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Three stories of ourselves: architecture’s solution to man’s place within nature as told by Frank Lloyd Wright, Rudolph Schindler and Richard Neutra
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Three stories of ourselves: architecture’s solution to man’s place within nature as told by Frank Lloyd Wright, Rudolph Schindler and Richard Neutra
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Content
THREE STORIES OF OURSELVES: ARCHITECTURE’S SOLUTION TO MAN’S PLACE
WITHIN NATURE AS TOLD BY FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT, RUDOLPH SCHINDLER
AND RICHARD NEUTRA
by
Erin Leiker
_____________________________________________________________________
A Thesis Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
MASTER OF ARTS
(SPECIALIZED JOURNALISM — THE ARTS)
August 2013
Copyright 2013 Erin Leiker
ii
DEDICATION
For my mother, whom I come to understand a little more every day.
iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
List of Figures iv
Acknowledgements v
Abstract vi
Chapter One: Introduction 1
Chapter Two: The Message 4
Chapter Three: The Medium 20
Works Cited 25
iv
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1. The first slide of the website will introduce the idea that architecture 20
is more than just shelter for the body
Figure 2. A screenshot taken mid-transition between figure 1 and figure 3 21
Figure 3. The second introduction slide 21
Figure 4. The user can choose any of the three buildings to explore 22
Figure 5. The transition from the “Three Stories” slide moves either left, right, 22
or center depending on which house the user chooses
Figure 6. Each house’s main slide shows an establishing photo, and some 23
general information
Figure 7. The transition from the house’s main slide to its information slides, 23
which are underneath and behind
Figure 8. A sample of the “About” slide 24
Figure 9. Users can move laterally to the corresponding information slide of 24
another house by clicking the house’s name at the top corners of the
slide
v
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
With enormous gratitude to Michelle for making it easier, to Colin for making it harder in
the best way, to Sasha and Edward for their expertise and passion, and to all my family and
friends for continuously showing me how very wonderful life can be.
vi
ABSTRACT
Architecture tends to be an art exclusive to those who practice or study it. I believe that
its impact lies in its universal human truths, and that anyone can understand the beauty and
history of architecture if the story is delivered in the right medium. This thesis presents an
argument for the Internet as a preferred medium, and tells three stories of how architecture
impacts us all.
1
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
What I’m Doing and Why
If you want to create something truly meaningful, you have to know why you’re doing it.
You must build a solid foundation of purpose and possess a clear understanding of your goal. In
this way, you will create something that goes beyond artifice, something that reaches into the
body and stirs the intangible spirit that it finds there. The greatest art—in any medium—lasts not
because the fame of its creator sticks in our minds, but because his name could be removed and
the work would still echo in our hearts.
Architecture is elevated to this level of significance by the belief that it is not enough to
say, “I am cold in the winter and hot in the summer, so I will build a structure to protect me from
the elements.” Architecture is the knowledge that a building like that could serve the body well
enough, but the true essence of what it means to be human is not found in skin or bones. Paul
Goldberger, in his book, Why Architecture Matters, points out that “[…] architecture, though it
may not sustain life, can give the already sustained life meaning” (Goldberger 2009). Great
architecture aims to touch the heart as much as to protect the body.
All you need to feel the impact of the architecture around you is to hear its stories. But
many sources of these stories often lack the ability to reach the hearts of people who don’t
already have an existing knowledge of architecture. It can be a daunting task to find the story of
a building that is told in a way that transcends jargon and architectural education. Architecture is
built for people, not just for other architects; shouldn’t the stories of our buildings be written for
all of us?
2
This is my purpose here: to bring three stories of architecture to light in such a way that
they reaches people’s hearts, and stir within them the desire to seek out more of the narrative that
architecture has built for us.
How I’m Doing It
What is included here is the content of a website that I aim to build as a permanent place
for these stories. Why put these stories on a website? Because the Internet reaches a vast
audience in a uniquely immersive way. Why start with the Barnsdall Residence? Because it
embodies an idea that began with the brilliant Frank Lloyd Wright, and can be traced through the
hands of two equally impressive architects whom he inspired.
The Internet allows people to experience stories like this in non-linear, choose-your-own-
adventure way. You can start out reading the day’s news and in just a few clicks stumble upon a
blog where a young woman illustrates her most dramatic childhood moments in hilariously bad
computer illustrations (Brosh 2009). The links you click on and the stories you read are entirely
up to you, and that level of control and customization is expected in more and more of our online
interactions.
The immersive opportunities afforded by the Internet are unparalleled in any other
medium. Where else can a user encounter a seamless experience like the kind offered by a video
walkthrough of a building, without actually being there? The level of comprehension afforded by
3D models, video, and drawings partnered with photographs can only be matched by the effect
of being in the building. As a more universally accessible option, the Internet is the best way to
approximate that effect for the widest audience possible.
This will be the guiding principle of my website: to tell the stories of three pivotal houses
that marked significant changes in the prevailing ideas of what modern architecture should be
3
and how it should look. I will trace the influence of each house on the one after, as well as the
influence the architects had directly on one another. These trails will be laid out so that the user
can enter and exit at many points, creating his or her own journey to understanding each story of
man and nature in architecture, and how those stories are interwoven with each other.
4
CHAPTER TWO
THE MESSAGE
Frank Lloyd Wright, Rudolph Schindler and Richard Neutra are names well known to
those who have already cultivated an interest in architecture. But these architects’ contributions
to the evolution of their art impact people well outside that specialized circle. These men built
temples to nature and humanity. The stories of their buildings are the stories of us; of humans
and our place within our own world. Those kinds of stories are relevant to everyone, and can
serve as a starting point to open the hearts of many to the impact of architecture on our history as
a people.
These three revolutionaries used their work to convey their deepest beliefs about what
was necessary to build beautifully and meaningfully for humankind.
Frank Lloyd Wright and the Barnsdall Residence
Frank Lloyd Wright believed in nature the way some people believe in God. Though he
would admit to few sources of inspiration outside himself, he championed nature as a guiding
light that led him to the answers he sought in his work. He wrote often about the teachings nature
offered, noting that, for an architect, “a knowledge of the relations of form and function lies at
the root of his practice; where else can he find the pertinent object lessons Nature so readily
furnishes?” (Wright 1908).
As a disciple of nature, Wright’s purpose in his work was to build a place where man
could not only worship the beauty and harmony of the outdoors, but connect with it as well. His
houses were not temples for the zealous idolization of Nature; they were places just below the
clouds where nature could be rendered so that man could be elevated.
5
Site
These were human creations, cosmic as sun, moon, and stars! Nature? Yes, but the
nature of the human being as he was, then. Entity even more cosmic had not yet been
born.
— Frank Lloyd Wright, explaining the relationship between his architectural
philosophy and the buildings of ancient Mayan civilizations (Smith 1992)
Unlike Wright’s earlier Prairie style houses that seem to float reverently parallel to the
land on which they sit, the Barnsdall Residence looks as if it was formed from slabs of terrain
carved out of the hill on which the house sits, tilted on end and fused together at the seams. The
house does not extend from the peak of its hill like a false crown proclaiming rule over the land.
Instead, it sits firmly, almost as if it has planted deep roots and grown naturally from its
surroundings.
Wright extended the top of Olive Hill skyward with his design; at once egotistical for
thinking he could augment nature with his human hand, and also reverent for using the natural
platform provided to him to elevate the bodies and spirits of all those who would walk through
the house. This dichotomy of reasoning allows visitors to feel connected in a physical way to
Olive Hill itself, while also allowing their less-than-physical natures to be lifted off the ground
and towards the cosmos.
Wright prevented the misinterpretation of the house’s weight as an overpowering
groundswell by drawing on the Mayan influence in the Southwest. “To Wright, the Mayan
temple was a symbolic mountain, and in Oriental art, mountains are perceived as cosmic pillars,
shafts connecting heaven and earth.” (Smith 1992).
6
Exterior
As a woman with specific social interests in the arts and a personal interest in family,
Aline Barnsdall directed Wright to build her house to fulfill two requirements: she wanted open
spaces where she could convene with her many friends and colleagues from the theatre, as well
as private spaces for herself and her daughter. Wright addressed this mixed-use requirement in
several ways. He began by laying the house out in a U-Shaped plan, which essentially gave him
two faces of the house to use. The outside, facing the rest of Olive Hill, had relatively few
openings for windows. This, coupled with his usual penchant for “hiding” a house’s entrance out
of view of the main street, offered a sense of safety and privacy for Barnsdall and her daughter.
But on the inside of the U-shaped plan, Wright placed an open courtyard with steps
leading down to the grass on which actors from Barnsdall’s theatre company could perform. The
walls facing this courtyard feature wide windows that offer views into the entry hallway, dining
room, and other public areas of the house’s interior. Hidden from the view of those approaching
the house, the courtyard provided a transitional space where Barnsdall could satisfy her love of
the theatre and community without sacrificing the privacy she felt was paramount for her family.
Another move to address the dual purpose of the house was Wright’s decision to use
concrete for the exterior walls as well as the geometric Hollyhock flowers that he designed to
adorn them. The solid surfaces create a sense of impenetrability for outsiders, while the
beautifully modern interpretation of Barnsdall’s favorite flower help to soften the house’s
appearance and keep it from feeling threatening.
Entry
The transition from being outside the house, stepping through its doors, and entering the
interior was something of a ritualistic occurrence in Wright’s mind. He carefully planned the
7
experience using concepts like contrast and sightlines. In the Barnsdall Residence, perhaps the
biggest factor in the experience of walking in is the contrast between enclosed and open space.
As he was inclined to do for other clients as well, Wright hid the entry to the Barnsdall
House to offer privacy to its inhabitants. In this case, he placed the heavy steel doors at the end
of a long covered hallway leading from the motor court. Enclosed in concrete like the rest of the
exterior, the hallway features a low roof and walls punctuated by small windows at eye-level,
which connect to the main house near the “bend” in the U-shaped plan. This keeps the entry
experience from feeling too claustrophobic, but definitely inspires a sense of compression in
those who approach the front doors. Once through them, though, the house’s roof returns to a
more normal height and allows visitors to feel a sense of expansion and release from the tension
of their approach.
Interior
From the cool, dark entryway, visitors can see into the dining room to their left, the
kitchen just beyond that, the interior courtyard/performance space in front of them, and the living
room and music room to their right. In each direction, the roof increases in height a bit more and
more windows appear to allow sunlight to filter in. Each space has a different level of pull to
help separate the residents from the visitors. Barnsdall and her family would have been
comfortable in the dining room with a low roof and a few small windows, while visitors would
be subconsciously encouraged to follow bright light and high ceiling into the living room.
Featuring one of the only picture windows in the house, during the day the living room is
usually filled with the warm Southern Californian sunlight. The presence of the light and air,
combined with the short furniture pieces that Wright designed, highlights the rooms size by
emphasizing the open space above visitors’ heads.
8
As the largest gathering place for social visits, the room is adjacent to the music room
and reading room, both of which act as alcoves without doors or walls to cut them off completely
from the living room.
With his signature belief that the hearth was where the family should gather, Wright
placed the Barnsdall House’s hearth underneath a skylight in the living room, and added a
shallow pool in front of it that connected to the exterior fountains. The gathering of fire, air, and
water together created the perfect place for mankind to channel the harmony of nature; while the
reflective nature of the water could bridge the connection between the earth and sky. Whether
she had company or was alone with her daughter, Wright wanted this to be a place that Barnsdall
felt most centered.
Continuing down the hall and away from the public areas of the house, the leg of the U-
shaped plan furthest from the street is where Wright placed the bedrooms and nursery. This wing
was for Barnsdall’s family, and had fewer windows to the outside to ensure privacy. He added a
large patio, however, to maintain connection with the nature on Olive Hill.
To soften the interior of the house and make it comfortable for the people in it, Wright
used materials that were the opposite of what he had used for the exterior. Instead of cool
concrete, he used warm wood and dark fabrics. The plaster-covered walls were painted in light
colors to reflect the natural lighting streaming through the windows and prevent the house from
feeling like a closed cave. But the trim and furniture were carved from dark wood to allow nature
inside in a more literal sense.
The original carpeting was soft, light, and incorporated the same geometric interpretation
of the hollyhock flower that was featured on the exterior. This helped tie together the two
experiences, and create a connection between the outside of the house and inside. Wright
9
believed that a harmonious relationship between exterior and interior was crucial to the house’s
overall harmony.
Summary
Although Aline Barnsdall’s unwavering opinions sometimes conflicted with Wright’s
original plans, the Barnsdall House exists as a attempted unification of her joys and his belief in
architecture as a way to facilitate man’s connection both to himself and world. By designing it to
be harmonious, fulfilling, and nurturing on its own, the house is often able to inspire those same
feelings in those who pass through it, even to this day.
Rudolph Schindler and the Kings Road House
After a slew of personal and professional controversies left him without many
commissions, Frank Lloyd Wright and his mistress went to Europe to take in the new wave of
modernism emerging there. While visiting, Wright created a portfolio of his works now known
as the Wasmuth Portfolio. Published by Ernest Wasmuth in Germany a year after Wright’s
arrival in Europe, it was this book and the Barnsdall Residence that brought Rudolph Schindler
to America from his native Austria.
Seeing an architect approach new methods of construction and design ideas so boldly
intrigued Schindler, who was himself interested in the relationship between man and nature.
After spending three years in America working at an architecture firm in Chicago, Schindler was
finally offered a position under Wright and put to work on the Barnsdall Residence. Wright’s
work on the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo kept him in Japan for long stretches of time, so Schindler
was tapped to help with the office – and construction of the residence -- in his absence.
Wright’s ego and Schindler’s desire to make his own mark on the world of modern
architecture would eventually cause the two to part ways. But Schindler had been greatly
10
inspired by the experience, adopting and modifying Wright’s philosophy that the most successful
architecture was that which consulted nature for the best way to house the human body while
also serving the human spirit.
Proud radicals, Schindler and his wife, Pauline, cultivated relationships with social
progressives, modern artists, and cultural pioneers. The couple met two such forward-thinkers in
July of 1921, just over half a year after their move to Los Angeles to supervise construction on
Olive Hill.
Marion Da Camara had been a classmate of Pauline’s at Smith College, and the two
women had remained friends after graduating. Both Marion and her husband, Clyde Chace, had
an interest in architecture, particularly that of another modernist named Irving Gill. They had
moved west for the opportunity to work with Gill, and found that Schindler had also been
interested in the architect’s work. Although neither the Schindlers not the Chaces got the
opportunity to design their own houses with Gill, they ended up deciding to build a two-family
residence with each other instead.
Schindler began designing the house almost immediately, working closely with Pauline
to discuss and complete the bulk of the design in the last two months of 1921. They found a
relatively small site on Kings Road, in what is now West Hollywood, and began construction
early the following year.
Schindler was more effervescent than his American mentor, and more dedicated to the
honesty and simplicity of architecture. He even went so far in his later years to “criticize
Wright’s buildings on Olive Hill […] that ‘clung to the classical Greek vocabulary (base, shaft,
cornice), at the same time trying to give themselves local roots by the introduction of Mayan
motifs.’” (Sweeney and Sheine 2012) In his own modification of Wright’s guiding philosophy,
11
Schindler held the conviction that man was given the gift of intellectualism and action, and
nature could set the stage upon which great ideas could be discovered and discussed. Mankind
didn’t need to revere nature, but its presence could help him thrive. Also a firm believer in the
evil of social hierarchy, Schindler would incorporate natural elements into his work as a way to
promote democracy and the demolition of status.
Site
Imagine an architectural space that inspires engaged discussion of radical cultural and
social issues. Imagine a place where fundamental architectural ideas are crafted in a
novel way, through the honest use of materials and a new programmatic order of living
that conspire to envelop and seduce a new generation of Southern Californians.
— Mark Mack, Introduction (Sweeney and Sheine 2012)
Like Wright, Schindler believed it was necessary to ensure that his architecture was not
alienated from the land on which it sat. Although the flat area he chose for construction did not
offer the same challenges or opportunities that Olive Hill had afforded Wright, Schindler made
sure that his design would not seem incongruous with the land.
The plan Schindler drafted for his house accommodated the shared living program by
creating a separate wing for each couple’s sleeping area and studio, and connecting them with a
public wing for both families to share. The resultant plan resembles three L-shapes, laid out like
a pinwheel and all connected at the top point of their long stems.
In between each of these wings, Schindler designed patios that would lead to the gardens
and lawns. Circulation between these areas was determined by changes in the ground plane
(some areas were sunken below others), and small hedges placed along borders. Separation of
12
the whole lot from neighboring lots was formed by bamboo hedges, which created a softer
barrier that was necessary for a private house but not as cold as a fence or wall.
Believing in the power of nature to kindle democratic interactions, Schindler placed
campfires in the outdoor lawns, all within sight of the houses interior areas. He felt that this
would engender a kind of campfire camaraderie, allowing guests and residents alike to feel the
kind of connection and honesty that only mankind’s first conquered element could provide.
People gathered around a fire at the Kings Road House would not shoulder the burden of cultural
or social imbalance.
Exterior
Modifying the Slab/Tilt of construction that began with Irving Gill, Schindler formed 4’
chunks of concrete on the ground (instead of whole walls, like Gill had done) and then tilted
them into place with a system of tripods and pulleys. The thin, vertical gaps left by the wood
frame were filled in with glass panes, allowing narrow strips of light to move across the rooms.
This method produced an effect similar to that which Wright had created for the
Barnsdall Residence: the exterior walls facing the most public areas of the site had fewer and
smaller windows than the walls that framed the private areas. This not only afforded privacy, but
pushed the social interactions towards the interiors of both houses, where the architecture could
shelter and engender conversations or performances.
The corners of the house that faced these garden areas were essentially full-height
window walls that extended the length of the rooms they enclosed. Although the studios of each
family were created to offer privacy, Schindler’s distaste for the false authority of social status
led him to break down the barriers between private and public spaces.
13
The window walls allowed visual equality between these two types of space, but gave the
residents the power to allow spatial connection at their will via sliding glass doors that integrated
seamlessly with the wood mullions. He built the doors much wider than average, allowing the
barrier between interior and exterior to nearly vanish in these areas. If man was to be equal with
others, he could achieve even greater democracy by allowing nature to flow into his house.
Entry
While Wright hid the entrance of the Barnsdall Residence to create privacy, Schindler
abandoned the idea of a main entrance in favor of several opportunities for entry. The hedges
surrounding the Kings Road property included several breaks to allow access, and entrance to the
house could be gained via the sliding glass walls, or doors built into the public areas of the
house.
Today, the hedges have been closed to direct visitors down the dirt driveway and into a
de facto main entrance via the Schindlers’ wing of the house.
Interior
Unlike Wright’s designs, or almost anybody else’s, Schindler’s exterior walls were not
covered in wood or plaster on their interior faces. What you saw on the outside was the same on
the other side of that wall. Any interior partitions, of which there were few, were constructed of
lightweight wooden frames and a type of paper made from sugar cane fibers. Schindler’s
devotion to the honesty and simplicity of material upheld his conviction that man could truly
achieve greatness when balanced upon the harmony of nature.
Smooth concrete floors underfoot provided a connection to the earth not unlike Wright
had created at the Barnsdall Residence. It was just a more polished connection, with the goal of
elevating man to his most creative and revolutionary self, instead of towards the heavens. But
14
Schindler also took advantage of the warmth of wood in the exposed beams overhead and in the
wooden stairs that lead to the roof patios.
Believing – incorrectly, as the frequent rains that delayed his construction would prove –
that Southern California was blessed with eternal warmth and sunshine, Schindler designed the
sleeping areas of his house not as interior bedrooms, but as “sleeping porches” placed outside on
the roof. Originally these were designed to be uncovered, but wood and canvas coverings were
later added to offer some protection from the relatively inconvenient weather fluctuations.
While he may not have believed them to be necessary for heat, Schindler nevertheless
built a fireplace into each family’s living room and studio space. The studio hearths are simply
small, rectangular alcoves carved out of the concrete wall, with little to indicate they’re meant
for fire but the charred concrete. In the studios, however, Schindler adorned the hearths with
yellow-gold metal flues shaped like two-sided pyramids to contain the fire. These fixtures are the
only metal used outside of plumbing and latches.
As a material, metal bears the greatest hallmark of a human touch. It must be transformed
from its natural state by machinery and tools, and has much of its nature beaten and formed out
of it. Metal feels farther away from its ancestry than wood or concrete, and its presence in the
Kings Road House is one of the more apparent indicators that Schindler’s views on man’s place
in nature had progressed from Wright’s.
Summary
With the advantage of having himself as one half of the clientele for the Kings Road
House, Schindler was able to bring to fruition his beliefs on materiality, space, and the kind of
architecture that best addressed the barriers between man and the natural world around him.
Schindler took what he learned from Wright about these elements, and modified them to fit
15
within a new era of cultural and social transformation. The Kings Road House was then, and still
is now, a place for progressive social interaction on a stage of our most basic connections to the
earth.
Richard Neutra and the Lovell Health House
A fellow Austrian enamored of Frank Lloyd Wright’s innovative modernism, as seen in
the Wasmuth Portfolio, Richard Neutra came to America to find his place among the modernists
alongside Schindler and their shared mentor. Because they shared their Austrian heritage and
were closer in age to each other than either was to Wright, Schindler and Neutra formed a bond
with each other that would become almost legendary for its strength and ultimate dissolution.
The two modernists shared not only a friendship, but a client as well. Dr. Phillip Lovell,
who wrote a column titled “Care of the Body” for the Los Angeles Times, commission both
architects for different projects, each reconciling their own architectural philosophies with
Lovell’s dedicated approach to lifestyle and health.
Neutra differed from both Wright and Schindler in his belief that good architecture
addressed the nature of man. Less tied to the literal definition of nature and the natural world,
Neutra’s philosophy was that humankind’s experience of architecture and of life at large could
be “calibrated through his or her relationship to the environment.” (Lamprecht 2006).
If extreme attention was paid to detail, then humans could integrate seamlessly with their
environment, and could experience a range of emotions and awareness in different parts of their
architecture. Like Wright, Neutra displayed a finely-tuned eye for even the smallest detail of his
projects. But unique to himself, Neutra pursued this perfection out of a dedication to the
immutable equality of man and nature.
16
Site
Like an ocean liner at berth, it hovers, tethered over a steep ravine in Los Angeles.
— Barbara Lamprecht, describing the Lovell Health House (Lamprecht 2006)
Faced with a site perched precariously on the side of a hill, Neutra had neither the benefit
of nesting atop the hill like the Barnsdall Residence nor the ease of level ground like the Kings
Road House. But what Neutra did have was the technology for and faith in steel frame
construction.
The Lovell Health House is unquestionably important because it was the first American
residence to be built of steel. Neutra embraced the metal he had learned to love from the
skyscrapers that had awed him during his time in New York and Chicago. He knew the
versatility and strength of steel could satisfy the project’s physical needs, but also embody his
belief in man as the most natural machine in existence. For Neutra, the manmade transformation
metal required was exactly what made it the perfect material for noble architecture.
Cutting into the hillside where necessary, Neutra planned to build the two-and-a-half
story house with audacious methods that would revolutionize parts of the construction process,
and even inspire Schindler in one of his later works. Unfettered by the earthy definition of
natured, Neutra innovated and embraced the increasingly mechanistic nature of mankind.
Exterior
Taking only initial cues from Wright’s exterior massing, Neutra extended the plan further
than Wright and broke through the barriers created by the exterior walls of multi-storied
buildings. There is no unbroken vertical plane to be drawn down any face of the Lovell Health
House. Covered patios butt out over recessed walls, creating a geometric sense of movement and
17
fluidity that would later show up in Wright’s works. Seeing no need to stack symmetrically,
Neutra built the house cascading down the hill, and tumbling out from its own box.
By placing the entry-level at the top of the house, the need for privacy in the exterior
walls is all but eliminated. Ribbon windows wrap around much of the house, and the walls in
between are a manmade and polished white. Steel casement windows display hanging curtains
that can be drawn to provide shade and privacy, but much of the exterior façade is open to steel
and glass.
The open space at the bottom of the house, underneath which is the pool, belies the
cutting-edge construction and technology used to build it. Where others sat upon the ground or
clung to a hillside, Neutra built this house to hover; a modern behemoth capable of existing only
because of man’s conquering and increasingly intellectual nature.
Entry
Continuing the metaphor of an ocean liner – which was, in itself, another manmade
behemoth – the entry to the house is placed at the top level, but away from the side of the hill so
that a concrete “gangplank” is required to reach it.
This approach helps to separate visitors from the natural environment and convert them
to a state necessary to enjoy the mechanical nature of the house. It’s also breaks from Wright and
Schindler’s entries by claiming and placing in plain view one way to enter the house. Wright’s
hallmark privacy was afforded elsewhere in the Lovell Health House, and democracy was not
something Neutra or Dr. Lovell were interested in like Schindler was.
18
Interior
From the gangplank entry at the top floor, visitors could descend the stairs to the main
floor of the house, located in the middle. Residents’ sleeping quarters were also located on the
top floor, to keep them separate from the public areas associated with the main floor.
The main floor included all of the areas for social interaction with guests. The staircase
used to move from the top floor to the middle has become an icon because of its industrial
aspects. The exterior walls of the staircase are double-height windows that look directly out over
the hill on which the house is perched. An engineering feat for its time, this construction was
almost impossible until Neutra embraced the construction possibilities of steel.
Perhaps the most striking feature of the staircase is its lighting: real headlights from Ford
automobiles. The most apparent of Neutra’s many efforts to embrace the technology of man, the
presence of the headlights is a constant reminder of the evolution of man’s place within his own
world.
Dr. Lovell shared Neutra’s view of man as a natural machine, and extended his belief to
his own health practices. With the entire family being dedicated vegetarians, Neutra was asked to
accommodate their needs with the help of the family’s housekeeper and cook. The house’s
industrial health modifications included an 8’-tall revolving cooler for all their dietary needs, and
overly-sized meal preparation areas. And in a move that aligned well – if not less modestly –
with Neutra’s beliefs about the necessity of connecting man and nature, Lovell requested terraces
for nude sunbathing. Neutra bent the program of the architecture more radically than either
Wright or Schindler before him, in order to suit a man attempting to conquer his own nature and
take charge of his natural body.
19
Underneath, on bottom half-level of the house, Neutra placed the laundry, utility, and
dressing rooms. These areas opened onto the pool, which was installed under the house so that it
was covered by the second story above, supported on steel pillars like thin stilts that shouldn’t be
capable of supporting two floors. If Neutra was going to exert the effort to revolutionize steel
construction in residential architecture, he was going to be sure that it could be seen and admired
at a glance.
Summary
Neutra’s design of the Lovell Health House reflects a man who has embraced nature and
the mechanical, and sees himself as equal instead of reverent. The divine nature of man, for
Neutra, was his ability to exist as he pleased within his environment; to be capable of controlling
more of his life and experiences than ever before. Partnered with a client who extended this
philosophy to the body, the Lovell Health House is a rare example of a house and its resident
existing in the exact symbiosis attempted by the architect and desired by the client.
A Balance in Modern Architecture
Although their approaches differed from one another, Wright, Schindler and Neutra
shared a foundation in the conviction that architecture had to strive to be more than an assembly
of materials. That it had to be thought through carefully with both the mind and the soul, and it
had to empower the people within it.
Each architect shouldered the burden of creation with an unshakeable faith that he had
discovered the most modern way to achieve those common goals. Today, all three of their houses
stand as a reminder to us that humanity is in constant evolution, but balance will always be what
makes us feel at home.
20
CHAPTER THREE
THE MEDIUM
Included here are screenshots of the individual pages of the website, as well navigation
concepts. They illustrate where the above content will go, and how a user might experience the
website when it is complete.
From the first introductory slide, users can click the “Next” button located in the bottom
right; or if they are already familiar with the site, they can navigate to a specific slide of their
choosing via the menu on the left. This menu is fixed, and will always offer the user control over
their general location within the site, as well as the option to start over from either the
Introduction slides, or the Three Stories slide where the journey truly begins.
Figure 1. The first slide of the website will introduce the idea that architecture is more than just
shelter for the body.
21
Figure 2. A screenshot taken mid-transition between figure 1 and figure 3.
If the user decides to follow the linear path of the website, they will “fly through” the first
introduction slide (figure 1), and onto the second slide (figure 3).
Figure 3. The second introduction slide.
22
The third and final introduction slide (figure 4) offers the user a chance to explore any of
the three buildings at the focus of the website. From here, a web of connection between each
house’s About, Site, Entry, Interior, and Exterior sections is formed and can be navigated at the
user’s choosing.
Figure 4. The user can choose any of the three buildings to explore.
Figure 5. The transition from the Three Stories slide moves either left, right, or center depending
on which house the user chooses.
23
Figure 6. Each house’s main slide shows an establishing photo, and some general information. A
menu under the title offers navigation choices.
Figure 7. The transition from the house’s main slide to its information slides, which are
underneath and behind.
24
Figure 8. A sample of the “About” slide.
Figure 9. Users can move laterally to the corresponding information slide of another house by
clicking the house’s name at the top corners of the slide.
25
WORKS CITED
Brosh, Allie. Hyperbole and a Half (blog). 2009. Accessed March 14, 2013.
http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/.
Goldberger, Paul. Why Architecture Matters. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2009.
Lamprecht, Barbara. Neutra. Köln: Taschen, 2006.
Smith, Kathryn. Frank Lloyd Wright, Hollyhock House and Olive Hill. New York, NY: Rizzoli
International Publications, 1992.
Sweeney, Robert, and Judith Sheine. Schindler, Kings Road, and Southern California
Modernism. Berkeley and Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press, 2012.
Wright, Frank Lloyd. In the Cause of Architecture. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 1908.
———. A Testament. New York, NY: Horizon Press, 1957.
Abstract (if available)
Abstract
Architecture tends to be an art exclusive to those who practice or study it. I believe that its impact lies in its universal human truths, and that anyone can understand the beauty and history of architecture if the story is delivered in the right medium. This thesis presents an argument for the Internet as a preferred medium, and tells three stories of how architecture impacts us all.
Linked assets
University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses
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Asset Metadata
Creator
Leiker, Erin
(author)
Core Title
Three stories of ourselves: architecture’s solution to man’s place within nature as told by Frank Lloyd Wright, Rudolph Schindler and Richard Neutra
School
Annenberg School for Communication
Degree
Master of Arts
Degree Program
Specialized Journalism (The Arts)
Publication Date
07/11/2013
Defense Date
06/25/2013
Publisher
University of Southern California
(original),
University of Southern California. Libraries
(digital)
Tag
Architecture,Barnsdall residence,Frank Lloyd Wright,Hollyhock House,Internet,Kings Road House,Lovell Health House,OAI-PMH Harvest,Richard Neutra,Rudolph Schindler,Schindler House
Format
application/pdf
(imt)
Language
English
Contributor
Electronically uploaded by the author
(provenance)
Advisor
Anawalt, Sasha (
committee chair
), Lifson, Edward (
committee member
), Page, Tim (
committee member
)
Creator Email
leiker.erin@gmail.com,noneshallsleep@gmail.com
Permanent Link (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c3-287209
Unique identifier
UC11293949
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etd-LeikerErin-1756.pdf (filename),usctheses-c3-287209 (legacy record id)
Legacy Identifier
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287209
Document Type
Thesis
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Leiker, Erin
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(contributing entity),
University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses
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The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...
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Tags
Frank Lloyd Wright
Hollyhock House
Internet
Kings Road House
Lovell Health House
Richard Neutra
Rudolph Schindler
Schindler House