The Absurd Superficiality of Suburban Homes

__Thanks__
Evan Montgomery — co producer, camera, editing

__Description__
A surprising number of materials and features in our homes aren't what they seem. From vinyl siding that mimics wood to fireplaces that never burn a single log, modern construction is filled with clever substitutions that provide the illusion of tradition without the cost or maintenance. But why do we accept these deceptions so easily?

In this video, we explore the five key expectations—protection, health, connection, status, and control—that drive us to embrace these illusions in our homes. From the foundation to the attic, our psychological needs for security and comfort push us to prefer appearances over reality, and how construction technology has evolved to satisfy these desires without us even noticing.

Whether it's decorative shutters that no longer function, or fireplaces that offer ambiance without warmth, our homes tell a story—and it’s one we’re more than happy to believe. Click to learn why we’re okay with a little architectural fakery, and how it shapes the way we live today.

Keywords: home design, fake features in homes, modern construction, vinyl siding, fake fireplaces, home psychology, architectural fakery, home materials, traditional home features, home architecture, home illusions, siding materials, foundation design, home status

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__About the Channel__
Architecture with Stewart is a YouTube journey exploring architecture’s deep and enduring stories in all their bewildering glory. Weekly videos and occasional live events breakdown a wide range of topics related to the built environment in order to increase their general understanding and advocate their importance in shaping the world we inhabit.

__About Me__
Stewart Hicks is an architectural design educator that leads studios and lecture courses as an Associate Professor in the School of Architecture at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He also serves as an Associate Dean in the College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts and is the co-founder of the practice Design With Company. His work has earned awards such as the Architecture Record Design Vanguard Award or the Young Architect’s Forum Award and has been featured in exhibitions such as the Chicago Architecture Biennial and Design Miami, as well as at the V&A Museum and Tate Modern in London. His writings can be found in the co-authored book Misguided Tactics for Propriety Calibration, published with the Graham Foundation, as well as essays in MONU magazine, the AIA Journal Manifest, Log, bracket, and the guest-edited issue of MAS Context on the topic of character architecture.

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Stock video and imagery provided by Getty Images, Storyblocks, and Shutterstock.
Music provided by Epidemic Sound

#architecture #urbandesign

[conneee]

the shutters not shutting have always pissed me off even as a little kid

[xz]

Note to viewers: Stewart's mustache is fake. 100% PVC and muskrat fur, attached with deck screws and bituthane. I'm best friends with his mustache outfitter.

[ItsAllPainNoGain]

You wouldn't believe the amount of fake attics I've built. Adding a small pitched roof with a window that can never be accessed from within the house is stupid. In fact I got a call to go build one tomorrow. Its idiotic

[willabyuberton]

What's sad to me is when still-functional elements are removed in order to be stylish. Take awnings; many homes do without them and therefore are substantially hotter than they need to be.

[noaccount]

>shutters
>they don't shut
21st century in a nut shell

[everydazetuesday]

sadder is that the majority of builders do this fakery badly.

stone in gable ends, columns that end at the top of a foundation, larger 2nd floor windows over tiny windows on the main.... all bad and done often, creating horrble streetscapes.

i worked decades in tract building and regret every compromise.

[_suspi]

I live in a 1889 American Victorian house in the west coast, and I became obsessed with the building styles of the time period. Amusingly, your video also applies to the same homes built before the Arts and Crafts movement. Industrialization and the lumber mill meant that ornate embellishments can be made en masse and shipped across the country, so skilled woodworkers didn't need to be on-site to build the house. Dental moldings, ornate newel posts, scalloping, stick style, corbels, intricate scrollwork, and ridiculous paint colors were barfed all over these houses. People faked excessive opulence because it was cheap to do it now. Arts and Crafts became a reaction to that and tried to bring things back to intentional woodworking.

I love flipping through the 1897 Sears, Roebuck & Co. Catalogue. Shopping at home and having it delivered? What an amazing concept.

[andyjwagner]

I was thrilled to find out my first home, an 1910s era two-family had shutters that *actually shut*. I made a video of myself closing them once just for fun.

[Liisa]

The thing that disturbs me the most is that the houses are too big - and especially too big for the plot. There is no gardening or interesting outdoor activities happening on such cramped spaces. No wonder the residents don't connect with the place. Suburbs like this are ultra boring. This is environmental damage in large scale.

[DavS]

Maybe do an opposite video essay: what is the most authentic well-built house for a particular region?

[TheLotusEater]

Vinyl siding is to houses what chromed-plastic is to sports cars.

[jbirzer]

I live in a townhouse complex that was built in the 70s. The were all originally built with vertical wooden siding painted with earthtones. Over the years, many of them had switched over to cream colored vinyl siding. I get why people did that, because in what is a relatively budget townhouse neighborhood, it is cheap and easier to maintain. That being said, I also think it is pretty ugly. It is why I have still kept the wooden siding on my house (with upgrades in material where appropriate), as well as the original color, which is one of the few green homes left in my neighborhood.

[remiheneault]

I didn't know shutters in the US were fake!
Shutters (real ones) are still very much a thing in France. I often take the Eurostar to London and you can tell if you crossed the Channel by looking at houses, they're not as common in the UK.
My previous flat didn't even have curtains, I would open and close my shutters every day, which is symbolic to me.

[tjpprojects]

Two things I absolutely HATE are uninsulated attics, and watertanks in attics. All the dog-shit home builders here in Tennessee are all evil for doing these things.

[Dante_The_Great]

I've been living in my 140 y/o house for two years now and I already feel a connection to it. I just feel like it has a soul.

[lisacole]

We’re finishing building our own house. It’s “not too big” at 1800 sq ft and we’ve done about 80% of the labor so we could save on that cost and afford really good materials … we overbuilt and did things like used all plywood instead of osb, rockwool insulation with upper floor ceiling r-42 (adding a reflective heat barrier added even more and we designed for no attic … we did high ceilings and loft spaces within the second floor instead), real hardwood instead of lvp, James Hardie siding, heavy duty framing, etc … it makes a huge difference in how the house feels and functions. I see tons of houses going up that are built super fast and to the very minimum of code and they look like they’ll be lucky to last 15 years … starting at $500k.

We need to build things to last and not be more than we need. The Not So Big House book is an excellent reference for that philosophy.

[vdjKryptosRock]

This is why I did my new house’s exterior in just Flex Seal. It shows a level of practicality and strength.

[derweibhai]

My house was built in 1871 of real wood and stone. The faceless of everything today is disgusting. Throw away houses for a throw away society.

[JSStuart]

Florida construction worker here the difference is 500, 000 For the superficial or million 1/2 if you want the real brick and stone

[cesarparra]

I will use this list as thing not to install in my future home.