Stairs

In many cultures all over the world and in different eras, architects have had an obsession with stairs, whether for ceremonial purposes, or for the visual and spatial excitement in a more utilitarian context. In another blog, I will be looking at specifically at ramps, an even older solution to navigating a change in level, although very much back in the designer's repertoire as we become more conscious of universal accessibility. 

The massive pyramids of the Ancient Maya, the over-scaled steps up to the Parthenon in Athens, and the elaborate stairs on the ceremonial route within the Forbidden City in Beijing, give us an idea of the diversity of design approaches that have been used to express power and authority. But today, I want to look at some more modest uses of stairs, in a domestic setting.

Until as late as the mid-twentieth century, the design of stairs was often dictated by class and expense - the main stairs for the household owner's family and guests was often a very elaborate affair, a showpiece of the carpenter's art. At the manor house of 1793, in the grounds of Edinburgh Zoo, this is given even more emphasis through the use of stained-glass windows on the landing.

Corstorphine Manor House, Edinburgh Zoo

The central feature of a highly crafted grand staircase was still prevalent for the very wealthy at the beginning of the last century, even in Johannesburg, in the homes of the Randlords (the gold mine owners and other very rich industrialists) as can still be seen in Parktown and Westcliff. By contrast, the servants would usually be required to use far more modest stairs, often tucked away and giving direct access from the kitchen to the rest of the house (the kitchen would have a bell system to summon the staff to the various parts of the mansion). This hierarchy of stairs for different classes of occupants, persisted in the colonial world until World War II - the building where I live has a distinctly different specification for the 'servants' wing' in terms of materials, finishes, width and height of tread, pushing the envelope to the limits of fire safety.

The 'servant block' stairs in my 1930's apartment complex

To give some perspective, the main entrance to the apartment block, although built of quite modest materials, is clearly trying to evoke the grandeur of a past that was rapidly fading by 1932. 

The main entrance, with much later utilitarian metal security gates

Originally, these stairs would have led up to the teak entrance doors, with the building logo sand-blasted in the glazed panels, a fitting introduction to the marble foyer with its Art Deco lift. 

The Art Deco lift with a glimpse of the main stairs to the upper floors

However, by the 1930s, in buildings that could afford the luxury of this dashingly modern invention of the passenger lift, the main staircase would now take on a somewhat secondary role, much more modest in its materials and finishes, and in this building, with not even a handrail! 

The main stair with a plaster moulding instead of a handrail

The interest in stairs from the mid-century onwards is because architects just love the dramatic forms of staircases where they can expose the angled lines of the underside of the treads and the line of the handrail or balustrade. This becomes a visual expression of the movement and carries the eye up to the higher parts of the structure. Exposed staircases also inevitably create interesting shadows because of their angled shapes, contrasting with the more usual orthogonal shapes of a modernist building. 

The play of shadows on this very utilitarian staircase provides dynamism and interest

In my apartment block, there are two fire escape stairs that were probably added at a later date, possibly in the mid 1940s, when South Africa introduced its first National Building Regulations. This legislation had a fire clause which would have required at least two means of escape for buildings above two storeys (you may break a leg jumping from one floor up, but it would not likely be a fatal leap). These additional staircases look slightly tacked on, but create an interesting contrast with the strong horizontal lines of the "back side" of the building - an effect that I am sure the original designers would have appreciated!

The dramatic angles of the fire escape

Moving closer to the present, we find that stairs have become much more diverse, in form and detailing - part of the architect's repertoire but without the doctrinaire rules that characterised past generations. In the same complex, from the same date, one can find as diverse treatment of the internal stairs as evocative of a past era, reminiscent of the Edinburgh example, or strikingly futuristic, entirely from shiny metal.

An expression of the carpenter's craft in a contemporary townhouse