Oak Park is a lovely city, just east of Chicago…a bedroom community, if you will, for many folks who work in the Windy City. The fastest way to get there, without a car is to take a Green Line El Train east out of the Loop and get off at the Oak Park station.
What makes Oak Park a little more special than most bedroom cities? It was the home for many years of the great American architect Frank Lloyd Wright. The city is replete with several homes and buildings designed by this highly influential man. The photo you see here, is part of Wright’s own home and studio. It’s much larger than shown here as I could not back up far enough to get it all in the frame.
It is a good example of the “Prairie Style” architecture pioneered by Wright. That style featured horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs with broad overhanging eaves, windows grouped in horizontal bands, integration with the landscape, solid construction, craftsmanship, and discipline in the use of ornament. Horizontal lines were thought to evoke and relate to the native prairie landscape.
Inside, there is a feeling of openness as Wright loved large rooms that were not delineated by full walls. Wright also designed the furniture and other aspects of daily living that went into each of his homes. He would even pick out silverware.
His early big break came when he was hired by the great Chicago Architect Louis Sullivan. He recognized Wright’s talents early on and eventually gave him large design responsibilities. Remember, at this time, Chicago was still being rebuilt because of the “great Chicago fire” of 1871…and Chicago was experiencing a large influx of new residents. So Sullivan (and Wright) were extremely busy at this time.
Later, Sullivan fired Wright when he discovered that his best designer was secretly freelancing on the side. A sad ending as it was Sullivan that lent him the money to build his Oak Park home. Wright was a complex man…a great architect, but a lousy businessman, lousy handling money, and a flair for stepping out on his wife and family. An affair with a neighbor’s wife eventually led to the two of them leaving Oak Park and moving to Europe. He left behind his wife of 20 years and six kids.
If you want to know much more about Wright, I heartily suggest a PBS video done by the great filmmaker Ken Burns (The Civil War). Its available to watch for free on Netflix. It is utter fascination to see how this American icon led such a turbulent personal and professional life and rose above it all to become known as America’s greatest architect.
I have more photos Oak Park including homes around Wright’s, some of which he designed. I got to be pretty good at spotting his designs as I walked around the town. More to come in the future.
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