Lecture: Donald Aitken - 'Daylight legacy of FLW'

[DavidC]

Donald Aitken, "Daylighting legacy of Frank Lloyd Wright", 1987-10-12 - [1:16:38]


David

[Duncan]

Donald W. Aitken is the son-in-law of Herbert and Katherine Jacobs, and commissioned a Taliesin-designed Usonian house. If you google "Donald W. Aitken house" you will come up with an extensive discussion on this site from 2006 when it was for sale:

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Web results
Wright Chat :: View topic - Unsonian for sale
wrightchat.savewright.org/viewtopic.php?t=811
The Donald W. Aitken house, built for Mr. Aitken and his wife, who was the daughter of Herbert and Katherine Jacobs (Jacobs First Residence [S 234] and ...
Checking Google Earth for 20100 Skyline Blvd, Woodside, the house still appears intact, although it appears there has been additional road construction and power line construction marring the site.

[Roderick Grant]

I met Aitken in '89. He was along with Katharine Jacobs and his wife, Elizabeth, when we visited Sturges. He ran around looking at and photographing the effects of sunlight on the house. Larson and Bridges' dog romping around after him.

[Tom]

Hard to focus on an extensive daylighting lecture without the visual component.

[SDR]

I was not able to find an image of the house, using all the references suggested here. Has anyone been more successful . . . ?

S

[Roderick Grant]

There is a single photo of the Aitken House at the back of one of the "lesser" books on FLW, not the Ben Raeburn book, but possibly the one Herb Jacobs wrote. It isn't a very telling photo.

[SDR]

Here's that photo, credited to Herbert Jacobs:

[DRN]

There are more photos of the Aitken house at this link:
https://www.redfin.com/CA/Woodside/2010 ... me/1736493
These photos were made in 2006 at the time the house was for sale.

[SDR]

The above-mentioned Wright Chat thread from 2006 is full of interesting matter. Among other unanswered questions is the date of construction of the Aitken house: both 1963 and 1968 are mentioned. We learn of architect David Wheatley.

http://wrightchat.savewright.org/viewto ... ?f=2&t=811

We also have the redoubtable RJH, who simply copies in full the initial highly informative post by "Jim" (which Jim is that; Jim in SF ?), and a pair of posts by Bill Schwarz, the second of which seems to have been excised---by its author ?---for some reason.

And, finally, the suspense is relieved by the surprise revelation that the house will be in good hands. Have we heard from "Harpstring" since ?

S

[Duncan]

Yes its the "Jim" in SF

[SDR]

Thanks, Duncan.

It would be great to hear from the new owner. If Wright Chat's former "Notify me when a reply is posted" function was working, he would have been notified of our renewed interest.

S