Modern Architecture: Frank Lloyd Wright

The deterioration of residential homes is common throughout the years due to wear and tear from everyday usage. The cost to prevent this deterioration is usually minimal and does not skyrocket into the hundreds of thousands of dollars for routine maintenance. In addition, the construction of residential homes has improved throughout the years; hence, not as many repairs are required over time. Engineers have developed better concepts of how homes will stand up against the elements and big box stores encourage the homeowners to repair and do their own maintenance on their standard house. However, there are residential homes that are nonconforming and their architectural designs are of those who have brought these homes into the forefront of Modern Architecture. One who is most noteworthy and is synonymous with residential homes is Frank Lloyd Wright. Known for his unique style of residential design, Frank Lloyd Wright was ahead of his time, however, the materials he used in these designs have proven to be unsustainable and cost hundreds of thousands, even millions, of dollars to homeowners for their preservation.

Born shortly after the end of the Civil War in 1867, Wright grew up mostly in Madison, WI. After college, he secured a position with the prestigious Chicago architectural firm Adler & Sullivan in 1887. A disagreement with Sullivan six years later, forced Wright to start his own firm. After he designed six other homes is when Wright started to come into his own permanent designs in architecture. He came to use repetitive design elements in his plans that included the open concept, fireplaces, glazed windows and doors and the use of organic materials that were incorporated into the homes. Some of these designs o...

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...maintain. Most were demolished decades ago. Those that remain require constant repair and are financially impossible for a single homeowner to maintain. Most of the homes remaining are designated historic sites or converted into some type of museum to pay for their upkeep. The cantilevers of Fallingwater require constant, expensive restoration to keep the entire house from falling into the river below it. Likewise, Hollyhock with its leaky roofs and crumbling stucco has cost the City of Los Angeles many extremely costly renovations. While both of these homes, along with most other Wright homes, are excellent examples of the Modern Architecture by which most houses are designed today, the millions of dollars that have been expended to maintain and preserve them makes these homes horribly unsustainable. It makes one wonder if the beauty is truly worth the price.