The Wright Stuff
Frank Lloyd Wright was the most influential architect in American history. Tour some of his best designs—including his own home— in the Chicago area.
BY JOEL REESE
There wasn’t much of an American architectural style before Frank Lloyd Wright burst onto the scene in the late 1800s. Previously, most draft smen in the US had been slavishly following classical European ideas, which led to buildings featuring impressive—but, according to many, unnecessary—flourishes such as large columns and decorative friezes.
The Wisconsin-born Wright, arguably the most influential architect of the 20th century, changed that with elegantly designed buildings that blended into their surroundings. He was one of the first American architects to incorporate natural materials from the area to tie a structure to its place, and he used earth tones and horizontal lines when designing his Midwestern buildings to reflect the flatness of the land.
You can tour some of Wright’s most renowned works in Chicagoland (he moved to suburban Oak Park in 1889), including a Unitarian Universalist church that leaves visitors breathless, a house that exemplifies the best of Wright’s Prairie style, and the home/studio where Wright craft ed some of his most impressive buildings.
UNITY TEMPLE
Even to Wright aficionados, Unity Temple in west suburban Oak Park isn’t exactly stunning from the outside. Th e New York Times described the church’s boxy, steeple-less main building as a “great mass of concrete,” and the entrance is hidden beneath a mezzanine. Once inside, visitors have to take at least four 90-degree turns to enter the sanctuary.
But it’s clearly worth the effort to get inside: The sanctuary is nothing short of transcendent, says Jason Neises, vice president of tour operations and guest relations for the Chicago Architecture Foundation. “It’s this high-ceilinged, light-filled space that’s truly a revelation,” he says.
Neises notes that the building’s roof is composed primarily of large skylights, and the ceiling is mostly stained glass. “Because of all the natural light, it’s almost like it opens up to the sky,” he says.
DID YOU KNOW? The 1909 edifice was one of the first reinforced-concrete buildings in the United States. “It had been used in Europe and in the construction of factories here,” Neises says. “But to use reinforced concrete for a church? Unheard of.”
THE FREDERICK C. ROBIE HOUSE
Completed in 1910, the Robie House in Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood might be “the most mature example of Wright’s Prairie style in existence,” according to Neises. “Wright’s early work looked much more traditional,” he continues. “But it’s not until you see the Robie House that you say, ‘Ok, that’s really it.’”
Now owned by the University of Chicago, the house boasts the classic Prairie elements that revolutionized American architecture, which had previously adhered to stiff Greek and Roman styles. It features striking overhangs, a preponderance of wood and natural materials, wide vistas of stained-glass windows, and a sweeping open floor plan.
The house, which was constructed for bicycle magnate Frederick C. Robie, also reflects Wright’s interest in creating private, intimate environments for a family. “The home revolves around the hearth— all the rooms spin off of that,” Neises says.
DID YOU KNOW? The Robie House twice teetered on the edge of demolition, when the Chicago Theological Seminary planned on two occasions to raze the building and build a dorm. Both times, Wright campaigned on the structure’s behalf, the second time flying in from Arizona when he was 90 years old.
FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT’S HOME AND STUDIO
Wright’s home and studio in Oak Park is one of his most fascinating works because it illustrates the evolution of his style. Over the 20 years that Wright and his family lived here, he used the space as a laboratory to test new ideas.
The exterior is a Shingle Style building “that doesn’t seem out of place with the houses around it,” Neises says. But the interior— which was constantly changing—features several innovative ideas.
Most renowned is the children’s playroom, with a dramatic arched ceiling, a built-in piano for the young ones’ theatrical productions and a balcony that could seat about 20 people.
Then there is the studio, where Wright and his crew designed 125 buildings. This area is made up of an office, library, reception room and octagonal draft ing room that uses a chain-suspension system to support its balcony, roof and walls. “It looks very cool, but it also creates extra space, so it’s functional,” Neises says.
That combination of beauty and functionality seems obvious now, but it was revolutionary at the time, and it all began here.
DID YOU KNOW? At one point, Wright’s house was a rental complex, haphazardly divided into apartments. “It was just a place where a bunch of different guys were living,” Neises says.
The Chicago Architecture Foundation offers bus and walking tours. For more info, visit www.architecture.org or call 312-922-3432
STYLE SIGNATURES
How to spot a Frank Lloyd Wright design.
On the level
Many of Wright’s buildings, especially those built in the Prairie style, are designed to emphasize the horizontal. “Prairies are largely horizontal landscapes, punctuated by the occasional verticality of trees,” says Jason Neises, vice president of tour operations and guest relations for the Chicago Architecture Foundation. “He wanted his homes to have that same feeling.”
Blending in
Wright designed his buildings to meld with their natural environments, which affected everything from the building’s shape to the images he imbued into the famous art glass windows. “If there were a house near a wheat field, he’d work wheat into an abstract, geometrical form in the glass,” Neises says.
Shelter from the storm
Wright firmly believed his buildings should provide privacy for their inhabitants. To create that feeling of enclosure, most of his homes’ exterior spaces aren’t visible from the street. “And none of his Prairie-style homes allow you to walk from the street [directly] onto the porch; instead, there are usually twisting and turning paths and ramps that shield the entrance from the public,” Neises says.
BUILDING THE LEGACY
Check out these magnificent Frank Lloyd Wright structures in or near other AirTran Airways destinations.
Fallingwater One of the most famous homes in the world, Fallingwater is perched atop a waterfall in a southwestern Pennsylvania forest. In 1991, it was voted “the best all-time work of American architecture” by the American Institute of Architects. |
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Taliesin West Wright used stones and sand from the surrounding desert, which help this Scottsdale complex blend in with its environment. These buildings, set on 600 acres of desert, served as Wright’s winter home and now house a school for aspiring designers. |
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Guggenheim Museum The gorgeous spiral-shaped building allows visitors to view art while walking down a gently sloped circular path, creating a more cohesive museum than the standard setup of separate rooms. It is known as Wright’s swan song, since construction was completed months after his death in 1959. |
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To celebrate the Guggenheim’s 50th anniversary in 2009, Restoration Rocks—a special-edition jewelry line made with Gunite and concrete remnants from the museum set in resin and sterling silver—are being sold at the museum store and www.guggenheim.org.
AirTran Airways provides daily flights to Chicago. Visit www.airtran.com for more info.
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