Two Sketches of Mr. Bowle's Home

Architect Arnold William Brunner's pair of preliminary sketches presents two views of a residential design: a landscape composition showing the house situated among evergreen trees with human figures for scale, and a frontal elevation study emphasizing the structure's peaked gable and decorative timber detailing. These working drawings exemplify the architectural design process of the Gilded Age, where multiple perspectives helped clients and builders visualize spatial relationships and aesthetic character. Brunner, a prominent American architect known for institutional and residential commissions, used such sketches to develop designs before final construction documents. The informal pen technique and notation style reveal the designer's hand at work, capturing both practical building information and the hoped-for atmospheric quality of the finished home.