On Topic: The art of real estate

Two young birds are perched on a tree branch, looking down.

“OK, what happens after I fly down there?” one asks. “How do I get back up?”

“You don't,” torments his sibling. “I hate to break it to you, but you just have to live wherever you land. Forever.”

The first bird, distressed, points out their parents must have flown up to this branch to build their nest. The second bird counters that, no, mom and dad flew down, from a higher branch.

“You'd better start looking for some real estate,” the second bird advises, in the final panel of Karl Kerschl's sly online comic strip, “The Abominable Charles Christopher.” Then she adds, “I hope you like mud.”

The mantra in commercial and residential real estate sales, that location, location, location is what matters most, is repeated so often for good reason. Near a main highway or off the beaten path, depending on the client's needs and preferences, location can tip the deal one way or the other.

Where the building is situated in fact might halt discussions only moments after they've begun. Down the road from an active rock quarry, you say? That bypass is scheduled to be opened when?

I once worked in a first-floor office of a rehabbed warehouse, on the growing outskirts of a downtown area, that boasted floor-to-ceiling glass the length of an entire wall. It let in glorious natural light.

Yes, someone had the sense to inquire of the property manager how often trains passed by on those railroad tracks running no more than a dozen yards from said windows. Oh, only a couple times a day, and then only after dark, we were assured.

You get no prizes for guessing that trains came bolting through some eight or nine times day - during the daytime - rattling those big panes of glass like thunder and halting all work until they'd passed.

It actually was kind of funny.

But while location is vital, there's no denying that other bromide, that first impressions are important, too. The appearance alone of a place can win a customer over.

I think about this almost every day when I glance out a window from The Gazette offices and see the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art.

Its insides showcase truly marvelous art. As I write this, its rooms feature, among other attractions, abstract prints by Mauricio Lasansky and photos of flora by Joan Liffring-Zug Bourret and her son, David B. Heusinkveld.

And, of course, the oils, benches, fireplace screens and other work - including a breathtaking silver pitcher - by the hands of Grant Wood.

But don't let those pieces cause you to miss the CRMA's other beauty: the building itself.

Designed in 1903 by architect Eugene Hartwell Taylor as home for the Carnegie Library, the structure on Third Avenue SE could model as a poster child for the Beaux Arts style that was very hot stuff in America in the late 1800s and well into the early 20th century.

The mix is the thing.

Inside, you can see the symmetry created by the arches that rest over the fireplace in the museum's sitting room. They in turn are flanked by bold, ornamented brackets.

A series of white plaster reliefs of joyous dancers accent the walls, just above eye level. Their brightness offsets the deep-green and dark brown comfortableness of the expansive room.

Elsewhere on the first floor, more arches on the ceiling produce the illusion of separate spaces.

Outside, cornice molding runs along the roof, like the trim on cake frosting. Sculpture-like effects become part of the architecture.

As you move your gaze down to street level, that imposing classical look blends into sturdy brick walls. Ionic columns brace the windows.

The exterior palette offers a faux-patinaed green hard next to chocolate brown and tan, alongside sand-colored brick.

As real estate goes, the location is choice. The building itself is a work of art.