Stair railings

There are hundreds, and even thousands of ways to start a stair, develop a middle with a landing, and end the ascension with a ending that establishes a conclusion. The following photographic images are a sample of the numerous encounters I have had with stairs and staircases. While codes do need to be respected—and I realize that every country has their own, Europe perhaps more generous than those in the United States per my observations—I invite the viewers to establish criteria to develop their own language of observing.

For me, how does the first step engage the stair and/or the floor; does it invite ascension (retrospectively the ending of one’s descent), what materials is it made of, how does the railing establish continuity with the stair, or simply proposed another logic.

What about the elements that make the balustrade. Transparency, opaqueness

Finally, some stairs simply stand out and I have embarked on writing blogs on them. The list is endless. Meanwhile, I invite you to read about some of my favorites that I have encountered during my travels.