From the Road Scholar Program:
After an optional walk along the creek, we’ll gather for this morning’s presentation, entitled "Wright's Patrons and Projects" presented by the staff from Fallingwater, Frank Lloyd Wright's premier architectural masterpiece. We’ll have an in-depth look at the controversy that often surrounded Wright and his clients.
During our visit to Frank Lloyd Wright’s Duncan House and Mäntylä House, we will experience the height of Usonian Style with the help of knowledgeable docents. Wright created Usonians for everyday life in the 1950s. We will marvel at the fascinating story of preserving these two homes for future generations.
Frank Lloyd Wright was an unquestioned genius. His was also a problematic and narcissitic personality. He bullied his clients, sponged off them, ignored their wishes, vastly overspent their budgets, ran away with one client's wife, Mamah Borthwick Cheney, abandoned his own wife and children, and was generally a pain to work with and for. He could be cavalier about trivia like leaking roofs and sagging cantilevers. That said, his clients worked in partnership with him to create his masterpieces.
Polymath Park originally contained two houses designed by Peter Berndtson, a former Wright apprentice at Taliesen. Over time two Wright-designed houses have been relocated here to save them from demolition. There is a third house still in storage at the site awaiting funds to reassemble it. We only visited the two Wright houses and were disappointed we didn't see the Berndtson houses. Only so much time!
All of the houses are available as temporary rentals. It's our chance to see what it's like to live in a FLLW house. (Wright used the two Ls in his initials to emphasize his connection to his mother's Welsh family.)
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