15.3.12

SURFIN' SORRENTO, USA

A friend kindly took me on an architectural walk around Sorrento, a small summer colony developed in the late 19th century far up the Down East Coast. It is a community of many scenic and architectural wonders, not the least of which is the view across Frenchman's Bay to Bar Harbor and the Mount Desert Hills, as magnificent a bit of scenery as exists on the eastern seaboard (click HERE for that view)


Among the houses we passed was this rambling Victorian summer cottage high on a bluff.  It was once owned by Civil War General John Schofield,  who was later Secretary of War and Commanding General of the United States Army.  Its blue shutters particularly caught my eye.   Paneled board shutters are common features of cottages up here.  They usually are decorated with cut out silhouettes of an appropriate Down East motif--sailboats, spruce trees, ship's anchors, etc.   These however, feature a most un-Down East motif --- a surfer riding a wave, not a frequent sight on our rockbound section of coast. (my guide told me that the family who occupied the house in the 1930's also had a house in Hawaii.)

Delightful, no? 


7 comments:

Elaine said...

I love walking around Sorrento, there are so many interesting homes. Many of the old summer homes remain as they were decades ago - a real time capsule.

Mark D. Ruffner said...

A really great photograph - the shadow patterns that come through the cutouts add a lot of interest. And for once it's good to see shutters that are actually functional!

ArchitectDesign™ said...

Those are great! Is the surfing in Maine any good?

The Ancient said...

All it lacks is a little sign out front -- Hodaddy Haven.

(Honestly, I like it, which bothers me a bit.)

Kellsboro Jack said...

There is something to be said for homes that quietly have architectural hints of whimsey that speak of the owner. I think that is great with the surfer cutouts!

Such a scarcity in today's world where owners seemingly have no objection to exterior facades being generic.

ernø said...

wonderful , waiting the wave !!!

Sarah Faragher said...

Love the shutters. Good surfing can be found in southern Maine in the winter, at Higgins Beach. (Seriously, dudes in wetsuits are there all winter long.)