FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT

His philosophy

Experimenting with forms and

materials, frank lloyd wright developed
a distinctly American form of
architecture.

The forward-thinking wright began his

career in oak park, Illinois, and came to
be recognized as one of the greatest
architects of the twentieth century.

Every structure he created was

informed by his belief that beautifully
designed buildings make a difference
in our lives.
Frank Lloyd Wright introduced the word organic into his philosophy of architecture as early
as 1908. It was an extension of the teachings of his mentor Louis Sullivan whose slogan
form follows function became the mantra of modern architecture. Wright changed this
phrase to form and function are one, using nature as the best example of this integration.
Although the word organic in common usage refers to something which has the
characteristics of animals or plants, Frank Lloyd Wrights organic architecture takes on a new
meaning. It is not a style of imitation, because he did not claim to be building forms which
were representative of nature.
Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

OAK PARK, Illionois

Wrights first independently-built project was his own house called the Winslow house,
which he began in 1893.
The house was completed within a year, but Wright continued to expand and rework the
house over the next eight years.

In 1894, the Winslow house was a marked departure from the traditional homes in
the Oak Park. The walls, made from Roman brick covered the first level. The second story
is covered in terra cotta. The masonry elements are in the style of Louis Sullivan. The
broad-eaved hip roof projects out over the second story windows. The chimney is long
and low.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

In 1895, Wright added the two story polygonal Bay

on the south side in the first floor of this Bay Wright
built his inspired Dining Room, with the spectacular
dining Table & Chairs that perfectly express the
spirit of the room, and of his style.
Wright also added a two story extension
to the east side of the house whose
upstairs is the celebrated Children's
Playroom.

This room receives light from rows of art glass

windows along both the north and south
walls, and from the overhead skylight,
creating an etherial effect.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

Features of prairie houses

Low-pitched roof
Overhanging eaves
Horizontal lines

Central chimney
Open floor plan
Rows of small windows
One-story projections

Houses were characterised by low horizontal lines and open

interior spaces.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

Prairie house

Between 1889 and 1909, Wright was formulating his

ideas about a truly American style of architecture ,
now called the Prairie style.

It was based on the idea that the design of a

building should appear to grow from its site and
open up a new world to those who live in it

Primarily used in suburban houses, the Prairie

vocabulary challenged the rigid demarcation of
rooms by eliminating wall partitions to let the living
spaces flow together seamlessly.

Wright acclaimed "the new reality that is space

instead of matter" and, about architectural interiors,
said that the "reality of a building is not the container
but the space within."

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

The main aims of this new style

1. To reduce the necessary parts of the house
and the separate rooms to a minimum and
make all come together as an enclosed
space.
2. To associate the whole building as a whole
with its site by extension and emphasis of
planes parallel to the ground.
3. To eliminate the room as a box and the house as another.
4. The building materials were limited to those found
in the immediate area; brick, if the earth yielded clay
stone, if the ground was rocky and natural, not painted
wood, from nearby trees.
5. These elements, used logically, became one definition of his
new concept, 'Organic Architecture.'

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

Ward w. Willits house

The Willits House is the first house in true Prairie The ground floor plan of the Willits
House. Entrance-stair hall, living room,
style and marks the full development of Wright's
dining room and kitchen rotate around
wood frame and stucco system of construction.
the central fireplace.
Cruciform plan with the interior space flowing
around a central chimney core and extending
In addition to artoutward onto covered verandas and open
glass windows and
terraces.
wooden screens
that divide rooms,
The Willits House was seen as an entertainment
Wright also
style home. The use of the Romanesque archway
designed most of
in the entrance, an emphasis on horizontals as
the furniture in the
seen in the low roofs of the dining room wing and
house.
porte cochere
Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

 The dining room has a prow shaped

end bay and another prow shaped
projection, the reception room has
a similar prow shaped bay, the art
glass light over the entry stairway is
rotated 45 degrees, emphasizing
the diagonal.
The second floor of the house originally contained 5 bedrooms
and a library over the south entrance.
Instead of continuing the west bedroom (directly over the
living room) the full width of the wing, Wright left space for
second floor planters.
The resulting space
between the massive
corner piers and the roof
further emphasizes the
wide, overhanging roof.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

UNITY TEMPLE
Unity Temple represents an extension of the
theme Wright began at the Larkin Buildinga
top-lit interior space surrounded by galleries or
balconiesand one that he would use
repeatedly throughout his career

The luminous experience of the interior is

magnified by its contrast with the exteriors
visual weight.

Wright made to show that modernism

particularly his own kind of modernism was
capable of creating that same sense of civic
dignity and communal ease and comfort
together, and uplift as well.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

 This design was one of Wright's first uses

of a bipartite design: with two portions of
the building similar in composition and
separated by a lower passageway, and one
section being larger than the other.
Unity Temple consists of two elements : the
larger church is joined to a parish house
and school by a one-story entry vestibule.
The cubic, flat-roofed structure is also one
of the earliest public buildings to feature
exposed concrete
To reduce noise from the street, Wright
eliminated street level windows in the
temple.
Instead, natural light comes from stained
glass windows in the roof
and clerestories along the upper walls.
Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

ROBIE HOUSE, CHICAGO

1906-1907
This building is the most mature expression of
the Prairie Style of architecture.
The low, horizontal form is exaggerated with the
use of ribbons of cream stone for the base
plinth and copingstones and red brick for the
walls.
Using brick, concrete, steel and glass, Wright
constructed a 110 f00t long cantilever on the
west side of the house that gave the living room
privacy and shelter from the sun.
The use of massive planters and urns softened
the hard edges of the building and at each level .

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

 The home consists of two long and narrow vessels, each one set on top and slightly
off-centre of the other.
The ground consists of a billiard room,
playroom, and service areas.

The first floor contains the formal areas,

including the living and dining rooms
which stretch in opposite directions from
a central fireplace.
The second floor contains the private
family spaces: three bedrooms
surrounding a central hall.
The first floor features a long balcony
that stretches nearly the entire length of
the home.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

JAPANESE INFLUENCE
Wright favored natural, local
materials, warm earth tones, human
scale and integration of interior and
exterior, all of which fit with
Japanese tradition.
Even his fascination with geometric
shapes is in keeping with the
rectangular straw tatami mat, the
base of Japan's traditional
architecture.
Japanese prints had exerted an
important influence on him.
Open plan, long low Windows
allowing a connection between the
interior and nature, outside, the
influence of Japanese architecture
on Wright .

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

THE AMERICAN SYSTEM-BUILT HOMES

The American System-Built Homes were modest houses designed by architect
Frank Lloyd Wright.

They were developed between 1912 and 1916, to fulfil his interest in affordable
housing. Wright was devoted to the idea of providing beautiful yet affordable homes
to the public.

The designs were standardized, and customers could choose from seven models.
Because of this standardization, the
lumber could be pre-cut at the factory,
thereby cutting down on both waste,
and the amount of skilled labour
needed for their construction.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

AMERICAN SYSTEM-BUILT HOUSES, CHICAGO

Both the Smith and Hyde Houses are two story, single-family units.

Guy C. Smith House

Frank lloyd wright

H. Howard Hyde House

History of architecture

FALLING WATER HOUSE

FALLING WATER HOUSE or Kaufmann

Residence is a house designed by Frank Lloyd
Wright in 1935 in Pennsylvania. Construction
began in 1936, and ended with the completion
of the guest house in 1939.

Just like in Japanese architecture, Wright

wanted to create harmony between man and
nature, and his integration of the house with
the waterfall was successful in doing so.

The building grows from inwards to outwards

and spreads according to the needs of the
residents.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

 Wright revolved the design of the house around the fireplace, which he considered to
be the gathering place for the family.

Here a rock cuts into the fireplace, physically bringing in the waterfall into the house
The circulation through the house consists of dark,
narrow passageways, intended this way so that
people experience a feeling of compression when
compared to that of expansion, the closer they get to
the outdoors.
The ceilings of the rooms are low, reaching only up to
64 in some places, in order to direct the eye
horizontally to look outside.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

 The house contains simple rooms furnished by Wright himself, with an open living
room and compact kitchen on the first floor, and three small bedrooms located on the
second floor. The third floor was the location of the study and another bedroom.

The living room has steps that lead directly into the water below.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

 The land on which the house is located has plenty of rocks at ground level, which
served as the foundation of the building.
Wright used concrete and stone in the structure of Falling water, level by level, as the
house was built.
ENTRY AND
MAIN FLOOR

MAIN FLOOR
STRUCTURE

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

 Shooting out at a series of right angles, the terraces add an element of sculpture to
the houses aside from their function.

SECOND FLOOR

SECOND FLOOR
STRUCTURE

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

EAST ELEVATION
The composition of Falling Water House is
horizontal, although somewhat complex.

SOUTH ELEVATION

The vertical axis is defined by the chimney that stands out above the deck.
Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

USONIAN HOUSE
Wright had long been interested in designing affordable homes on a massive scale
for the American middle class. He was also interested in urban planning.

In 1936, when the United States was in the depths of an economic depression, Wright
developed a series of homes he called Usonian.
Designed to control costs, Usonian houses had no attics, no basements, and little
ornamentation.
Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

 Usonian architecture grew out of Wright's earlier Praire style homes.

Both styles featured
1.Low roofs
2.Open living areas.
3.Both styles made abundant use of brick, wood, and other natural material.
However, Wright's Usonian homes were small, one-story structures set on concrete
slabs with piping for radiant heat beneath. The kitchens were incorporated into the
living areas. Open car ports took the place of garages.
Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

Usonian Housing Plans

Solar Hemicycle Usonian Homes are intentionally
oriented and shaped in a manner that maximizes
the sun's exposure.

Hanna Honeycomb house

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

TALIESIN
Taliesin West was architect Frank Lloyd Wright s winter home and school in the
desert, 1937 onwards. Today it is the main campus of the Frank Lloyd Wright School
of Architecture and houses the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation.
Open to the public for tours, Taliesin West is located on Frank Lloyd Wright
Boulevard in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA. The complex drew its name from Wright's
summer home, Taliesin, in Spring Green, Wisconsin.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

DESIGN
The structure's walls are made of local desert rocks, stacked within wood forms,
filled with concrete.
The flat surfaces of the rocks were placed outward facing and large boulders
filled the interior space so concrete could be conserved.
Natural light also played a major part in the design. In the drafting room, Wright
used translucent canvas to act as a roof (later replaced by plastic because of the
intense wear from the Arizona sun).
In the south-facing dining room, Wright did not take the masonry walls from floor
to ceiling, and designed the roof to hangover passed the walls preventing
unwanted sun rays from penetrating but allowing for horizontal light to pass
through the room.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

DESIGN
He constantly changed and improved on
his design fixing arising problems and
addressing new situations.
Throughout the years he added an
addition to the dining room, the cabaret
theatre, music pavilion and numerous
other rooms.
All of the furniture and decorations were
designed by Wright and the majority built
by apprentices.
One of the most brilliant aspects of this
design is the cabaret theatre. Built with
six sides, out of the standard rock,
concrete mixture, in an irregularly
hexagonal shape, the theatre provides
its occupants with 95 percent acoustic
perfection. One sitting in the back row
can hear the lightest whisper from a
speaker on stage.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM
The Guggenheim Museum in New York City is
among the most popular museums in the city and
is globally recognized.
From the street, the building looks like a white
ribbon curled into a cylindrical stack, slightly
wider at the top than the bottom. Its appearance
is in sharp contrast to the more typically boxy
Manhattan buildings that surround it.
Internally, the viewing gallery forms a gentle
helical spiral from the main level up to the top of
the building. Paintings are displayed along the
walls of the spiral and also in exhibition space
found at annex levels along the way.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

CIRCULATION
The inside space is a continual upwards movement using a six-floor spiral with
galleries which spread out from the first ramp indicated by a large water fountain in
the central room on the ground floor.

The continual spiral movement implies a

more intimately natural adhesion
between the creator and the exposed
work of art encountered along the path.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

 No precise distinction exists between the upward and downward slopes and it is
possible to have different perceptions of the surrounding space at all levels which
increases or decreases according to a balance between an expansion or contraction
of the events.
At the different levels the various sectors of the exhibition are divided by separating
elements which receive external light from a continual series of glass window slits, the
main font of illumination.

Frank lloyd wright

History of architecture

MADE BY :
RASHIKA DHILLON
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MANAS ARORA
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ISHITA ARORA
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