Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater

Few buildings elicit a visceral thrill, as did Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater during a recent visit. After years of seeing this architectural masterpiece cited, it was an extraordinary experience to be there in person. Dramatically built into the rock cliff over a waterfall,, the home brings multiple stone outcrops right into the interior of the house. Fallingwater’s four levels, staggered trays cantilevered over the nature preserve Bear Run, blend artfully into their setting. “This great building at once stands proudly on its own, with nature as a backdrop,” and yet “merges itself into its setting,” wrote Paul Goldberger, former NYT architectural critic.  “Man and nature are both protagonists here.”

Vincent Scully, the eminent architectural historian and Yale professor, contrasts the design of Fallingwater, and its co-existence with nature, with the design of buildings that confront, or command, nature, such as the Greek temple. Scully traces Wright’s inspiration back to the influence of Native American forms and to what DH Lawrence called the “Spirit of the Place.”

Edgar Kaufmann, who commissioned the house in 1935, was a Pittsburgh department store magnate, who envisioned this family home as a summer retreat from the hot smoky city and its iron and steel manufacturing. Anticipating frequent visitors, Kaufmann linked a guest house to the main house via a covered walkway in a prototypical Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU). Overnight guests included Albert Einstein, Ingrid Bergman, Marlene Dietrich, and President FDR. More contemporary celebrities have also visited. In 2006, Angelina Jolie arranged a visit to Fallingwater as a surprise birthday present for Brad Pitt: “He’s so hard to buy for,” she explained to the staff.