EDITORIAL FLORIDA ARCHITECT Florida Association of the American Institute of Architects 104 East Jefferson Street Post Office Box 10388 Tallahassee, Florida 32302 Publisher/Executive Vice President George A. Allen, CAE Editor Diane Greer Assistant Publisher Director of Advertising Carolyn Maryland Design and Production Creative Services Editorial Board Bruce Balk, AIA Commissioner Commission on Public Relations & Communications Ivan Johnson, AIA, Chairman Charles King, FAIA William Graves, AIA John Totty, AIA Peter Rumpel, FAIA Mike Bier, AIA President Mark Jaroszewicz, FAIA University of Florida College of Architecture 331 Architecture Building Gainesville, Florida 32611 Vice President/President-elect James J. Jennewein, AIA 101 S. Franklin St. Suite 202 Tampa, Florida 33602 Secretary John Ehrig, AIA 2333 E. Bay Drive Suite 221 Clearwater, Florida 33546 Treasurer John Barley, AIA P. O. Box 4850 Jacksonville, Florida 32201 Past President James H. Anstis, AIA 233 Southern Boulevard West Palm Beach, Florida 33405 Regional Directors Glenn A. Buff, FAIA 4105A Laguna Drive Miami, Florida 33134 Howard B. Bochiardy, FAIA Post Office Box 8006 Orlando, Florida 32806 General Counsel J. Michael Huey, Esquire Suite 510, Lewis State Bank Post Office Box 1794 Tallahassee, Florida 32202 Florida Architect, Official Journal of the Florida Association of the American In- stitute of Architects, is owned and pub- lished by the Association, a Florida Cor- poration not for profit. ISSN-0015-3907. It is published six times a year at the Executive Office of the Association, 104 East Jefferson St., Tallahassee, Florida 32302. Telephone (904) 222-7590. Opinions expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the FAIA. Edi- torial material may be reprinted only with the express permission of Florida Architect. Single copies, $2.00; Annual subscription, $12.00. Third class postage. For a few moments each morning, as I drive to my office, I have a perfect view of the Florida Capitol from the northeast. Seeing that grand building, framed in pink crepe myrtle, is a joyous experience. I think I know why. I was in Williamsburg recently .. "Colonial Williamsburg" as it has come to be known. I hadn't spent any time in CW since my stint as an interpreter in several of the exhibition buildings. But, the spark of excitement that I always felt upon arriving in America's colonial capital was relit the moment I walked the Duke of Gloucester Street. Because I'd worked there, I had the advantage of feeling right at home and knowing my way around. But, beyond that, a thrill ran through me as I passed the shops and homes of people who probably weren't very different from me. I was there on a hot day and the smell of boxwood mixed with the buzzing of in- sects and the aroma from herb gardens, flocks of sheep and oxen ambling through the streets made for a very memorable "deja-vu-like" experience. I remember thinking, "this is the way it was." It was hot and humid in Tidewater Virginia 200 years ago and these are the smells of plants and animals mixing in the sultry heat. I felt at home and I liked it. I also felt comfortable with the architecture just as I always had. I felt comfort- able with it in the same way that I feel comfortable with the Florida Capitol. It is elegant, but predictable. It is formal, but comfortable. It's what we come from - it's our architectural heritage. It is balance, symmetry and scale and color that are easy to live with. I can't help but wonder if beyond the sense of history that these buildings evoke be they Georgian or Classical if their main appeal doesn't lie in the fact that we know what they're all about. No surprises. We don't have to guess what's beyond the front door. The plans are regular, the rooms of uniform size and the functions of the rooms predictable. Ornament is subtle, but often regal. Even the houses of shopkeepers possess the beauty of detail that can only be seen in a simple dentilled cornice or a handsome wainscot. I love the Florida Capitol because of its elegance and its attention to detail. I love its scale and symmetry and I love what it represents. It represents a formality in architecture of which, we, the people, the users of architecture, never seem to tire. FLORIDA ARCHITECT September/October 1985 2wvc za- ltz- Z