Inarchitecture, thefalse front (alsofalse facade,flying facade,screen wall) is afaçade designed to disguise the true characteristics of a building, usually to beautify it.[1][2][3] The architectural design and purposes of these wall-like[4] features vary:
creating a fake appearance to improve aesthetics, an architectural equivalent oftrompe-l'oeil;[8]
infacadism, keeping the old facades with the goal of preserving the visual character of a historical neighborhood while allowing an entirely modern design of the actual buildings. In the view ofpreservationists, this creates a "Disneyland of false fronts";[9]
deliberate violation of thetruth to materials principle ("false in material")[5] for economical, insulation, or aesthetic purposes, likemasonry veneer using a non-structural outer layer of stone[10] or a membranescreen facade;
a purely decorative way to increase height, like the one of aroof comb, a flat structure that tops buildings inMesoamerican architecture. Sometimes the comb was shifted from the center of the roof to one of the walls, forming a flying facade.[12]
Tradition of "show facades" goes back to the very beginnings of the architecture, when the simplest buildings might have just one opening serving both as a door and a window. The special role of the wall with this opening was stressed througharticulation and decoration.[13]
Outside of architecture, "false front" is used to describe a deceptive outward appearance in general,[14] false hair in front (likebangs).[15]
Facadism, façadism (alsopejorative facadectomy, façadomy[16])[17] is the architectural and construction practice where thefacade of a building is designed or constructed separately from the rest of a building, or when only the facade of a building is preserved with new buildings erected behind or around it.
There are aesthetic and historical reasons for preserving building facades. Facadism can be the response to the interiors of a building becoming unusable, such as being damaged by fire. In developing areas, however, the practice is sometimes used byproperty developers seeking to redevelop a site as a compromise withpreservationists who wish to preserve buildings of historical or aesthetic interest. It can be regarded as a compromise betweenhistoric preservation anddemolition and thus has been lauded as well as decried.[citation needed]
In theBrick Gothic,[citation needed] theSchaufassaden (lit.'show facades',[18]display facades), the facades facing the main street, were richly decorated and frequently concealed the cross-section structure of the building.[19]
The goal for buildings in this style is to project an image of stability and success, while in fact a business owner may not have invested much in a building that might be temporary. By emulating the rectangular profile of buildings in eastern North American cities, the style attempted to lend a more settled, urban feel to small frontier towns.[20]
the front façade of the building "rises to form a parapet (upper wall) which hides most or nearly all of the roof"
the roof "is almost always afront gable, thoughgambrel andbowed roofs are occasionally found"
"a better grade of materials is often used on the façade than on the sides or rear of the building" and
"the façade exhibits greater ornamentation than do the other sides of the building."[21]
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