Mia Fioritto’s Weblog
Archive for November, 2007
November 24, 2007 at 6:58 pm · Filed under General, Personal reflection, Social Justice
Standing in Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House for the first time in years, I realized that architecture and law can and perhaps should occupy a strikingly similar place between expediency and innovation. Each of these fields greatly influences the environment we live in, and so must seek to achieve the greatest practicality while remaining innovatively responsive to the human condition.
Wright’s prairie aesthetic did just this. He knew that his future as an architect relied on the relevancy his designs, yet at a time when people primarily valued homes that offered protection and warmth, he designed rooms like the one in the Robie House–90 feet long, lined with glass doors to the world outside. Wright took a risk in order to show his clients that intimate, protective environments can be created without secluding the occupants from the outdoors. His ‘open plans’ eliminated artificial boundaries, yet respected the human scale.
Similarly, by re-defining political boundaries, the Bill of Rights greatly impacted American society. The Founding Fathers could have considered their task complete when they had successfully achieved independence from the British. Instead, they envisioned a system that would protect the new Americans from future abuse at the hands of their government. They created the Bill of Rights, and in doing so, revolutionized the relationship between government and citizen.
Legislators and judges who are both committed to idealism and confident in their understanding of humanity can effect social change—a new aesthetic can be achieved.
November 13, 2007 at 10:59 pm · Filed under General, Personal reflection, Social Justice
I’ve made some revisions to this essay, which I will use for one of my law school applications. Thanks to everyone who gave me feedback–it really helped! I’m still working on my last couple sentences. I’m not sure how to end it without moving beyond the scope of the argument.
Here’s the new version:
Standing in the Robie House for the first time in years, I realized that architecture and law occupy a strikingly similar place between innovation and expediency.
Frank Lloyd Wright’s prairie aesthetic revolutionized architecture. Wright knew that his future as an architect relied on the relevancy his designs, yet at a time when people valued homes that offered protection and warmth he designed rooms like the one in the Robie House–90 feet long, lined with glass doors to the world outside. Wright took a risk in order to show his clients and the world that intimate, protective environments can be created without secluding the occupants for the outdoors. His ‘open plans’ eliminated artificial boundaries, yet respected the human scale.
Similarly, effective legislators must have the courage to be idealists. I am reminded of the Bill of Rights and the impact its creators had on the course of American society. The American Revolution was ultimately fought to wrest power from the British, not to re-create the political structure. It’s impact on history could have ended with the shift in power. However, the Founding Fathers recognized that at that moment in time they could do much more for the American people–they could revolutionize the relationship between government and citizen. They created the Bill of Rights, acknowledging the centrality of human dignity in the new American government.
Law, like architecture, defines the environment we live in.
November 8, 2007 at 2:21 pm · Filed under General, Personal reflection, Social Justice
As I stood in the main room of the Robie house on Friday I had the realization that Frank Lloyd Wright’s designs exemplify the relationship I believe the law should have to society. I know this seems like a bit of a stretch, but hear me out.
In order for Wright to develop his prairie aesthetic he had to courageously step away from previous, familiar forms. I describe this decision as courageous because Wright knew that his future as an artist relied on the relevancy of his designs and on the existence of a sympathetic audience. At a time when buildings were designed with closed floor plans and small-scale spaces, it is natural to question who Wright was designing for when he created rooms like the one I stood in at the Robie House–90ft long and lined with glass doors to the world outside. However, despite their potential for ‘cold modernity’ every detail of Wright’s Prairie Homes contributed to an environment that extended the existence of its occupants while creating a sense of intimacy.
Similarly, legal theory has in the past played the role of the visionary–presenting to people the potential of the future. I am reminded of the Bill of Rights and the impact the courage and vision of its creators had on the course of American society.
Rather than seeing the social structures of the day as a matter of fact, they chose to create a new structure. In doing so, however, they easily could have placed something other than citizens at the heart of their new government, such as the economy. Instead, they chose to create the Bill of Rights, acknowledging the role of the government as a servant to its citizens.
I believe that law, like art, should not be bound by previous forms and that each must respond to the people who receive them.
