Book Description

"Each material has its own message …" — Frank Lloyd Wright, Architectural Record, (April/1928), copyright 1975 by McGraw-Hill, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduced with the permission of the publisher. "Bring out the nature of the materials, let their nature intimately into your scheme." — Frank Lloyd Wright, Architectural Record, (March, 1908), copyright 1975 by McGraw-Hill, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduced with the permission of the publisher. "Form and function thus become one in design and execution if the nature of materials and method and purpose are all in unison." — Frank Lloyd Wright, An Authobiography. 1932. Revised, 1943. New York: Duell, Sloan and Pearce. Copyright by the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. Courtesy The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Good
It was pretty good alright but I liked the Construction book better. I guess Ijust didn't really get all the technicaljuxtaposing going on. ... Read more

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Architecture Australia, published by Architecture Media on November 1, 2003. The length of the article is 763 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: The Historic Houses Trust has bought a copy of Frank Lloyd Wright's Wasmuth portfolio, given by Wright to Australian Captain George Taylor.(New South Wales)
Publication: Architecture Australia (Magazine/Journal)
Date: November 1, 2003
Publisher: Architecture Media
Volume: 92Issue: 6Page: 16(2)

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more

Book Description

The story—personal and professional—of one of the greatest architects who ever lived is here told by the man whom Frank Lloyd Wright once introduced as "Grant Manson, who knows more about me than I do." This volume takes the reader up to 1910, a turning point in Wright’s life as an architect and as an individual. Wright’s accomplishment by 1910 was considerable; he had already enjoyed what to many people would have been a full career. Most outstanding perhaps was his conception and evolution of the Prairie House, an expression of organic architecture that was the result of many factors: Wright’s resourceful Welsh forebears, his Midwest background, his experience with Lyman Silsbee and Louis Sullivan, his interest in Japanese art, and especially his native genius. During the same period Wright also set many precedents for nonresidential architecture, including Unity Church and the Larkin Building. These buildings—residential and nonresidential—plus the unexecuted projects shown add up to a new understanding of Wright’s mentality. Grant Carpenter Manson first met Mr. Wright in 1939 while preparing his Harvard doctoral thesis, but his influence reaches back to Mr. Manson’s childhood. He fell in love with the Husser House at the age of six and has been faithful ever since. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Seminal work on Wright
This book is truly one of the first significant books on Wright. Some of Manson's conclusions have since been proven wrong since publication, but every author who has written about this period has to have addressed Manson's work.

An essential part of any FLW book collection. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

What A Story!
This book recounts, in meticulous and fascinating detail, the inside, untold story of the famous architect, and the not-yet-famous educators who dreamed of a home of their own that would grow with and around their young family. A wonderful read, full of personalities and the unexpected challenges of this daring young couple's audacious undertaking of building an "outside the box" home in the 1930s. Hanna Honeycomb house underwent careful reinforcement after it was severely damaged in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, and is once again available for docent tours. Contact Stanford University, where the home, long ago called "a monstrosity" by other faculty, remains a viable part of the education institution that sustained and grew the young homeowners and their infamous architect. The ashes of the writers, Jean and Paul Hanna, remain lovingly buried on the property, near the home they dreamed, built, adored, and shared with the world. ... Read more

Book Description

Former pupil’s intimate, original appraisal, focusing on the evolution and meaning of Wright’s work. Problems and disasters followed by periods of great creativity in which he reinvented his art. Over 200 black-and-white illustrations, including many from Taliesin archives never before published. Bibliography. Complete list of buildings and projects.
... Read more

Reviews (1)

Wright Design
A good, revelatory, and brief book, but not as your First Book of Wright. Hoppen focuses on architecture with very little mention of the allied arts (glass, furniture, etc.) for which Wright was also famous. It is the only book organized by the geometric primes or principles at play in Wright's buildings. Although based on a chronological, sequential insight into Wright's development that Englishman Hoppen had while one of Wright's last apprentice-students, the text consists of short vignettes that actually skip back and forth in a way that could confuse (contrast "Years with Frank Lloyd Wright" by another disciple, Edward Tafel). This book might better be called The Seven Principles..., since Hoppen shows that each "Age" (roughly a decade) is aligned with a design principle and each of those has earlier antecedents, extending and layering onto earlier aspects of Wright's work.

The good side of his serendipity is that Hoppen can trace lines of development or renewed inspiration stemming from far earlier projects Wright once drafted. It is written as a paean to human creativity. Hoppen presents many revealing episodes in Wright's life and relates them to his bursts of creativity and innovation. While they ring true, most episodes are unattributed. A tall but thin book with generous margins filled with black-and-white illustrations. Plans are often too small for legibility. ... Read more

Book Description

This is a state-by-state guide to all the homes and buildings designed by probably the 20th century's most prolific and influential architect.Also includes an informative introduction, a section on Wright's interior designs, a list of demolished buildings, and a chronology.Illustrated with over 300 full-color photographs. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

ERRORS IN LISTING
Please note that the Amazon description and the reader reviews refer to DIFFERENT books than that shown in the listing

Too difficult for young readers
Ju st a note - Some of the reviews listed herefor Rubin's book seem to be for another author-Thomas Heinz.
I found that Rubin's book was much too difficult reading for young adults, with too much crammed in as far as space and text.

stone, brick, wood, and 100% genius
This marvelous book is in 3 languages, English, German and French, in tandem, on each page. Printed on thick, glossy stock by Taschen, it is well written by Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer in a clear and graceful style, and expertly edited by Peter Gossel and Gabriele Leuthauser. The contents are as follows:
Part One: "Essay"; this is the section where most of the text is, and consists of these topics: Background, The Prairie Houses, The Space Within, Materials, Nature, The Flow of the Work, and Human Values.
Part Two is "Selected Buildings and Projects".
The final pages are devoted to a chronological biography and list of executed works.

Mr. Pfeiffer writes that "His eloquence in the manner in which he wrote and spoke of nature is surpassed only by the buildings he set on the earth" (pg. 28). The way his work is an integral part of its surroundings is pure genius. The photograph on page 118 of the famous Fallingwater House, with the waterfall seeming to come from the structure is a perfect example of this.
The architect is quoted as saying "Nature is all the body of God we will ever know" (pg.26), and his creations reflect this reverence for the landscape.

Part Two is profusely illustrated in black and white and color, with only explanatory text. As magnificent as these photographs are, what I find the most thrilling are the drawings. They are reproduced in color, many are yellowed, torn and with little adhesive tape marks, but are of astounding beauty, and a glimpse into the mind of this unique and brilliant man.

Mr. Pfeiffer became Frank Lloyd Wright's student in the Taliesin Fellowship, and is the director of the Frank Lloyd Wright Archives in Scottsdale, Arizona. This is one of numerous books he has written on Wright's life and work, and it is a fitting tribute to one of America's creative giants.

Incorrect review
The reviewer from Chicago has mistaken this book for another one.The author of this book is not Thomas A. Heinz.Mr. Heinz's books are of exceptionally high quality.This book as well as the Visual Encyclopedia authored by Mr. Thompson does contain a number of mis-identifications and an upside down picture of the Hollyhock House ornamentation.

The First of the Best
There are some of the best of the photos of Wright's work in this book, After seeing this work, Edgar Kaufmann, jr. hired Heinz to take the photos for his Fallingwater coffee table book.

Aparently the Reader from California has copied this review on to several of Mr. Heinz's book pages. This review does not seem to be appropriate to this book. This can easily be determined by simply looking at the three wonderful photos of the Hollyhock house. None of them are upside down. None of the 100 photos are mis-identified. These are wonderful photographs and this may be the first of Mr. Heinz's 20 some books, all are delight to have and look through.

Mr. Heinz, we want more of your work, keep at it. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A True Story
Why didn't I read this book when it first came out? It is a very well written book from a true "insider" at Taliesin. Besinger does what he says and tells it like it was, from his personal experience. It gives a wonderful look inside the forbidden city, one that is often enhanced and usually turns out to be a lauditory biography of Mr. Wright. Here is a real narrative in the best sense of the word.Besinger does not interpret he just tells what he knows and also does not speculate on what he does not see. It is the best insight to date on the evolving process that went on in Taliesin. Besinger worked on most of the important projects and gives us the process as well as the result.I am very glad he took the time to write so well and include the detail that carries it through. One only wishes for more. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

absurdity
Why isn't this book published in english. This is absurd. Shame on you Birkhauser. Long live Zevi. Viva Italia.

Full wright in a small book...
This book is a good monography to have in one very small size book, almost all the project made by wright. all the buildings are presented cronologically with b/w pictures and a small text, some drawings follow some projects. The text made by Bruno Zevi, is also very interesting.One very important things about this book, is that it is in GERMAN & FRENCH only! ... Read more

Reviews (1)

The public Wright
"Frank Lloyd Wright's Public Buildings," by Carla Lind, is one of a series of mini-books dedicated to Wright's amazing achievements as an architect. This volume contains the features that generally characterize the series as a whole: Lind's concise text, many excellent full-color photographs of both building interiors and exteriors, interesting sidebar quotes from Wright and others, and a brief but informative bibliography.

This book profiles many of Wright's most noteworthy public buildings: the Unity Temple in Oak Park, Illinois; the Johnson Wax Building in Racine, Wisconsin; Beth Sholom Synagogue in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania; the Guggenheim Museum in New York City; and more.

The many photographs effectively capture the beauty and revolutionary boldness of Wright's architectural vocabulary. The buildings range from structures that look like Mayan temples, to structures that look like extraterrestrial spaceships, to structures that mirror forms from the natural world. Read the book and appreciate the genius of Frank Lloyd Wright. ... Read more

Book Description

This beautifully illustrated book takes you through the journey of the life and works of well-known architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Filled with full-color photographs of every one of his existing building, as well as archival photos of many of his buildings that have been destroyed, this complete collection is an irresistible homage to Frank Lloyd Wright, the man and the architect. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Inexact, but sincere
Non-scholarly approach, obscures facts and makes unsupported assumptions.
Adequate as first person, unacademic approach to history of FLW

Making Wright right again.
This is the personal story of the author's architectural discoveries and insights after buying a spacious old house that turned out to be one of Frank Lloyd Wright's most liveable Prairie houses. She evokes the amazingever-shifting quality of light and reflections, how its architectural formsguide furniture placement, the functions (and dusting) of woodwork and itsthorough patterning throughout, why an overhanging roof is great, theeternally surprising views, the role of landscaping, and even explains howone lives in a bedroom without curtains. She does not reveal as muchconstruction detail exposed during the restoration process as I had hoped,like electrical upgrading, the use of steel in the cantilevers, or exactlywhy Wright's roofs always leak. She discusses adapting the kitchen, andshows how her Tomek House is the prototype for the famous Robie house, andfriendlier to boot by being less insistently exaggerated. The manyillustrations emphasize the outcomes rather than the process ofrestoration. Moran is not a professional writer, and the text wanders alittle, but she truly gave me a feel for how wonderfully right it would beto live in a house by Wright, or one designed by his modular procedure. Yetone also needs an artistic streak of one's own, lots of energy (and money),and patience for all the avid visitors who treat you as an unpaid guide andcaterer. For building a Wright house, see Jacobs' Building With Wright; forliving with one today, get Moran. ... Read more

Book Description

A momentous event in art and electronic publishing, this magnificent project presents nearly 5,000 drawings by Frank Lloyd Wright, America's most influential 20th-century architect. A collaboration between Luna Imaging, Inc. and the Frank Lloyd Wright Archives, it offers full-color, high resolution digital reproductions of the highest fidelity to the original works in a format that provides unprecedented control over the enormous quantity and scope of the material. Here is the largest collection of Wright's drawings ever published.Over 860 projects are included, ranging from private homes, churches, banks, and office buildings to skyscrapers, apartment buildings, museums, and schools. Familiar projects like Fallingwater and the Guggenheim Museum appear with hundreds of other accomplished designs. The works span Wright's career--from student drawings of 1887 to his last rendering in 1959. Never before has so much of Wright's work been so accessible.The electronic format frees readers from the constraints of the print medium. With Insight software, users can search for, sort, mark, rearrange, group, and print images and documentation. Insight is an easy-to-use visual environment tailor-made for the way people use collections of art reproductions.Unlike any print edition available, Frank Lloyd Wright: Presentation and Conceptual Drawings on CD-ROM combines a vast collection of striking images with scrupulous catalog documentation in one versatile product. A groundbreaking work, this extraordinary publication is an incomparable reference for students and scholars of Frank Lloyd Wright and American art and architecture. ... Read more