The Essential Frank Lloyd Wright
First published 2008 · 453 pages · about 8 hours to read
Also as Kindle · AudiobookFind in a library
About this book
This is a selection of Frank Lloyd Wright's own writings on architecture, drawn from his essays, lectures and articles and gathered by editor Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer, with introductory material. Readers come to it to hear the architect's theories of building, nature and the American home in his own voice rather than through biography.
Wright wrote and spoke for decades about how buildings should relate to land, materials and the people who use them. This volume collects those statements so a reader can follow his arguments directly, without a narrator summarizing them.
Summary written with AI from the book's details.
Will you like it?
Readers interested in architecture and in the thinking behind famous American houses will get Wright's own arguments about building, nature and the home. The text is a collection of his essays and lectures, so it suits readers who want his statements in his own words and can read in short sections.
- organic architecture
- the american home
- nature and building
- design principles
Written with AI.
Books like The Essential Frank Lloyd Wright
Towards a New Architecture
Le Corbusierabout 4 hours to read
A collection of manifesto-style essays by another architect of the modern movement, arguing for new principles of building.
Frank Lloyd Wright (Masters of World Architecture)
Vincent Joseph Scullyabout 2 hours to read
A critical study of Wright's work and place in architectural history, useful for reading his writings alongside the buildings.
The Seven Lamps of Architecture
John Ruskinabout 4 hours to read
Ruskin's essay on the moral and natural principles of building is an earlier statement of architecture as a matter of values.
Ornament and Crime
Adolf Loosabout 3 hours to read
Loos's essays argue against decoration and for plain, functional building, a sharp contrast to Wright's ornament.
More
Architecture Without Architects
Bernard Rudofskyabout 2 hours to read
A look at vernacular buildings made without professional architects, which raises the same questions about building and place.
The Eyes of the Skin
Juhani Pallasmaaabout 1 hour to read
An essay on how architecture is felt through the senses, which connects to Wright's interest in the experience of space.
The Death and Life of Great American Cities
Jane Jacobsabout 8 hours to read
Jacobs's account of how city neighborhoods work takes up the American urban life that Wright often criticized.
Home
Witold Rybczynskiabout 4 hours to read
A history of the idea of the domestic house, covering the same ground as Wright's ideas on the home and comfort.
Modern Architecture
Kenneth Framptonabout 6 hours to read
A survey that places Wright within the wider modern movement, giving context to the positions he takes in his writings.
Quick answers
- What age is The Essential Frank Lloyd Wright for?
- Adults.
- Is The Essential Frank Lloyd Wright a standalone?
- Yes, it stands on its own.
- Does The Essential Frank Lloyd Wright have violence, sex or strong language?
- Nothing a reader needs warning about.
Written with AI from what's known about the book.
Reader's guide
Themesorganic architecture, the american home, nature and building, design principles, architect's own words
organic architecture · the american home · nature and building · design principles · architect's own words
StyleWright's prose is direct, often declarative and assertive, with the rhythms of spoken lecture in places. The book is a collection of separate pieces rather than a continuous argument, so it is read in sections and can be dipped into. It runs about 453 pages.
Wright's prose is direct, often declarative and assertive, with the rhythms of spoken lecture in places. The book is a collection of separate pieces rather than a continuous argument, so it is read in sections and can be dipped into. It runs about 453 pages.
How it was writtenPublished in 2008 by Princeton University Press, the book is an edition of Wright's writings. Wright (1867–1959) wrote and lectured across much of his career, and the pieces here come from that span. Pfeiffer was long associated with the Frank Lloyd Wright Archives.
Published in 2008 by Princeton University Press, the book is an edition of Wright's writings. Wright (1867–1959) wrote and lectured across much of his career, and the pieces here come from that span. Pfeiffer was long associated with the Frank Lloyd Wright Archives.
How it was receivedThe book is used as a primary-source companion to Wright's work, valued for putting his statements on design in one place. It is read by students of architecture, by general readers interested in Wright, and by designers who want his arguments in his own words.
The book is used as a primary-source companion to Wright's work, valued for putting his statements on design in one place. It is read by students of architecture, by general readers interested in Wright, and by designers who want his arguments in his own words.
Questions to discussWhat does Wright mean by 'organic architecture', and how do his examples show it?
These may talk about the whole book.
- What does Wright mean by 'organic architecture', and how do his examples show it?
- How do his views on the American home connect to the open plans of his houses?
- Where do his claims about nature and building seem persuasive, and where do they seem overstated?
- How does reading Wright's own words change or confirm what you know from his buildings?
- Which of his arguments about materials, ornament or the city still feel current?
Written with AI from what's known about the book.
More by Frank Lloyd Wright
- Ultimate Basketball BookUltimate Basketball Book2003
- Frank Lloyd Wright & Lewis MumfordFrank Lloyd Wright & Lewis Mumford2001
- Writings and BuildingsWritings and Buildings1960
- The Living CityThe Living City1958
- A TestamentA Testament1957
- The Natural HouseThe Natural House1954
Parts of this page are written with AI from what's known about the book, and can get details wrong. How BookSense works