![]() Since 1964, over FIVE MILLION people have visited Fallingwater from around the world. They also provided a grant for the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy for upkeep and tours. Imagine if the Kaufmanns had insisted on the original plan! Our country would have missed out on one of its most beloved pieces of architecture of all time.Ĭontinuing with their generous and open spirit, the Kaufmanns decided - after years of adoring Fallingwater as their private residence - to open it up to the public in 1964. However, when Fallingwater was completed in 1937, it was 5300 square feet and cost $155,000 - FAR larger and more expensive (by over $120,000!) than expected. In 1935, Edgar Kaufmann commissioned Frank Lloyd Wright to construct a weekend home for his family in the hills of southwest Pennsylvania. The reason Fallingwater exists for us to enjoy today is because of the generosity and openness of the family that founded Kaufmann’s Department Stores. Thank the Kaufmann family for preserving Frank Lloyd Wright’s masterpiece! I have never before been inside a structure that so perfectly brings the outdoors inside.įallingwater invites you to embrace its surrounding nature. Being inside the house, you realize with a start that window stretch all the way to each corner, meaning your entire view is an unobstructed vista of forest - even gazing through the walls’ corners. Third, the slabs of long, layered floors in Fallingwater reflect the stones‘ pattern in the waterfall outside, while the tan paint echoes dry rhododendron leaves surrounding the home. Second, the main living space has a brilliant axis: On one side of the room sits the fireplace, while diagonally across lies the “hatch”: an open staircase right down to the water outside, See what Frank Lloyd Wright did there? An axis of fire and water for elemental balance! First, a boulder from the 30-foot waterfall outside crosses through the wall to the indoors to become part of both the kitchen counter, AND the fireplace in the living room! I didn’t even know that was possible! Here are just a few examples of Fallingwater’s dance with nature. EVERY detail is intentional and nature-embracing. ![]() Though the picture was taken in the summer, there are many photos taken from this spot that show Fallingwater in the winter, with all surfaces covered in snow, and the famous waterfall frozen in place.Ĭlick here to read the related story on Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater, and click here to check out the entire Road Trip 2010 package.Each part of Fallingwater connects to the nature around it. This is the classic view of Fallingwater, taken from below the main house and looking back at it through an opening in the trees. Between the two buildings, there are 169 original pieces of furniture designed by Wright, one of the largest collections of the famous architect's furniture anywhere on Earth. ![]() The main house came first, followed by the guest house, which is located just above, in 1938. They then purchased it and set about looking to build their vacation home. The Kaufmanns, who owned the Kaufmann department store in Pittsburgh, had originally rented the property, formerly the site of a country club, and used it as a retreat for employees of his store. entrusted the house to the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, and in 1965 it became a museum. The incredible house stayed in the family until after the father, Edgar Sr., and his wife Lilliane had both passed away. And whether you've been there or not, there's no denying the beauty and aesthetic power of Frank Lloyd Wright's famous Fallingwater here.Īs part of Road Trip 2010, CNET reporter Daniel Terdiman visited Fallingwater for the first time and was inspired and deeply impressed by what he saw.Ĭompleted in 1937, Fallingwater was the vacation home of the Kaufmann family from Pittsburgh, about 63 miles away. ![]() Countless others have at least gushed over it. MILL RUN, Pa.-Some have called it the best private home in America. ![]()
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