What about artificial hedges, and globular pretend topiary atop unnecessarily tall gateposts of stone, concrete or pylon-like ironwork?
Take the road south-west out of the capital, Bangui, and keep driving until the tarmac runs out and the forest - giant pylon-like grey trees with broad green canopies - closes in on a lumpy dirt track.
Moreover, designer pylons, like designer anything, cost more.
But last winter brought something worse: ice that paralysed Quebec, twisted electricity pylons like wire coat-hangers and deprived 3m people of power, some of them for weeks.
Mr. Mayne of Morphosis opted for a lightweight concrete foundation anchored by two pylons, like a pier, which would buoy the house if floodwaters rise.
Our pylons, like our roads and railways, our canals and our shipyards, show our presence here; they form part of our history as much as our cathedrals and our stately homes.
But the city can work around these challenges by using different elements, from traditional riverside trails to floating segments, like the RiverRide concept, and decked trails on pylons, like the Riverview Bridge, which is being constructed next year.
Brian May stands, legs planted shoulder-width apart like a pylon, on the roof of Buckingham Palace.
The aircraft had two, three-bladed rotors, mounted in a side-by-side arrangement on wing-like pylons.
The suppression of aerodynamic response of square-section tall structures, like pylons of long-span bridges and very high buildings, is studied.
Designed by the Danish architecture and engineering firm Bystrup, the new pylon looks a bit like a ski lift mast adorned with two dangly diamond earrings, which hold three cables either side of the central pole.
