Coral Gables
George Merrick, a son of a Congregational minister, Solomon Merrick, was not even thirty years old when he embarked on the construction of Coral Gables. His family first came here when he was only a child, escaping the raging blizzard happening in New England at the time. They were actually headed for Miami, but, because of a yellow fever quarantine, they decided to settle west in an area known then as "pine land. George had a vision, a vision of a city inspired by the fury and tumult of the Old Testament. But instead of constructing a confining biblical fortress, as described by Ezekiel, Merrick proceeded to convert the plantation into a modern residential city with open inviting gates, wide avenues, trickling fountains and lush greenery, stretched into an immense garden commensurate with southern Florida. A visit to the city would begin with a passage through one of eight elaborately designed entrances intended to evoke the feeling of passing through the gates of an exotic walled city of antiquity. He also traveled extensively. He traveled to Mexico ,and also almost all of Europe. This, and also his loved for Walt Whitman's poems, for Washington Irving's Alhambra, his knowledge of the English and American city-gardens, th
The style of architecture in Coral Gables is very Mediterranean. Adapting this style to a tropical climate already defies imaginary, not to mention the problems of scale. Coral Gables' invading vegetation largely offsets these difficulties, but it is the role of the automobile that ultimately renders the typology coherent. Cars are usually garaged in a separate building, not attached to the main residence, around which articulate interior and exterior spaces, forming, according to their position, a patio, a lateral garden, and a courtyard. The question of color is not less important. The subtle tones of Provence or estremadura fade out under south Florida's bright skies. In much the same way that Greek temples were highlighted by polychromy, the architecture of a Coral Gables habitation is accentuated by the intensity of its colors. Windows casings are painted in Italian blue, chromium yellow, and Chinese red, blending in with the multicolor stripes of the tents, awnings and canopies brandished by all the houses, offering shade and freshness before being outdone by air conditioning. As for the walls, the stucco is painted with a primer of strong color that is, in turn, modified and softened by another more transparent layer of another hue, forming a warm tonality, favorable to receiving the shade from trees and passing clouds. Loom near;- then fade in tropic skies Pile peaks and crags in glowing change- The sweetest breath the fairies know;-
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 985
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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