Being Frank Lloyd Wright’s son sureÂly came with its downÂsides. But one of the upsides — assumÂing you could stay in the merÂcuÂrÂial masÂter’s good graces — was the posÂsiÂbilÂiÂty of his designÂing a house for you. Such was the forÂtune of his fourth child David Samuel Wright, a Phoenix buildÂing-prodÂucts repÂreÂsenÂtaÂtive well into midÂdle age himÂself when he got his own Wright house. It must have been worth the wait, givÂen that he and his wife lived there until their deaths at age 102 and 104, respecÂtiveÂly. Not long thereÂafter, the sold-off David and Gladys Wright House faced the prospect of immiÂnent demoÂliÂtion, but it ultiÂmateÂly surÂvived long enough to be added to the NationÂal RegÂisÂter of HisÂtoric Places in 2022.
GivÂen that its curÂrent ownÂers include restoraÂtion-mindÂed forÂmer archiÂtecÂturÂal apprenÂtices TalÂiesin West, the David and Gladys Wright House would now seem to have a secure future. To get a sense of what makes it worth preÂservÂing, have a look at this new tour video from ArchiÂtecÂturÂal Digest led — like the AD video on Wright’s TirÂranÂna preÂviÂousÂly feaÂtured here on Open CulÂture — by Frank Lloyd Wright FounÂdaÂtion presÂiÂdent and CEO StuÂart Graff. He first emphaÂsizes the houseÂ’s most conÂspicÂuÂous feaÂture, its spiÂral shape that brings to mind (and actuÂalÂly preÂdatÂed) Wright’s design for the Solomon R. GuggenÂheim MuseÂum.
Here, Graff explains, “the spiÂral realÂly takes on a unique sense of longeviÂty as it moves from one genÂerÂaÂtion, father, to the next genÂerÂaÂtion, son — and even today, as it moves between father and daughÂter workÂing on this restoraÂtion.” That father and daughÂter are Bing and AmanÂda Hu, who have takÂen on the job of corÂrectÂing the years and years of less-than-optiÂmal mainÂteÂnance inflictÂed on this house on which Wright, charÂacÂterÂisÂtiÂcalÂly, spared litÂtle expense or attenÂtion to detail. EveryÂthing in it is cusÂtom made, from the PhilipÂpine mahogany ceilÂings to the doors and trash cans to the conÂcrete blocks that make up the exteÂriÂor walls.
“David Wright worked for the BessÂer ManÂuÂfacÂturÂing ComÂpaÂny, and they made conÂcrete block molds,” says Graff. “David insistÂed that his comÂpaÂny’s molds and conÂcrete block be used for the conÂstrucÂtion and design of this house.” That wasÂn’t the only aspect on which the younger Wright had input; at one point, he even dared to ask, “Dad, can the house be only 90 perÂcent Frank Lloyd Wright, and ten perÂcent David and Gladys Wright?” Wright’s response: “You’re makÂing your poor old father tired.” Yet he did, ultiÂmateÂly, incorÂpoÂrate his son’s requests into the design — underÂstandÂing, as Bing Hu also must, that filÂial piety is a two-way street.
RelatÂed conÂtent:
130+ PhoÂtographs of Frank Lloyd Wright’s MasÂterÂpiece FallingÂwaÂter
What Frank Lloyd Wright’s UnusuÂal WinÂdows Tell Us About His ArchiÂtecÂturÂal Genius
When Frank Lloyd Wright Designed a DogÂhouse, His SmallÂest ArchiÂtecÂturÂal CreÂation (1956)
Based in Seoul, ColÂin Marshall writes and broadÂcasts on cities, lanÂguage, and culÂture. His projects include the SubÂstack newsletÂter Books on Cities, the book The StateÂless City: a Walk through 21st-CenÂtuÂry Los AngeÂles and the video series The City in CinÂeÂma. FolÂlow him on TwitÂter at @colinmarshall or on FaceÂbook.