When I visited the Umbrella House in Sarasota Florida by Paul Rudolph, I was reminded of why I wanted to pursue architecture and interior design. Paul Rudolph was an American modernist architect known as one of the pioneers of the modernist architecture movement in Sarasota, Florida. He was part of the group of architects called the Sarasota School of Architecture. Rudolph designed and built the Umbrella House in 1953, and in 2015 the umbrella over the house was restored and reinforced. I hadn’t experienced many midcentury modern designs in person up until when I went on this tour last year and I found the style entrancing. The house is two storeys tall with two living rooms, a kitchen and two bedrooms. The main living room is two storeys high and is in the centre of the house. The image I included is of the two storey living room and exhibits the full glass back wall. You can also see a bit of the umbrella in that image and the shadow it creates over the pool. The shadows inside and outside of the house from the slatted umbrella were so beautiful and engulfed the house in stripes of light. I imagine the umbrella creates the feeling of safety and enclosure while being outside in the pool. While the cutout directly above the pool and slats in the umbrella allow you to still enjoy the sunlight and environment around you. The furniture in the umbrella house made me feel comfortable as it is mostly in warm and inviting tones yet it is structured and sophisticated. The open hallway on the second floor looks at the glass back wall and two storey living room. This open space made the house feel much larger than it was. Visiting Paul Rudolph’s Umbrella House inspired me to continue pursuing interior design and architecture because of how the space made me feel. It inspired me to create spaces that make people feel the same way and inspire future designers.
