Sunday, November 3, 2013

Wandering Around Woodward Avenue

Yesterday,  I ended up going to Detroit because my mom needed to go to Utrecht to pick up some art supplies.  Since it was located fairly close to some pretty neat buildings, I decided to do some brief photographing.
 The First Congregational Church is located at the corner of Forest and Woodward Avenues.  The church itself was established in 1844.  At first it was along the Detroit River and then it moved to its current location in 1891.  The church was designed by John Lyman and is an example of Romanesque and Byzantine styles.  The church was listed in the Michigan Historic Register in 1974 and then the National Register in 1982.
 The church is patterned after churches found in Ravenna and Venice in Italy.  In 1921, Albert Kahn added what is known as the Angel Wing but I'm not quite sure what that is.
 There is a Sheriff's office a little down Woodward from the church.
 The Charger was Chrysler's re-emergence into the police vehicle market after a long hiatus.
 A side shot of that vehicle.
 The Cathedral Church of St. Paul in 1824 by Reverand Fish Cadle.  Originally it was located a little further up Woodward.  In 1851, it was moved to the corner of Congress and Shelby.  The current church was built in 1907 and was designed by Ralph Adams Cram.  It is an example of Gothic Revival.  In 1947, it was the site of Henry Ford's funeral service.  During that service, approximately 20,000 people stood outside in the rain with another 600 in the church itself.  The church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
 Construction of the Maccabees Bulding began in 1926 and was completed in 1927.  It's architect was Albert Kahn.
 The building is an exampe of Art Deco and Romanesque architecture.  It has a total of 15 floors and is currently owned by Wayne State University.
 In 1983, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
 I really like the addition of the knights as decoration.
 I think they are all pretty different.
 I really like the row of them.
 An attempt at an overall shot of the building.
 My next stop was the Detroit Institue of Arts.  This is a copy of the Thinker Statue by Auguste Rodin.  If I recall, this was cast in bronze from the original mold.  There are quite a few statues like this around the world.
 One of these days, I need to actually go in the Museum itself.  Especially with all the talk about selling some of its collection because of the bankruptcy.  Honestly, I think that would be an absolutely stupid decision on their part but I guess the Museum is going to fight that tooth and nail.
 Across the street from the DIA is the Detroit Public Library, which is another pretty nice building.
 Another one of the statues in front of the DIA.
 I wanted a shot with more of the museum in it.
 Looking at the front of the museum.  The building itself was constucted in 1927 and underwent major renovations in 2007.  It too is listed in the National Register of Historic places.
 Another shot of the Thinker.
 Another angle of the Maccabbees building.
 Looking up at that building.  You can see many of the styling cues that Albert Kahn likes to use.
 One more angle of that building.
 Looking down Woodward Avenue towards downtown Detroit.  This wasn't quite the view I wanted, but it will work.
The place that houses Utrecht.

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