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AnA-frame building is anarchitectural style[1] of building that features steeply-angled sides (roofline) that usually begin at or near the foundation line, and meet at the top in the shape of the letterA. An A-frame ceiling can be open to the top rafters.
Although the triangle shape of the A-frame has been present throughout history, it surged in popularity around the world from roughly the mid-1950s through the 1970s. It was during the post–World War II era that the A-frame acquired its most defining characteristics.
A-frame buildings are an ancient form in Europe (e.g.cruck frame construction orgrubenhaus), China, and the South Pacific islands. Sometimes called aroof hut, these were simple structures used for utilitarian purposes until the 1950s.[2] In 1934, R. M. Schindler built the first modern A-frame house, for owner Gisela Bennati, in Lake Arrowhead, California.[3] Architects Walter Reemelin, John Campbell,George Rockrise,Henrik H. Bull, andAndrew Geller helped to popularize Schindler's idea in the early 1950s, designing A-frame vacation homes.[2] In 1955, Andrew Geller built an A-frame house on the beach inLong Island, New York, known as the Elizabeth Reese House.[2] Geller's design won international attention when it was featured inThe New York Times on May 5, 1957.[4] Before long, thousands of A-frame homes were being built around the world.[5]
The Abbey Resort inFontana-on-Geneva Lake, Wisconsin, claims to have the world's tallest wooden A-frame.
The post–World War II popularity of the A-frame has been attributed to a combination of factors including Americans' extradisposable income, the inexpensiveness of building an A-frame structure, and a new interest in acquiring a second home for vacationing.[2]
Another factor contributing to the rise of the A-frame included the adaptability of the structure itself, which enabledarchitects to experiment with more modern designs. A-frames were a useful medium in which architects could explore their creative side since they were relatively cheap to build.
Additionally, many people preferred the idea of a "modern-style" vacation home to that of a "modern-style" primary home. A-frames became available asprefabricated kits, lowering the cost even more, and were sold byMacy's department stores.
After the rise of the archetypal A-frame, architects soon began experimenting with new designs, which led to what became known as the modified A-frame style.
A-frame buildings which had been made popular since 1955 by Andrew Geller were built for churches across the world. The modern shape was reinterpreted spiritually as representing "hands at prayer" since 1961 and the design of the Holy Cross Anglican Church in Tokyo by the Czech-born American architectAntonin Raymond. His use of interlaced pillars was inspired by the traditional Japanese traditional countryminka houses known asgasshō-zukuri (合掌造り), literally "clasped-hands style".[11]
Early examples of A-frame religious buildings are theFrank Lloyd Wright designedFirst Unitarian Society of Madison, built 1949–1951, as well as the Lutheran Church of the Atonement, designed byHarris Armstrong and built in 1949 inFlorissant, Missouri.[12]Charles E. Stade designed dozens of A-frame church buildings in the United States throughout the 1950s and 1960s,[13] along withEdward D. Dart andEdward Sövik.[14] The style was in 1960 used by theCatholic Church to buildSaint Joseph Church,Lynden, Washington[6] just before theOur Lady of Fatima Roman Catholic Church in 1961. It was used most impressively for theUnited States Air Force Academy Cadet Chapel inaugurated in 1962.
At the same time, the A-frame used was in Europe as early 1959 forBakkehaugen Church inNorway by architectOve Bang who was an advocate offunctionalism. When theArctic Cathedral in 1965, the A-frame church had become a new identity of religious architecture inScandinavia. It spread to Europe and was used in 1967 to build theYaddlethorpe Methodist Church inYaddlethorpe.
The A-shape religious building made it across the Pacific Ocean toNew Zealand with the Whiteley Memorial Methodist Church dedicated on 19 October 1963 considered as "Taranaki's most beautiful building".[15]
Christian religious buildings have also adopted the A-style architecture mainly in South East Asia. The first example after Japan might be theLuce Memorial Chapel in Taiwan in 1963, followed bySaint Michael's Church in Sihanoukville in 1965, Xavier Hall Catholic Church inBangkok in 1972, or the Church of the Pastoral Center inDa Lat in 2010 are some examples of a similar architectural style.
This style is still popular in Europe also, as in Henry's Ecumenical Art Chapel inFinland in 2005.[16]
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