The Case for Contextualism Anthony Butler
right: Cataract Power Com - pany, c1896. Northeast of the Hamilton General Hos - pital. West elevation look - ing south.
far right: Hamilton General Hospital, 1991; Anthony Butler Architect Inc.: archi - tect for design develop - ment, documentation, and contract administration. Detail of south elevation of nursing wing; recessed masonry infill where win - dows are not required; chamfered top of founda - tion wall is raised to second floor level, to accommodate gentle rise in grade along south side of building.
Like most Ontario communities, my own city, Hamilton, has a strong tradition of masonry construction. Stone, originally quarried from the Niagara Escarpment which runs through the length of the city, was the material of choice for important public buildings and for many fine houses. Good quality local clay was also readily available, making brick the dominant building material for other types of buildings, including the rich heritage of early industrial structures. Many of these still survive; their strong presence throughout the older parts of the city establishes the defining quality of the cityscape and has had a significant influence on my own practice.
The brick masonry construction of early industrial structures in Hamilton reflects the simple functional requirements for exterior walls enclosing a post and beam internal structure. Load-bearing masonry piers, aligned with interior wood or cast iron columns, are expressed externally; thinner membrane wall panels provide lateral support to the piers. The outer face of the foundation walls is flush with the piers and capped between piers with a number of weathering courses of chamfered solid bricks, like inverted corbelling, at the transition to the recessed infill panels. The infill usually
incorporates window openings; when windows are not needed, slightly recessed masonry panels are inserted in the openings to maintain the regular rhythm. Masonry corbels at the top of the building support the thicker construction of the parapet and are frequently decorated by crenellations. The special brick shapes found in 19th and early 20th century masonry buildings were easy to make when each brick was individually moulded by hand prior to firing. Bricks produced today using modern technology are extruded and cannot reproduce hand-
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local architecture | in a global world
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