Classical Architecture Highlighted in Publications Like NYT & WSJ

You might have been one of the traditional building professionals who made the news this summer. There was a spate of articles in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and other media outlets highlighting traditional architecture and its designers and builders.

“The Shingle Style Home Gets Reinvented for the 21st Century” in The Wall Street Journal explored this coastal vernacular, East and West, and quoted architects Thomas A. Kligerman, Patrick Ahearn, and Daniel Shurinov. Kligerman’s new book, Summer by the Sea, has generated publicity for the Shingle style, a late-19th-century architectural style distinguished from the more ornamental styles of the Victorian era by minimal trim, large windows, porches, and, of course, shingles. The Isaac Bell House in Newport, Rhode Island, is probably the best-known example of the Shingle style. It was designed by McKim, Mead & White in 1883.

Daniel Shurinov of Bureau Namas Architects in Santa Monica is quoted in The Wall Street Journal: “Shingle-style homes appeal to homeowners for both [their] late 19th-century roots and the warmth of [their] cedar-wood material. Many homeowners are looking for architecture that feels more familiar.” In the same article, a Shingle-style house on Cape Cod is cited as having sold for a 12 percent premium over a nearby contemporary home of the same size.

The New York Times extolled the virtues and popularity of the new old house in an article titled “Architects Are Designing High-End Homes Made to Look Old.” Here again, architects we all know are mentioned: Peter Pennoyer, Fairfax & Sammons, Period Architecture, and Schafer & Company. Joe Mackin Jr., founder and principal of Period Architecture, tells the Times, “Over the past six years our new traditional home commissions have risen by 73%.”

“The architects who specialize in designing these [new/old] homes believe they bring necessary knowledge to the work,” reported The New York Times. “We’re very keen on consistency and believability,” Mackin said. “Without an understanding of classical architecture, homes can take on a ‘Disneyfied’ appearance, where the proportions and scale aren’t accurate or a weird mix of styles feels forced.”

These articles in the mainstream press are a good lead-up to our own special-interest publication, New Old House, which hits newsstands this fall. At the same time, in early October, the 25th annual Palladio Awards will announce its call for entries. In most years, the new period house is the Palladio Awards category that receives the most entries. There are 13 categories for residential, commercial, institutional, and ecclesiastical building types, as well as a special category for craftsmanship. The Palladio jury reviews projects in interior design, adaptive use, historic restoration and renovation, new construction, and landscape architecture.

Enter the 2027 Palladio Awards Competition

Who wins a Palladio Award? Some of the designers mentioned in the Times and Wall Street Journal articles, for sure, but also many other designers, builders, and craftspeople who read Traditional Building, Period Homes, and New Old House. You don’t have to be a subscriber to enter the Palladio Awards, but it helps because the jury scrutinizes the same design principles our magazines celebrate.

For example: Is the project beautiful? Does the design have a clear hierarchy or progression? Does it have a harmonious pattern of elements? Balance, scale, and proportion? Does the building’s ornament support the purpose of the design? Is the construction enduring, with the hand of the craftsperson apparent?

These are the design and construction qualities our Palladio jury looks for when reviewing project entries. Are you up for the challenge? We hope you’ll enter the 2027 25th annual Palladio Awards competition.