The Uses and History of Interior Wood Columns
Timothy Revis
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The Uses and History of Interior Wood Columns
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The history of Interior Wood Columns and their varied uses
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Written By: Timothy Revis
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The Uses and History of Interior Wood Columns
Copyright (c) 2010 Timothy Revis
Osborne Wood Products, Inc.
http://www.OsborneWood.com/
The history of interior columns follows that of exterior
architectural columns, as each was initially a structural
necessity. Beginning in ancient times, the use of both exterior
and interior columns was pervasive as the large interior spaces
required for public functions related to government and religion
were restricted by the load that a beam could safely span between
two supports. In order to expand interior dimensions and maintain
a sense of openness, interior columns or pillars provided the
best solution.
Present day Western architecture is the culmination of an
evolution that traces its roots to classical Greece and beyond
Greece to the Middle East. The limited amount of wood available
in these areas compared with the abundance of stone led to the
use of stone as the primary material for columns from this
period. The intense labor required for quarrying the stone and
hewing it into support shafts or columns was accommodated by the
presence of large numbers of slaves in these societies. It is
interesting to note, however, that one organic material was
abundant: reeds. Reeds were oftentimes bound into round columns.
The composition of hundreds of reeds bound into a column provided
an excellent distribution of weight that could carry loads equal
to stone columns under many circumstances. The early use of reed
columns remains with us today as it is generally thought that the
fluting of columns is an artistic reflection of the shadowing
originally observed on reed columns.
It is to the Greeks that we owe what is now considered the
concept of classical orders. These include the Doric, Ionic, and
Corinthian orders. The orders are hierarchical and begin with the
simplest - the Doric - and conclude with the most elaborate: the
Corinthian. A column, which is essentially a rounded shaft or
pier, is composed of three parts: a plinth or pedestal at the
base on which rests the shaft that is surmounted by a capital. It
is the capital that provides the clearest indication as to which
of the orders is presented. In classical architecture, the entire
remainder of the architectural ornamentation is tied to the
specific capital. This is to say: an ionic capital will have its
own set of proscribed motifs for the cornices and pediments as
compared to the cornices and pediments designed to compliment a
Corinthian capital. Further, within traditional design, a method
for combining the orders is available through a vertical
observation of the hierarchy. A structure, for example, may use
the lowest order - the Doric - on the first level and surmount
each of the following levels with the elements from the next
highest order.
During the height of the Roman Empire, the architecture of the
ancient Greeks was revered for its refinement. Therefore, the
architecture of imperial Rome is a somewhat robust
reinterpretation of the more delicate Greek style. Following the
fall of the empire, however, the vogue for Greek architecture
faded into mists of the middle ages. The use of columns continued
of course as a practical structural necessity tending to be heavy
shafts of stone without any of the delicate ornamentation
associated with Greece. But a new trend began to develop: unlike
Greece and the Middle East, continental Europe had an abundance
of wood, and wood began to be used in place of stone where
practical. Although not serviceable in large cathedrals and stone
castles, wood provided a better alternative for columns
supporting interior galleries in residences and monasteries.
Designs that featured wood columns also figured frequently in the
construction of rood screens used in sanctuaries to separate the
chancel from the nave in churches from the late medieval period.
The end of the Middle Ages - roughly the end of the fifteenth
century - saw a gradual revival of interest in all things
classical. Included in this was an interest in Roman antiquities
as an abundance of ruins was available for firsthand viewing. By
extension, the Greek influence on Roman society was recognized
and a further search for a return to the pure Greek origins
became fashionable in the period now known as the Renaissance.
There was no immediate desire to precisely replicate the
architecture initially, but by the beginning of the eighteenth
century a high regard for the republican ideals of Greece paved
the way for the complimentary architecture of Greece as well.
Beginning in Italy with the rediscovery of the writings of
Vitruvius, a Roman architect from the first century B.C.,
Renaissance architects such as Andrea Palladio strongly promoted
the influence of classical architecture to an eager and receptive
public in sixteenth century Italy. The trend spread across the
continent becoming fashionable in England through the efforts of
influential architects such as Inigo Jones whose work with
classical architecture during the first half of the seventeenth
century was continued and expanded upon by Christopher Wren into
the eighteenth century. This set the stage for a period of
devotion to classical architecture that continued without
interruption into the middle of the nineteenth century.
Around the beginning of the second quarter of the nineteenth
century, the emphasis on classicism in the arts gave way to a new
focus on the natural world that was reflected in art, music,
writing and architecture. In architecture, this new focus
resulted in the dominance of such styles as Gothic revival and
Queen Anne, each of which made use of interior wood columns in a
variety of ways. Columns appeared as visual keys to the separate
functions of large rooms or as ornamental features to draw
attention to the opening between rooms. They were occasionally
seen in place of the upper termination of a balustrade on a
staircase where the handrail would finish into a column that
itself would begin a procession of columns across the mezzanine
overlooking the staircase and entry hall. Columns were also
worked into the built-in features of rooms such as on bookcases
and mantelpieces. Although columns had frequently been used
during the preceding classical Georgian and Regency periods on
mantelpieces, mantel design from that period had strictly adhered
to the classical rules of order, viewing the mantelpiece designs
as pure architecture. During the mid-to-latter nineteenth
century, inventiveness overtook classical adherence resulting in
interesting new ways of incorporating wood columns. A primary
example is the double-ledged mantelpiece on which the first ledge
is supported by columns and then surmounted by a second pair of
columns that terminate with a second ledge.
Classical architecture and an emphasis on the use of traditional
features such as columns enjoyed another revival toward the end
of the nineteenth century, this time driven by the influential
French École des Beaux-Arts. The liberal use of columns was now
used in an ornamental fashion having been liberated from use as
structural necessities due the development of structural steel
substructures that began to absorb the actual loads. This style
of architecture was considered the unchallenged standard for fine
public and residential architecture up to the time of World War
I. Following the war, it began to evolve into a neo-classicism or
stylized version of true classicism now strongly represented in
this country by the Federal buildings constructed after World War
I through the late 1940s. In residential architecture - although
often challenged by modernist or minimalist experiments - the
preference for classical styles in residential architecture
dominated national tastes. From simple middle-class suburban
homes to the more elaborate residences of the wealthy, the use of
interior wood columns for ornamental purposes are frequently
observed. Perhaps by design - perhaps inadvertently - the use of
interior wood columns reflected one of the ancient precepts of
hierarchy in that they were more frequently used in the finer
rooms but not so often in the less public areas.
The post-World War II era is now mostly associated in commercial
architecture for the full adoption of the glass-encased cube of
the International style while residential architecture is now
remembered for the emergence of the ranch house. The ranch house,
with its practical emphasis on lower ceilings and functional room
arrangements, offered little opportunity for the use of interior
wood columns. By the late 1980's, however, residential styles
began to reflect a shift in taste away from the clean lines and
horizontal emphasis of the ranch with a return to a vertical mass
including architectural features that had been familiar in the
past. Most popular were reinterpretations of the Craftsman,
Tudor-revival, and Queen Anne styles along with other two-story
structures that offered an amalgamation of various styles with no
particular adherence to any particular one. These new styles of
residences also incorporated a return to higher ceilings, a
greater amount of interior square footage and - more often than
not - open interior floor plans. The high ceilings and open floor
plans offered perfect opportunities for the use of interior wood
columns as a way of breaking up the interior spaces into separate
areas without impeding the overall openness that was so appealing
to contemporary homeowners.
This trend in conventional architectural appearance - as opposed
to a modernistic feeling - along with the preference for an open
floor plan and higher ceilings has continued into the
twenty-first century. The most important new component to be
added to the mix when compared to trends in the late twentieth
century is the emphasis on "green" or "sustainability" in
construction materials and processes.
The use of interior wood columns for both new construction as
well as for remodeling projects offers myriad applications at
this point in time. The house designer, homeowner or architect
may choose either to adhere to the time honored classical
guidelines that were popular during the eighteenth and early
nineteenth centuries or to follow the more inventive approach of
later periods.
Where full architectural ornamentation is to be used, it is
perhaps best to follow the templates worked out centuries ago as
the end results will be more harmonious. Although fewer
homeowners have the interest and financial resources to construct
residences with full interior architectural ornamentation, there
are enough to warrant a review of the appropriate options. To
decide whether or not to consider a full treatment, the first
question becomes one of layout rather than of size. If you can
answer "yes" to two questions, then the opportunity exists to
consider a full architectural treatment for a residence. First:
is the structure balanced and symmetrical? Second: do rooms exist
as opposed to an open floor plan? If the answer is affirmative to
both of these, the one may well consider following the classical
approach.
This begins with recognizing the concept of hierarchy. Those
rooms - usually three - that are nearest the main entrance to the
house will receive the finest and most complete treatment while
the treatments become progressively simpler for the rooms farther
away from the entrance. The typical arrangement for the three
rooms is an entrance hall flanked left and right by a living room
and dining room. The typical entrance hall in new homes also
includes the staircase. If the hall is rectangular front to back,
it provides a perfect opportunity to introduce a pair of columns
that imply a difference between the entrance hall proper and the
staircase hall without visually reducing the dimensions of either
area.
In this situation, the columns may rise from either of two
points. Modern trim features reflect the classical elements of
ornamented structural necessities. The baseboard corresponds with
the plinth; the wainscoting reflects the pedestal. The column may
rise from either although absolute perfection requires that it
rise from the wainscot or pedestal height. In either case -
baseboard/plinth or wainscot/pedestal - one merely turns the
baseboard or wainscot into the room in order to create the base
from which the wood column will rise. The primary trick of the
trade is to ensure that the baseboard or wainscot remain in scale
to the room with the remainder proportioned accordingly. A
too-skimpy height of baseboard will demean the effect. An example
of a well proportioned arrangement for a room with ceilings ten
feet tall would be: ten inches for the baseboard; thirty-two
inches for the wainscot; fifty-eight inches for the base and
shaft of the column; eight inches for the capital; and twelve
inches for the architrave, frieze and cornice molding. Rooms of
varying height may be apportioned accordingly beginning with
about a third of the height given to the wainscot of which
approximately a third is used for the baseboard height. The area
above the wainscot is then proportioned with about an eighth used
for the architrave and cornice with the remainder given to the
column and capital.
The diameter of the wood column is taken from the choice of base.
If the column is rising from a plinth created by turning the
baseboard out, the column should be slightly thicker in order to
keep the additional height in proportion: approximately twelve
inches for the room we have just described. If it is rising
traditionally from a pedestal at wainscot height, something
slightly smaller would be appealing - ten inches would be a good
choice.
Having proportioned the arrangement, one may then turn attention
to selecting the particular order. Following the rules of
hierarchy, the natural selection would be the highest - the
Corinthian order - for the entrance hall. This will not only
indicate the capital - the most apparent feature for the order -
but will indicate the embellishments as well. The choice of
frieze and cornice as well as the door and window trim for the
room is keyed to the capital. It is important to note that it is
best to follow the full treatment of molding if one is taking
this route. This includes embellished over-doors with features
such as broken pediments and the inclusion of regularly spaced
pilasters that repeat the capital from the columns thereby
providing a pleasing rhythm to the space. Half-columns may be
used for this purpose as an alternative to the more typical
flat-faced pilasters.
An alternative use of columns in a highly articulated entrance
hall is their incorporation into the door moldings. One method
for achieving this is to provide a ledge over the door with
protrusions or "ears" that turn outward at either corner. The
baseboards turn out with the same dimensions and columns that
flank the doors may rise between the two. These columns are
scaled down accordingly and are typically five to six inches in
diameter when used this way.
Wood columns and other moldings are seldom finished in their
natural state in entrance halls but are instead more often
painted. Most common at present is trim finished in white that
offsets the general color scheme on the wall below the architrave
and above the wainscot. This mass of pure white, however, can be
blinding if a full architectural treatment is used and it is
often more pleasant to use something less robust such as an ecru
or biscuit tint. In any case, semi-gloss finish is the best
choice for painting wood architectural features as the slight
gloss shows the flutings and shadows to their best advantage. At
various points in time, the molding features have been painted
into colors; the entrance hall at Drayton Hall in South Carolina
is an excellent example of this treatment. Marbleizing the shafts
of the columns themselves may create another pleasing effect.
As previously mentioned, the rooms that typically adjoin an
entrance hall consist of the dining room and living room. To
perfectly follow form, it would be appropriate to step the
molding down to the Ionic order if the Corinthian has been used
in the entrance hall. In either of the two adjoining rooms, the
primary option for the use of wood columns is as an element of
the mantelpiece. This works best as a variation of the use of
columns previously described as door casing embellishment. The
baseboard is turned into the room beneath the mantel ledge and
turns back to terminate against the marble or stone surround of
the fireplace opening. Columns are placed between the ledge and
the pedestal created by the turnout. As elsewhere, the capital
chosen for the columns will dictate the molding scheme for the
remainder of the room.
The desire to avoid the creation of unused spaces in contemporary
residences has led to a trend away from the formal living room
that is exclusively reserved for entertainment. As the remainder
of the typical new house is arranged in an open-plan style, the
area that once served as the formal living room is more
frequently designated as a home office or media room that affords
a level of privacy otherwise missing in the open plan. These
office spaces frequently include bookcases that offer an
excellent opportunity for embellishment with columns. Although
the current trend tends toward bookcase shelving that runs to the
floor, the best designed cases have enclosed cabinets that
roughly correspond in height to the wainscot level even when
wainscoting is not used. The good sense of enclosed cabinets is
that furniture may be arranged against a cabinet wall without
impeding access to the bookshelves. Shelf spans on bookcases
begin to fail or droop when they are wider than forty-two inches.
It is best, therefore, when designing a wall of built in cases to
take the entire length and divide it into equal widths of
forty-two inches or less. Having done this - and having chosen to
construct the actual shelving above cabinet bases - one then
steps the bases out about six inches further than the shelving,
which is typically ten to twelve inches deep. The stepped-out
base creates a natural ledge from which wood columns may be
arranged in front of each point where two shelving spaces meet. A
repetition of appropriately proportioned columns arranged in this
manner creates a very pleasing rhythm. This same effect may be
achieved where the base cabinets are the same depth as the
shelves by turning the cabinet base out in the same manner the
baseboard is turned out for the use of columns that flank door
openings or for support of mantel ledges.
A home office or media room will lend itself to natural finishes,
as the overall setup is reminiscent of a paneled library. The use
of beautiful finishes such as walnut or dark oak can be extremely
pleasing in this setting. An option that may be used to offset
the surfeit of wood in such a room would be to ebonize the column
shafts on the bookcases or mantelpiece creating an architectural
reference to English Regency or French Empire design.
Although the formalized setting continues to be used in very fine
homes at present, the open floor plan remains the standard for
most residences. The open floor plan offers all of the spaces
traditionally contained within a residential structure but
without any of the walls to separate functions such as dining
areas or living areas. While the open flow is pleasant, the
effect of an uninterrupted space can sometimes be similar to
stepping into a gym that has furniture arranged in it - not so
pleasant. This is a place where the use of wood interior columns
can really solve a problem. The judicious placement of columns in
an open plan space can define areas without interrupting the
overall openness that many people find appealing. In an open
plan, for example, where the dining area is set in a corner near
the kitchen area, one can reinforce the dining space by placing
an arrangement of columns at the point where the interior corner
would occur if walls were in place. It is important to emphasize
the word "arrangement" as a single column will not quite do the
job well. A single column will appear incidental, lonely, or
curiously odd. But if a column is placed at the exact corner and
then followed with columns that sit at the points where the walls
would turn, the effect is sturdy and deliberate. The terminating
points of the imaginary walls may be reinforced with half-columns
thereby completing the effect without having interrupted the flow
or visual expanse of the open floor plan.
As with the traditional arrangements, rooms with open floor plans
also lend themselves to the use of columns as ways of giving much
needed visual weight to mantelpieces and bookshelves. From the
perspective of scale, these may be "beefed up" in order to
create a substantial appearance in the larger open spaces they
occupy.
The uses for wood columns in contemporary open rooms have not
been fully exploited and are limited only by the imagination. A
few guidelines will help achieve a pleasing use. Always use
columns in a manner that is structurally logical. Even though
wood columns rarely need to actually support any loads, using
them arbitrarily and in places where they clearly do not support
anything can create a jarring effect. The use of columns
previously described to create a corner in a dining area is
perfectly logical. You can create the appearance of necessary
support by utilizing an architrave between columns to further
define a space. The use of an architrave with an elliptical arch
between columns is another excellent way of investing a sense of
necessity to the columns. Use care when deciding how to finish
columns. They create a great deal of visual interest on their own
simply by their presence. Over-finishing them can be too much of
a good thing. Remember that columns can be useful in reinforcing
height: as a vertical presence, they will guide the eye upward.
Finally, although a strict adherence to the corresponding
elements of a given order is not required, acknowledgment of the
keynote indicated by the capital will result in a quiet harmony
that is both pleasant and tasteful.
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This article was written by Timothy Revis of Osborne Wood
Products, Inc., which offers a variety of Interior Wood Columns
for Cabinet Companies and Architectural Millwork Companies.
They offer 10 different wood types and their products are in
stock and ready to ship. Their customer service and design
team can also work with you to create a custom column to fit
your needs. http://www.OsborneWood.com/
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