Panama

[Manjushr]

We are looking for resources and information concerning FLW's projects in the tropics.

More specifically, FLW was contracted by family many many years ago, to construct 2 residences in in the Republic of Panama; one in the city, one on the farm.

Today the houses are still spectacular, although suffering greatly. Many modifications have been made over time, as the rains and the heat were dramatically underestimated.

We curious about other FLW restoration projects in the tropics. Hoping to find some inspirational weatherization examples to FLW's works in the tropics.

thank you in advance.

[Rood]

We are looking for resources and information concerning FLW's projects in the tropics.

More specifically, FLW was contracted by family many many years ago, to construct 2 residences in in the Republic of Panama; one in the city, one on the farm.

Today the houses are still spectacular, although suffering greatly. Many modifications have been made over time, as the rains and the heat were dramatically underestimated.

We curious about other FLW restoration projects in the tropics. Hoping to find some inspirational weatherization examples to FLW's works in the tropics.thank you in advance.

Thank you for your inquiry, Manjushr. You must forgive me, as I'm somewhat astonished to discover that the J.J. Vallarino Jr. house was actually constructed in Panama. Somehow I was unaware of the fact. The third design submitted to the family was dated 1955, and the plan was published by Taschen in 2009 in the volume "Frank Lloyd Wright: 1943-1959, as an unbuilt "Project" (see page 429),which suggests that the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation at Taliesin West might also have been unaware that the house was actually built ... in Panama City? In addition, to learn that it is in need of restoration is particularly worrisome.

I'm also unaware that Mr. Wright designed two houses for the family ... one in Panama City and a second ..."...on the farm".
Please tell us more about the second house.

When the decision to build the house was made ... about 20 years after 1955 ... was an attempt made to inform the architects at Taliesin West ... and if so, what response did you receive? Did anyone from The FLLWright Foundation supervise construction?

As for other Frank Lloyd Wright house constructed in tropical climates ... the Lewis House in Florida, designed and built in 1952, a design somewhat similar to yours, but on a much smaller scale, has in recent years been in dire need of restoration. Another house, also somewhat similar to your design, was built more recently in Hawaii ... along with a Golf Club, the design of which was base on the rather large house Mr. Wright designed for Arthur Miller and Marilyn Monroe. The last two structures were built much more recently than the Lewis House in Florida ... and I'm fairly confident they are not in need of restoration.

[DRN]

Is this the obituary of Wright's client?
https://dartmouthalumnimagazine.com/joa ... E2%80%9943

Joaquin J. Vallarino Jr. ’43

Jan - Feb 2016

Joaquin J. Vallarino Jr. ’43 died October 5, 2015, in Panama City, Republic of Panama. A native of Panama, Val attended local schools before graduating from Culver Military Academy. At Dartmouth Val majored in Spanish, was president of the Spanish Club, active in intramural sports and a member of Chi Gamma Epsilon and Kappa Sigma. While at Dartmouth he met Barbara Cox, daughter of Professor Sidney Cox. They were married in 1942. Back in Panama, after a variety of jobs, Val became manager—and eventually chairman and CEO—of Coca Cola Panama and founded a brewery in 1959. He chaired Banco Disa and Panama Boston Industries, was president of the Panama Chapter of the Inter-American Council of Commerce and Production, founded the U.S.-Panama Business Council and helped found the National Renovation Movement (a political party). Named by President George Bush (senior) to the Panama Commission that oversaw the transfer of the canal to Panama, Val later chaired the ad-hoc commission that established the Panama Canal Authority. Val loved his ranch, Tanara, where he bred racehorses and Brahman cattle. For more than 30 years Val and Barbie maintained a home in Hanover. In 2001 Val invited classmates to a mini-reunion in Panama. Loyal to Dartmouth, Val was a class officer and a member of the executive committee. Val was predeceased by daughter Carol. He is survived by Barbara; children, J.J. III, Roberto, Pedro, Susana and Miguel; and many grandchildren (including Barbara ’98) and great-grandchildren

[SDR]

The drawings. Some of these are in color, a definite plus for which we will have to look elsewhere:

https://library.artstor.org/#/search/Wr ... =1;size=48

There were three successive designs for the client, closely related but distinct; these designs are typically mixed together randomly in the Artstor files . . .

S

[SDR]

© 2009 by TASCHEN GmbH, © The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation Archives
(The Museum of Modern Art | Avery Architectural & Fine Arts Library,
Columbia University, New York)

[Manjushr]

Thank you everyone! What a marvelous resource this board. Greatly appreciated. Moving the conversation forward with the respondents via email and telephone.

Thank you so much to the keeper's of this forum for enabling this efficient link to such great resources.

[Tom]

At some point let us know if these projects were actually built please.
Best of luck.

[Manjushr]

Indeed - second house is at Tanara - here is a good summary. https://www.luiscarballeda.com/news/la- ... stematica/

and

https://ws147.juntadeandalucia.es/obras ... ge418.html

[SDR]

Would it be possible to see photos of the built house ?

S

[Roderick Grant]

Although the information is pretty much the same as Taschen, the Mono references are in Volume 8, pp. 24, 25, 192 and 193.

[Manjushr]

....
" You must forgive me, as I'm somewhat astonished to discover that the J.J. Vallarino Jr. house was actually constructed in Panama. Somehow I was unaware of the fact. The third design submitted to the family was dated 1955, and the plan was published by Taschen in 2009 in the volume "Frank Lloyd Wright: 1943-1959, as an unbuilt "Project" (see page 429)..."


Thank you for this resource. It has helped me further understand.... indeed, the home in p.city was never built (...in the end, it was a local interpretation that was constructed).... rather, the design you reference was built north of Chepo, but with several compromises.....

Thanks again. very interesting. much appreciated.

[Rood]

....
" You must forgive me, as I'm somewhat astonished to discover that the J.J. Vallarino Jr. house was actually constructed in Panama. Somehow I was unaware of the fact. The third design submitted to the family was dated 1955, and the plan was published by Taschen in 2009 in the volume "Frank Lloyd Wright: 1943-1959, as an unbuilt "Project" (see page 429)..."


Thank you for this resource. It has helped me further understand.... indeed, the home in p.city was never built (...in the end, it was a local interpretation that was constructed).... rather, the design you reference was built north of Chepo, but with several compromises.....

Thanks again. very interesting. much appreciated.

OK, but what were those several "compromises"?

[SDR]

http://tanarapanama.blogspot.com/p/fran ... right.html

Can the house be seen in the aerial photo ?

Is this the same house ?:

https://inspanama.wordpress.com/2016/08 ... en-panama/

S

[DRN]

The second link in Manjushr’s second August 11 post above has a photo that matches the house seen in the first link of SDR’s August 16 post.
The house in question is not in the aerial photo. The house in SDR’s second link is not the house in question.

The built house in the photos above looks like a smaller and much simplified impression of Wright’s 1955 design. One might honestly and accurately say the built house was inspired by Wright’s 1955 design, and that it was built by the family of the original client lends to that position, but to call this a Frank Lloyd Wright designed house would be open to challenge, at least from the two photos.

The part in the link about “the patrimony of Frank Lloyd Wright endorsed by the FLW Foundation” seems suspect. While I could see the Foundation wanting to follow up on a claim that a design for a foreign country believed to have been unbuilt, was indeed built, I can’t imagine the built house in the photos would be judged to be similar enough to the drawings by Wright’s office that it would accepted as Wright’s design.