Ah, to build, to build! That is the noblest art of all the arts.

“Ah, to build, to build! That is the noblest art of all the arts.” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

How often do you drive by one of the many great architectural treasures we have in northeast Ohio and not give it a second thought? Do you ever stop to think about or try to discover the story associated with that treasure? Do you know that it is these stories that help to define the uniqueness of our region - a region that some tend to downplay or disparage?

I have lived in the Cleveland area for over 28 years, more than half of my life now. I have lived on the east side of the city that entire time, and have used the Shoreway (Route 2) as my main corridor to the east and west. When I drive into the University Circle area, as I have done thousands of times over the years, I have always passed and noted the building known as the “Holy Oil Can,” the Epworth-Euclid Methodist Church. It’s a true landmark building in this area, perched on a rise of land overlooking Wade Lagoon and anchoring one end of Rockefeller Park on Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive. The copper roof, dating from the 1920’s, gives it a profile and identity unlike any other in our region and is the church’s most notable feature, but the structure also features graceful granite walls adorned with buttresses and sculpture. These elements combine to give it a sense of soaring height with a spire that seems to go on forever.

All of us know it by sight, as it sits on one of the busiest intersections in the city, and yet how many of us really take the time to appreciate it?

I had the occasion to attend a meeting in the church last week, and I anticipated it greatly. I was finally going to get inside the “oil can,” and I got there early so I could snoop around. What can I tell you? It’s a glorious interior, with soaring but austere stone walls reaching up to a beautifully vaulted ceiling with a lovely and arresting oculus that appears to open to the pure whiteness of the heavens. The only breaks in the walls are absolutely breathtaking stained glass windows, with the focus being a large rose window that evokes the cathedral at Chartres. As I walked in, the lights were very low and the organist was practicing a complicated melody on their very fine pipe organ, and it was sublime. I admit I would have skipped my meeting if I could have, and would have allowed my mind and body to drift up with the melody to the ceiling so high above.

When I finally rose and turned to exit the sanctuary, I was surprised to see eight or ten other folks lingering in the pews, enjoying the same moment - all there for the same meeting. One man turned to me as we hurried on to our obligation and said, “I have been passing by this place twice a day for 25 years, and I had never taken the time to walk inside.” I understood the feeling. Not only was I struck by the experience created by entering the building, I was also humbled by the craftsmanship and audacity of the builders of the space. I don’t think I am exaggerating in stating that the use of such skills is rare in contemporary construction. Don’t get me wrong - I love much of the work being done today, in which flights of fancy that were formerly impossible to realize can be manifested in structures like the Peter B. Lewis Building at Case Western Reserve University. But the art of the stone mason seems to be rarely evoked with such effect nowadays.

I work in a building that has a similar pedigree. The Burke Mansion, built in 1909 and the home of The Music Settlement since 1939, is a beautifully preserved, 44-room mansion from the “Millionaires’ Row” age of home building in Cleveland. It features ornate plaster ceilings and floating oak and walnut paneling throughout the first floor, and rich carving and decorative ornamentation throughout all three of its floors. Our employees and customers are privileged every day to be surrounded by the glory of the skills of fine carpenters, plasterers, and architects from 100 years ago. University Circle, and our street, Magnolia Drive, are blessed with many examples of the labor and imagination of artists trained in the old world secrets of their craft.

It’s mind-boggling that the historic buildings we currently enjoy represent only a small percentage of those that existed in this neighborhood during the golden era of 100 years ago. I urge you to find the time to check out the unique structures and places from times gone by that we so often take for granted around Cleveland. Visit the steamship William G. Mather, now part of the Great Lakes Science Center, to experience the big-shouldered history of manufacturing that’s tied to our own lake and river, or check out Gray’s Armory on Bolivar Road in downtown Cleveland, or the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument on Public Square (yes, you can go inside!) to find out more about Cleveland’s role in war and peace. Or better yet, take a stroll through Lakeview Cemetery off of Mayfield or Euclid Avenues and stop to gaze at the treasure that is the Wade Memorial Chapel, a wonderful little gem designed entirely by and featuring the glass and mosaic work of Louis Comfort Tiffany. This is just a taste of what lies out there; I’m sure many of you can add even more examples to the list. The key is to not just look, but to experience. The next time you drive by that building or park or garden for the 400th time, plan the time to stop and venture inside. You’ll be glad you did!

Have a great week,