In the 1920s, Russell Barr Williamson saw more opportunity than just design: he could finance, he could invest, he could speculate, and he did it well. In less than 10 years, he complete over 54 sometimes opulent projects, including his own in Whitefish Bay. Things began to unravel in July of 1927.
It was Arthur Richards, Wright's partner-developer from 1916-1917, who decided to cover the American System-Built Homes (ASBH) in Magnesite pebbles, not Frank Lloyd Wright. And where does one get Magnesite before 1917?
The documented evidence tells us that Pebble Dash was an alteration of Frank Lloyd Wright's American System Built Homes designs -- something he hoped to cover up and forget about.
Why do the vintage American System Built Homes (ASBH) plans exist at all? Frank Lloyd Wright didn't plan to re-use or show them. Was his decision to store almost 1000 drawings based on nostalgia or pride, or something more practical?
I dropped the Fibonacci spiral on Wright's floor-plan for our house. To my amazement, the focus of the spiral - the balanced center of the nautilus - falls perfectly in front of the hearth, marking the most important place in this space.
In the wake of the failure of the American System Built Homes project, in which Wright and Williamson had invested over 3 years of mutual effort, the men never spoke again and, tellingly, erased the experience from their professional and personal Curricula Vitae.
It took some time to forgive but we're going to start sharing again on Instagram.
We're excited to share that Frank Lloyd Wright's Forgotten Elizabeth Murphy House will be featured on the 2023 Wright and Like Tour
Hello again Wright-o-files and friends and fans of organic architecture. It's been a while since we've shared new information here. But stewardship never pauses. Here's an update.
This is a rare opportunity to experience an historic and well-preserved Wright-designed home that has been a private residence for 104 years running. The home is where Wright was compelled to rethink his approach to affordable housing and is the site of the split between Wright and his talented young assistant Russell Barr Williamson.
The Elizabeth Murphy House 