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In particular, the structures incorporate brick and wood into their design. One of the most well-known features of these homes is their use of art glass windows, which blend interior and exterior spaces through their soft filtration of light. The expansive living space at the heart of the home is one of the great masterpieces of twentieth century architecture and interior design.
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House
Robie desired a modern floorplan and needed a garage, and a playroom for children. He also required that his home be fire-proof, yet retained an open floor plan free of closed, box-like rooms that would prevent the uniformity of decoration and design. Also taking cues from the expansive prairie landscape, the house features a large open-plan living and dining room, which is divided in the centre by a fireplace.
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The minor vessel, on the northeast portion of the site, houses the more functional and service-related rooms, such as the main entrance, stairway, half-bath, laundry room, workshop, and a three-car garage. The entrance is typical of Wright’s mature Prairie houses in that it is not clearly visible or easily located upon approach. Tucked away on the north side of the house and accessed via a long, concrete walk, the entrance court is framed by a low retaining wall and the guest bedroom balcony above. The concealed entrance reinforces a sense of privacy, but the compressed space also creates a transitional area between interior and exterior, drawing one into the space.
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The rooms were determined through a modular grid system which was given order with the 4' window mullions. Wright, however, did not use the standard window in his design, but instead used "light screens" which were composed of pieces of clear and colored glass, usually with representations of nature. Our tours let you explore the city and its architecture in a new way—by land and water.
"Tiny homes are not the big solution to homelessness that we need"
Instead of stylized forms from nature, a favorite Wright motif, geometric forms predominate. The combination of so much glass and lack of internal structural columns resulted in an airy space that appears larger than it is, accentuating the open plan that Wright favored. The rectangle on the northeast portion of the site, called "the minor vessel," contains the more functional and service-related rooms of the house. On the first floor is the main door and entrance hall (west end) from which a stairway leads to the second floor living and dining rooms. Further east are a coat closet and back stairway, the boiler room, laundry room, and coal storage room, followed by a small workshop, half bath, and a three-car garage.
Third level
Although the site has size limitations, I would have liked to see more of a conscious connection to the outdoor space outside of the lower-level playroom. It would have been great to see a thoughtful landscape or hardscape design in this courtyard that was inviting and appealing from the interior spaces. That being said, the home has beautiful details and the main living and dining spaces on the second level create stunning effects with the sunlight. The significance of Wright design of the Robie House is that he neglected the conventional ideation of a house as a box containing smaller “boxes” for rooms. By contrast, the interior space is fluid and transparent, allowing the entry of light without obstructing the view.
THE ULTIMATE PRAIRIE HOUSE
The home is three stories in height, although it only appears to be a low-lying two-story. The edges of the roofs extend outward from the main structure, giving the illusion of weightlessness and horizontality. The walls and windows underneath the large overhangs were intentionally recessed back into the building, putting them in shadow and further reinforcing the extended cantilevering roofs above. He designed windows that would allow for maximum natural light without sacrificing privacy and rooms that were open yet intimate and comfortable. The house has no facade, conventional windows, nor a prinicpal entrance or front door.
Imperial Hotel celebrates centennial of Frank Lloyd Wright's iconic design - ARAB NEWS
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Posted: Sat, 29 Jul 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
A History Of Chicago's Robie House In 1 Minute

Under the university, it was used as the Alumni Association headquarters until 1997. It was then wholly given over to the Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust, who turned it into the tourist attraction it is today. In the dining and living rooms, an exhaustive restoration has been underway for several years, culminating in return of the home to its original 1910 appearance. The Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust has put together an outstanding website that outlines all of the work that has gone into the project so far. The animated image below illustrates the changes that dining room has undergone during the course of the restoration. Archival photos have helped with the look and placement of furnishings in the public areas of the home, but very little historical record exists of the bedrooms and other private areas of the home.
The Robie House’s influence on American architecture was immediate and undeniable. They are organized around a central fireplace and lined with a span of glass doors that let in a huge amount of natural light. Each of these doors has stained glasswork with organic abstract patterns. When the sunlight comes into the building, it casts a beautiful design of shadows and a colored light on the interior floor of the home. Due to financial issues, the Robies sold their house after living in it only for one year. In addition to being a home, it has been used as office space and as a dormitory for students.
Wright rejected the popular view that indoor spaces should be closed and isolated from each other. In contrast, he designed the house so that the space in each room or hall was open to the other, so that the feeling in the house was one of immense light and space. To differentiate one area from another, Wright resorted to lightweight divisions or different height ceilings, avoiding unnecessary solid room divisions.
National History Landmark, was completed in 1910 and is a perfectexpression of the architect’s introduction to the Prairie School style. Eachelement of the house was conceived as a whole, including the interior andexterior, site and structure, ornaments and furniture, within this uniquelyAmerican style of design. The Robie family moved in during May of 1910, although many items like rugs and furniture were not completed until eight months later. At just over 9,000 square feet, it is a lot of house on a small piece of property. And at a completed cost of $58,000 – $1.5 million in today’s dollars – it was a lot of money when one considers that the Robies only lived there for fourteen months, before financial problems forced them to sell.
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