In 1921, Edward W. Bok was spending the winter months in the residential mountain lake community located adjacent to the highest hill of Florida's Lake Wales Ridge, 298 feet above sea level.The idea came to him to preserve this hilltop and create a bird sanctuary - a place of beauty, serenity and peace.
Integral to Bok's idea was the availability of a famous landscape architect, Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. Having made arrangements to buy land on the hilltop, Bok commissioned Olmsted to change this arid sandhill into "a spot of beauty second to none in the country."
In all the natural beauty of the gardens, Bok believed something was missing. Remembering the glorious sound of carillons in his native Holland, he decided to build a beautiful tower as the focal point of the Sanctuary which would be crowned by a large carillon.
Bok commissioned fellow Philadelphian, architect Milton B. Medary, to design and build the majestic carillon tower. Medary drew his main inspiration from the Gothic towers and churches of Europe, but wanted to adapt his design to the characteristics of the Florida landscape.
Lee Lawrie, a noted sculptor from New York, was engaged to design the elaborate marble sculpture that adorns the Tower. Although Medary's overall design is neo-Gothic in its conception, he, like Lawrie, was a man of the times. Thus, Lawrie incorporated art-deco influences into the sculptural decoration of the tower.
Construction of the Tower began in 1927 and was completed in time for the dedication on February 1, 1929.
oh. ive been there! i grew up in the tampa area and went with my parents to the bok tower gardens when i was 14. you captured it great, lovely clouds as well. i like how the trees frame it.
Beautifully composed shot - love the lines and perspective. You really show off the splendor of the architecture nicely. My only suggestion would be to burn the stone and windows a bit to bring down the brightness of the tower and deepen the tones. Otherwise, excellent!
EDIT: Oh yeah, and thanks for the history lesson! :-)
Good architectural shot. DOF is good and the color variations are excellent. My only comment to "better" this image is to locate the tower on the left third of the image. Use ROTs. The center composition doesn't always go well in photography. Some do but in terms of composition, using the ROTs will do you wonders. I would also clone out the extra foliage on the top right corner.It doesn't really add anything to the image. Keep it up.
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