LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2006 October Grand Format Autographs #629  / 

25650

Frank Lloyd Wright "Fallingwater" Blueprints.

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:15,000.00 USD Estimated At:60,000.00 - 75,000.00 USD
Frank Lloyd Wright Fallingwater Blueprints.
<B>Frank Lloyd Wright "Fallingwater" Blueprints.</B></I> 13 original blueprints, 32" x 23.5", np, nd. An incredible find, the original 13 blueprints for perhaps the most renowned of all American residences. Wright's concepts of architectural design were highly unorthodox. He believed the buildings should blend with their surroundings, as typified by his prairie style, so he emphasized the horizontal element and used natural colors and glass walls. He is best remembered for his Robie House, Johnson Wax Building, the Guggenheim Museum, and Fallingwater. These blueprints, to our knowledge, are the only ones in private hands. Each contractor working on the house would have had a set of blueprints. This set belonged to the window contractor. Each of the 13 large drawings bears Wright's name, that of the client, Mr. and Mrs. E.J. Kaufmann, and the home's site, Bear Run, Pa. They were discovered in Long Island by, and came from, Arthur Hennighausen, according to a letter that is included in the lot. "The shop drawings of the "Falling Water" steel sash were given to me as a professional courtesy at my architectural office in Waukegan, Illinois by J.D. Graf who at the time was sale representative for Hope Windows Inc. This was the in the spring of 1938. No record was kept to further identify the time or place". These blueprints were obviously used and show signs of wear. On the back of one is penciled "F.L. Wright" and may or may not be in the famous architect's hand. Nevertheless, the value lies in the blueprints themselves as they are stunning representations of man's ability to create something truly beautiful and still have it coexist with nature. Condition is generally good, with minor edge damage, the visual effect of which would minimized by custom framing. Several have what would appear to be tape repairs, but in fact these repairs were on the original drawings which were duplicated to form this set.
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