The Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright: A Complete Catalog, 2nd Edition (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Wright's first design (unbuilt, published in 1887), for a Unitarian chapel in Sioux City, is similar to the Unity Chapel long thought to have been..." (more)
Key Phrases: parallelogram module, residence remodeling, desert masonry, Oak Park, New York, Frank Lloyd Wright (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This very helpful list now comprises more than 430 built designs and is presented with revisions and additions to the text entries, with better reproduction of the photographs, about 30 different and better photographs, some better drawings of buildings difficult to photograph, and seven entirely new illustrations.... Storrer traveled 78,000 miles in search of Wright's work, becoming the first to perform a service often enough dreamed of by scholars and devotees of Wright. It was no small task, and his catalogue should well serve a wide audience as a guide to the buildings of an architect whose accomplishment continues to resist the limitations of any one author or any single volume."
- Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians

Product Description

The first edition of this book was widely recognized for the unique service it performs. The review in the AIA Journal stated, "Here is the whole Frank Lloyd Wright catalog—not another thematic discourse, limited period or subject evaluation, art-book photo collection or the like, but an ambitious compilation of every built project designed by FLW, which has been needed for over a decade."

Progressive Architecture summarized the book's program and plan as follows: "This work is the only publication that documents all of the buildings designed by Wright. It also offers a short commentary on each building and a picture of each extant structure and, incidentally, includes over 100 buildings that have never before appeared in print. For each building, a unique name (usually the name of the original client) and a catalog number are assigned, and the date of conception and the location are given. The text describes methods and materials of construction, identifies the basic plan, and provides other information that serves to place the building in its context or to relate it to other buildings."

And the book was welcomed in the nonarchitectural press as well:

"William Allin Storrer has done for Frank Lloyd Wright admirers what Wright himself did for architecture. Storrer has put together a complete listing with drawings and photographs of every structure Wright was known to have designed or assisted in designing.... It is a remarkable collection that will become as timeless as the work of perhaps the greatest architect in history."
—The Cleveland Press

"...an indispensable book.... The foreword to the book was written by Henry-Russell Hitchcock and is an eloquent tribute to the lasting value and importance of Storrer's work."
—Choice

Henry-Russell Hitchcock, in the course of his appraisal, observes that "however thoroughly one may previously have known the work of Wright over the years—and I have had some familiarity with his work for forty years—there are innumerable surprises here, not merely as regards the work since the last war, never before brought together, but even for the early decades, the 'classic' years of the Prairie house before World War I and the less productive years that immediately followed."

This second edition replaces a number of photographs with new ones that show the buildings to better effect. In addition, corrections have been made in the text, and factual information that has come to light since the original publication in 1974 has been incorporated. The indexes have also been usefully expanded.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 463 pages
• Publisher: The MIT Press; 2 edition (September 14, 1982)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0262690802
• ISBN-13: 978-0262690805
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #813,586 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars True Wright Scholar, January 4, 2003

By	misterbeets "misterbeets" (Safe Harbor, MD USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright: A Complete Catalog (Paperback)

This book is an edited version of the FLW Companion by the same author. Lacks the floor plans, some of the text, but adds color pictures. This man knows all the architect's works intimately, and he finds something interesting to say about each one. You may find some of the entries insignificant, like a design for an exibition or a remodeling for a shop. Spends much of each house's description on the arrangement of rooms, which is difficult to follow without the diagram that was meant to go with it. Even so, it's probably the best choice for the average reader; anyone desperate for the plans can get the other version through his local library.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Finally !! After many months the 3rd edition is now here -, November 13, 2002

By	Bill Collier (Marietta, GA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright: A Complete Catalog (Hardcover)

This book is just what it says it is, A complete catalog of the
works of Frank Lloyd Wright built during his life time. The text for each structure, in most cases was taken from Mr. Storrer's book The FLW Companion except where new data has been added since the original publication. Each site is illustrated with a photo. Even lost or demolished works, and most are in color. In many cases new or additional photos are included. For me, the main benefit of this book is the Field Guide Maps section at the end. As clearly stated in the text the scale of the maps is compressed for ease of display, BUT the actual site locations is
so accurately shown that you can determine which side of the street the structure is on and if visable from public property.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars AMERICA'S FINEST, April 1, 2006

By	Shannon Deason "SchylarRex" (Houston) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright: A Complete Catalog (Paperback)

This is a very well done overview of all of Wright's works. Every project get's the requisite image and a short synopsis of the building. If you are someone that wants an indepth book on Wright, then this may not be the best book for you, but if you want an overview of all of Wright's work, then you will not be disappointed in this book.