I get that it would be hard to work with-- but I think it's awesome and I'd put the effort in to work with it. In fact, I'd design the room around it!

I don't know who John Spofforth is (I should look it up, eh?) but it's clearly an artistic style he repeated. I am surprised people are suggesting tearing it down. It makes me a little sad.

I have no idea who Spofforth is. And I never knew brickwork like that was "a thing." But when I saw it, I thought immediately of a fireplace wall in a conference room of a law firm here in Birmingham, Alabama. The building was originally a tavern-type restaurant, and the wall was done at that time. It always makes me a little dizzy, but it's pretty dang cool. Brace yourself.

Here is a link that might be useful: The great wall

I would work with it but I think part of the issue is that the rest of the room is so plain, and typical mid-century interior architecture. I don't mean this as a criticism, just that the level of idiosyncracy starts and stops with the fireplace and really needs to be added to the rest of the room to some degree.

A nice article about Spofforth.

Here is a link that might be useful: Spofforth article

And here's another Spofforth house. The Spofforthness seems to run throughout this house a bit better. I would live there.

Here is a link that might be useful: Another Spofforth house in Athens

This post was edited by jakabedy on Wed, Feb 27, 13 at 17:55

I don't see the purpose in things like this. Going to extremes to be different is generally a turn off for me. I do kind of like it, in itself, or the idea of it. Not sure it's that well done. The problem in appreciating it, as I see it, is that it's placed in an otherwise very ordinary, builder grade drywalled room. I don't think it integrates into the wall its on or relates to the room it's in.

I toured a house that has unusual structures and anomalies throughout. It was built by hand by its artist owner. Very well done and interesting place. It's all in context, beautiful materials, all a bit quirky. Everything flowed and fit together naturally. It was an experiment but did not look contrived at all. Only felt like a labor of love.

This post was edited by snookums2 on Wed, Feb 27, 13 at 18:08

There are a couple facades in my neighborhood that are done this way, but they also have a storybook-colonial revival aspect to them. It's an unusual combination. At least one of the buildings is Greek Revival period anyway, because it has a pre-Civil war cookstove in the basement fireplace.(The wreck of a nineteenth century kitchen probably not easily salvageable). I don't know why the one building was refaced except that it may have already been highly altered before this was done. I think they were both done in anticipation of the Bicenntenial.

Maybe the room was more interesting when first built and it's been slowly neutralized over the years, but I think that is what needs to be brought up to the level of the fireplace, design wise, if it is going to be kept and integrated.

Obviously it needs a clock.

Ugh, it makes me feel a bit ill to look at - too much visual distortion! I could never live with the in the room, it looks like it could swallow you up!

I like the fireplace. But what I really like is that clock!! LOL - marcola :)