Now that life has changed and the girls are doing online school, I added an architectural class to their weekly work load. This past week, I asked each to write a report on a work of architecture that they each appreciate. Here is the report from Hannah Hendricks.
Architectural Assignment 1
3 April 2020
Fallingwater was originally designed in 1935 as a weekend home for Edgar and Liliane Kauffman (“Fallingwater.”). Edgar was a Pittsburg businessman and both he and Liliane were avid outdoorsmen (“Edgar J. Kauffman.”). The Kauffmans owned a plot of land near Mill Run, Pennsylvania on Bear Run River that had a waterfall. They hired Frank Lloyd Wright to design a weekend home for them overlooking the waterfall. Wright designed Fallingwater, a weekend home that sat on top of the waterfall (“Fallingwater.”).
Frank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer, and educator born on June 8, 1867, in Richland Center, Wisconsin. Throughout his architecture career, he designed over one thousand structures, five hundred and thirty-two of which were completed. He believed in practicing organic architecture, which is “designing structures that were in harmony with humanity and its environment” (“Frank Lloyd Wright.”). Wright was a founder of the practice. Wright was married three times and had seven children. He had many, many well-known projects and has won four different awards. He passed away on April 9, 1959, at ninety-one years old.
Today, Fallingwater is a popular tourist destination. Four and a half million people have visited Fallingwater since it was opened to the public in 1964 (“Fallingwater facts”). Fallingwater’s design “symbolizes the harmony between people and nature” (“Designing Fallingwater”). In 1966, it was granted national historic landmark status. In 1991, Fallingwater was named “best all-time work of American architecture” (“Fallingwater.”). In 2007, it was twenty-ninth on a list of America’s favorite architecture.
I like Fallingwater because it is very intricate and interesting. It has lots of fascinating layers, many balconies, and lots of angles. I think the color choices Wright made were perfect. I love the way the house contrasts with the forest and the river around it. It is very cool how the house has balconies and staircases that go right out into, beside, and over the river and pathways through the forest. The home is well designed and fits very well with its surroundings.
Bibliography
“Designing Fallingwater – Fallingwater.” Fallingwater. N. p., 2020. Web. 4 Apr. 2020. https://fallingwater.org/history/about-fallingwater/designing-fallingwater/
“Edgar J. Kaufmann.” En.wikipedia.org. N. p., 2020. Web. 4 Apr. 2020. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_J._Kaufmann
“Fallingwater.” En.wikipedia.org. N. p., 2017. Web. 4 Apr. 2020. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fallingwater
“Fallingwater Facts – Fallingwater.” Fallingwater. N. p., 2020. Web. 4 Apr. 2020. https://fallingwater.org/media-resources/fallingwater-facts/
“Frank Lloyd Wright.” En.wikipedia.org. N. p., 2020. Web. 4 Apr. 2020. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Lloyd_Wright
