Wayne Harridge wrote:
>> It's a fascinating house - timeless design. It was built
>> between 1908
>> and 1910, yet it looks like it could have been built in 1978.
>> Very open
>> floor plan inside, and very pioneering.
>
> Thanks for the info Paul, I envy you being able to spend time there. I did
> check my book on FLW interiors and it has photographs of the living room and
> dining room, brilliant work. Mind you, the dining chairs don't look too
> comfortable !
>
....and they're not. The ones we have there right now are reproductions,
so I snuck a chance to sit in one one afternoon. You have to sit
really, really straight, and even then they're uncomfortable.
If there's a photo of the dining room table and chairs in place, you
have to think about them like this to understand:
The big table has what amounts to a lamppost at each corner. The diners
are seated at those high-backed chairs, all pulled up to the table, so
essentially each one has a wall behind him or her. The unit forms a box
or "dining room" within the space. Wright's concept was to focus your
attention on the people you're dining with, blocking out the
distractions of the servants around you.
From what I understand, we've got about 70% of the original furniture
still, most of it in storage at the University of Chicago's museum. I
believe the current plan is to repopulate the house with reproductions
and keep the originals in storage. As much as I'd like to see the
original stuff back in the house, it is very hard to control the
environment due to all the windows, plus we bring roughly 40,000 people
a year through there - on mis-step and someone trips and breaks a
priceless end table or chair. Too risky.
--
Paul Braun
Valparaiso, IN
"There's a fine line between stupid, and clever." - David St. Hubbins
"Enjoy every sandwich." - Warren Zevon
"The Fountain of Youth is a state of mind." - The Ides of March
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