Wright Chat

[DRN]

Not sure if this was publicized on Chat, but Rob Barros' John Howe documentary is now available for purchase on DVD and Blu-Ray.

https://johnhowemovie.com/product/john-howe-dvd-bluray

[SDR]

Are both the Blu-ray and the DVD provided on a CD ? I haven't had Blu-ray before; what hardware is employed ?

I asked for and received the DVD. Resolution issues aside (noticed mostly in the otherwise excellent typography), this is a work of the sort that one
hopes for and not often finds.

Mr Barros has done Howe proud. Persons who knew Jack Howe are given ample time to reminisce, we hear Howe's own voice in multiple interviews
and recorded comments---and the trove of drawings spread before the viewer provides "an embarrassment of riches." Graphic design, photography,
and music (by Rick Wakeman) are all above par. This is a class act.

No Wrightian's library should be without this film. As with Randy Henning's Aaron Green volume, this is a superior effort, and gives the observer more
than his money's worth, by a good margin. I was just delighted; master apprentice and designer/drafter/illustrator extraordinaire Howe finally gets his
due . . .

S

[SREcklund]

[John]

Blu-Ray technology has been around for a long time. I suggest you get a player. It will make everything you view look better. You can purchase a player for as little as $60 or as much as $500.
The cheaper ones work as well as the more expensive, just with fewer features.
I suggest you get the same brand as your HDTV set for compatibility.
Then enjoy Rob's great Documentary!

[SDR]

Thanks, John---that's what I needed to know.

Lastly, Rob's film makes the ideal companion to Hession and Quigley, "John H Howe, Architect" (U of Minnesota Press, 2015). The two sources complement
each other, each providing parts of the picture of Jack's life and work, with remarkably little overlap in material (thanks in part, of course, to their representing
two different media types, each with its unique strengths).

It appears that the film was compiled from sources gathered in the nick of time: Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer and Bill Krebes, who appear in the 2019 film, have
since passed away, and Lu Howe is captured in recorded conversation while her name is memorialized with a dedication in the book published four years
earlier.

S

[m.perrino]

Mr. Barros has produced a masterpiece of knowledge for all interested in Organic Architecture, FLW, The Fellowship, et al. Several key individual were instrumental is assisting FLW to produce such a large volume of work. Jack, Wes, Gene, Ken, Cornelia, Lois, and creative productive people from each decade well into the early 1970's and the formation of TAA. I don't want to romanticize their lives, but my God, to be a creative person and live in that environment. Hard to grasp. Mr. Barros, FLW said it best " ....this gets you a cookie ! " Outstanding work. Our deep gratitude.

[SDR]

Blu-Ray discs are on their way to me. I look forward to an even more satisfying experience of this new film. Mr Wright's most important delineator, equalled only
by Marion Mahony (can we agree that this is so ?), has received his due in this decade, with the book from Hessian and Quigley and now with this documentary.

Wrightians who believe they have seen Howe's work in its entirety will be pleasantly surprised to find that there was still more to be seen, absorbed, and assayed . . .

https://johnhowemovie.com/product/john-howe-dvd-bluray

S

[Roderick Grant]

I would add Davy Davison to that short list. His nighttime views of Capitol Times and Beth Shalom are spectacular.

[SDR]

Yes. I have seen only his day and night views of the Lenkurt Electric Company . . .

In terms of quality and quantity, the pair named seem to be the stars of their respective eras.

S

[Roderick Grant]

Lenkurt! That's what I meant.
There is also the spectacular Monona Terrace Project.

[SDR]

While Mr Wright had other notable (if under-credited) drafters and illustrators---not least his own son, Lloyd---there is one hero of the Usonian period, and that would be Howe ?

In Rob's film we are told that Howe was taught to draw at Taliesin by Henry Klumb, and was instructed in perspective construction by Mr Wright himself.

S

[SDR]

Bump