Color has power, and it can often be the most memorable part of a home. If you doubt that, ask an owner of a vibrantly hued home, such as former Telemundo president Nely Galán. The media bigwig joined her Venice, Calif., home to two adjacent homes and used bright colors such as orange, yellow, and purple to tie together what were three separate buildings. Her neighbors along the canals weren’t very pleased, but in a neighborhood known for its eccentricities, it’s not altogether out of place.
When it comes to clusters of color, consider the homes of Riomaggiore, Italy. In the popular seaside collection of villages called the Cinque Terre, Riomaggiore stands out among its four neighbors because of its cliff-side bursts of neon color.
Perhaps the most creative use of color in home restoration is Detroit’s Heidelberg Project. Begun in 1986 by local artist Tyree Guyton, the project materialized when Guyton returned home from military service to find a dilapidated, decaying neighborhood. As a way to take back an abandoned block from the gangs and dealers, he started painting abandoned homes with bright polka dots and affixing whimsical objects to the home exteriors. “It’s like a sleepy, crazy Eden, with spray-painted sidewalks and dead trees festooned with shopping carts,” says Doug Kirby, publisher of Roadside America.com.
At first, the city didn’t know how to handle Guyton’s growing project, and there were two instances when city officials ordered the demolition of portions of Heidelberg Street’s decorated houses. Twenty-five years later, the Heidelberg Project is celebrated by Detroit’s city officials, Heidelberg Street is a center of art and creativity, and the project has prompted international interest in the project as a way to address urban blight and decay. And as a testament to Guyton’s vision, the Heidelberg Project was one of 15 projects from the U.S. represented at the 2008 Venice Architecture Biennale. All achieved with just a touch of color.