Down to the Detail

I have always loved diving into Frank Lloyd Wright buildings and works by similar architects in the fact that they designed literally every detail of their buildings, from the overall concept and façade to the lamp on the desk they also designed. While this level of detail by one architect is not something feasible on the majority of larger projects in America’s environment today, it is not something that is considered even partially. Unfortunately, architects cannot even assume they are going to have holistic design control over buildings they are working on. One architect may win the bid for the exterior façade and another may get the interiors. While I understand that some architects and firms are just better at different things and the client wants to make their building perfect, something gets lost when the architect doesn’t get to work on the inside and the outside of a building. For those working on the exterior, that becomes the most important thing, sometimes regardless of what is going on inside. Do architects in today’s world feel the need to save face because they don’t have the whole building to design? Is this leading us to facades that only exist to look cool with banal and poorly integrated interior spaces? Some of my favorite parts about visiting a Wright project were the moments where all the pieces of the exterior and interior work together beautifully. It was obvious that someone had been thinking about all the parts when designing and that piece of the process seems to be missing in many projects today.

Fallingwater by Frank Lloyd Wright

Inside, the living room furniture was designed to be the perfect height for the 

windows and cantilever above the floor, allowing for the family to achieve the 

indoor/outdoor feel they desired.