The only thing that makes this home’s exterior truly interesting is its unique butterfly shape, designed to conform to its site overlooking Washington D.C.’s Dupont Circle.
Otherwise, it’s fairly standard for Stanford White’s later work, with an overwrought mishmash of Renaissance-inspired details that appears fitful and fussy, akin to the cluttered walls of an old art gallery. However, the marble and limestone construction is quite exquisite on close observation.
White claimed the design had a “light and rather joyous character”.1 I’m not sure about joyous, but I can go along with light, as the abundance of windows in the structure gives it an airy feel, particularly when the sun hits all five sides of the facade.
The home was built at the same time as White’s partner, Charles McKim, was designing the nearby East Wing of the White House, which…is no longer with us.
The Patterson Mansion is currently occupied by short-term rental units, and I hope to stay in one at some point in the future — preferably when D.C. is no longer occupied by madness. God knows when that may be.
References
- White, Samuel G. The Houses of McKim, Mead & White. New York: Rizzoli International Publications, Inc. (1998), p. 212. ↩︎