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www.ambiente.us MAY | MAYO 2010
Rediscovering an American Treasure in Pasadena | Frank
Lloyd Wright’s Millard House
By Herb Sosa
The adventure began innocently enough. I was in Pasadena for a wedding,
when I ran across a local magazine featuring one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s earliest
uses of concrete block and the catalyst for future designs using decorative
concrete tiles. Naturally, as a lifelong fan & zealot of all things FLW, I had to see
it for myself. My experiences at and in other Wright buildings have been nothing
short of spiritual for me. Actually being in the 1952 Price Company Tower &
office building in Bartlesville, Oklahoma and seeing first-hand a FLW designed &
fully furnished space did it for me. Follow that up with a fancy party at the 1929
Richard Lloyd Jones home in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and I was hooked.
Somehow it took us 3 days to find this architectural jewel. No one seemed to
even know of its existence, and with every dead end, our determination grew to
find it. NOTE: Pasadena has about five-hundred streets named Prospect, and we
saw them all before finally asking a charming jogger who pointed us to Prospect
CRECENT… and there it stood in all its glory.
The home, with its history, mystery and leaky roof, is currently on the
market for $5,950,000.00 - A bit out of my price range,
but well worth it to live in a piece of American History.
Rediscovering an American Treasure in Pasadena | Frank
Lloyd Wright’s Millard House
By Herb Sosa
The adventure began innocently enough. I was in Pasadena for a wedding,
when I ran across a local magazine featuring one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s earliest
uses of concrete block and the catalyst for future designs using decorative
concrete tiles. Naturally, as a lifelong fan & zealot of all things FLW, I had to see
it for myself. My experiences at and in other Wright buildings have been nothing
short of spiritual for me. Actually being in the 1952 Price Company Tower &
office building in Bartlesville, Oklahoma and seeing first-hand a FLW designed &
fully furnished space did it for me. Follow that up with a fancy party at the 1929
Richard Lloyd Jones home in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and I was hooked.
Somehow it took us 3 days to find this architectural jewel. No one seemed to
even know of its existence, and with every dead end, our determination grew to
find it. NOTE: Pasadena has about five-hundred streets named Prospect, and we
saw them all before finally asking a charming jogger who pointed us to Prospect
CRECENT… and there it stood in all its glory.
The home, with its history, mystery and leaky roof, is currently on the
market for $5,950,000.00 - A bit out of my price range,
but well worth it to live in a piece of American History.
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A few years after its completion, Millard asked Wright to design a smaller, separate
book studio and guest house adjacent to the house. The commission was given to
his son Lloyd Wright who concentrated the ornamental block around doors and
the windows. A sleeping porch on the mezzanine opens to the double height
ceilings of the main studio. The perforated block screens light as it does in the main
house. Lloyd Wright subsequently designed the landscaping for the entire property.
Wright was exceptionally pleased with La Miniatura. In his autobiography, he
wrote, “The whole mass and texture of the home made the eucalyptus trees more
beautiful, they in turn made the house walls more so”
Mrs. Millard is in the house
As we peered though the windows and gardens and took hundreds of pictures, one
definitely gets a sense of a presence there. As someone who has always loved old
properties and lived in and renovated many of them, I am well aware of the living
history walls can tell and carry, and have never shied away because of this. This
house is different. Though Mrs. Millard is long gone and several other owners have
lived there, one can’t help but feel her presence. Feel her watchful eyes staring at
you from her window, smiling at visitors who are in awe at the peaceful elegance
that is the Millard Home & Gardens. Or maybe it is Frank Lloyd Wright, proudly and
unapologetically gushing over his near perfect balance of nature and man made
beauty.
I had no choice, Olgivanna. I was under oath. - Frank Lloyd
Wright, immediately after a court appearance when he was
asked his "occupation" and answered saying he was "the
worlds greatest architect" - Oligvanna his wife was present in
the courthouse and chided him on the answer.
book studio and guest house adjacent to the house. The commission was given to
his son Lloyd Wright who concentrated the ornamental block around doors and
the windows. A sleeping porch on the mezzanine opens to the double height
ceilings of the main studio. The perforated block screens light as it does in the main
house. Lloyd Wright subsequently designed the landscaping for the entire property.
Wright was exceptionally pleased with La Miniatura. In his autobiography, he
wrote, “The whole mass and texture of the home made the eucalyptus trees more
beautiful, they in turn made the house walls more so”
Mrs. Millard is in the house
As we peered though the windows and gardens and took hundreds of pictures, one
definitely gets a sense of a presence there. As someone who has always loved old
properties and lived in and renovated many of them, I am well aware of the living
history walls can tell and carry, and have never shied away because of this. This
house is different. Though Mrs. Millard is long gone and several other owners have
lived there, one can’t help but feel her presence. Feel her watchful eyes staring at
you from her window, smiling at visitors who are in awe at the peaceful elegance
that is the Millard Home & Gardens. Or maybe it is Frank Lloyd Wright, proudly and
unapologetically gushing over his near perfect balance of nature and man made
beauty.
I had no choice, Olgivanna. I was under oath. - Frank Lloyd
Wright, immediately after a court appearance when he was
asked his "occupation" and answered saying he was "the
worlds greatest architect" - Oligvanna his wife was present in
the courthouse and chided him on the answer.
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ABOUT THE ARCHITECT
Frank Lloyd Wright spent more than 70 years creating
designs that revolutionized the art and architecture of the
twentieth century. Many innovations in today's buildings
are products of his imagination. In all he designed 1141
works - including houses, offices, churches, schools, libraries,
bridges, museums and many other building types. Of that
total, 532 resulted in completed works, 409 of which still
stand.
However, Wright's creative mind was not confined to
architecture. He also designed furniture, fabrics, art glass,
lamps, dinnerware, silver, linens and graphic arts. In
addition, he was a prolific writer, an educator and a
philosopher. He authored twenty books and countless
articles, lectured throughout the United States and in
Europe, and developed a remarkable plan for
decentralizing urban America (Broadacre City) that
continues to be debated by scholars and writers even to
this day - decades after its conception.
Wright is considered by most authorities to be the 20th
century's greatest architect. Indeed, the American Institute
of Architects in a recent national survey, recognized Frank
Lloyd Wright to be "the greatest American architect of all
time." "Architectural Record" magazine (the official
magazine of the American Institute of Architects) declared
that Wright's buildings stand out among the most significant
architectural works during the last 100 years in the
world. – Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
Frank Lloyd Wright spent more than 70 years creating
designs that revolutionized the art and architecture of the
twentieth century. Many innovations in today's buildings
are products of his imagination. In all he designed 1141
works - including houses, offices, churches, schools, libraries,
bridges, museums and many other building types. Of that
total, 532 resulted in completed works, 409 of which still
stand.
However, Wright's creative mind was not confined to
architecture. He also designed furniture, fabrics, art glass,
lamps, dinnerware, silver, linens and graphic arts. In
addition, he was a prolific writer, an educator and a
philosopher. He authored twenty books and countless
articles, lectured throughout the United States and in
Europe, and developed a remarkable plan for
decentralizing urban America (Broadacre City) that
continues to be debated by scholars and writers even to
this day - decades after its conception.
Wright is considered by most authorities to be the 20th
century's greatest architect. Indeed, the American Institute
of Architects in a recent national survey, recognized Frank
Lloyd Wright to be "the greatest American architect of all
time." "Architectural Record" magazine (the official
magazine of the American Institute of Architects) declared
that Wright's buildings stand out among the most significant
architectural works during the last 100 years in the
world. – Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
"This is the first of four textile-block houses constructed in the Los
Angeles area. Its two-story high living room is delicately lit by
pierced, patterned block and overlooks a lovely pool
surrounded by lush gardens deep in the ravine-traversed
site...The face relief patterns of the blocks vary for each project.
The method of construction consisted of stacking concrete
blocks three inches thick, cast in molds, next to and atop one
another without visible mortar joints. In all but La Miniatura, thin
concrete and steel reinforcing rods were run horizontally and
vertically in edge reveals 'knitting' the whole together. A double
wythe was common, held together by steel cross ties, the cavity
air space serving as insulation."
- William Allin Storrer. The Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright:
A Complete Catalog
Angeles area. Its two-story high living room is delicately lit by
pierced, patterned block and overlooks a lovely pool
surrounded by lush gardens deep in the ravine-traversed
site...The face relief patterns of the blocks vary for each project.
The method of construction consisted of stacking concrete
blocks three inches thick, cast in molds, next to and atop one
another without visible mortar joints. In all but La Miniatura, thin
concrete and steel reinforcing rods were run horizontally and
vertically in edge reveals 'knitting' the whole together. A double
wythe was common, held together by steel cross ties, the cavity
air space serving as insulation."
- William Allin Storrer. The Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright:
A Complete Catalog
ABOUT THE HOME
Wright was in the midst of another burst of exceptional creativity when
he was approached about the Millard residence, also known as La
Miniatura. In 1906 Wright had designed a house for rare book dealers
George and Alice Millard in the Highland Park neighborhood of Chicago.
They moved to South Pasadena in 1913 and, after the death of her
husband, Alice Millard expanded the business to sell European antiques
and called on Wright once again to design her home, but insisted on he
using many of her antiques, including doors & tiles, and offered him
$10,000 for his services – a modest amount event then, for a visionary of
his caliber.
Wright was completing the Hollyhock House in Hollywood for the oil
heiress Aline Barnsdall as well as the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo at the time
and has successfully used patterned concrete blocks in both, so when
Mrs. Millard presented him with this project, he quickly convinced her on
a Mayan ruins theme, incorporating further the evolution of his block
technique. Millard agreed with the concrete block if she could
contribute her own taste to the house - An ornate fire screen in the living
room, rustic wooden doors and 18th century Delft tile in the bathrooms,
just to name a few. Wright is said to have been so excited about his
sympathetic client and the charming site that he reduced his fee to
accommodate her budget. Millard had purchased the land on Prospect
Crescent near many other residences designed by distinguished
architects including Charles and Henry Greene, Wallace Neff and Myron
Hunt. Wright positioned the house within the embrace of a natural arroyo
so that the living room elevation opens onto an oval pond and lush
gardens. Though most of Wright’s early buildings were oriented
horizontally to relate to the horizon of the mid-west, the Millard house is
distinctly vertical. The pattern cut into or stamped onto the block was
drawn from Pre-Columbian motifs and modernized as a cross surrounded
by four holes. Wright mixed sand from the site into the cement so the
building would be authentically integrated with its location.
Wright was in the midst of another burst of exceptional creativity when
he was approached about the Millard residence, also known as La
Miniatura. In 1906 Wright had designed a house for rare book dealers
George and Alice Millard in the Highland Park neighborhood of Chicago.
They moved to South Pasadena in 1913 and, after the death of her
husband, Alice Millard expanded the business to sell European antiques
and called on Wright once again to design her home, but insisted on he
using many of her antiques, including doors & tiles, and offered him
$10,000 for his services – a modest amount event then, for a visionary of
his caliber.
Wright was completing the Hollyhock House in Hollywood for the oil
heiress Aline Barnsdall as well as the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo at the time
and has successfully used patterned concrete blocks in both, so when
Mrs. Millard presented him with this project, he quickly convinced her on
a Mayan ruins theme, incorporating further the evolution of his block
technique. Millard agreed with the concrete block if she could
contribute her own taste to the house - An ornate fire screen in the living
room, rustic wooden doors and 18th century Delft tile in the bathrooms,
just to name a few. Wright is said to have been so excited about his
sympathetic client and the charming site that he reduced his fee to
accommodate her budget. Millard had purchased the land on Prospect
Crescent near many other residences designed by distinguished
architects including Charles and Henry Greene, Wallace Neff and Myron
Hunt. Wright positioned the house within the embrace of a natural arroyo
so that the living room elevation opens onto an oval pond and lush
gardens. Though most of Wright’s early buildings were oriented
horizontally to relate to the horizon of the mid-west, the Millard house is
distinctly vertical. The pattern cut into or stamped onto the block was
drawn from Pre-Columbian motifs and modernized as a cross surrounded
by four holes. Wright mixed sand from the site into the cement so the
building would be authentically integrated with its location.
"What about the concrete block? It was the cheapest (and ugliest) thing
in the building world. It lived mostly in the architectural gutter as an
imitation of rock-faced stone. Why not see what could be done with that
gutter rat? Steel rods cast inside the joints of the blocks themselves and
the whole brought into some broad, practical scheme of general
treatment, why would it not be fit for a new phase of our modern
architecture? It might be permanent, noble beautiful."
- Frank Lloyd Wright
My visit to the Millard house was moving,
religious and inspiring. To walk amongst
greatness and touch the master works
and concrete sculpted beauty was
breathtaking and exciting yet oddly
peaceful. The trickle of water from the
multiple water features and graceful Koi
fish transport you to a temple vibe…The
perfect setting to take tons of pictures
and crunch some digits and figure out
how we can afford to buy this place!
- Herb Sosa
religious and inspiring. To walk amongst
greatness and touch the master works
and concrete sculpted beauty was
breathtaking and exciting yet oddly
peaceful. The trickle of water from the
multiple water features and graceful Koi
fish transport you to a temple vibe…The
perfect setting to take tons of pictures
and crunch some digits and figure out
how we can afford to buy this place!
- Herb Sosa
For more on this great Architect, visionary
and his works, visit: www.franklloydwright.org
CLICK HERE for more Herb Sosa
Copyright © AMBIENTE MAGAZINE.
Do not reproduce without citing this source
and his works, visit: www.franklloydwright.org
CLICK HERE for more Herb Sosa
Copyright © AMBIENTE MAGAZINE.
Do not reproduce without citing this source