Our stop for Friday morning was Fallingwater. Brady is doing his biography project in the spring on Frank Lloyd Wright, so this seemed like a logical choice. Having never been, I didn't really know what to expect. We all were amazed and thought this was a great side trip. It was fascinating to see the structure and how it really does blend right in to the nature around it.
Even more fascinating was some of the attention to minute detail combined with apparent oversight of basic function! No pictures are allowed on the inside unfortunately!
The original budget of the project was $35,000. Final cost? $155,000! And this when the average price of a home in the northeast was $5000! According to the trusty Wikipedia, the inflation adjusted price of the home in 2014 would be $2.6 million.
Details: the stone floor is waxed to make it look wet, like the stream bed. The corner windows in the stone column have no center posts, allowing them to open with no obstruction to the view. Freestanding "floating" furniture. Integration between the existing boulders and the interior and exterior of the house.
Oversight: leaks galore! The house had over 50 leaks when the owners first moved in, and it still routinely springs new leaks. It's also a bit of a challenge for taller visitors because Wright designed it for the perfect person, who is 5'8" because, as he said, "Anyone over six feet tall is a weed." Even worse, the house pushed the limits of architecture when it was built in the 1930s, which meant that the cantilevers that were supposed to allow it to hang out over the water didn't really work. Without significant modern improvements, the house would likely no longer be standing!
We stopped in Ohiopyle to grab sandwiches for the road and took a quick walk out to the river. It looks like this place would be a great adventure in warmer weather - adventure parks, hikes, whitewater rafting.
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