Frank Lloyd Wright and Organic Architecture

Some of the best examples for organic architecture come from Frank Lloyd Wright's work, and although other artists such as Vittorio Giorgini, Kendrick Bangs Kellog and Toyo Ito have also brought excellent representations of that harmonious relationship that architectural structures can have with nature, Mr. Wright is still considered the Father of Organic Architecture for one simple reason: He was the one to initially define such term. Frank Lloyd Wright along with his Fallingwater Residence (among others) opened the eyes of thousands of students, colleagues and designers. Through his work we can see that anything was possible in his mind, and independently from the catastrophes that some of his buildings have gone through throughout time, his work is a part of history that remains today and maintains the right to be preserved. The term "usonia"--and eventually its adjective "usonian"--was also brought by Wright to personally describe his own views on American landscaping, and to differentiate North American architecture from the rest of the world. Frank Lloyd Wright also adopted many concepts from oriental architecture (specifically Japanese architecture), which contributed to that contemporary style to many of his greatest projects.

Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater

According to Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer, on his note from the first of the 23rd volume of the magazine Quarterly "Frank Lloyd Wright in Arizona", "Frank Lloyd Wright loved challenges. Whether it was designing for a complicated site or using materials in new ways, he was often his most creative when encountering new horizons." (5). Perhaps one of the reasons that Wright loved the state of Arizona so much was because of the challenges that building in the middle of the dessert might bring, and this is an idea that was also incorporated into his teachings at the different institutions that he taught at and at his very own at Taliesin West and East. Nature is probably one of the most challenging factors for any architect, engineer and contractor, since it is needless to state that there are an infinity amount of occasions when nature is able to impede us to work through it for the preservation of our natural resources. Well, Frank Lloyd Wright was one of the first ones to actually ask himself, what would exactly happen if we integrate pure stone with cacti, or steel and our surrounding plants without affecting their growth nor their future contribution to Earth? The answer is in almost every structure that he put his pen on, and organic architecture is still a concept that we apply on the most useful compositions of today's architectural society. 

Organic architecture could almost be considered as the basics of any project, as long as the architect's process is able to adapt to any type of surroundings around the territory where the construction will be performed. The main objective is to admire it all as a whole, and to not create obvious statements through this last relationship. We want to solidify architecture and nature, instead of presenting a sense of independence between them. 

The Serrano Residence by Octavio and Diego Serrano is one of the closest examples that we currently have in our portfolio to represent our ideologies on organic architecture.

An introduction to: Old World Style

Rustic furniture, vintage accessories, mute hues, and that sense of traveling into the past...The Old World Style is definitely a trend that has adapted into our present, along with those decorative fabrics and supplements that step by step end by transforming our house into a home. The Old World style could be a great fit for those who claim their fascination towards more traditional spaces and architecture, while taking into consideration that this particular fashion includes an unlimited diversity of color schemes and designs; this Modern Old World bathroom presented to us by HomeThang is the perfect example of how there is still plenty of space to experiment with more modern surroundings while still provoking the same effect of the unrefined and distressed finishes that are so typical about this style. 

One of the most astonishing aspects about the Old World style is definitely the detail that is put onto every wall and corner in the residence; the floral fabrics and the--quite--extravagant decor makes it more liable for an accent wall or decoration to bring out a balance between a room, without mentioning that lighting is also a factor that plays a tremendous role of the appearance of all these features in an Old World interior. However, the source of light can have whatever access is thought to be more convenient for the intended effect, and there is not an actual limitation when talking about windows. 

When referring to the Old World architecture, factors such as window grilles, casement and focal windows, balconies and, of course, turrets are the most striking and notable characteristics. On my opinion, I would say that this stylistic category is more of a decisive debate between Georgian and Victorian architecture, however, nowadays styles such as this one in specific can be altered however the period of time indicates to be more convenient, and in today's residential design magazines it is pretty common to jump from an Old World Victorian concept to a completely Contemporary proposal along the same lines. 

One of the purposes of the Old World style is to actually stimulate a sense of time and use; techniques such as sanding and the painting of bricks lead to evoke this notion of past, as if we were standing on the same platform that other habitants in the house stood on hundredths of years ago. The real question here is what would the Old World style of tomorrow be. Is this a style subject to change in the future, or will it be able to prevalent as an architectural symbol of our past?  

"Atomic Ranch: Midcentury Interiors" by Michelle Gringeri-Brown and Jim Brown

Today’s discussion is around Michelle Gringeri-Brown’s book “Atomic Ranch: Midcentury Interiors”, and I have to say that I found this last one truly fascinating, since although I am not a fan of the midcentury design itself, I must admit that its elegance is doubtlessly present throughout every space along the same lines. 


The photographs in this edition were taken by Jim Brown, who also shared several of his ideas throughout the different ranch houses presented in the book. An ideology of his that I still cannot find the words to express how true it is, it’s when Brown states that interior design is quite a personal subject, and that although it is built through history and the basic elements of any artistic composition, people are still capable to greatly vary among similar styles (Brown 9). I believe that this is particularly found in a style such as this one, while taking into consideration that midcentury design is a term involving many aspects of what can be considered contemporary and modern. 

The horizontal feel is constant in these residences, and if we look closely at the common details of these houses, we can admire a tremendous emphasis for natural resources utilized in the diverse designs. Although a style such as prairie could also provide us with this combination of metal, glass and wood, the midcentury style is definitely motivating the owners to live in a wood box, instead of the typical glass box that we see in more modern environments. Yes, wood and brick seem to be essential parts of this category of design, but the question here is if this is remotely crucial for its organization. To answer this, it is kind of curious that we must move forward in the book and, really, in time, to start identifying a different subsection of what it was once known as midcentury.

Brick vs. wood, tile vs. carpet, one-story vs. two-story…It is really all up to you.Let’s submerge ourselves into these “atomic” ranches, and purchase the newest edition of Michelle Gringeri-Brown’s book “Atomic Ranch: Midcentury Interiors”.

Erin Gates' "Elements of Style" - Review

For this new entry, I have decided to talk about an actual interior designer that I truly admire; she is also a blogger and author of the book “Elements of Style: Designing a Home & a Life”—which I have selected for today’s discussion—and this is Erin Gates! Erin’s blog “Elements of Style” has been around since 2007, and she has been providing outstanding advices for the world of design since then.

In her book, she separates each chapter by different sections of a typical home: The Entry, The Living Room, The Kitchen, The Dining Room, The Family Room, The Bedroom, The Bathroom, The Nursery, The Office, The Closet, The Sunroom & Outdoor Spaces. Now, you might think the same thing that I thought when my friend gave me this book last Christmas: “Oh, another Interior Design book of someone whose greatest aspiration is to become the next Frank Lloyd Wright of our civilization.” Well, this is not the case.

Erin Gates provides different aspects of her personal and professional life as a designer to literally build even the least significant detail of her diverse interior and exterior spaces with love and passion. She opens our eyes into the various styles that we can choose from when talking about every area of our homes, and personally, the one that caught my attention the most was the entry. Who would have thought that a space that is commonly seen, as she mentions, as “…a place to hang out a coat and toss a stack of mail.” (Gates 9), can get to be this relevant into someone’s life? 

With her chapter “The Entry”, Gates introduces us to what our actual entries are saying about the rest of our home. Because of her ideas, now I am actually able to see my home as a book, and the entry as its introduction. When an introduction of the book is just this endless piece of tedious and monotonous text, I just tend to leave it aside and wait until I finish other more interesting works than that one. This also applies for our house entry; if this last one is uniquely decorated by our keys and mail, the expectations of our guests become instantly lowered in drastic ways. This is when Erin Gates makes us wonder and think what the entry of our house is saying about the rest of our taste for our interior and exterior surroundings.

Furthermore, I personally loved the great diversity of styles that Gates provided us. She gives us the modern style along with its geometrical lines, the finished wood and its gleaming accents, but at the same time she also gives us a more country-like option, with the new country feel that simple characteristics such as a stripped rug and the utilization of leather wrapping can constitute it. If I can give my opinion on this one, I would say that the ideas around the glamorous style seemed to be the most appealing to me, since I consider myself totally classic, but my love for color also keeps pushing me towards a more contemporary interior style. Hence, this feminine and classical elegance is definitely what I would be looking for when decorating my first stable apartment or home.

If you guys are dying to know more about this stylish interior designer and blogger, or if you just need inspiration for your own home, I highly recommend Erin Gates’ book, “Elements of Style: Designing a Home & a Life”. Let her guide you with her own process of building that nest that everyone needs eventually. Gates is the perfect example of an open mind for visuals, and I know everyone can adopt at least one of her concepts for their own lives.

Natural Architecture

Who else thinks that architecture can be anywhere that one goes? It's everywhere! And sometimes, people relate the word "architecture" to huge edifices and nice residences, but they forget that details in our world, such as landscaping, might also fit into architecture. Two entries ago, I mentioned the term "organic architecture", now, let's present the extreme action of this last one with the following designs:

"Fallingwater" by Frank Lloyd Wright

"Organic Highway" by Mikael Hansen

"La Tonelle" by Gilles Bruni and Marc Babarit

Yes! Organic architecture is the friendly relationship that architecture followed by construction can have with nature, and is highly recommended for the preservation of natural locations and resources in our world. 

The Serrano Residence and the contemporary style

When we talk about Frank Lloyd Wright's ways, the most probable feature that comes to our minds is, definitely, the contemporary style. The details that define the purity of the contemporary can get to be some of the characteristics that are also here to define modernism and organic architecture, which is best known from Wright's work. The truth is that a single building is able to demonstrate a modernist, contemporary and organic environment, since the three of them guide themselves to each other; in other words, there are cases that to present an organic structure, you have to fabricate the 'modernist' part of it first, for example: if you try to compare the three different styles, you will see that a common feature between them are the horizontal lines and movement, and that's probably the most important and distinguished characteristic in those three types of architecture, as well.

The Serrano Residence is found at Real Del Mar, in Tijuana, Mexico, and it is, indeed, the perfect example of both, contemporary and organic architecture, which at the end, it's related to a very modern kind of art that promotes all the needed harmony between the human habitation and the natural world. 

Serrano Residence, by Octavio Serrano