The Frank Lloyd Wright home and studio tour at Oak Park was the bonus event on our trip to Chicago. VW gave their presentation in the drafting studio and we got to do a little architectural immersion design/draft activity. Being architects ourselves, the class was like going way way back to the first year of architecture school. I hadn't seen an eraser shield in years!
The tour itself was interesting because the house had been restored to its original state (though FLW's renovations as his family/business expanded remained). One interesting feature to the studio was that there was no obvious entrance - the visitor is forced to walk around the exterior before finally discovering a door - along the way, FLW's desire is that you notice the exterior architectural detailing, making it clear to the client what type of design they can expect from the architect.
It was also nice to see FLW's use of material (lots of wood and dark colors - very anti the modernism of these days) and the many pieces of furniture he designed. The kids' playroom on the 2nd floor was my favorite. Unfortunately, the FLW Preservation Trust does not allow guests to take pictures inside, so we only have exteriors to post. Overall, the tour was great, and it was a pleasure to see how FLW designed everything down to the brooms.
The F.L. Wright house looks amazing. I am a big admirer of his -- he actually did some things here in Oklahoma, as well as some collaboration with other OK architects. Have you seen his Price Tower in Bartlesville? http://www.pricetower.org/
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