Landmark Houses: Frank Lloyd Wright's Millard House
David
Article: La Miniatura
"Millard wanted an "old world" European elegance but allowed her architect to indulge his affinity for Maya-inspired decorative frieze and architectural massing — as long as she could add her own touches, visible today in the ornate fireplace screen in the living room, the carved Italian doors and the crouching stone lions guarding a covered walkway."
This house has never (as far as I can tell) been furnished consistently by the architect -- any architect. Every photo I have seen has contained some decorator's idea of style, none of them the least bit Wrightian. Of course, one has to ask "how would Mr Wright have furnished this residence, given the chance" -- at any point in his career ?
SDR
This house has never (as far as I can tell) been furnished consistently by the architect -- any architect. Every photo I have seen has contained some decorator's idea of style, none of them the least bit Wrightian. Of course, one has to ask "how would Mr Wright have furnished this residence, given the chance" -- at any point in his career ?
SDR
I think it is possible to successfully decorate a Wright house NOT as Wright would have done. This is, of course, no easy task.
The original décor of La Miniatura was remarkably eclectic, not to my taste, but certainly redolent of the original owner. As a historian I kinda like that.
A 1994 Architectural Digest (which I have), features then owner Nicole Daniels (the grand-daughter of the owners since 1939), and the recently redone interior décor. While, again, not to my taste, I think she did a very good job in making – let’s admit it – a difficult interior livable and inviting.
(I do not know how to attach images to this post. But I will be happy to scan the 1994 AD, and send the images as an email attachment to anybody who can post the images for me.)
The current décor? Well, I don’t care for it at all. It seems timid and temporary, like it’s afraid of the architecture. It allows the architecture to overwhelm the interior, where a good decoration would allow the architecture and décor to complement each other.
The Storer House is another example of a Wright house with a décor NOT as Wright would have done. When Joel Silver owned the house I thought he did a very good job of making the rather forbidding interior attractive and livable. Again, while not to my taste (too much stuff for my sensibilities), I nonetheless applauded the success of the effort. I’ve not seen any post-Silver images, and am curious what the interior looks like now.
The original décor of La Miniatura was remarkably eclectic, not to my taste, but certainly redolent of the original owner. As a historian I kinda like that.
A 1994 Architectural Digest (which I have), features then owner Nicole Daniels (the grand-daughter of the owners since 1939), and the recently redone interior décor. While, again, not to my taste, I think she did a very good job in making – let’s admit it – a difficult interior livable and inviting.
(I do not know how to attach images to this post. But I will be happy to scan the 1994 AD, and send the images as an email attachment to anybody who can post the images for me.)
The current décor? Well, I don’t care for it at all. It seems timid and temporary, like it’s afraid of the architecture. It allows the architecture to overwhelm the interior, where a good decoration would allow the architecture and décor to complement each other.
The Storer House is another example of a Wright house with a décor NOT as Wright would have done. When Joel Silver owned the house I thought he did a very good job of making the rather forbidding interior attractive and livable. Again, while not to my taste (too much stuff for my sensibilities), I nonetheless applauded the success of the effort. I’ve not seen any post-Silver images, and am curious what the interior looks like now.
The opening photo is of the studio, not the house. If you click the photo, it opens a slide show. The studio is mostly plaster.Tom wrote:Seems like a well written article but that interior photograph is all wrong. Isn't it? What did they do to the interior of that house? Gheeze!
I think the current furnishings are not really anyone's idea of what's right. When it was open a couple of years ago, it was furnished with antiques provided by a local dealer. The current owner does not live there. He got married and had kid(s) and decided that it was not kid friendly. I think the current interior is just set up to allow it to be used by guests.
It would be difficult to know how to best furnish La Miniatura. Furnished with only historically period correct pieces, it might feel somewhat musty and claustrophobic. Since Wright did not design pieces specifically for this house, it gives the resident a rare opportunity to be creative with the interiors.
I would approach the interior as a sort of neutral gallery type of space, with only a few incredibly strong pieces, their commonality being that they would all lean in a minimalist direction and would not be bold in color, in order to ensure that the architecture would remain as the primary focus.
I am a huge fan of Hans Wegner, but somehow the scale of the dining set just doesn't work there, but that sofa is even more jarring.
I would approach the interior as a sort of neutral gallery type of space, with only a few incredibly strong pieces, their commonality being that they would all lean in a minimalist direction and would not be bold in color, in order to ensure that the architecture would remain as the primary focus.
I am a huge fan of Hans Wegner, but somehow the scale of the dining set just doesn't work there, but that sofa is even more jarring.
If I had to suggest a single possible "style," I suppose it would be something combining earth-neutral natural materials, rather restrained, neither ornate nor delicate. Wood certainly, perhaps with leather, or fabric in dark solid colors or muted pattern. This could be plain provincial pine, Stickley oak, or Schindler plywood. Oddly, I can't think of any Wright furniture that would suit; perhaps he couldn't either, considering than none of the Textile-block houses were furnished by him to any extent ?
If Wright had unaccountably designed no furniture in his entire career, I would think that a default choice for almost any house, early or late, would be a carefully edited selection of Stickley -- despite his own distain for the "stuff." For the later houses, add American classics like Eames, European ditto like Aalto, or Danish designs -- in woods chosen to complement the specie of the architecture.
I am not sufficiently confident in these opinions, however, to put up much of a fight if challenged or corrected. The best options might yet be found from within Mr Wright's own furniture "catalog," even mixing and matching from the many periods and "styles" he deployed.
SDR
If Wright had unaccountably designed no furniture in his entire career, I would think that a default choice for almost any house, early or late, would be a carefully edited selection of Stickley -- despite his own distain for the "stuff." For the later houses, add American classics like Eames, European ditto like Aalto, or Danish designs -- in woods chosen to complement the specie of the architecture.
I am not sufficiently confident in these opinions, however, to put up much of a fight if challenged or corrected. The best options might yet be found from within Mr Wright's own furniture "catalog," even mixing and matching from the many periods and "styles" he deployed.
SDR
Perhaps the most disturbing thing about the current “temporary� décor is the fact that it has become a permanent record. For example, in the Frank Lloyd Wright, Complete Works 1917-1942, the current interior is shown. This seems quite tragic, as the images certainly do not show the house to advantage.
It is a mystery why Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer did not choose the far more flattering Nicole Daniels-era images. (So, too, did Pfeiffer choose pre-restoration images of the Heurtley House. A baffling choice.)
I’ve also seen the current interior in other publications, and my heart sinks each time. The house is a gem. It's painful to see it looking poorly.
It is a mystery why Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer did not choose the far more flattering Nicole Daniels-era images. (So, too, did Pfeiffer choose pre-restoration images of the Heurtley House. A baffling choice.)
I’ve also seen the current interior in other publications, and my heart sinks each time. The house is a gem. It's painful to see it looking poorly.