{"id":1792,"date":"2013-05-13T10:01:00","date_gmt":"2013-05-13T10:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/?p=1792"},"modified":"2015-01-08T17:48:06","modified_gmt":"2015-01-08T22:48:06","slug":"frank-lloyd-wright-the-organic-architect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2013\/05\/13\/frank-lloyd-wright-the-organic-architect\/","title":{"rendered":"Frank Lloyd Wright, the organic architect"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Frank <\/a>
Frank Lloyd Wright: genius at work, Jan. 31, 1988 (Photo by Pedro E. Guerrero) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Wright <\/a>
Wright visits his 1910 Robie House in Chicago, Ill., March 18, 1957 (AP photo) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Frank <\/a>
Frank Lloyd Wright, March 11, 1956 (The Pittsburgh Press photo) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Fallingwater, <\/a>
Fallingwater, 2005 (Photo by Darrell Sapp, Post-Gazette) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Frank <\/a>
Frank Lloyd Wright with Kaufmann, Sr. (Credit: Unknown) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Building <\/a>
Building of Tomorrow in Tokyo by Frank Lloyd Wright, 1990 (AP photo) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Frank <\/a>
Frank Lloyd Wright with his third wife Olgivanna, June 8, 1952 (Credit: Unknown) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

In 1991, the American Institute of Architects recognized Frank Lloyd Wright as \u201cthe greatest American architect of all time.\u201d Talented, radical and passionate about his vocation, Wright was a visionary master. He defied architectural doctrines of his time, challenged the tyranny of the skyscraper and was recognized as a true iconoclast believing that form and function in building should be \u201cjoined in a spiritual union.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Wright, American cities of the 20th century were a bad dream come true: stagy grandeur, disruptive of surrounding environment, flashy, and dwarfing the human spirit \u2014 they represented everything he despised.\u00a0 Wright once referred to New York as \u201ca great monument to the power of money and greed\u2026 a race for rent.\u201d He didn\u2019t care much for Pittsburgh either. In 1935, he was quoted saying, \u201cIf I were remaking this city, the first thing I\u2019d do would be get rid of that damned smoke.\u201d<\/p>\n

His philosophy of architecture was reflected in the Prairie School movement. The movement focused on the importance of harmony and aesthetic congruence between humanity and the surrounding environment. The philosophy embraced structures that grew organically, shaped by their natural surroundings and the needs of their human inhabitants, buildings that \u2018hugged the Earth\u2019 and merged with the landscape rather than dominated it.<\/p>\n

“Simplicity and repose are qualities that measure the true value of any work of art,” Wright said. Simplicity was his mantra and the ability to simplify, he believed, was the hardest skill for an architect to perfect. ” \u2018Think simple\u2019 as my old master used to say \u2014 meaning reduce the whole of its parts into the simplest terms, getting back to first principles,” he said.\u00a0 It was for the simplicity and elegance of Wright\u2019s creations that he received international praise from Germany to Japan.<\/p>\n

Wright designed more than 500 structures, 300 of which survive.<\/p>\n

Robie House, which he built in 1910 in Chicago, was recently included in the list of \u201cTen buildings that changed America.\u201d\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

But the people\u2019s favorite is, of course, the famous Fallingwater<\/a>. It was built from 1934 to 1937 for the Kaufmanns at Mill Run, Fayette County. Constructed over a 30-foot waterfall, Fallingwater is unique; its design defines \u2018organic architecture.\u2019<\/p>\n

Frank Lloyd Wright also had projects that were never meant to be. When his plans for a building in Yosemite were rejected, he was unhappy with the government; when Venice tabled his proposal for a glass and marble palace on the Grand Canal, he was mad at the tourists.<\/p>\n

Frank Lloyd Wright\u2019s personal life was tempestuous, filled with adventures, struggle and turmoil. Wright was married three times and fathered seven children. He died in 1959 at age 91.<\/p>\n

He mentored a lot of successful architects and left behind many bits of wisdom in books and lectures. One piece of advice he tried to sear into the minds of his apprentices was, \u201cStudy nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 1991, the American Institute of Architects recognized Frank Lloyd Wright as \u201cthe greatest American architect of all time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Look at the picturesFrank Lloyd Wright, the organic architect<\/span><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1795,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[1066],"tags":[959,1252,1051],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/tumblr_mmlua8GMQH1rr5swxo7_1280.jpg?fit=768%2C600&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1449,"url":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2013\/08\/30\/the-point-that-became-a-park\/","url_meta":{"origin":1792,"position":0},"title":"The Point that became a park","date":"August 30, 2013","format":"gallery","excerpt":"As early as 1910, Frederick Law Olmsted, the son of the man who designed New York\u2019s Central Park, had, in a written report, proposed turning the Point into a park.","rel":"","context":"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/08\/tumblr_msbcituCjh1rr5swxo2_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C988&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1942,"url":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2013\/03\/22\/the-tragic-case-of-pittsburghs-brain-burglar\/","url_meta":{"origin":1792,"position":1},"title":"The tragic case of Pittsburgh\u2019s \u2018Brain Burglar","date":"March 22, 2013","format":"gallery","excerpt":"The outlook for Millard Wright was grim in 1947.","rel":"","context":"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/03\/tumblr_mjvlgpQaFn1rr5swxo5_1280-e1418792562474.jpg?fit=1200%2C712&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9004,"url":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2018\/09\/14\/pittsburghs-innovative-inventors-and-incompetent-inventors\/","url_meta":{"origin":1792,"position":2},"title":"Pittsburgh’s innovative inventors and incompetent ‘inventors’","date":"September 14, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Look closely at the front of Bill Truitt's car. 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