannah, Ga.

Why you'll love it: If you're an American history buff, you pride yourself on your patriotism, and you're drawn to places like Boston, Georgetown in Washington, D.C., and Savannah, this style has got your name all over it.

See more Federal photos on Houzz.

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Identifying a Federal Style Home

 

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Apple Unveils 'Mothership' Campus That Braces for Disaster

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Apple Mothership campus

It's been dubbed the "mothership," the "donut" and the "retrograde cocoon," but whether you love it or hate it, Apple's newest creation is creating a buzz. (How typical.)

The latest plans for Apple's future, a ring-shaped corporate campus in Cupertino, Calif., reveal that the 300,000-square-foot structure (to house up to 13,000 Apple employees) will be packed to the gills with the latest Apple in-office technology. (No surprise there.) However, the latest revision also reveals that it will boast a rectangular corporate auditorium for product demonstrations (to seat up to 1,000), a low-carbon central plant that will supply the campus' power, and 300,000 square feet of research facilities. Oh, and a fitness center.

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The campus, which won't replace 1 Infinite Loop as the company's official headquarters, will also include a roof covered in photovoltaic solar panels, and base isolators constructed beneath the building's foundation to make the structure virtually earthquake-proof.

In case of drought, Armageddon or zombie attacks, the campus will also have its very own food supply. That's right: The new Apple structure will contain hundreds of cherry, apricot, plum, olive and apple trees onsite. Talk about locavore!

Apple announced last month that it plans to break ground on the project sometime later this year. The construction, however, hinges almost entirely on Cupertino's approval of the project. If the city gives Apple the OK, the company hopes to open the doors to its campus in 2015.

See also:
Buy Your Own Private Island for $75 Million, Town Included
Kansas Missile Silo's Luxury Condos Sell Out
Norwegian Submarine Base Surfaces on the Market

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Ranch House (Style Spotlight)

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ranch home

By Amy Renea


In a world of 5,000-square-foot suburban homes, charming bungalows and soaring loft space, my little ranch sometimes seems to pale in comparison.

I have often stared at the front of my home, wondering how to make it look more like the beautiful Colonial down the street or how to give it a rustic, log cabin feel. Sometimes I even dream about a second story addition and twin chimneys. Then I give up and realize that I will never win trying to make my ranch style home into something that it is not. Instead, I need to focus on the characteristics that make a ranch unique and capitalize on them.

Adding unique entryways, paths and other landscape features can emphasize the natural lines and materials of the ranch home. Today we are going to take a look at some ranch style homes that are not your average ranch. They have added features that make the ranch sexy again.

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Identifying a Ranch Style Home

 

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Inside Look: NYC's 'Steampunk' Loft (VIDEO)

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If you've ever read Jules Verne's seminal science fiction novels -- "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea" (1870) or "A Journey to the Center of the Earth" (1864) -- then you'll especially appreciate the inspired retro-futuristic feel of this New York City loft.

Packed to the gills with repurposed vintage nautical artifacts and antique welding tools, the space is a monument to the "steampunk" genre, which captures the aesthetic expression of a time-traveling fantasy world filled with proto-submarines, locomotives and zeppelins. From the whirligigs and steam pipes flanking the walls to the submarine portholes and deactivated bomb-pulleys, this otherworldly apartment was like nothing we'd ever seen before. And at this point, we thought we'd seen everything.

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Like what you see? You'd better be prepared to fork over $1.65 million (the newly reduced price). Nicole Beauchamp of Warburg Realty has the listing.

Got a tip for our Inside Look series? If you know of any exceptional or unusual property currently listed for sale that's video-worthy, please email krisanne.alcantara@huffingtonpost.com with your suggestions. (Due to the volume of response, we unfortunately are unable to reply to each submission.)

See also: Live in a Former Nuclear Missile Silo (VIDEO)

More on AOL Real Estate:
Find homes for rent in your area.
Find out how to calculate mortgage payments.
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Follow AOL Real Estate reporters Krisanne Alcantara (@krisannetraz) and Teke Wiggin (@tkwiggin) on Twitter (@aolrealestate).

 

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Inside Look: NYC's 'Steampunk' Loft (VIDEO)

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If you've ever read Jules Verne's seminal science fiction novels -- "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea" (1870) or "A Journey to the Center of the Earth" (1864) -- then you'll especially appreciate the inspired retro-futuristic feel of this New York City loft.

Packed to the gills with repurposed vintage nautical artifacts and antique welding tools, the space is a monument to the "steampunk" genre, which captures the aesthetic expression of a time-traveling fantasy world filled with proto-submarines, locomotives and zeppelins. From the whirligigs and steam pipes flanking the walls to the submarine portholes and deactivated bomb-pulleys, this otherworldly apartment was like nothing we'd ever seen before. And at this point, we thought we'd seen everything.

%Gallery-158485%
Like what you see? You'd better be prepared to fork over $1.65 million (the newly reduced price). Nicole Beauchamp of Warburg Realty has the listing.

Got a tip for our Inside Look series? If you know of any exceptional or unusual property currently listed for sale that's video-worthy, please email krisanne.alcantara@huffingtonpost.com with your suggestions. (Due to the volume of response, we unfortunately are unable to reply to each submission.)

More on AOL Real Estate:
Find homes for rent in your area.
Find out how to calculate mortgage payments.
Find homes for sale in your area.


Follow AOL Real Estate reporters Krisanne Alcantara (@krisannetraz) and Teke Wiggin (@tkwiggin) on Twitter (@aolrealestate).

 

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Look Out for That House! School's Wild Art Installation

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This house didn't just fall out of the sky, but Korean artist Do Ho Suh might want you to think it did. On top of the University of California, San Diego's Jacobs School of Engineering building sits "Fallen Star," the newest art installation for UCSD's Stuart Collection.

The 270-square-foot New England-style cottage sits at a 10-degree incline, seven stories off the ground. It is completely furnished and even comes with a front yard, garden and patio (which can double as a rooftop garden for the engineering building). According to Suh, the installation is a reflection on how he felt when leaving South Korea to study in the U.S., "as if he was dropped from the sky."

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The entire project took seven years to complete and cost $1.3 million, the majority of which came from private donors and a $90,000 grant from the National Endowments of the Arts.

And in true California fashion, this building is up to code: It is earthquake resistant and can withstand 100 mph winds.

Learn more about the exhibit on the Stuart Collection's website.

See also:
Hamptons' First Eco-Container Home on Sale for $1.3 Million
Chinese Firm Plans to Build World's Tallest Building, and Fast
A Balcony With Swimming Pool? To Infinity and Beyond


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Aol Real Estate's Inside Look: Slide Home

 

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Modern vs. Contemporary Houses (Style Spotlight)

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modern or contemporary architecture

By John Hill


What's the difference between modern and contemporary architecture? Why the distinction? At its most literal, "contemporary" is the architecture being produced now, the architecture of the moment. "Modern" architecture breaks with the past -- specifically the traditional styles pre-dating the Industrial Revolution.

So in this sense "contemporary" is not limited to a single stylistic thread. And "modern" recalls the early- and mid-20th-century architecture embodying the ideals of the machine age: an absence of ornament, structures of steel or concrete, large expanses of glass, a whitewash (usually stucco-over-brick) or another minimal exterior expression, and open floor plans.

While this starts to define the difference, there is an evident use of the term "contemporary" that refers to a particular strain of design today, such that new postmodern, neo-Classical or other neo-traditional buildings are not included. The term's use is clearly narrower than the literal definition, yet it's still rooted in the now; contemporary architecture is of its time, therefore innovative and forward-looking. In this sense it's rooted in the modern, even if it does not resemble it stylistically.

The gallery below responds to the question, "Modern or contemporary?" Hopefully, it explains their similarities and differences, and helps in the appreciation of both styles.

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Mid-Century Modern Architecture

 

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China's Piano House Is Simply Amazing

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China's piano house

We've seen a home made of nautical artifacts and zeppelins. We've seen a home with a slide in it. We've even seen a man living on a plane. So we're no strangers to really weird real estate.

China's piano houseBut never did we ever imagine that we'd one day see this: introducing China's Piano House. Yes, it's a house -- in the shape of a grand piano -- which you access via a staircase and escalators inside of a giant glass guitar.

The building in Huainan City was reportedly designed in 2007 by architectural students at Hefei University of Technology. It acts as a showroom for city planners to show off their plans for the Shannan district in Huainan City.

Other details and interior shots of the structure are hard to come by, unfortunately. But regardless, it's music to our ... eyes? Makes perfect sense to us.

See also:
Chinese Firm Plans to Build World's Tallest Building, and Fast
Look Out for That House! School's Wild Art Installation
A Balcony With Swimming Pool? To Infinity and Beyond

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Inside Look: Shelter Island's 'Maison Plastique' (VIDEO)

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When did summer getaway homes become so generic? It's like there was some sort of unwritten rule that demanded that all luxury beachfront rentals be so communally... vanilla. That is, until we got tipped off to this kaleidoscopically-hued summer contemporary named "Maison Plastique" in Shelter Island, N.Y.

With candy-colored exteriors -- "It looks like some sort of toy," our editor raved -- and equally eclectic insides, we were sold even before we saw the vacation home in person. You wouldn't believe how fast we hauled ourselves out of Manhattan and onto that ferry.

Cool facts: The owners of the home are New York-based architects and designers Peter Stamberg and Paul Aferiat, of the internationally-renowned architecture firm Stamberg Aferiat. The home is the epitome of their signature euphoric color palette (neutrals, be gone!), paired with sleek lines and untraditional construction materials. The result? Architectural alchemy. See for yourself!



Like what you see? You can rent the home for $14,000 a month year-round, or $19,000 in August. Gina Surerus of Corcoran has the listing.

Got a tip for our Inside Look series? If you know of any exceptional or unusual property currently listed for sale that's video-worthy, please email krisanne.alcantara@huffingtonpost.com with your suggestions. (Due to the volume of response, we unfortunately are unable to reply to each submission.)

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Follow AOL Real Estate reporters Krisanne Alcantara (@krisannetraz) and Teke Wiggin (@tkwiggin) on Twitter (@aolrealestate).




 

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