Midway Gardens

Although it is not possible to visit the Midway Gardens since the building was demolished in 1929, theMetropolitan Museum in New York has one of the "sprite" sculptures by Alfonso Ianelli (see Storrer) on display. The building was intended to provide a haven from the city and had facilities for hosting both summer and winter parties. The Masterworks book has a nice two page write-up on it and it is referred to in Frank Lloyd Wright's Autobiography.

From a casual look at the drawings, Midway Gardens bears some resemblance to the Imperial Hotel, which was built not long after it in 1915.

There is a reproduction of this sprite available from the Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust.

Avery Coonley Residence

The Metropolitan Museum in New York has three windows from the Coonley Playhouse. As stated by Thomas A. Heinz in his Frank Lloyd Wright: Glass Art book: "The playful, random quality of the positions of the lines and flashed glass is among the finest examples of abstract art by any artist."

Unfortunately, I only had a low-resolution digital camera with me and flash was not permitted in the museum. I'm taking a photography course and am planning to upgrade to a better camera soon....

The museum also has an exhibit of the living room from the Francis W. Little Residence.

Imperial Hotel

Alas, it is not possible to visit the Imperial Hotel since it was demolished in 1968. Frank Lloyd Wright was an admirer and collector of Japanese art, so it is especially a shame that his most significant work in Japan no longer exists. Although the text is Japanese, you can see a photograph (#67) of the reconstructed entrance to the Imperial Hotel at the Meiji-mura Museum web site. According to Storrer the lobby was reconstructed as well. 

I was surprised to see one of the stone urns from the Imperial Hotel on a visit to the Metropolitan Museum in New York. The piece was very pitted, possibly because it was made from Oya stone, the soft lava block used in the construction of the hotel. This photograph of the urn was taken with a low-end digital camera. No flash is allowed in the Metropolitan Museum. 

The bookstore at Taliesin East has a couple of posters of the Imperial Hotel for sale. I have one framed and hanging in my office with a Cherokee red frame. 

It must have been a magnificent building in its day. The book Frank Lloyd Wright's Imperial Hotel has many black-and-white photographs and some interesting commentary. 

Drawing of Imperial Hotel (poster)

The official Fallingwater website has pillows designed for the Imperial Hotel for sale in the Museum Shop.

Francis W. Little Residence II, Living Room

Living room reconstructed, 1972 - Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY

I was in New York for a business meeting and afterwards managed to slip in a quick visit theMetropolitan Museum to view the living room of the Little Residence. The reconstruction was done with one of the walls facing an exterior wall of the museum so the room was mostly illuminated with natural light. I was struck by how peaceful the space was when I entered the room.

Being somewhat familiar with his work now I was able to pick out traits that are common to many of his designs. Horizontal lines are evident throughout. Indirect lighting is used extensively. The brickwork has the vertical gaps filled in so that the horizontal is emphasized. I had thought this was a technique used later in his Usonian houses, but evidently this was used earlier in his Prairie houses. The exterior of the living room was reconstructed in the museum as well so the overhang that brings the exterior into the house prior to actually entering the house could be experienced. This reminded me of the transition from the entryway to the living room in the Pope-Leighey Residence.

There are a few additional Wright artifacts at the museum including items from the Imperial Hotel, theCoonley Residence, and Midway Gardens. I did not have much time to shop in the gift shop, but my inquiry about Wright-related items drew a blank. If you are visiting do your research up front concerning any souvenirs you might want. They can probably be ordered by phone or from their web site anyway.

The photos are very poor since I only had a low-end digital camera with me and flash photography is not allowed in the museum. Notice that the original furniture and fixtures were included in the room.

Overall a great "Wright experience" — if you are in the area don't miss it!

Roland and Ronny Reisley Residence

This was one of three Wright houses in the Usonian neighborhood. For more information see the Sol Friedman Residence and the Edward Serlin Residence. The road was very confusing and the map provided in The Frank Lloyd Wright Companion did not seem right. I thought it might be the mirror image since the roads seemed backwards.

Unfortunately, I was not able to find the third Wright house, but I did take some pictures of the other Usonian houses and grouped them on the Edward Serlin Residence page.

Edward Serlin Residence

I was not able to identify the Edward Serlin Residence! It is possible that it was located on a road that was marked private and warned of tripping a police alarm. Instead I have included on this page some photos taken of other Usonian style houses in the neighborhood designed by Wright apprentices. According to Storrer, the apprentices David Henken, Ted Bower, Kaneji Domoto, and disciple Aaron Resnick all designed houses in the neighborhood. For other Wright houses see the Sol Friedman Residence and the Roland and Ronny Reisley Residence. The next time we are up in the area I may try again to find the house.

Sol Friedman Residence

It turns out that Samantha's aunt and uncle live just a few minutes from a Usonian community in Pleasantville. There are three Wright houses plus about 40 homes designed by Wright apprentices in the neighborhood. As you would expect, it is heavily wooded and the road was narrow. When I left this community and drove into an adjoining suburban neighborhood the houses appeared lifeless and without character. I suppose we can't all afford to live in a custom designed home that relates to its site well, but we're missing a lot.

When I view these private houses it makes me wish that all Wright homes were open to the public, though I'm careful not to infringe on the homeowner's privacy. Wright homeowners must get more than their share of gawkers.

There are some pictures of the interior in The Frank Lloyd Wright Companion.

Not your everyday carport....

For other sites in the neighborhood see the Roland and Ronny Reisley Residence and the Edward Serlin Residence.

Stafford Farms Shell Station

This is a gas station that we stopped at in Virginia. It was inspired by Fallingwater. Nothing too exciting, but it does stand out as being more interesting than your average gas station. The gas seemed to work well enough. One of the attendants knew that it was inspired by Wright and that it had some publicity on the web. Evidently it used to be a Mobil station, but it is now a Shell station.

Luis Marden Residence

This house is a private residence and is not open to the public. It is located in a wooded area that evidently overlooks the Potomac river. The driveway is not well marked, and I did not want to disturb the owners, but I did take two pictures from the driveway. 

No carports, but full garages. I don't know if they were part of the original house.

In July of 2000 I was contacted by someone (who preferred to remain anonymous) about their experience at the Marden Residence. Here are the excerpts from their e-mail to me:

It is no wonder to me that FLW wanted the Marden sight for his son. Who wouldn't???? <s> The river at that point is flowing rather rapidly over large boulders. Always wanted to go to the opposite bank to have a look but could never figure a way to get there...not being "into" white water rafting.

 

Gads, David, as to using my observations, it has been over THIRTY years since I was there and they are few and of little value to anyone. You may tell what I have said, but I would rather you not use my name.

 

The most striking thing to me in the interior was the fact that some of the walls did not go to the ceiling. Not being schooled in architecture, I found that extremely unusual. Also the huge expanse of windows on the front. Of course, the walls that display the beautiful paintings were also unusual, I thought.

 

This was a dinner for only the Mardens, my roommate from Germany who they sponsored for entry to the U.S. and myself. It was very nice and the first time I had salad as a last course. <s> Was very young and naive.

 

We did not see any more of the exterior than you have in the color photos you took. If I knew then what I know now, you can bet I would have seen more of it and paid MUCH more attention. Unfortunately, when you are 19, many things escape you. At the time of my visit, I was totally unfamiliar with FLW's work.

 

In my heart though, the house left such a lasting impression. A warm feeling like you would give anything to spend more time with it and really get to know it. Make any sense? Probably not. <s>

I appreciate receiving first-hand accounts of encounters with Wright architecture. If you are interested in having your comments published, either credited or anonymously, please contact me. 

The entryway to the house. I don't know the significance of the boulder.
I'd guess it is part of the original site.

Pope-Leighey Residence

The Pope-Leighey house is located on the grounds of the Woodlawn Plantation just south of Arlington, Virginia. The entrance to the plantation is easy to miss and there was a lot of traffic on U.S. Route 1 on the Saturday we visited the house. Laurene, Samantha and I were on our way to meet other family at Williamsburg for vacation, and I twisted their arms to visit this Usonian house that I had heard about from Thom Holmes. He and Shaina had visited the house a few weeks earlier and said their visit was very worthwhile. Our visit certainly was too. Touring the house gave me the first clear feeling I had of Wright's mastery of space. I'm sure I will notice it more the next time I visit Fallingwater too. Our guide Christopher was very knowledgeable.

Samantha was not the most patient, but Laurene was more interested than I thought she would be. Of course she likes to house shop. Maybe if we win the lottery some day we'll own a Frank Lloyd Wright house.....

This Usonian house cost $7,000 when it was built by a master craftsman in 1939.

The house was relocated two times to its current location.

It has forced air vents added in the floors for air conditioning, but otherwise it seemed to be a faithful restoration.

The entryway is located on the left side under an overhang. The lowered roof brings you into the interior space while you are still outside the house.

Photograph courtesy Shaina Holmes.

Looking towards the entryway from the living room.
Notice the box lighting which was made very simply.
Cyprus wood was used throughout the house.

Photograph courtesy of Shaina Holmes.

Looking from the entryway side of the living room. The sunroom is on the right.
This room feels very large, especially after having come from the relatively compressed space in the hall and entryway.

Photograph courtesy of Shaina Holmes.

A corner desk in one of the two bedrooms.
There was also a study/den so it might be considered a small three-bedroom house.
There are only 1,200 square feet in the house.

Photograph courtesy of Thom Holmes.

Plywood was used extensively. It was a relatively new construction material when the house was built.

The cutouts that were used throughout the house like a border were a substitute for the stained glass that Wright used in more expensive houses. Our tour guide told us that each Usonian house has a different pattern.

Copper tubing was used to frame the screened sunroom.

The bedroom wing is on the right and the living room is on the left.

Photograph courtesy of Shaina Holmes.

The house was relocated from its original site, and then relocated again, but only a short distance.

The official site for the Pope-Leighey House can be found at the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Guggenheim Museum

While in NYC on other business I managed to slip in a quick visit to the Guggenheim Museum. Unfortunately none of the inside pictures turned out. The simple 320x240 digital camera is not good for low light situations.

The walk down the spiral was inspiring. The building is not as large as I thought it would be on the outside, but it seemed much larger on the inside.

The FLLW initials plaque was hard to get to so the photograph is only so-so.

Guggenheim Museum Web Site