Lake Land

Wizard of Oz set design by Cedric Gibbons, 1939

Pre-production concept sketch by Jack Martin Smith

Among the choices for in seat entertainment I instantly decide:  none of the tension filled ones, I’m tense enough flying, thank you, which left The Wizard of Oz, among other movies. It is unquestionably a great film due in no small part to the fabulous sets designed by Cedric Gibbons. The awesome parabolic hallway leading up to the Wizard’s chamber alone could have inspired the entire career of Santiago Calatrava. 

Santiago Calatrava interior at Florida Polytechnic University

Innovation, Science and Technology building by Calatrava as seen from 65 mph.

Little did I realize as I viewed the movie that the very next day I would casually glance out the window while speeding along the highway from Lakeland to Orlando and see Calatrava’s ISTC Building at Florida Polytechnic University. But I’m getting ahead of myself because the point of the trip to Lakeland is total immersion in Frank Lloyd Wright at Florida Southern University where they proudly tell you, here is the largest collection of FLW’s buildings on earth.

A shot taken in the gift shop and a magazine facsimile in the Usonian House.

The carport, a concept that originated with Wright.

Center left is the unassuming entrance.

Not to be overwhelmed we will begin the tour with Wright’s modestly sized Usonian House, a full scale model of what was intended to be housing, (twenty or so),  for faculty at the college to be built on the perimeter of the campus. The contemporary administration at FSU discovered plans for the Usonian House six years ago and had it constructed three years ago. 

The fountain divides the house from the reception/shop building

Usonian, front

The house in the distance shows the extreme contrast between what FLW was doing and his contemporaries.

Why were they not built in 1939 when Wright’s designs for other campus buildings were erected? The answer to that is lost in time though undoubtedly money was a key factor. In fact the Usonian House was meant to be affordable, the everyman house, but probably owing to the fact that FLW insisted on a high level of craftsmanship this concept never panned out and the stripped down ubiquitous American ranch house took its place.

Typical of FLW is this tight hallway entrance  that opens to a spacious great room.

To relieve the somewhat claustrophobic passageway there are stained glass inserts and this sculptural light at the end.

At the end of the hall you turn the corner and in this spacious airy room.

The view from the opposite corner. The entrance hall is behind the textile blocks.

Today there are a number of Usonian houses scattered around the country. I first learned of them when I lived in the Bay Area and visited the Marin Civic Center to see a Usonian built as part of the exhibition, Frank Lloyd Wright: In The Realm of Ideas February 16 - May 13, 1990. And there is one here in L.A. which has recently come on the real estate market. Actually it’s going up for auction 2/21/16 with estimates $2.5 - $3 (million, don’t you know).  It’s known as the George Sturgess House but was owned for years until his death in 2015 by Jack Larson, an actor best known for playing Jimmy Olsen in the Superman TV series. I was kind of shocked by his death, actually, because I used to see him at art openings and he looked the picture of health.

The light sculpture as seen from the great room.

The sitting area on the left is essentially the living room.

The dining area with the kitchen in a small alcove unseen to the left.

A fireplace was essential to Wright.

The tour of the Usonian House at FSU consisted of three, me and my parents. The tour guide was informative, friendly, brief, and at the end of the tour she left us alone to watch a video and spend as much time in the house after that as we wished. What other FLW building gives you that kind of freedom? My guess is none. Similarly the buildings on the campus are mostly open and one is free to walk around at leisure. It’s an amazing opportunity for an aficionado of Wright. Amazing. You’re welcome and thank you!

(Next post: more pix including some of the 1939 campus buildings)

Have we Met?

How tiresome! The front stairs are all closed off and the fifth avenue facade looks like a construction zone with tent poles. Must be some stuffy little socialite affair. Actually, turns out it was a set-up for the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art 2015 Gala , ho hum. No, I was not invited.  And I hadn’t planned another trip to see still more FLW ,(please see last blog post),but, oh well, since I’m in might as well. BTW I’m about half way through Frank Lloyd Wright: a biography by Meryle Secrest. Read about the axe murders and fire just before going to sleep last night. Actually, no, I didn’t sleep, well hardly.

So let us get into some really dreamy imagery. That would include most everything in the Sultans of India, 1500-1700 Opulence and Fantasy. Although, does shooting a disembodied head with a bow arrow count as a dream? Whatever, I couldn’t help staring at this odd little cosmos. Then I’ll take you over to the other end of the building, the American wing, for some Louis Sullivan and his offspring FLW. Let’s stop in a wee cozy gallery to see a charming collection of Robert Motherwell prints and circle back around to gaze upon an awesome Japanese room and end up contemplating Cleopatra’s Needle in the springtime. Done and done.

Detail of Sullivan staircase. Gorgeous, no?

Comfy. I think I could be very happy here.

Is there anything more beautiful in the whole museum than this?

Oh, there’s more of course. I went to the Met two days in a row, filled up a memory card, but that wasn’t even the reason for my trip. It was spring. Isn’t that enough of a reason? No? I’m teasing. Actually the point was nutmeg, I mean the Nutmeg State.

Motherwell, champion of the Abstract Expressionist.

A long way form Egypt.

Springtime in New York. Someone should write a song about it.

We’ll get there. We’ll get there.

Wright This Way

Drove to Chicago, all things know, all things know.

But wait. Let’s back up. We’ll start in Los Angeles at Barnsdall Park where the recently renovated Hollyhock House pulled an all-nighter free-for-all; literally, it was open all night and free to get in.  I couldn't resist that plus there’s been a lot of anticipation because the place has been closed for years. It’s Frank Lloyd Wright in his Mayan revival, although, I think that’s a bit superficial. I mean, definitely, you can see the Mayan Temple on the outside but I think the genius of Wright is on the inside.  The interior volumes are thrilling. Maybe that’s just me but I find really thoughtful architecture thrilling. That quality does not translate into photos, I don’t think, but anyway, here you are:

You're welcome!

This is the west facade and those are the living room windows.

This court yard is 180° from the above. 

Inside, at last. The living room with a view of the city on one side and courtyard on the other.

Night view of the courtyard and the eponymous hollyhocks.

Closer and closest.

Dining room and kitchen beyond.

Little did I know, because it wasn't planned at the time, but a short while after seeing Hollyhock House I would see where it all began for Wright in Oak Park, IL.  And just like Sufjan Stevens I really did drive to Chicago (from South Bend, Indiana –a story for another post).  I love to visit Chicago but always in the past have stayed close to The Loop, which is all I knew until now. Of course I knew about Oak Park but thought, oh that’s so far away. It’s really not, although when Wright first moved there all his windows facing north looked to open prairie. That’s hard to picture today. What you can see in his home and his studio is a relentlessly creative mind germinating one idea after another and it continues around the corner and down the street. 

A shot only possible in the winter, though winter is long in Oak Park.

Front and side of FLW Oak Park. The side view highlights the evolution of his thinking and  expanded practice.

Here's the master bedroom and flanking murals. No doubt the Native Am. figures were inspired by the prairie view.

The playroom from both sides. Wouldn't you love to?

Detail of the playroom mural.

I know the broad strokes of Wright’s life but seeing so much of his work all at once really whetted my appetite for more. Actually my interest goes back to my teenage years since I considered the possibility of enrolling at Taliesin. I wish I still had the application materials. My recollection is that the packet was beautifully designed and printed on fine stock. I was a little shocked and intrigued by some of the requirements. There were specific instructions about what to bring to wear, how to dress for dinner, and there was the requirement that each student design and build his own habitation. Actually, I saw some of those little “forts” scattered about the property at Taliesin West in Scottsdale when I visited years ago. 

The studio with it's low overhead drawing boards and soaring central atrium.

The walking tour just around the corner.

Long story short I became a painter rather than an architect but as readers of this blog know I have often combined my painting with architecture. It was gratifying to hear from the tour guide at the Wright home that FLW really preferred art be a part of the architecture rather than a framed pictures hung on the wall. I think architects who feel that way may be as rare as Wright. I don’t understand that but I think that’s pretty true. What do you think?