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Looming Capitol
Looks like a wide angle view of the Oregon State Capitol Building, but it's actually five photos stitched together. (I've been on a photo stitching kick lately.) Click for larger view. Labels: Architecture
Vista Dome
25 photos stitched together for an interior shot of Vista House. Click for a larger view. Had a few comments yesterday asking to see a shot of the Columbia River Gorge. Would you believe that I don't have a decent shot of the gorge? Sorry! Gives me an excuse to go back. Labels: Architecture
Vista House
Originally completed in 1918 (and since restored), Vista House is a public building providing a great view overlooking the Columbia River Gorge near Portland. Labels: Architecture
Andy's Inn
Painted sign on the side of Andy's Inn, a bar on Foster in Portland. Labels: Architecture, City
Yamhill Stroll
An elderly man takes a stroll along Yamhill and 2nd Ave in downtown Portland. Click for larger view. Labels: Architecture, City, People
Sky Tracks
Looking up the outside of a glass elevator shaft -- like train tracks to the sky. Labels: Architecture, City
Angled 6713
Odd angled doorway at 6713 SE Foster, Portland. Click for larger view. Labels: Architecture, City
Mohawk Windows
Looking up at windows of the Mohawk Building at 3rd Ave and Morrison in downtown Portland. Click for larger view. Labels: Architecture, City
Uruapan Taqueria
Freshly painted yellow door on 82nd and Reedway in Portland. Click for larger view. Labels: Architecture, City
Garaged
A garage door as a piece of art. Somehow, it works it my mind. Click for larger view. Labels: Architecture
Gridwork Siding
Evening shadows of telephone wires across the gridwork siding of a Portland house. Click for larger view. Labels: Architecture
Ankeny Shadow
Long afternoon shadow on the wall at Ankeny Square in Old Town Portland. Labels: Architecture
Light Ball
Light fixture like a looming eyeball. At the Old Town / China Town MAX train stop in Portland. Labels: Architecture
Glass Mosaic
Stained glass window. Modern church buildings tend to be visually dull by comparison. Labels: Architecture
Pagoda Slope
Rooftop from the Chinese Classical Garden in Portland's China Town. Celebrated the Chinese New Year there today complete with traditional lion dancing. Labels: Architecture, China
History Lamp
Lamp outside the Gresham History Museum. Labels: Architecture
Juvenile Cupola
Pointy bit from the Multnomah County Juvenile Services Division building. Other bits here and here. Labels: Architecture
Arch Grid
Criss-cross gridwork on an old building near Foster and Holgate in Portland. Click for a larger view. Labels: Architecture
Dental Motif
Toothy architectural detail of the Multnomah County Juvenile Services Division building. Another view here. Labels: Architecture
Juvenile Column
Looking up a column at the Multnomah County Juvenile Services Division building. Labels: Architecture
Carved Ceiling
Ornate ceiling detail from the Arlene Schnitzer concert hall in Portland. Labels: Architecture
Snow Sill
Snow on a window sill. A rare sight in Portland, but it does happen. Expecting to get dumped on with more snow and ice the next two days. Next week isn't looking any better. Could end up with a severe case of cabin fever. Labels: Architecture
Bit o' Work
A bit of architecture from the building where I work. Labels: Architecture
Reading Light
Sunlight through Portland Center Library's skylight. Labels: Architecture
Red Door at Dusk
Late-afternoon sun adds mystery to a house's red door. Labels: Architecture
Curves
What is it? A bit abstract, I admit. Curved metal from the ornamental piece atop a chain-link fence gate. They must have been all the rage of home fashion at one point. They're everywhere in our neighborhood. Labels: Architecture
Pumpkin Garage
In lieu of pumpkins, at Halloween I give you a festive orange garage from the neighborhood. Some people just aren't afraid to be noticed. Labels: Architecture
Sauvie Bridge
View of a new bridge leading to Sauvie Island north of Portland -- such a happy, scenic place full of farmland and open spaces. Labels: Architecture
Flag in the Sky
Looking up from Starbucks at Pioneer Square in downtown Portland. Labels: Architecture, City
Steel Sunset
Portland's Steel Bridge at dusk. Fun fact to know and tell: This is one of the few (the only?) bridges featuring two levels that can raise independently of each other to allow boats of various heights to pass. (Our family got to see it in action just before this photo was taken the other night.) Labels: Architecture, City
Shingled
Just an interesting pattern of shingles. Labels: Architecture
Riveted
Transfixed by patterns of rivets holding the Steel Bridge together across the Willamette River in Portland. Labels: Architecture, City
Import Plaza
Color or black-and-white?
Sign from an old Import Plaza retail store at the corner of NW Couch and 1st Avenue in Old Town Portland. Labels: Architecture, City
Four Chairs
An odd sign of hospitality on the front porch of an otherwise forlorn house. Labels: Architecture
Fleur
Architectural detail from Old Town Portland, a historical area that's gentrifying quickly. Labels: Architecture
Of Lines and Angles
Criss-crossed lines everywhere on a footbridge leading to the lower deck of the Steel Bridge across the Willamette River in Portland. Twin spires of the Convention Center in the background. Labels: Architecture, City
Forward Slash
Another interesting play of shadows and lines on the Woodstock Library in Portland. Taken the same day as this and this. ------------------- We have a winner on the "Pop Art Contest" post! Check the comments for details. Labels: Architecture
Pop Art Contest
I'm still mesmerized by the contrast of red and white stripes on this building, like architectural pop art. Care to guess what building it came from? I'm feeling benevolent enough to offer a free 5x7 of any Crossmark photo to the first person who guesses correctly. How generous of me! Labels: Architecture, Contest
Space Monkey
My tribute to the first coffee shop I visited after we moved to Portland. Holds a special place in my heart. And with a name like "Space Monkey Coffee", why shouldn't it? Labels: Architecture, City
Reed Battlement
Castle-like architecture built into the campus of Reed College in Portland. Big words of the day: "crene" and "merlon" are the names of the alternating high and low segments on the top of the battlement. Who knew? Labels: Architecture
Double Happiness
Actually, I have no idea if the carvings in this architectural detail have any meaning. I do remember that while we were in China, anytime we asked the meaning of some symbol, we were usually told "Double Happiness". This photo is from the Classical Chinese Garden in Portland. Labels: Architecture, China
Gothic Door
Gothic architecture abounds at Reed College here in Portland. We headed there last Saturday for a free concert of Beethoven's Prometheus complete with narration and multimedia show. Okay, so it was actually just the dress rehearsal, open to the public. And we were 20 minutes late. And we left after 10 minutes. But it was Culture. Labels: Architecture, City
Pagoda Peak
Intracacy of Chinese architecture. Another view from within the Chinese Classical Garden in downtown Portland. There's just something naturally peaceful about traditional Asian architecture that I find soothing. Modern American buildings tend to be so stark and utilitarian, separated from beauty and nature. And I think we're the worse for it. Labels: Architecture, China
Tetris Window
A labyrinth-like window frame at the Chinese Classical Garden in Portland's China Town. The familiar shapes take me back to memories of playing Tetris on the ol' Nintendo. (I'm dating myself here. Dare I confess to the Atari?) Labels: Architecture, China
Domed White
A skylight dome on the third floor of the Central Library in downtown Portland. Perfect setting for the free public concerts we've enjoyed there on Sunday afternoons. Labels: Architecture, City
Organic Iron
Plant and floral motif preserved in iron. Funny how we take stark materials like stone and metal, then shape them to resemble living things. This column head can be found in Ankeny Square in Portland. Labels: Architecture
Guilded Ceiling
Painted ceiling from Renaissance Room in the Governor Hotel--a hundred year-old schmancy place in downtown Portland. Labels: Architecture, City
Library Stitch
A stitched panorama of the Portland Central Library facade. Click the image for a larger view. Labels: Architecture, City
Grid Light
Lines of light and shadow down the back wall of Woodstock Library on a sunny afternoon. Labels: Architecture, City
Gates of Knowledge
Doorway of the Central Library in downtown Portland. The library hosts FREE concerts on Sundays--and I do love FREE. This time it was a top-notch instrumental trio and a vocalist performing flamenco / mariachi / latin music. Labels: Architecture, City
Mossy Pillars
Simple row of columns lining the sidewalk outside the Portland Central Library downtown. Labels: Architecture
Crystal Spire
One of the twin glass spires of the Portland Convention Center in a winter sunset. Labels: Architecture, City
Arches and Ovals
Another view of the Central Library foyer in downtown Portland. (Parorama shot stitched from three separate photos. Click the photo to view a larger version.) Labels: Architecture, City
Fixturated
Guess I'm fixated on lighting fixtures.
This one comes from the ceiling of the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall in downtown Portland. Thanks to the Portland Library and the Oregon Symphony, we won FREE tickets to a children's concert there this afternoon. Had fantastic seats too! The concert was very well done and a delight we couldn't have afforded otherwise.
Let's hear it for FREE stuff! Labels: Architecture, City
Endless Columns
Okay, so they're not endless. These palacial adornments stand watch over, um--a food court and some small shops. Probably not what the masons who built it had in mind. (Ankeny Square, Portland) Labels: Architecture
Pachyderm Portrait
What do roses, elephants and the world have in common?
Beats me. This odd mural on the building at Burnside and 1st Avenue in Portland is being painted over, so I consider it my duty to archive it for future generations to puzzle over. And if you can decipher its meaning--please, enlighten the rest of us. Labels: Animals, Architecture, City
Solar Luminary
Looking up at the massive chandelier in a lobby of the Central Library in downtown Portland where we enjoyed a free concert of American music--even had some by Aaron Copland, who ranks as one my favorite composers of all time. What a great afternoon! Labels: Architecture, Sculpture/Art
Aging Shed
An old shed across the street from a new playground we were exploring on a warm February Saturday. Labels: Architecture
Brick and Blue
My entry into photography opened my eyes to so much visual interest around me, even around the back door of this school near Grant Park in Portland. Contrasts of color, light, shape, and texture--just waiting for someone to notice. Labels: Architecture, City
Iron Curls
Curly Q's from an iron door near Burnside and 1st Avenue in Portland. When I'm out and about with my camera, I'll snap a picture of almost anything. It's not uncommon for me to return with 200-300 shots from just a brief outing. Then as I'm sorting back through photos weeks later, I'll re-discover a nice shot that I had forgotten about. This is one example. Labels: Architecture, City
Iron Glyphs
Detail from a cast iron column at Ankeny Square near Skidmore Fountain in downtown Portland. The square displays ornamental pieces taken from historic buildings that no longer exist. Labels: Architecture, City
Lace Curtains
Our neighborhood is lined with some wonderfully quaint houses that just seem to say "Portland" to me. Labels: Architecture
Ankeny Motif
A floral relief from Ankeny Square in Portland. Labels: Architecture
Blue Stripes
Out for a photo walk the other day and came across this architectural bit from a building around the corner. The metal is actually copper colored, but with a simple change of the camera's white balance, striking blue stripes pop out. Labels: Architecture
Narrow Passage
Another passage through the Folk Art Museum in Guangzhou, China. One of my favorite shots in the China series. Labels: Architecture, China
Garden Window
A shuttered window hides a lovely garden view at the Folk Art Museum in Guangzhou, China. Labels: Architecture, China
Moon Window
A circular window, a common architectural feature in China, displays garden area outside a tea shop. Labels: Architecture, China
Ornamental Wall
A decorative wall from the Folk Art Museum in Guangzhou, China. Labels: Architecture, China
Thoughtful Passage
One of many long meditative passages through a Folk Art Museum we visited while in China. I could have spent an entire day there strolling about in peaceful reflection. Labels: Architecture, China
Marble Boat
Big boat made of stone. Nope, it doesn't float. Just for decoration. Useful, huh? (Taken at the Summer Palace in Beijing.) Labels: Architecture, China
One Year Ago
Colorful rooflines from the sparse, yet elegant Forbidden City, the Emperor's expansive grounds in Beijing. February marks an important milestone in our household. One year ago, my wife and I traveled to China for nearly three weeks to get our third child, a precious eight-month old girl. To celebrate, I'm featuring some of my China photos all throughout this month's blog posts. I'd love to go back to China, but this will have to suffice for now. (Anybody wanna send me to the Beijing Olympics this summer? I'll pack myself in your suitcase!) Labels: Architecture, China
Column
Contrasts of light on a column's lines and spheres. On 1st Avenue and Burnside in Portland by the (former) Saturday Market near Skidmore Fountain. Labels: Architecture
Smoke Stack
Like a monument to the industrial age, a brick smoke stack rises against a clean blue sky. Skies like that don't come every day in Portland, so ya gotta make the most of them when you can. For us, it was a beautiful January day to play in the park and take a stroll. Labels: Architecture
Nothing Rhymes with Orange
Does anything rhyme with "orange"? My wife says, "door hinge", but I think that's a stretch. Labels: Architecture
In the Sky with Diamonds
A stitched panorama of the Portland airport ceiling architecture, blended from three separate photos. (Click the image for a larger view.) Labels: Architecture, City
Foggy December
Festive green lights adorn the top floor of the office building where I work, peeking through the morning fog. Labels: Architecture, City
Farmhouse Window
Old houses make me wonder about the stories of the people who have lived in them over the years. If those walls could tell their tales... Labels: Architecture, Rural
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