eBay: Gillin House (Dallas, TX) construction drawings

[DavidC]

FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT RARE - GILLIN HOUSE


David

[SDR]

The size of these sheets is not given, nor is the number of pages. Judging by the plastic comb binding, showing nineteen rings, the sheets are likely 11 x 17 inches.

The typewritten marking indicates a date of 1989. So, this would appear to be a copy set provided by Taliesin upon application by an interested party, perhaps an owner.

Storrer dates the design to 1950, so it is hardly one of the last of Wright's houses. And he has construction beginning in 1955, not '56.

[SDR]

Here's a section drawing found in Monograph 7, followed by a similar drawing from the offered set.

[SDR]

. . . and yes, the fireplace stone really does that . . .





© MIT Libraries

[Tom]

The looseness of the ebay set and the scribbled notes led me to wonder if some
of those sheets Wright did himself .. and at what age would he have been then?

Concrete roof with plywood suspended ceiling.
Hard to imagine that he would have transfered from plywood to white painted
surfaces at the light cove soffit above his continuous sofa.

There are some awkward transitions all round in that photograph: the upholstery, the curtains, carpet ... argh.

[Roderick Grant]

"This bound set of 109 drawings and sketches...."

I think none of the plans show the house as actually built. The overall layout is roughly the same, but there are some details that look unfamiliar.

When I was there, it was in the hands of the second owner, and those tawdry details, like the upholstery, had not infested the place. But the plaster areas were painted a dead white, which I cannot accept as the original color. On the other hand, they had introduced some very large, modern, stone sculptures on the grounds that, contrasted to the stone texture of the house, looked wonderfully appropriate.

Part of the reason for the plaster probably was to lighten the vast living room, most of which ceiling is paneled, making it quite dark.

[SDR]

photo © Thomas Heinz



Neither Pfeiffer nor Storrer mentions the concrete slab roofs. Storrer notes the copper roof and plaster ceilings and soffits; Pfeiffer says the wood is "blonde teak," and says there are "basements and tunnels for utilities and equipment."






© 1993 by William Allin Storrer

[Roderick Grant]

There is an almost full basement of 5,000 sf, clean and dry, with closets full of replacement elements, like drawer pulls and hinges, should they be needed, a massive heating/cooling operation and panel for 16 telephone lines ... of course obsolete.

[JChoate]

for any fan of director Wes Anderson's films, his first one Bottle Rocket included Gillin in some scenes. Note what appear to be terrazzo floors.

https://www.castingarchitecture.com/201 ... residence/

[Matt]

The drawing stipple areas seem to indicate a plaster ceiling folding down to the wall. The horizontal line above the drapes should be wood and not plaster, right? I don't think I've every seen one of those perimeter lines in anything but wood.

[Roderick Grant]

Terrazzo they are, and terrazzo they should be. Away with the carpet!

[SDR]

Matt, Wright was allowed to break his own rules. Imagine how bored he must have become, repeating the recipe unchanged, over and over.

For what it's worth, drawings don't show the elaborate wood ceiling treatment, at all . . .

SDR

[Matt]

When I see rules broken, I wonder who was breaking them. Could be Wright, or an apprentice, or the home owner.

[Tom]

Lots to crritique at Gillin.
My favorite parts of the house are the exterior prespective drawings.

[clydethecat]

Paint it orange and blue and you've got a nice Howard Johnson's.