Article: Paul Hanna and the Hanna House - Stanford, CA

DavidC · Post by **DavidC** » Thu Dec 21, 2017 11:22 am

Roderick Grant · Post by **Roderick Grant** » Thu Dec 21, 2017 1:01 pm

Paul Hanna was instrumental in establishing the FLWBC. In 1984, prior to the auction of the D. D. Martin Papers in Hollywood, Hanna went through the entire collection, itemizing every letter, telegram, photo and sketch. Then he got Stanford and SUNY Buffalo to collaborate on buying the collection, with each institution receiving half of the originals and half copies. Without his involvement, the entire collection would probably have been sold off by Scott Elliot to private collectors.

His efforts resulted in the ad hoc conference at SUNY in 1985, organized by Jack Quinan, that resulted in the establishment of the Conservancy.

Reidy · Post by **Reidy** » Thu Dec 21, 2017 1:54 pm

Interesting that the Hannas were Deweyites, as Dewey's theories also gave rise to the Coonley Playhouse.

Tom · Post by **Tom** » Wed Jul 04, 2018 7:00 pm

Stanford Archives
Hanna House Drawings
Prety cool:
https://exhibits.stanford.edu/ua-maps-d ... l-drawings

SDR · Post by **SDR** » Wed Jul 04, 2018 9:14 pm

Very cool: the images can be enlarged beyond original size. Expand screen (X, lower right corner) and scroll to expand.

Sixty one pages of thumbnails. Good lord . . .

SDR

SDR · Post by **SDR** » Wed Jul 04, 2018 10:38 pm

Many drawings, and many many photographs. On page 45 can be found drawings of perforated panels. A few of the images I inspected were of much lower resolution; they could be enlarged but not read clearly. Most of these were of furniture designs.

SDR

SDR · Post by **SDR** » Thu Jul 05, 2018 10:27 am

Here's a small selection of items, from the Stanford collection with two exceptions.

First, a Dave Anderson photo. The stairs in the foreground were added at some point:

Then, by way of contrast, three delicious early photos. The steel-pipe support probably doesn't exist on any drawing ?

Two lovely roof-framing sheets. Putting these together with the hex-cell floor plane(s), in a contrasting color, would make an excellent collage ?

Then, post-Wright section drawings from the Hanna's book:

. . . and a drawing from the Stanford collection. Neither of these sections shows the wide bottom rail of the operating sash (doors). At upper left Mr Wright invents an outdoor grille with chimney; there is a photo in the collection of the screen, lower right:

A most interesting note to a sheet of interior elevations: the vertical unit is called out as 14 inches. This, contemporaneous to the Jacobs house, which began with a 12" unit which increased during the drawing design phase to 12 1/2" . . .

A photo of the workshop, with a chair positioned to reveal its underside:

A drawing of the workshop overhauled into a caretaker's quarters, dated June 1974 and mentioned as uncompleted by the Hannas in their 1981 book (p 144):

Last, two views of a Chrysler Airflow. The boat-tailed roadster I cannot identify.

Roderick Grant · Post by **Roderick Grant** » Thu Jul 05, 2018 11:23 am

On page 99 of the January '63 issue of HB dedicated to Hanna are two photos of the large parking area off the SW side of the house, added sometime in the 50s, to accommodate parking for 25 cars. The brick steps were added at that time to provide access from to house. Hanna often entertained large groups of visitors, especially Stanford student.

Matt · Post by **Matt** » Thu Jul 05, 2018 4:02 pm

Thanks for posting. I'd never seen those chairs before. Sort of a riff on the barrel chair only hexagonal. I'd be more interested in making one of them than tackling an origami chair. Are chair plans amongst the drawings?

One label notes the collection of hardwoods on hand. I wonder if they are still there.

SDR · Post by **SDR** » Thu Jul 05, 2018 4:17 pm

We've looked at Hanna house chairs before. Here's one thread:

http://wrightchat.savewright.org/viewto ... c&start=30

http://wrightchat.savewright.org/viewto ... c&start=45

and there's this: https://exhibits.stanford.edu/ua-maps-d ... l-drawings

Then there's photos at Stanford of the ungainly armchair which shows up in the first-linked WC page . . .

You don't want to make one of those chairs. They're ugly, and tippy. The only reason to give them a second glance is that Wright designed them,
and/ or that they belong to the Hanna house. They look a little too much like actual barrels, in my opinion !

SDR

Roderick Grant · Post by **Roderick Grant** » Fri Jul 06, 2018 11:54 am

It is hard to reconcile that those "ugly, tippy" chairs came from the same mind that designed the origami chair. The dining chairs are not ugly, but they proved to be too tippy for Hanna guests. I believe it was a mother-in-law who ended up with her face in the soup on one occasion.

SDR · Post by **SDR** » Fri Jul 06, 2018 12:20 pm

Mr Wright seemed at some points to believe that a chair could have the graceful proportions of a good vase, slender at the foot and swelling at it rose.
Of course a vase isn't expected to deal with a live load . . . !

Someday someone will make an Origami chair out of plastic; that chair will have the look of the original, and the comfort, without the weight. If it turns
out that some of the stability was due to the weight, there could be a problem -- but the chair will be easily shipped and moved.

SDR

Roderick Grant · Post by **Roderick Grant** » Fri Jul 06, 2018 1:42 pm

I have a huge chair that needs two to carry it. When I want to move it, I just lift it so there is only one foot on the floor, and then twist.

DRN · Post by **DRN** » Fri Jul 06, 2018 2:37 pm

They're ugly, and tippy.

The Hanna house was on the FLWBC Conference tour in 2016, and a couple of chair types (reproductions?) were available to be sat upon. A dining chair was available, so I tried it. Crossing ones legs causes the chair to become less stable... if one was to reach for the guacamole in the direction opposite of one's foot on the floor, I could see trouble. Best to keep both feet on the floor at 11 and 1 o'clock.

I will say the perforated center slab of the chair base cast beautiful shadows on the floor and walls.

Rood · Post by **Rood** » Fri Jul 06, 2018 4:59 pm

When critics blasted his three-legged JWax chair, Mr. Wright said ... put your feet solidly on the floor and you have a chair with five legs.

I used one of the three-legged JWax chairs for over ten years ... and never once experienced a problem. On the contrary ... it was always very comfortable. If it were possible I'd buy one.