Regular reader here will know how much we love architecture. Be it Roman ruins or the next 70 story superstructure in Shanghai, buildings are one of the most visible and lasting records of what humans are capable of when we stop fighting and start cooperating. The best thing about architecture is that, when well-done, they can exist and persist almost until perpetuity: again, look at Rome, or Greece or the Wall of China. Spectacular!
Fortunately, in the times we live in now, we have access to so much history, and historians and explorers continue to peel back layers of Mother Earth so share and inform us even more. For example, when we learned how the Romans managed to make their buildings last – we’re talking about 509 BC to about the 4th century AD – we really need to step back and take that in. We can still walk up and touch them, learn about them and almost breathe it in.
Jumping forth several millennia, the creativity didn’t stop with the Romans. There was a period from the 1920’s straight through to now, where building was at its peak. But, one of the most vaunted and sumptuously creative was the Modern period: from the 1920’s until the early 1970’s. And who can be more vaunted than the almost impossibly creative Frank Lloyd Wright. Brilliant, tempestuous, he launched architecture into the future. His hallmark, of course, is the soothing Fallingwater, in Pennsylvania. It still sends shivers up my spine when I see it, and I’ve seen it many times. And I will see it again. You should too.
The video below is a rather amazing effort by animator Cristóbal Vila lets you watch this masterpiece rise from the bedrock on which it sits. Relax and vicariously wander the halls of Wright’s vision. Some content courtesy of Chris Higgins.
And if you find this intriguing, have a look at our collection of articles on that design movement. Click here.
Only an hour away from Fallingwater by car, Pittsburgh PA is historic in its own right. Click here.
It’s America. You’ll need a car. Hertz are there for you. Click here.
How about staying in some more history? The Casselman Inn has all the charm you need. Click here.
Historic Oak Park is a Chicago suburb that has more Wright buildings than anywhere in the world. Tour the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio, Unity Temple and more.