Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff production of iHeart Radio, Hey Rain
Speaker 1: Stuff Lauren vogebam here. Acclaimed American architect Frank Lloyd Wright
Speaker 1: once said the architect must be a prophet. If you
Speaker 1: can't see at least ten years ahead, don't call him
Speaker 1: an architect. Wright proved his own words when he designed
Speaker 1: Falling Water, a private residence that's now preserved as a
Speaker 1: museum and has captivated countless spectators for more than eighty years.
Speaker 1: Set in the Laurel Highlands region in the mountains of
Speaker 1: southwestern Pennsylvania, Falling Water remains open to visitors today, many
Speaker 1: decades after Wright's death in n A now classic example
Speaker 1: of what's called organic architecture, Falling Water is a sweeping,
Speaker 1: tiered structure designed to be both a part of and
Speaker 1: apart from the natural landscape surround again. It incorporates wood
Speaker 1: and rough edge stone quarried from the property itself, along
Speaker 1: with bold, blunt lines of concrete and steel, all set
Speaker 1: atop an active waterfall, a balance of human and natural elements.
Speaker 1: Here's its story. In Pittsburgh, department store owner Edgar J. Kaufman, Sr.
Speaker 1: Hired Wright to design a private residence for his family.
Speaker 1: The house would serve as their weekend home out in
Speaker 1: the country, roughly seventy five miles or a hundred and
Speaker 1: twenty kilometers outside of Pittsburgh. A. Kaufman and his wife
Speaker 1: Lilianne were impressed by Wright's work after visiting their son
Speaker 1: at an architectural school that Right designed and ran in Wisconsin.
Speaker 1: For the article this episode is based on How Stuff Works,
Speaker 1: spoke via email with Clinton E. Piper, who works as
Speaker 1: a senior administrator of special Projects at Falling Water. He
Speaker 1: explained the Kaufman's were innovative retailers with an eye toward
Speaker 1: good design. Their son, Edgar Kaufman Jr. Read Frank Lloyd
Speaker 1: Wright's autobiography and participated in Wright's apprentice program in spring Green, Wisconsin.
Speaker 1: Since Wright had experienced a lack of work during the
Speaker 1: Great Depression, which put a halt to many architectural endeavors,
Speaker 1: landing such a big commission helped put him back on
Speaker 1: the map as a top architect. Right completed construction on
Speaker 1: the main house, a five thousand, three hundred square foot
Speaker 1: that's five hundred square meter structure by eight and finished
Speaker 1: building the guest house, which measures some one thousand, seven
Speaker 1: hundred square feet or one hundred and sixties square meters
Speaker 1: the following year. The home remained a private residence of
Speaker 1: the family until nineteen sixty three, when Edgar Jr. Gave
Speaker 1: the ded to Falling Water and the surrounding one thousand,
Speaker 1: five hundred acres but six hundred hectors to the Western
Speaker 1: Pennsylvania Conservancy, dedicating the property as the Kaufman Conservation on
Speaker 1: Bear Run memorial to Edgar J. And Lillian S. Kaufman.
Speaker 1: Falling Water first opened its stores for public tours in
Speaker 1: nineteen sixty four. Since then, many entities have recognized the
Speaker 1: importance of Falling Waters artistry. In late nineteen seventies, the
Speaker 1: U S Department of the Interior does neated the museum
Speaker 1: a National Historic Landmark, and in twenty nineteen UNESCO added
Speaker 1: Falling Water and seven other Frank Lloyd Right design sites
Speaker 1: to its list of World Heritage Sites, marking an impressive
Speaker 1: international recognition of Falling Water's legacy in the world of architecture.
Speaker 1: It's also the only major Frank Lloyd Right work with
Speaker 1: its setting, original furnishings, and artwork still intact. More than
Speaker 1: four point five million people have visited Falling Water since
Speaker 1: it opened to the public, among them architectural buffs and
Speaker 1: curious novices alike. Piper said, Falling Water is a humane
Speaker 1: experience where rights insight, the Coffin family's way of life,
Speaker 1: and the natural setting are spread out for all to
Speaker 1: experience and question, regardless of their background or previous knowledge.
Speaker 1: Right popularized the Prairie style of design, which focused on
Speaker 1: residential houses in the Midwest between nineteen hundred and nineteen sixteen.
Speaker 1: The Prairie style emphasized neat horizontal lines, which came Rights
Speaker 1: calling card. You can see these simple lines and sharp
Speaker 1: right angles in the exterior of Falling Water, and as
Speaker 1: mentioned before, Falling Water particularly stands out as exemplary of
Speaker 1: organic architecture, which blends man made structures with the natural
Speaker 1: world around them. Organic architecture became staple in rights designs.
Speaker 1: Piper explained much of Right's nearly seventy year architectural career
Speaker 1: created buildings and houses that connected one way or another
Speaker 1: to their natural setting. This was especially true of Falling Water,
Speaker 1: which was surrounded by thousands of acres of wild beauty
Speaker 1: in the bar Run Nature Reserve. Right leaned into that
Speaker 1: natural setting by building walls of Pottsville sandstone quarried again
Speaker 1: on the property itself to reflect the stone outcroppings found
Speaker 1: in bear Run. He also challenged the natural surrounding with
Speaker 1: concrete cantilevers, which he stacked to form bold terraces in
Speaker 1: multiple directions and offer beautiful vista is of the wilderness.
Speaker 1: Piper said the powerful symbolism of architecture seemingly erupting from
Speaker 1: nature was at the core of Right's philosophy of organic architecture.
Speaker 1: Right selective materials such as marine grade walnut near plywood
Speaker 1: for the built in furnishings to address the effects of
Speaker 1: living with nature. Falling Water's most iconic attribute is, of course,
Speaker 1: it's waterfall, and hence the name falling Water, which gently
Speaker 1: tumbles beneath the home. Piper said, the sound of the
Speaker 1: falls is the backdrop that ties the entire experience together.
Speaker 1: But designing such an architectural masterpiece made Falling Water a
Speaker 1: pricey endeavor for Right and the Kaufman's. According to Piper,
Speaker 1: the Kaufman's set an initial budget between twenty thousand and
Speaker 1: thirty thousand dollars for the construction of the house, but
Speaker 1: Right well well exceeded that initial budget. Falling Water wound
Speaker 1: up costing a hundred and fifty five thousand dollars, including
Speaker 1: an eight thousand dollar commission fee for right and four
Speaker 1: thousand four built in front chair. That's a bit over
Speaker 1: three million in today's dollars, but of course, as a
Speaker 1: great work of art, in many ways, it's priceless. According
Speaker 1: to Piper, famous guests ranging from Albert Einstein to FRIEDA.
Speaker 1: Collo have stayed at Falling Water Since being turned into
Speaker 1: a museum. Falling Water no longer accepts overnight guests, but
Speaker 1: there are still plenty of ways visitors can enjoy the museum.
Speaker 1: During COVID nineteen, guests may experience the outdoor setting of
Speaker 1: Falling Water with an advanced reservation and masks and social
Speaker 1: distancing are required. If you can't swing and in person visit,
Speaker 1: that's no problem. Visit falling Water dot org to try
Speaker 1: one of their at home experiences, such as one of
Speaker 1: the virtual tours conducted via live stream weekly, each one
Speaker 1: offering information about a different aspect of the home. Today's
Speaker 1: episode is based on the article Falling Water. It's considered
Speaker 1: Frank Lloyd Wright's masterpiece. Here's Why. On how Stuff Works
Speaker 1: dot Com by Terry your Logata. Brain Stuff is production
Speaker 1: of I heart Radio in partnership with how stuffworks dot
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