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Imported from Wisconsin

Michigan, News Comments Off

Sep 252011

Detroit’s Afleck House made an appearance in the most recent installment in Chrysler’s “Imported from Detroit” ad campaign.

Perhaps the Wright fan in me is supposed to rejoice, but as a native Michigander (go Whiteford Bobcats!) I have to point out that Wright-designed Afleck house got about six times the screen time as the Saarinen-dconnected Cranbrook campus. I’m guessing Chrysler didn’t import their admen from Detroit.

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George Berdan House

For Sale, Michigan, Unbuilt, Web Sites Comments Off

Aug 242011

There’s a new website for the unbuilt George Berdan House near Ludington, Michigan.

The Berdan House was intended to be one of Wright’s unusual two story Usonian houses. Wright accepted the commission in 1945 and completed the plans in 1948 — the house was intended to cost $6,000 – 7,000.

(The website suggests that, for $1,695,000, you change the status of the house from “unbuilt” to “built”).

A Batchof Wright Houses For Sale

For Sale, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, News 2 Responses »

May 252011

May flowers aren’t the only things springing up in the yards of Wright houses — “For Sale” signs are making an appearance too.

In Monona, Iowa the Meier House is on the market for $129,000. An American System-Built house, it was constructed without any input from Wright. The listing site has a collection of interior photos.

Also for sale is the McCartney House in Kalamazoo, a 1949 Usonian. Asking price is $250,000. The home is in a subdivision with three other Wright houses, in a setting largely unchanged since the houses were built. The house is sold with original plans, the casts for the bricks, and four Wright-designed tables.

Also for sale is the Millard House (via Wright Chat; I can’t find an on-line listing). Actually, the other Millard House, the one is Highland Park, Illinois. Hell, buy the one in Pasadena, and you’ll own the set.

This house isn’t a Wright, though at least one website thinks it is. You can see a Wright house from the front porch (the Thomas House). Or, if your friends are gullible, just ell them it’s a Wright, and point the website as your proof — get the Wright street cred, without all of the pesky low-slung roofs and roman brick.

Turkel House

Michigan, Restoration/Renovation Comments Off

Mar 242011

Curbed National has a brief interview with the owners of the restored Turkel House in Detroit. The ground has been covered (a video here,an article here ) before, but it’s hard to argue that the Turkel House and its owners get too much exposure.

CN: How did you bring your design aesthetic into the home? NS: We wanted it to look like 1955. We didn’t want to change anything. You could do many things with this if it was just a regular midcentury house but we wanted this to be like Mr. Wright intended it. Except for a new bathroom so that we could have some modern amenities.

Turkel House Video

Audio & Video, Michigan, Restoration/Renovation Comments Off

Nov 232010

Detroit local news show has video of the restored Turkel House. James McDaniel, an actor in the series Detroit 1-8-7 spotted the house glimpsed the house through foliage, recognized it as a Frank Lloyd Wright building and stopped.

The video is obnoxiously edited and has a vaguely annoying music track, but the Turkel House is beautifully restored and the video includes a bit of the interior, so it’s worth putting up with the local news quirks.

In August, I linked to a story on the restoration from Hour Detroit that included a gallery of photos showing off the newly-restored house.

Living in the Affleck House

Michigan Comments Off

Nov 172010

The real estate blog Curbed has an interview with the tenant of the Affleck House in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. The home is owned by the Lawrence Technical University , and the tenant is Ralph Nelson, assistant dean and director of graduate programs for the College of Architecture and Design.

The interview is short, and not particularly deep or original, but it will kill some time at work.

Be Your Own Joe Massaro

For Sale, Michigan, Unbuilt Comments Off

Oct 292010

(via PrairieMod)

Here’s a very cool thing: a parcel of land and the plans, renderings and blueprints of the house that Frank Lloyd Wright designed for it are for sale .

The land is near Ludington, Michigan, on the shores of Lake Michigan. 3.5 acres and a hair over 200 feet of frontage on the lake. The house, designed in 1955, was 1560 sq. feet, with 2 bedrooms and 2 baths and roof-top balconies.

The listing includes a number of photos of the property and small (too small) images of the renderings and plans.

Asking price is $750,000

Turkel House Restoration

Michigan, Restoration/Renovation Comments Off

Aug 292010

(via: PrairieMod)

Hour Detroit published feature on the owners of the Turkel House in Detroit, Michigan. The current owners, Norm Silk and Dale Morgan, bought the house in 2006 and virtually save the house with a $1 million restoration.

The men say they had talked abstractly about moving to a smaller house, maybe something modern. But they liked their Palmer Woods neighborhood. One day, Silk drove by and spotted a for-sale sign. When they decided to buy, people called them crazy. They viewed the move as simply wanting to improve the house so they could enjoy living in a “cool place.” Along the way, it became their legacy.

“We’ve come to look at it like we’re caretakers of some important architectural piece, and it will keep going after we’re done with it,” Silk says.

A gallery of pictures accompanies the article. The photos highlight the extaordinary restoration, but also the feeling of light and space in the two-story Usonian.

The owners credit the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy with putting them in contact with Wright experts to help with the restoration; they will be attending the Conservancy’s annual conference in Cincinnati this September.

New Website for A.B. Dow House

Michigan, Web Sites Comments Off

Aug 042010

A B Dow House 1.jpg Of all the architects who lived and worked in Frank Lloyd Wright’s orbit, my favorite is Alden B. Dow. A. B. Dow was the son of the founder of Dow Chemical. An early family trip to Japan (where he stayed in Wright’s Imperial Hotel) deeply influenced him. After graduating from Columibia University, he studied with Wright at Taliesin in the Summer of 1933.

Dow’s Home and Studio, now a National Historic Landmark open to the public, is a beautiful and original blend of Japanese traditions, Wright’s ideas and his own remarkable talent; it is endlessly surprising, playful and innovative.

A B Dow House 2.jpg The website for the home has been recently redesigned (and now includes a blog and a Facebook page); the new site has many more photos and information about the home and the career of A. B. Dow than before. Planning a visit is easier now, and even if you aren’t likely to make a trip to Midland, Michigan soon, the new site is a place to start learning about the work of one of Wright’s most talented apprentices.

Motawi Tile

Michigan, Tangential Comments Off

Jul 182010

Other than books, I generally don’t post much about the vast expanse of Frank Lloyd Wright merchandise. There’s nothing wrong with wanting FLW-themed cuff-links (personally, I like the coasters; I don’t use coasters, but I want them — don’t know why).

But Motawi Tileworks is worth an exception. They have a huge and beautiful line of tiles, both individual art tiles for display and others for installation. They have a small, but impressive line of Frank Lloyd Wright tiles (they’ve been a licensee for three years). Many tiles areinspired by the Arts & Crafts movement (including a Dard Hunter series). The tiles meant for larger installations (fireplaces, floors, back splashes) are even more impressive. Some of these, the Chicago series, are beautifully inspired by the work of Louis Sullivan and prairie school architects Purcell and Elmslie.

At this year’s Wright Plus housewalk, Motawi introduced a tile to commemorate the centennial of the Robie House. We blew the 2010 art budget on the framed version and I can attest that it beautifully complements our 1917 bungalow.

The Detroit News interviewed Nawal Motawi on the process and opportunities to visit the tile-making facilities, if you are near Ann Arbor, Michigan. If you don’t live near Ann Arbor, the Motawi webiste has a dealer locator.

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The Frank Lloyd Wright Newsblog