Saved: The James Irving Temporary Residence (1920)
If it were not for fast detective work by designer and PrairieMod blog author Eric O’Malley, this article may have been about the destruction of two architecturally significant structures in Wilmette, Illinois. Instead, through the actions of a network of preservationists and the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy, the James Irving Temporary Residence (1920), a small cottage designed in Wright’s studio by Rudolf Schindler, and the adjacent James Irving Residence designed John Van Bergen in 1928, both received reprieves. O’Malley and the Conservancy’s advocacy co-chair John Thorpe led the charge. The cause attracted attention not only from PrairieMod, and local papers but also the Chicago Tribune’s Pulitzer-prize winning architecture critic Blair Kamin.
Conference Registration for Mason City (Oct. 10-14) Now Available
Registration and a full conference brochure is now available for this year's conference, "Frank Lloyd Wright and Midwest Modern." Online registration will be available shortly.
Out and About Wright: Prairie Architecture in the Illinois Heartland
President Abraham Lincoln is undoubtedly the most famous resident of Springfield, Illinois, but Frank Lloyd Wright also called Springfield home for a brief time when he was working for Susan Lawrence Dana. Although the Dana Thomas House (1902-1904), its 400+ pieces of art glass and many original furnishings are Frank Lloyd Wright’s best known work in Springfield, he also designed the Lawrence Memorial Library (1905) at the nearby Lawrence School, named for Susan’s father who had been president of the Springfield school board. After his work in Springfield, Wright returned to central Illinois several years later to work on the Edward Irving House (1909) with Marion Mahony, his longest serving employee and wife of Walter Burley Griffin. The Irving House is in Millikin Place, a grouping of several prairie houses in the city of Decatur. Mahony also designed the adjacent Robert Mueller House (1909-1911) and Adolph Mueller House (1910).
Registration and a full conference brochure is now available for this year's conference, "Frank Lloyd Wright and Midwest Modern." Online registration will be available shortly.
President Abraham Lincoln is undoubtedly the most famous resident of Springfield, Illinois, but Frank Lloyd Wright also called Springfield home for a brief time when he was working for Susan Lawrence Dana. Although the Dana Thomas House (1902-1904), its 400+ pieces of art glass and many original furnishings are Frank Lloyd Wright’s best known work in Springfield, he also designed the Lawrence Memorial Library (1905) at the nearby Lawrence School, named for Susan’s father who had been president of the Springfield school board. After his work in Springfield, Wright returned to central Illinois several years later to work on the Edward Irving House (1909) with Marion Mahony, his longest serving employee and wife of Walter Burley Griffin. The Irving House is in Millikin Place, a grouping of several prairie houses in the city of Decatur. Mahony also designed the adjacent Robert Mueller House (1909-1911) and Adolph Mueller House (1910).
