Fallingwater

On a tour of Fallingwater -- Frank Lloyd Wright's amazing masterpiece -- the first look we had at this amazing home was
a view of the cantilevered living room over the stream. At right you can see an ongoing restoration of some of the
concrete structure of the building. I suspect that Fallingwater is not only one of the most remarkable single-family homes
ever built, but that it also probably the highest maintenance of any home ever!

Wright designed Fallingwater for the Kaufman family in the 1930s. It was a weekend retreat for Edgar Kaufmann, Sr. and his wife and son. Kaufmann owned and ran a large department store in Pittsburgh. He purchased the property as a retreat for his family and the employees of the store. His son, Edgar Kaufmann, Jr,  was a student of architecture. He studied with Frank Lloyd Wright, and arranged for Wright to design the home beside the waterfall on the property. With his usual incredible originality, Wright placed the home over the waterfall rather than beside it.

Fallingwater is located 50 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. We toured it on our way home from Shenandoah National Park.

The sitting area that's in the cantilevered room in my first photo. Edgar Kaufmann, Jr. donated the house, its furnishings,
and the impressive art collections it housed, to the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy in 1963. Thus it is maintained
as a museum with a visitor center and numerous daily tours. 

One of the innovative features: the natural boulders at the site were incorporated into the structure.

This 8th-century Indian statue of the Hindu goddess Parvati is incorporated into the natural rock. Water seeps into the
wall when it rains, and runs over the rocks and into a carefully contrived crack in the floor.

The Fallingwater kitchen, used by the cook who traveled with them for weekends at the house. The formica topped counters
were an innovation: the material had not yet been released, but Wright knew people who made it available to him early.
Two maids and a chauffeur completed the Kaufmann's staff on visits to the house. (Source)

The story of Fallingwater, the Kaufmann family, and the accomplishments of Frank Lloyd Wright is very complicated. Many articles and books on Wright evaluate his major contributions to architecture and design. I've only presented my brief impressions from the tour of Fallingwater, which I found to be an incredible and wonderful experience.

All photos Copyright © 2019 by Mae & Len Sander.

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