The Importance of Beauty
This sounds unusually philosophical for a construction company, but in the modern age, we have forgotten the value of beauty. Back in a world before money was time, master craftsmen would spend time building things to be beautiful. That was part of the satisfaction of a job well done. Picture something as “unimportant” as a drainpipe on a cottage or a 19th century railway bridge. Though they were not consequential, they were ornate, beautiful. Today, the cheapest and most cost effective option will always win. Our drainpipes are mass produced with no flair (too wasteful) and our bridges are brutalist concrete monstrosities.
This matters. Studies have shown that when we are in bland monotonous environments, we tend to feel more depressed. When you aren’t able to appreciate little moments of beauty in the world around you, we become prone to navel gazing. And that ain’t good.
At LPC, we are doing our best to inject some beauty back into the world. This is true of everything we do; whether it be the plans that are provided by external designers, or the projects that we design in-house. As an architectural home builder, we love nothing more than sinking our teeth into a complex build; Those projects that are custom designed to work with the natural landscape of the block, allowing little moments for us to flex our carpenterial muscles and make something beautiful. You see, we all have a romantic view of our work. We’ve got much more in common with the craftsman of old who was an expert in their profession than we do with the weekend warrior who uses a drop saw to make every single cut. We are artists with wood and steel.
Why does this matter to you? Well, over time, you will begin to notice every single thing about your house. Whether it be a door that isn’t quite hung properly, or a join that isn’t quite flush. Even if you aren’t a details person, these things will emerge over time. And they are infuriating. However, the inverse is also possible. In a few months, you might notice a beautifully ornate little dovetail joint somewhere, or perhaps a bit of wood that has been purpose cut to allow the grain to sing into the room. It isn’t necessary, but beauty rarely is. But as an architectural home builder, we find it hard to let these opportunities pass us by.
Let us paint for you our worst nightmare: You’re driving out along the M2/M7 and you get to part of the road where you can see a suburb of development showhomes. They are identical in materials, colour palettes and design. There was no flair required from the builder, nor was there any contemplation about intricacy, beauty or the ornate. Now, we realise that people have different economic situations, however there is always room for beauty on any budget. You just need to allow someone with some imagination to use it. That’s why we get up in the morning: To use our imagination to make your build a more beautiful project than it otherwise might have been.
If you are after an architectural home builder, give us a call today. Let us show you what we can do.
