The Deleted Scenes - Images of Christmas
A year ago, I wrote this article for Christmas, on divining aspects of the American built environment through the lyrics of Christmas songs:
More:
And so I recently saw a few things that grabbed my attention, given my interest in depictions of Christmas and what it might say about our feelings about our built environment. The first was this catalog from DiBruno Bros, a Philadelphia-based Italian delicatessen and specialty foods store. It depicts a gingerbread house in the shape of a classic Philadelphia/Mid-Atlantic rowhouse! The second was this Twitter thread featuring pictures of gingerbread houses based on multifamily housing designs. Are you excited to show off your Multifamily Gingerbread Homes on Sunday?
Check out some of the amazing creations from last year's event...
First up, @NeverSassyLaura made these: The third is a Coca Cola ad running this year, which unfortunately I can’t find a link to, which talks about an old apartment building, in which generations of families, above and below each other, are celebrating the holidays in all their different ways. This might all sound a little too cute, grasping at straws, or trying to politicize Christmas. But it isn’t doing that, any more than your ceramic Christmas village is. Or “Silver Bells,” celebrating Christmastime in the city. There’s something about this kind of urban environment that jibes with the spirit of holidays. A part of us knows that, and much of our popular culture knows that. It’s a shame we no longer build much of the sort of thing we feel so much collective nostalgia for. Speaking of Christmas villages, look at this one from Kohl’s: That middle one could no doubt be an entry in my “What Do You Think You’re Looking At?” series! It seems poignant that we don’t build much of this kind of thing anymore—and most of our zoning codes don’t even permit it—and yet we feel such a strong nostalgia for it. There’s just something magical about this, from my hometown of Flemington, New Jersey. I’ll leave you with that. Related Reading: Please consider upgrading to a paid subscription to help support this newsletter. You’ll get a weekend subscribers-only post, plus full access to the archive of over 200 posts and growing. And you’ll help ensure more material like this! You’re a free subscriber to The Deleted Scenes. For the full experience, become a paid subscriber. |
Older messages
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