Frank Lloyd Wright RUINED American Life With the Turn of the Porch (mansion)
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I do not think that the OP meant that Frank Lloyd Wright were not necessarily well engineered. He tended to place more importance on aesthetics and not practicality. His wonderful Falling Water was doing just that, falling. It had to be reinforced and rebuilt. Jay
There was an effort undertaking by the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, the group that has owned Falling Water since it was deeded to them by the original owner's only son in the 1960's, to install post-tension cables that effectively tied the massive cantilevered concrete into the central core. That happened in the 1990s. That technology did not exist when the home was built in the 1930s. Nothing had to be "rebuilt", it was just a very prudent application of more advanced construction technology. The engineers of the 1930s only had access to things like slide rules. These days even landscape crews have pocket calculators for smartphones that will tell them the required reinforcement for overhanging walls... Landscaping Calculator Pro for Android
Location: East Central Pennsylvania/ Chicago for 6yrs.
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I think the OP was referring to Frank Lloyd Wright INSPIRED Craftsman Bungalows as are part of 1/3 of Chicago. Its Bungalow belt built 1910-1940. These are some examples of these homes with his claim removed front porches.
Some streetviews360° of Chicago-style Bungalows. Just at random.
There are so many things wrong with the OP's assertion that have already been pointed out by others.
FLW is an obvious genius whose designs, sense of space, innovation had really nothing to do with what the OP was talking about.
Ironically, Taliesin West (and really all of his designs) combine nature and architecture, while bringing together family in the spaces inside.
I would agree that a sense of community wasn't really on his mind, but I don't think he set out to destroy some false sense of community the OP suggests.
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Sprawl and the post war boom is what killed "the neighborhood," not FLW.
Location: East Central Pennsylvania/ Chicago for 6yrs.
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Though this is a 3 yr. old thread. I do believe most of FLW's major Homes he designed had front to side porches. The Bungalows for Americas Emerging Middle-Class. Were not designed by him? But the term INSPIRED is used. These much smaller Urban homes were greatly built in a city like Chicago.
I'm not sure to blame FLR? Is valid. His designs inspiring housing for the Masses. Were far more about styles and attributes throughout the interior of the homes. Use of Wood and Stained-glass too were part of these smallish Bungalows for the masses.
Cities like PHILLY Which was already tight Row home city. Was still building Tight plainer Row Homes for the Masses in 1910. When Chicago's FLW INSPIRED Bungalow era homes. Became the STANDARD there.
So judging that even COLONIAL ROW HOMES Had little in...." front porches". Most older Row Home Walled Blocks of tight homes. HAD NO PORCHES........ B E F O R E.... FLW DESIGNS Or Inspired ones by his designs. SO WHY BLAME FLW????
Example of Philly Row Blocks of NO or FEW PORCHES.....FLW DID NOT INSPIRE THESE..... Built 1925
Most of the homes in our area, back as far as the 1830's which pre-dates FLW, have porches that surround the entire home. FLW was not the "innovator" of the side porch as it pre-dates his birth. Maybe he made it popular up north but it was pretty much standard here before he was born.
Wright shifted to the isolated home design around the same time many other architects did. Wrights homes starting in maybe the early 1940's became more modern and shifted the focus to the back of the house where there would usually be more privacy and views into nature. The larger living spaces on these homes were usually in the back of the house. If you look at most of the post war midcentury modern housing stock it follows the same concept. Eichler homes almost universally have hard to get to front doors with lots of privacy screening. The central and rear area of his designs also focus on nature, privacy and towards the back of the home.
This shift has more to do with the advent of the car and changing society than FLW hating the front porch. These homes do provide privacy and a respite from the world. That was the point.
Frank Lloyd Wright was basically a traditionalist whose designs for urban homes respected existing styles and ways of life. He did not destroy the city or American culture. There are a number of FLW homes near me in the Chicago suburbs and they fit into the historical context beautifully.
I would say the same about Maybeck, Julia Morgan, etc.
FLW was in business to make money and some of his best-known designs were for rich people who wanted to live far from their neighbors. It's not a big surprise that their houses might be isolated. I have never found them unwelcoming.
Wright was also very smitten with cars. He collected cars and loved driving. He fully bought into the idea of an automobile society while at the same time retained his love of nature and the idea of living in the natural world. His plans for Broadacre City give a good idea of what his vision was if he could have done whatever he wanted in creating a community.
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