Flanklloydwright1 230925070712 c948542b

Design
Wright:
Philosophy
Frank Lloyd
By : Devesh Anand & Shatakshi Bhatt

“There is no
architecture without a
philosophy. There is
no art of any kind
1908-09: Frederick C. Robie House
1902-06:Larkin Company Administration Building without its own
philosophy.”
-FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT, 1959
1934-37: Fallingwater 1943-59:Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

Biography
Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959), is a renowned American Architect. He trained under Louis Sullivan and started his own firm in
1893.
1867 1885 1889 1893- 1911 1940 1959
Birth Part time job Oak Park, Works like Winslow Established F.L. Wright
with Allan D. Illinois, own House, Unity F.L. Wright passes away
Conover house Temple, Robie Foundation in Arizona
House etc
Introduced to Joins Adler Starts his own Taliesin, a new Awarded Gold Medal
Froebel and Sullivan practice home and of American Institute
blocks in Chicago studio of Architects
1876 1887 1893 1911 1949

Philosophy
Philosophy
Design for Democracy

Environment that were not only functional but also “eloquent and humane.”
Integrity and Connection

“buildings like people must first be sincere, must be true.”
Nature’s Principles and Structure
“The spirit in which these buildings are conceived sees all these together at work as one thing.”
Material and Machines

Wright embraced new technologies and tactics
Architecture as the Great Mother Art
Architecture as “the great mother art, behind which all others are definitely, distinctly and inevitably related.”
Case 1: Falling Water
Philosophy in Design
Fallingwater, 1935
Built partly over a waterfall, the sound of the waterfall is

encouraged within the interior spaces.
Design alterations for existing trees to grow in interiors
Fallingwater, 1935
The colors of the interior were limited to two colors to blend

into the natural environment.
Slabs design gives an impression of continuity, integrating it
with its surroundings
Fallingwater, 1935
No metal frames were used in the opening where the glass

meets the stone. Instead, recesses were made in the
stone.
Stones were sourced locally from a quarry nearby.
Case 2: Taliesin West
Taliesin West, 1937

The use of natural light also played a major part in the design.
The walls and ceiling were designed in such a way as to remove
unwanted sun rays while letting in a horizontal line

Wright constantly made changes as per the need to keep up with
the changing environment.

The building used local natural materials like the available desert
stone in the site. Natural redwood timber for the roof.

Each building is connected through a series of walkways, terraces,
pools and gardens. The desert texture in exteriors integrate it with
its surroundings
Case 3: Guggenheim
Museum
Guggenheim Museum, 1959
Open floor plans were widely appreciated for their social and
interactive purposes
Large skylights revolutionized the way museums were designed

and have been widely imitated by other museums later
The museum’s curved ramps were inspired by the Nautilus

shell. It also acts as a supporting element for the columns
Nautilus Shell

Design & Style
Design & Style
Prairie Style (1899-1910)
With the “Prairie house”— a long, low, open plan structure that eschewed the typical high, straight-sided box in order to
emphasize the horizontal line of the prairie and domesticity.
Interior walls were minimised to create an open plan to foster a sense of community for inhabitants and a harmonious
connection to the natural world.
Examples
● Robie House, 1909 in Chicago, Illinois

● Fallingwater house 1937 in Mill Run, Pennsylvania
Design & Style
Prairie Style (1899-1910)
● Strong geometry and massing, including

large central chimneys
● Brick or stucco exteriors
● Connected indoor and outdoor spaces
● Interior wood banding
● Restrained use of applied ornamentation
● Exploration of motifs: one shape or plant
form explored through furniture, wood
carving, plaster, art glass and other
elements within a building
● Open, asymmetric floor plans
Design & Style
Usonian Style (From 1929)
Financial crisis of 1929 and ensuing Great Depression that gripped the United States and the rest of the world, Wright began
working on affordable housing, which developed into the Usonian house.
A house could be compared to a living organism with all parts relating to the whole, making form and function wholly
intertwined.
Usonian Automatic to describe a Usonian style house made of inexpensive concrete blocks.
Examples
The Zimmerman House (1950) Toufic H. Kalil House (1955) Curtis Meyer House (1948) in Galesburn
Design & Style
Usonian Style (From 1929)
● one story, horizontal orientation

● no attic; no basement
● low, simple roof
● radiant heating in concrete slab floor
● natural ornamentation
● efficient use of space
● blueprinted using a simple grid pattern
● open floor plan, with few interior walls
● organic, using local materials of wood, stone,
and glass
● built-in furnishings
● skylights and clerestory windows
● Usonian Automatics experimented with
concrete and patterned concrete block
References
● Frank Lloyd Wright. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.steinerag.com/flw/Books/c1401.htm

● Craven, J. (2019). What is a Usonian house? ThoughtCo. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/usonian-style-home-frank-
lloyd-wright-177787
● Caffin, C. (2015, February 17). Frank Lloyd Wright's Usonian Vision is Alive and Well in Pleasantville. Pleasantville-Briarcliff
Manor, NY Patch. Retrieved from https://patch.com
● The Bachman-Wilson House: What is a Usonian House? | Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. (2014, March 8). Retrieved
from https://crystalbridges.org/blog/bachman-wilson-house-usonian-house/
● McManus, R., & McManus, R. (2017). Style 101: Prairie | IS Architecture. IS Architecture | Custom Residential Architecture and
Historic Preservation. Retrieved from https://isarchitecture.com/style-101-prairie/
● About Frank Lloyd Wright - Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. (2023, April 26). Retrieved from https://franklloydwright.org/frank-
lloyd-wright/
● The philosophy behind iconic Frank Lloyd Wright architecture. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.engelvoelkers.com/en/blog/luxury-living/architecture/the-philosophy-behind-iconic-frank-lloyd-wright-architecture/
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Design

By : Devesh Anand & Shatakshi Bhatt

-FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT, 1959

1934-37: Fallingwater 1943-59:Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

1867 1885 1889 1893- 1911 1940 1959

1876 1887 1893 1911 1949

Design for Democracy

Integrity and Connection

Nature’s Principles and Structure

Material and Machines

Architecture as the Great Mother Art

Nature’s Principles and Structure

Built partly over a waterfall, the sound of the waterfall is

Integrity and Connection

The colors of the interior were limited to two colors to blend

Material and Machines

No metal frames were used in the opening where the glass

Taliesin West, 1937

Nature’s Principles and Structure

Design for Democracy

Material and Machines

Integrity and Connection

Guggenheim Museum, 1959

Design for Democracy

Large skylights revolutionized the way museums were designed

Guggenheim Museum, 1959

Nature’s Principles and Structure

The museum’s curved ramps were inspired by the Nautilus

Guggenheim Museum, 1959

Prairie Style (1899-1910)

● Robie House, 1909 in Chicago, Illinois

Prairie Style (1899-1910)

● Strong geometry and massing, including

Usonian Style (From 1929)

Usonian Style (From 1929)

● one story, horizontal orientation

● Frank Lloyd Wright. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.steinerag.com/flw/Books/c1401.htm

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