WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.480 --> 00:00:04.040 KFI AM six forty. You're listening to Dean Sharp the 2 00:00:04.080 --> 00:00:10.640 house Whisper on demand on the iHeartRadio app. This very 3 00:00:10.720 --> 00:00:13.839 program is also the house Whisper podcast that you could 4 00:00:13.839 --> 00:00:19.320 listen to anytime, anywhere on demand, hundreds of episodes, all 5 00:00:19.399 --> 00:00:23.920 searchable by topic. It is a home improvement reference library 6 00:00:24.199 --> 00:00:27.600 that we have built for you here year after year, 7 00:00:27.600 --> 00:00:30.640 and it's all there waiting for you. And if you're thinking, hey, 8 00:00:30.719 --> 00:00:33.479 that's been great. I love the conversation today, but we 9 00:00:33.719 --> 00:00:37.039 probably need Dean and Tina standing in our home staring 10 00:00:37.079 --> 00:00:39.920 at the problem, well you can do that too. You 11 00:00:39.960 --> 00:00:42.119 can book an in home design consult with me and 12 00:00:42.159 --> 00:00:46.359 the t Just go to house Whisper dot design for 13 00:00:46.439 --> 00:00:50.119 more details. All right, it is time to return to 14 00:00:50.240 --> 00:00:56.159 our conversation about great architecture and great design being theater. 15 00:00:56.520 --> 00:01:00.000 And I'm not doing this just to you know, Ellude 16 00:01:00.119 --> 00:01:06.680 Sedate and wax eloquent on what great architecture should be. 17 00:01:07.000 --> 00:01:11.159 I'm doing this in order to give you more handles 18 00:01:11.400 --> 00:01:15.239 to grab on to your home with because so many 19 00:01:15.280 --> 00:01:20.159 people when they think about home design, architectural design, they're like, 20 00:01:20.200 --> 00:01:22.280 I have no clue, I have no clue what I'm 21 00:01:22.319 --> 00:01:25.319 doing Dean. I don't even know where to start. And 22 00:01:25.439 --> 00:01:29.040 yet we're all fans of theater. We're all fans of cinema. 23 00:01:29.159 --> 00:01:32.239 We all watch TV, we watch movies, we go to 24 00:01:32.319 --> 00:01:39.000 plays at times, and so if you understand how theater works, 25 00:01:39.840 --> 00:01:43.400 then my contention is you can start to do a 26 00:01:43.400 --> 00:01:47.040 better job of understanding what your house needs. It doesn't 27 00:01:47.079 --> 00:01:49.239 mean that you're going to be the creative idea that 28 00:01:49.439 --> 00:01:52.200 solves the problem, but for you to see the problem 29 00:01:52.280 --> 00:01:56.439 to begin with, to really identify what it is, that's 30 00:01:56.719 --> 00:02:01.319 where everything changes. So we've talked so much about things 31 00:02:01.400 --> 00:02:04.480 like how do we enter this space from where? What 32 00:02:04.599 --> 00:02:08.719 do we see right? Focal points? Focal points are what 33 00:02:09.159 --> 00:02:13.199 you know in architecture we call hierarchy of elements. Focal 34 00:02:13.240 --> 00:02:17.159 Points are something that every great director, every great film, 35 00:02:17.240 --> 00:02:21.479 every great stage play has. In other words, we've got 36 00:02:21.560 --> 00:02:24.879 leading actors. We divide up the cast, we divide up 37 00:02:24.919 --> 00:02:27.560 the elements. We've got leading actors. They have the most 38 00:02:27.639 --> 00:02:31.039 lines and they are telling the lion's share of the 39 00:02:31.120 --> 00:02:35.800 story that's happening. We have supporting actors that come in 40 00:02:35.919 --> 00:02:38.199 behind them. They come in and out and they help 41 00:02:38.479 --> 00:02:43.080 support that and undergird that story, and then there are, 42 00:02:43.080 --> 00:02:46.120 like in a film, extras, just people in the background 43 00:02:46.199 --> 00:02:50.199 giving atmospheric content. You know, you're in a cafe scene 44 00:02:50.199 --> 00:02:53.159 and there's people in the restaurant eating and laughing and 45 00:02:53.360 --> 00:02:59.919 enjoying their time, not competing for your attention, not taking 46 00:03:00.080 --> 00:03:04.360 your attention away from the lead actors who are telling 47 00:03:04.759 --> 00:03:09.240 the main story. So now you start to understand that, 48 00:03:09.840 --> 00:03:13.000 and you understand that in a home, in any given 49 00:03:13.120 --> 00:03:19.719 space architecturally, there are these elements at play, and quite 50 00:03:19.719 --> 00:03:23.800 often the focal point that should be in a room 51 00:03:23.960 --> 00:03:29.039 is not. Quite often there are too many voices speaking 52 00:03:29.159 --> 00:03:33.199 too equally across the board, too many to tell a 53 00:03:33.280 --> 00:03:37.680 story effectively. Quite often we aren't giving people direction as 54 00:03:37.719 --> 00:03:41.680 to where they should look first and then second and 55 00:03:41.719 --> 00:03:44.319 then third in a room. And when it comes to 56 00:03:44.319 --> 00:03:47.520 a visual art, you get about three hits. Generally speaking, 57 00:03:47.840 --> 00:03:50.400 you get about three hits. You get the first hit, 58 00:03:50.719 --> 00:03:52.560 and then a second hit and a third and then 59 00:03:52.560 --> 00:03:54.800 you kind of have to release people to sort of 60 00:03:54.840 --> 00:03:58.520 explore the space. But if you aren't taking advantage of 61 00:03:58.560 --> 00:04:03.080 the first three, now my mic just literally fell off 62 00:04:03.120 --> 00:04:06.280 of the mic stand. If you aren't taking advantage of 63 00:04:06.319 --> 00:04:11.599 those first three hits, then you aren't taking advantage of 64 00:04:11.680 --> 00:04:16.240 telling the story as completely as you can tell the story. 65 00:04:16.360 --> 00:04:20.000 Does that make sense? I hope. So let's talk about 66 00:04:20.920 --> 00:04:22.600 I'm going to tell you a couple of stories. Now, 67 00:04:22.600 --> 00:04:24.439 I'm going to tell you a story of the house 68 00:04:24.560 --> 00:04:28.920 that does everything it can to frustrate me entering it. Okay, Now, 69 00:04:28.959 --> 00:04:31.680 this is not one particular house that I have in 70 00:04:31.720 --> 00:04:35.079 mind here. This is, in fact something that we see 71 00:04:35.160 --> 00:04:37.920 maybe I don't know how often, Tina, eighty percent of 72 00:04:37.959 --> 00:04:41.600 the time when we walk into a home, the entryway 73 00:04:41.800 --> 00:04:46.800 is one of those hits that is usually not working, 74 00:04:46.879 --> 00:04:50.920 not firing on all pistons. Okay. So and you're like, well, 75 00:04:51.800 --> 00:04:53.439 I thought you were going to talk about my family 76 00:04:53.519 --> 00:04:55.600 room or my dining room. Team. Now we can talk 77 00:04:55.639 --> 00:04:58.800 about those, But here's the thing. How do we get 78 00:04:58.879 --> 00:05:02.720 into this story, the story that is your home. Well, 79 00:05:02.759 --> 00:05:05.639 we get into it usually if I'm your guest through 80 00:05:05.680 --> 00:05:09.959 the front door. Everything starts from the street, and we 81 00:05:10.000 --> 00:05:12.279 could talk about curb appeal, and that's a whole nother thing, 82 00:05:12.319 --> 00:05:15.800 but I'm not doing a landscape design show, so I 83 00:05:15.920 --> 00:05:18.360 just want to focus on this. I arrive at your 84 00:05:18.360 --> 00:05:22.079 front door, I knock on the door, I ring the doorbell, 85 00:05:22.160 --> 00:05:26.879 the door opens to me, and whatever it is that 86 00:05:26.959 --> 00:05:32.079 I experience as I step into that entryway is in 87 00:05:32.160 --> 00:05:37.360 fact the very first element of storytelling that happens in 88 00:05:37.439 --> 00:05:41.000 a home. Okay, And the entryway is an important thing. 89 00:05:41.600 --> 00:05:44.600 It's an important thing no matter where you live. In fact, 90 00:05:44.639 --> 00:05:47.959 I would say the smaller your home is, the more 91 00:05:48.000 --> 00:05:52.279 important a sense of entryway is. And why is that, Well, 92 00:05:53.399 --> 00:05:56.160 that's because most of us don't want to just go 93 00:05:56.279 --> 00:06:00.680 from outside to inside immediately. We like to be eased in. Okay, 94 00:06:00.720 --> 00:06:06.199 and entryways are in fact, both entryways and hallways inside 95 00:06:06.199 --> 00:06:10.279 a home are what we call transitional spaces. They are 96 00:06:10.759 --> 00:06:13.319 a part of the story that gets told while you 97 00:06:13.399 --> 00:06:17.720 are transitioning from one environment to the next. This is 98 00:06:17.759 --> 00:06:21.000 why hallways are important inside a room, because the experience 99 00:06:21.040 --> 00:06:25.160 you have walking down a hallway is what is getting 100 00:06:25.160 --> 00:06:27.839 you out of where you were and setting up for 101 00:06:28.120 --> 00:06:32.079 you or where you're going. But an entryway is even 102 00:06:32.079 --> 00:06:35.560 more dramatic than that. An entryway is like an airlock. 103 00:06:36.079 --> 00:06:40.839 When I step into the entryway of your home, hopefully 104 00:06:40.879 --> 00:06:43.079 there is an entryway, And like if you live in 105 00:06:43.120 --> 00:06:47.720 a condo or an apartment, quite often those areas struggle 106 00:06:47.759 --> 00:06:50.319 to have this, but hopefully there is at least some 107 00:06:50.920 --> 00:06:57.240 space where Yeah, technically I'm inside, but I'm not inside yet, right, 108 00:06:57.399 --> 00:07:00.720 I'm not fully in your home. I mean you'reway, I'm 109 00:07:00.759 --> 00:07:04.680 in the foyer. Okay, I am not fully inside, but 110 00:07:04.759 --> 00:07:08.439 I'm not outside anymore. It's this liminal space in between 111 00:07:08.639 --> 00:07:12.120 the two, right, And that's a very comfortable feeling, not 112 00:07:12.240 --> 00:07:14.839 having to just go from outside to end. So here 113 00:07:14.839 --> 00:07:16.839 I am. I step into an entryway. And so this 114 00:07:16.920 --> 00:07:19.800 is the story of a house that does everything it 115 00:07:19.839 --> 00:07:22.680 can to frustrate my entry. And I'm just gonna set 116 00:07:22.720 --> 00:07:25.079 up the elements for you here and we'll talk about 117 00:07:25.120 --> 00:07:28.120 it after the break. But here it is. I walk 118 00:07:28.199 --> 00:07:33.920 up to a double door, lovely, beautiful double door on 119 00:07:33.959 --> 00:07:40.480 your porch, right, and immediately that double door disappoints me. Well, 120 00:07:40.480 --> 00:07:43.120 why is that? Well, we'll talk about it after the break. 121 00:07:43.800 --> 00:07:46.839 And then when I stare down at the flooring underneath 122 00:07:46.879 --> 00:07:52.519 my feet, I quite often see flooring planks or lines 123 00:07:52.600 --> 00:07:56.040 of flooring that are set perpendicular to me as I 124 00:07:56.120 --> 00:07:59.839 walk in. Okay, lines set perpendicular to my path, and 125 00:08:00.160 --> 00:08:03.720 it really gives me paw. It halts me right, and 126 00:08:03.759 --> 00:08:05.759 it doesn't draw me, and it halts me. And we'll 127 00:08:05.759 --> 00:08:09.079 talk about that too. And then of course, again, what 128 00:08:09.120 --> 00:08:12.560 do I see? What do I see from here? Normally? Well, 129 00:08:12.639 --> 00:08:15.079 I would not say normally. I often will look for it. 130 00:08:15.160 --> 00:08:19.040 I'll see a wall. There's a wall in front of me. Now, 131 00:08:19.240 --> 00:08:22.240 I don't want you to move the wall if and 132 00:08:22.439 --> 00:08:23.800 maybe I want you to move it, but I'm out 133 00:08:23.800 --> 00:08:26.160 assuming you're going to move the wall. The question is 134 00:08:26.399 --> 00:08:29.279 what's on this wall? Because it is straight ahead of 135 00:08:29.319 --> 00:08:33.480 my face, it is the most natural focal point, it's 136 00:08:33.559 --> 00:08:38.120 usually dark, it's usually underutilized, and quite often then the 137 00:08:38.240 --> 00:08:41.240 view that I see from the entry away could be 138 00:08:41.320 --> 00:08:44.600 if it's sort of an open plan, could be of 139 00:08:44.799 --> 00:08:47.440 many many different things. And the question is is there 140 00:08:47.600 --> 00:08:50.799 one of those things that is directing me? No, no, no, 141 00:08:50.840 --> 00:08:56.080 look here first, I'm the main view versus seeing, for instance, 142 00:08:56.120 --> 00:08:58.480 the living room and the kitchen and the set of 143 00:08:58.559 --> 00:09:04.240 stairs and who knows what else all at the same time. Now, 144 00:09:05.080 --> 00:09:08.399 if that house sounds anything like your house, then you 145 00:09:08.480 --> 00:09:11.639 hang tight because we'll talk about why those things are 146 00:09:12.159 --> 00:09:14.360 important to change. But we'll do it. 147 00:09:15.320 --> 00:09:18.600 You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on Demand from 148 00:09:18.720 --> 00:09:20.240 KFI AM six forty. 149 00:09:22.120 --> 00:09:26.879 I literally my mic arm literally just collapsed holding the 150 00:09:26.919 --> 00:09:30.159 mic out. That whole last segment. I was holding this 151 00:09:30.279 --> 00:09:34.200 whole thing of my microphone so that we could continue. 152 00:09:34.399 --> 00:09:37.360 And during the break there I had to run got 153 00:09:37.399 --> 00:09:41.759 some duct tape, and now, well it's not optimal, but 154 00:09:41.919 --> 00:09:43.919 you know what, it's good enough. You know we're gonna 155 00:09:43.960 --> 00:09:45.919 get the We're gonna finish the show without this thing 156 00:09:45.960 --> 00:09:50.840 falling on my face again. How about that ya duct tape? 157 00:09:51.399 --> 00:09:57.000 All right, let us continue this conversation about great design 158 00:09:57.559 --> 00:09:59.919 being theater, and right before the break, I set you 159 00:10:00.120 --> 00:10:04.200 up with this house that does everything it can to 160 00:10:04.320 --> 00:10:09.120 frustrate my entry into it. Okay, So the double entry 161 00:10:09.159 --> 00:10:15.080 door is a frustration, usually, the bare wall on the 162 00:10:15.120 --> 00:10:18.960 other side of the entry a frustration, the flooring planks 163 00:10:19.000 --> 00:10:24.360 that are going perpendicular to my path to frustration, and 164 00:10:24.440 --> 00:10:27.639 the view an equal view of the living room, the kitchen, 165 00:10:27.759 --> 00:10:31.200 and the stairs. Okay. So there's a particular house that 166 00:10:31.240 --> 00:10:33.519 I'm actually drawing this from that has all of this 167 00:10:33.679 --> 00:10:36.039 going for it, I should say, all of this working 168 00:10:36.120 --> 00:10:38.960 against it. But you can pick out elements of your 169 00:10:39.120 --> 00:10:41.360 entryway that are the same and I'm not just picking 170 00:10:41.399 --> 00:10:44.480 on entryways. But it is the very first beginning of 171 00:10:44.519 --> 00:10:48.399 the story, is it not. When you enter into somebody's home, 172 00:10:48.480 --> 00:10:51.360 what's going on in the entryway sets you up? Or 173 00:10:51.879 --> 00:10:54.559 you know who lives here? What are they like? What 174 00:10:55.559 --> 00:10:58.159 is this house all about? How does this make me feel? 175 00:10:58.200 --> 00:11:00.919 What do I see? These are all the things subconsciously 176 00:11:01.519 --> 00:11:03.679 that people are picking up on, even if they're not 177 00:11:03.919 --> 00:11:08.000 consciously asking the question. So this is where the story begins. 178 00:11:08.559 --> 00:11:12.360 Double entry doors. You've probably heard me talk about this before, 179 00:11:12.360 --> 00:11:15.320 and if you haven't, then very quickly, here's the thing 180 00:11:15.320 --> 00:11:18.759 about double entry doors that I don't like. I like 181 00:11:18.799 --> 00:11:21.360 the fact that they're grand and they're lovely and they 182 00:11:21.360 --> 00:11:24.639 look good on a floor plan. But we all know, 183 00:11:25.440 --> 00:11:28.480 we all know that a double entry door is not 184 00:11:29.039 --> 00:11:31.360 a double entry door. We know that a double entry 185 00:11:31.399 --> 00:11:34.519 door only opens on one side and that other side, 186 00:11:34.519 --> 00:11:38.080 that other door. It stays fixed except for the day 187 00:11:38.120 --> 00:11:40.559 that you move in and the day that you move out, 188 00:11:41.120 --> 00:11:44.240 and anytime you change out the furniture or bring in 189 00:11:44.279 --> 00:11:47.480 a large appliance. Okay, that's when that door gets opened, 190 00:11:47.480 --> 00:11:53.000 otherwise for cargo purposes. Otherwise it remains shut. And so okay, 191 00:11:53.120 --> 00:11:56.639 Dean so what's your beef man with the entry door. Well, 192 00:11:56.679 --> 00:12:00.840 my beef is that a double entry door is centered 193 00:12:00.919 --> 00:12:05.559 on the entryway, and it may be a relatively small entryway. 194 00:12:05.639 --> 00:12:10.120 In most homes, it's modest. It's centered on the entryway, 195 00:12:10.360 --> 00:12:12.879 and in the entryway, maybe there's a chandelier hanging down, 196 00:12:12.879 --> 00:12:15.840 maybe there's a light fixture hanging down. Maybe the entryway 197 00:12:15.919 --> 00:12:18.320 is not so large, and it's just nice to stand 198 00:12:18.320 --> 00:12:21.240 in the center of your entryway. And yet the double 199 00:12:21.440 --> 00:12:23.919 entry door puts me in all the way to the 200 00:12:24.000 --> 00:12:26.360 left or all the way to the right, depending on 201 00:12:26.720 --> 00:12:29.679 which door opens. In other words, it makes me a 202 00:12:29.759 --> 00:12:33.600 promise that it doesn't keep, and you should be aware 203 00:12:33.639 --> 00:12:37.200 of that too. So so often when when a client 204 00:12:37.200 --> 00:12:38.679 will ask, well, what do we do with this double 205 00:12:38.799 --> 00:12:40.879 entry door, Let's change it out to something else, And 206 00:12:40.919 --> 00:12:44.039 I'm like, great, let's change it out to a single 207 00:12:44.320 --> 00:12:48.360 entry door set in the center of the entryway with 208 00:12:48.519 --> 00:12:53.399 maybe some sidelights to the left and the right of it. Why, well, 209 00:12:53.759 --> 00:12:56.840 it can be big, it can be elegant, and yet 210 00:12:57.159 --> 00:13:01.360 most importantly, it lets me in to the center line 211 00:13:01.399 --> 00:13:05.039 of your entryway, so I don't have to immediately dodge 212 00:13:05.279 --> 00:13:08.840 or step left or step right. That's the way to 213 00:13:08.960 --> 00:13:13.200 tell the story. So first problem with this home, double 214 00:13:13.320 --> 00:13:17.120 entry door into a relatively modest entryway. So I'm coming 215 00:13:17.159 --> 00:13:20.559 in all the way on the right and that's not impressive. 216 00:13:20.759 --> 00:13:23.960 Second problem, when I get in, I look down at 217 00:13:23.960 --> 00:13:27.720 my feet and there's no nothing on the floor that 218 00:13:27.879 --> 00:13:31.000 demarcates me standing in the entryway. It looks like I've 219 00:13:31.039 --> 00:13:34.720 walked in on a hallway that's crossing me and the 220 00:13:34.759 --> 00:13:37.159 flooring planks. In this case, it was a hardwood floor. 221 00:13:37.159 --> 00:13:39.879 The flooring planks are running perpendicular to me. In other words, 222 00:13:39.919 --> 00:13:44.000 there's just line after line after line confronting me, saying, 223 00:13:45.000 --> 00:13:48.720 you know, halting me because I In artwork and in architecture, 224 00:13:48.759 --> 00:13:51.840 we have these things called lead lines. A lead line 225 00:13:51.879 --> 00:13:56.080 is any line or any linear element that, basically, because 226 00:13:56.120 --> 00:13:59.080 it's moving from where you are away from you, it 227 00:13:59.240 --> 00:14:03.799 leads you in in okay, it leads you into a 228 00:14:03.840 --> 00:14:08.000 property or down a pathway. And in this case, all 229 00:14:08.039 --> 00:14:11.399 the lead lines are perpendicular to me. They're all saying stop, stop, 230 00:14:11.480 --> 00:14:16.320 stop stop, nothing exciting happening here. They're going the wrong way. Okay. 231 00:14:17.440 --> 00:14:21.799 Third thing is after I look up from there, I'm 232 00:14:21.840 --> 00:14:24.559 looking straight ahead, about five feet in front of me. 233 00:14:24.799 --> 00:14:29.240 Six feet in front of me, just a flat wall, dark, unlit, 234 00:14:29.679 --> 00:14:33.440 no artwork, no nothing, just a flat wall. That's about 235 00:14:33.840 --> 00:14:37.200 twenty five percent of my viewing angle in this home. 236 00:14:37.440 --> 00:14:40.240 And it's right in front of me, which means its 237 00:14:40.279 --> 00:14:44.519 importance is greater than twenty five percent. Because it's right 238 00:14:44.600 --> 00:14:47.200 in front of me, it is in fact the most 239 00:14:47.320 --> 00:14:51.480 natural focal point. And since there's nothing to look at there, 240 00:14:51.919 --> 00:14:55.159 then I kind of scan from left and right. And 241 00:14:55.320 --> 00:14:57.440 because of where things are set up in this home, 242 00:14:57.480 --> 00:14:59.080 and this is where I would want to move a 243 00:14:59.120 --> 00:15:02.759 wall or at least a doorway. I am literally standing 244 00:15:02.759 --> 00:15:05.279 and by the way, this is a lovely home. This 245 00:15:05.360 --> 00:15:11.159 is a nearly five thousand square foot home with this entryway. 246 00:15:11.240 --> 00:15:13.279 And when I'm standing in it and I haven't even 247 00:15:13.480 --> 00:15:15.679 entered in fully to the house, I can see the 248 00:15:15.720 --> 00:15:19.360 living room, the dining room, I can see a set 249 00:15:19.440 --> 00:15:23.559 of stairs to the upstairs that isn't the main stairs really, 250 00:15:23.559 --> 00:15:26.240 They're just sort of off to the side. And I 251 00:15:26.279 --> 00:15:29.240 can see in through an open doorway into the kitchen 252 00:15:29.600 --> 00:15:32.600 and see the toaster oven. I can see the toaster 253 00:15:32.679 --> 00:15:36.240 oven from the entryway of the house in other words, 254 00:15:36.240 --> 00:15:40.159 I have equal view of a utility space and your 255 00:15:40.240 --> 00:15:44.000 groceries and your keys and your purse sitting on the countertop, 256 00:15:44.519 --> 00:15:48.960 and your most formal, beautiful living room area and your 257 00:15:49.000 --> 00:15:51.440 lovely dining room and then a set of stairs that 258 00:15:51.600 --> 00:15:55.759 go up you know, and so, and they're all speaking equally, 259 00:15:56.480 --> 00:15:59.360 and that, I hope you know at this point is 260 00:16:00.080 --> 00:16:04.120 the whole point of what not to do. Okay, they 261 00:16:04.120 --> 00:16:07.240 all have an equal voice, and I don't know where 262 00:16:07.279 --> 00:16:11.320 to look. And the formality and the beauty that is 263 00:16:11.519 --> 00:16:13.639 the living room and the dining room area of this 264 00:16:13.759 --> 00:16:17.759 house is overtaken by this bare flat wall and a 265 00:16:17.879 --> 00:16:21.039 view of the kitchen all at the same time. You 266 00:16:21.039 --> 00:16:23.200 see what I'm saying. So there is such a thing 267 00:16:23.200 --> 00:16:26.559 as an open plan being too open, but that's not 268 00:16:26.720 --> 00:16:29.240 so much the issue. It's not about open plan versus 269 00:16:29.360 --> 00:16:33.360 non open plan. It's about focal points in a scene 270 00:16:34.480 --> 00:16:37.440 and whether anybody has given any thought. And the funny 271 00:16:37.440 --> 00:16:39.799 thing is, these folks have lived in this home for 272 00:16:40.039 --> 00:16:44.559 thirty plus years, never once have thought about what it's 273 00:16:44.679 --> 00:16:46.559 like to walk in the front door, because they actually 274 00:16:46.600 --> 00:16:49.279 come in through the garage. They park in the garage, 275 00:16:49.360 --> 00:16:52.120 the groae, they always enter the house into the kitchen anyway, 276 00:16:52.159 --> 00:16:55.840 because it's their home. Never given any serious thought to 277 00:16:55.919 --> 00:17:00.919 the experience of a neighbor or a friend or a 278 00:17:00.919 --> 00:17:04.240 guest coming in through the front door, and how it 279 00:17:04.799 --> 00:17:08.240 either begins to tell their story or fails to tell 280 00:17:08.240 --> 00:17:10.960 their story. You get it. You see what I'm saying. 281 00:17:11.200 --> 00:17:12.960 All right, when we come back, I'm going to give 282 00:17:12.960 --> 00:17:16.519 you an example of one of the most brilliantly well 283 00:17:16.559 --> 00:17:21.640 told stories in our country. It's not a house, But 284 00:17:22.480 --> 00:17:24.279 like I said at the very beginning of the show, 285 00:17:25.720 --> 00:17:27.519 I don't think there's a house I can pick that 286 00:17:27.599 --> 00:17:31.519 everybody will immediately identify with. But everybody can identify with 287 00:17:31.680 --> 00:17:35.279 the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, d C. Let me tell 288 00:17:35.279 --> 00:17:40.079 you how it tells its story and how that theater. 289 00:17:41.799 --> 00:17:43.799 Not that you're going to have a you a thirty 290 00:17:43.839 --> 00:17:46.359 foot tall statue of Abraham Lincoln sitting in your home, 291 00:17:46.640 --> 00:17:49.920 not at all, but how the method of telling that 292 00:17:50.039 --> 00:17:55.359 story via theater is what we apply to your humble home. 293 00:17:55.559 --> 00:17:57.039 That makes all the difference. We'll do that. 294 00:17:58.200 --> 00:18:01.519 You're listening to Home with the Sharp on Demand from 295 00:18:01.599 --> 00:18:03.119 KFI AM six forty. 296 00:18:05.119 --> 00:18:08.400 We're talking about the basics. We're talking about the fundamentals 297 00:18:08.400 --> 00:18:11.319 of storytelling, and it can be applied to a condo, 298 00:18:11.799 --> 00:18:16.079 a cottage, or a castle. It does not matter across 299 00:18:16.119 --> 00:18:19.440 the board. These things are true, and that's why I'm 300 00:18:19.440 --> 00:18:22.519 sharing them with you. If they weren't true for your house, 301 00:18:22.599 --> 00:18:24.880 we would not be spending the time here on this 302 00:18:25.039 --> 00:18:30.359 program talking about these ideas. Okay. If this was just 303 00:18:30.880 --> 00:18:35.000 a program for a state level clients, then it would 304 00:18:35.039 --> 00:18:38.599 be a very, very different thing. But take me seriously 305 00:18:38.640 --> 00:18:41.559 when I tell you that you can learn some things 306 00:18:41.640 --> 00:18:45.480 about your home if you apply the concept of theater 307 00:18:45.759 --> 00:18:49.640 or good cinema to the spaces in your home. Now, 308 00:18:50.039 --> 00:18:51.359 I promise you. I was going to give you an 309 00:18:51.359 --> 00:18:55.039 example of this, and it's not a home, okay, Because 310 00:18:55.039 --> 00:18:58.680 I was racking my brain this week thinking what house 311 00:18:58.759 --> 00:19:01.519 can I refer everybody too that everybody has seen the 312 00:19:01.559 --> 00:19:04.480 inside of. And I don't mean stuff like rooms in 313 00:19:04.519 --> 00:19:07.559 the White House or something. I just mean, really understand 314 00:19:07.559 --> 00:19:09.839 the flow, and I wanted to keep it simple. I 315 00:19:09.880 --> 00:19:12.440 wanted to keep it as simple as possible, but tell 316 00:19:13.000 --> 00:19:17.200 allow you to see what a dramatic storytelling can do. 317 00:19:18.119 --> 00:19:21.000 So I'm going to give you an example from a 318 00:19:21.079 --> 00:19:24.880 national monument that we are all familiar with whether or 319 00:19:24.920 --> 00:19:29.640 not you've ever visited the Lincoln Memorial. You know of 320 00:19:29.680 --> 00:19:32.559 the Lincoln Memorial, you've seen it. All you have to 321 00:19:32.599 --> 00:19:34.519 do is pull out a five dollars bill and look 322 00:19:34.559 --> 00:19:36.720 on the backside and there it is. Or a penny 323 00:19:37.319 --> 00:19:39.039 and look on the back of a penny and there 324 00:19:39.160 --> 00:19:44.440 is the Lincoln Memorial. Okay, But what most people don't 325 00:19:44.480 --> 00:19:47.920 realize is that Lincoln Memorial in the architectural community is 326 00:19:47.960 --> 00:19:53.039 one of the finest examples of storytelling that there is 327 00:19:53.359 --> 00:19:58.079 all of the elements of approach to the payoff at 328 00:19:58.079 --> 00:20:00.640 the end. Okay, So let me just le set that 329 00:20:00.839 --> 00:20:03.799 scene for you. The Lincoln Memorial is sitting on the 330 00:20:03.880 --> 00:20:08.640 National Mall in Washington, DC. It is positioned at the 331 00:20:08.680 --> 00:20:12.720 western end of a one hundred and sixty seven foot 332 00:20:12.759 --> 00:20:17.519 wide by two thousand foot long reflecting pool on the 333 00:20:17.640 --> 00:20:19.920 National Mall. You've all seen it. You've seen it. You've 334 00:20:19.920 --> 00:20:23.559 seen it in Forrest Gump, you've seen it in news clippings, 335 00:20:23.559 --> 00:20:26.880 You've seen it all the time. The reflecting pool. At 336 00:20:26.920 --> 00:20:29.720 one end of the reflecting pools the Washington Monument, whose 337 00:20:29.880 --> 00:20:33.759 gigantic obelisk you can see beautifully in the water. If 338 00:20:33.759 --> 00:20:36.359 you're standing at the Lincoln Memorial, and if you're standing 339 00:20:36.440 --> 00:20:38.519 at the end of the Washington Monument, you see the 340 00:20:38.519 --> 00:20:42.000 Lincoln Memorial in the reflecting pool. Mostly though you heard 341 00:20:42.079 --> 00:20:44.359 me talking about lead lines when it comes to the 342 00:20:44.519 --> 00:20:48.799 entryway of your home, the reflecting pool is a massive 343 00:20:49.000 --> 00:20:53.000 lead line. It draws you out and says, follow me 344 00:20:53.079 --> 00:20:56.240 down this path and look at what's at the end, 345 00:20:56.799 --> 00:21:00.279 and what is at the end, arguably what has been 346 00:21:00.279 --> 00:21:05.839 called America's temple, the Lincoln Memorial. Okay, one, because it's 347 00:21:05.880 --> 00:21:09.240 a classical Greek temple. It's designed that way. It's covered 348 00:21:09.279 --> 00:21:12.599 in white marble. It's ninety nine feet tall. It is 349 00:21:12.720 --> 00:21:17.640 surrounded or the roof is supported by thirty eight doric columns, 350 00:21:17.680 --> 00:21:21.160 each of these columns forty four feet tall, seven and 351 00:21:21.200 --> 00:21:25.599 a half feet in diameter at the base, massive, massive columns. 352 00:21:25.839 --> 00:21:32.400 That massiveness is made to make you feel something. Quite honestly, 353 00:21:32.440 --> 00:21:35.079 it's made to make you feel small. It's made to 354 00:21:35.119 --> 00:21:38.880 make you feel small. So are the eighty seven steps 355 00:21:39.359 --> 00:21:43.519 that you have to walk up to reach the level 356 00:21:43.599 --> 00:21:47.440 of what we call the shrine. Okay, So you walk 357 00:21:47.559 --> 00:21:51.720 down this long pathway and you arrive at this Greek 358 00:21:51.799 --> 00:21:55.599 temple that looms up above you, and as you walk 359 00:21:55.720 --> 00:22:01.240 up eighty seven steps, you have to pass between these 360 00:22:01.599 --> 00:22:08.559 massive marble columns, and what is sitting just inside these 361 00:22:09.079 --> 00:22:14.880 massive marble columns a statue of a sitting Abraham Lincoln 362 00:22:15.279 --> 00:22:21.400 rising twenty nine feet above your head. Okay, that is 363 00:22:21.720 --> 00:22:27.279 amazing storytelling. By the time you arrive at that moment 364 00:22:27.400 --> 00:22:31.480 where you're standing there in front of Abraham Lincoln's likeness, 365 00:22:32.400 --> 00:22:36.200 you have gone through a journey that has affected you emotionally, 366 00:22:36.319 --> 00:22:40.079 whether you have considered it or not. There's just simply 367 00:22:40.640 --> 00:22:44.079 no way to walk up a series of steps and 368 00:22:44.160 --> 00:22:50.200 in between those massive fillers and not feel subject to 369 00:22:51.119 --> 00:22:53.799 that which is sitting there on the throne. And it's 370 00:22:53.920 --> 00:22:59.680 not because we're deifying Abraham Lincoln. You know this intrinsically, 371 00:22:59.759 --> 00:23:02.839 he is the focal point there. And you know it 372 00:23:02.880 --> 00:23:06.920 intrinsically that it's not about Abe Lincoln that we've blown 373 00:23:07.039 --> 00:23:10.920 up out of proportion, but it is about some visceral 374 00:23:11.039 --> 00:23:16.799 experience of the spirit or the story that transcends the 375 00:23:16.920 --> 00:23:21.519 image that is sitting on that throne. Whether it's equal rights, 376 00:23:21.759 --> 00:23:26.000 whether it is freedom, whether it is unity of the Republic. 377 00:23:26.039 --> 00:23:29.880 I mean whatever the case may be, there's something so 378 00:23:30.079 --> 00:23:33.599 human about that experience. So, okay, why did I bring 379 00:23:33.640 --> 00:23:36.480 that up? I brought it up as an example of 380 00:23:36.680 --> 00:23:42.480 storytelling in architecture. The fact that this long lead line 381 00:23:42.599 --> 00:23:46.039 that leads you to a very specific focal point, the 382 00:23:46.079 --> 00:23:48.759 fact that there's a journey to take that you literally 383 00:23:48.799 --> 00:23:51.000 have to walk up these steps, and that you're being 384 00:23:51.079 --> 00:23:55.160 affected by it. The fact that you walk in between 385 00:23:55.200 --> 00:23:58.400 these two massive or these these in between these massive 386 00:23:58.440 --> 00:24:01.880 columns to arrive at your destination, and when you get 387 00:24:01.920 --> 00:24:04.799 there it has the impact on you that it has. 388 00:24:06.240 --> 00:24:11.200 We're not talking about you having the Lincoln Memorial at 389 00:24:11.240 --> 00:24:14.079 your house or you turning your house into the Lincoln Memorial, 390 00:24:14.160 --> 00:24:19.519 but if you can appreciate the storytelling elements there focal point, 391 00:24:20.559 --> 00:24:25.880 every step is taken into consideration, every vista is taken 392 00:24:25.920 --> 00:24:30.359 into consideration, Every experience that you have as you transition 393 00:24:30.519 --> 00:24:34.759 from outside to inside is taken into consideration. All of 394 00:24:34.839 --> 00:24:39.319 this is theater, and it's the same rules of theater 395 00:24:39.519 --> 00:24:43.559 that can apply to your home. And there you go. 396 00:24:43.880 --> 00:24:46.160 All right, when we come back, I will tell you 397 00:24:46.400 --> 00:24:48.400 not a Lincoln Memorial story. I'm going to tell you 398 00:24:48.440 --> 00:24:50.880 a story of a project that I'm working on right now, 399 00:24:50.960 --> 00:24:54.440 and what I want to achieve out of one particular 400 00:24:54.519 --> 00:24:58.559 element of that project. Just to underscore this whole conversation 401 00:24:58.680 --> 00:25:00.200