The Bachman–Wilson House, built in and originally located in

Millstone Millstones or mill stones are stones used in gristmills, for grinding wheat or other grains. They are sometimes referred to as grindstones or grinding stones. Millstones come in pairs: a convex stationary base known as the ''bedstone'' and ...

, in Somerset County,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, United States, was originally designed by

Frank Lloyd Wright Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements o ...

in 1954 for Abraham Wilson and his first wife, Gloria Bachman. Ms. Bachman's brother, Marvin, had studied with Wright at

Taliesin West Taliesin West was architect Frank Lloyd Wright's winter home and studio in the desert from 1937 until his death in 1959 at the age of 91. Today it is the headquarters of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. Open to the public for tours, Taliesin ...

, his home and studio in Scottsdale,

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. In 2014 the house was acquired by the

Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art is a museum of American art in Bentonville, Arkansas. The museum, founded by Alice Walton and designed by Moshe Safdie, officially opened on 11 November 2011. It offers free public admission. Overview ...

in Bentonville,

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

and has been relocated in its entirety to the museum's campus.

Architecture

The Bachman-Wilson house is an example of Wright's invention of

Usonia Usonia () is a word that was used by American architect Frank Lloyd Wright to refer to the United States in general (in preference to ''America''), and more specifically to his vision for the landscape of the country, including the urban plannin ...

n architecture. Wright built many of his houses around the notion of comfortable, low-cost living that fits the needs of its residents, as well as building a structure to match its environment. Wright was determined to use his new style to reinvent the previously box-like forms of early-to-mid twentieth century architecture, and create buildings that were right for modern times, as well as engaging and exciting for people to experience in a visual sense. Wright's ideas for low-cost living originated in the early twentieth century, and Wright was able to produce a large number of designs in that time. These would eventually turn into one of the largest collections of designs done by Wright in the early twentieth century. The house is a beautiful example of Wright's ongoing pursuit of the "destruction of the box," and gives visitors a wonderful experience with its continuous open and flowing spaces and transparency. Wright's invention of the transparent corner, which can be seen in the way the tall windows meet at a corner looking out onto the back porch area of the house, allows the interior space to have an even greater sense of openness and calm. Another architectural signature of Frank Lloyd Wright is also seen in the fireplace, as it sits in the central portion of the house, making it a sort of symbolic architectural centerpiece. While it does have many features that give a sense of open space, it also has many other interesting architectural features. The front façade of concrete blocks has an almost fortress-like appearance to ensure privacy from the street. The house is built with Way-Lite concrete blocks and

Philippine mahogany Philippine mahogany is a common name for several different species of trees and their wood. * Botanically, the name refers to '' Toona calantas'' in the mahogany family, Meliaceae. It is endemic to the Philippines. * In the US timber trade, it is o ...

trim. It has a second story, rare in a

Usonian Usonia () is a word that was used by American architect Frank Lloyd Wright to refer to the United States in general (in preference to ''America''), and more specifically to his vision for the landscape of the country, including the planning of ...

house, with

cantilever A cantilever is a rigid structural element that extends horizontally and is supported at only one end. Typically it extends from a flat vertical surface such as a wall, to which it must be firmly attached. Like other structural elements, a canti ...

ed balconies. The living room has a built-in

banquette A banquette is a small footpath or elevated step along the inside of a rampart or parapet of a fortification. Musketeers atop it were able to view the counterscarp, or fire on enemies in the moat. A typical size is a foot and a half (approximate ...

facing a wooded scene through a wall of 10 foot high glass panes, symbolizing a transcendental pew set before the altar of nature. The public space is a dramatic focal point, with walls of glass and an open floor plan. Cut-out wooden panels of abstracted forms over 24

clerestory In architecture, a clerestory ( ; , also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey) is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both. Historically, ''clerestory'' denoted an upper l ...

windows provide an unobtrusive yet restrained decorative touch to this lavish space. These recall Native American geometric motifs as well as stylized forms that may be based in nature. Construction was completed in 1956. Gloria and Abraham Wilson were the original owners of the home, and it was later bought and restored in 1988.

Sharon and Lawrence Tarantino

In 1988, Sharon and Lawrence Tarantino acquired the neglected Bachman Wilson House. Tarantino Architects has since guided the home's complete restoration and rebuilt the kitchen according to Wright's original drawings. Sharon and Lawrence Tarantino have received several awards for their restoration work, including the Wright Spirit Award from the

Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy The Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy is an organization devoted to the historic preservation of buildings and their furnishings and decoration designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, as well as to the study of Wright's career. The organization has gr ...

. The house was originally located along the

Millstone River The Millstone River is a tributary of the Raritan River in central New Jersey in the United States.Gertler, Edward. ''Garden State Canoeing'', Seneca Press, 2002. The Millstone River begins in western Monmouth County and flows westward throu ...

in Millstone Borough. It exemplifies Wright's "Usonian" philosophy and employs his early

green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 Nanometre, nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by ...

building principles, including minimizing the size of the house and ancillary spaces, pioneering

passive solar In passive solar building design, windows, walls, and floors are made to collect, store, reflect, and distribute solar energy, in the form of heat in the winter and reject solar heat in the summer. This is called passive solar design because, unli ...

and

radiant heat Thermal radiation is electromagnetic radiation generated by the thermal motion of particles in matter. Thermal radiation is generated when heat from the movement of charges in the material (electrons and protons in common forms of matter) is ...

design, employing natural daylight and recycling

construction waste Construction waste or debris is any kind of debris from the construction process. Different government agencies have clear definitions. For example, the United States Environmental Protection Agency EPA defines construction and demolition materi ...

. As its location was prone to flooding, the owners sought to relocate and rebuild it at a safer site in order to preserve it.

Relocation and renovation

On January 15, 2014, the

in Bentonville,

, announced that it was acquiring the Bachman–Wilson House and have made plans to relocate the house in its entirety to the museum's campus. Due to its past flooding and other circumstances, not all of the original structure could be relocated, such as the exterior

concrete block A concrete masonry unit (CMU) is a standard-size rectangular block used in building construction. CMUs are some of the most versatile building products available because of the wide variety of appearances that can be achieved using them. Tho ...

wall and the stained concrete flooring, both of which have been remade by Crystal Bridges' reconstruction crew for the relocation. Despite flood damage, most of the interior of the house has been saved and can be seen and toured on the grounds of Crystal Bridges. The house is located on the south side of Crystal Bridges and is only a brief walk from the south entrance. As well as the house there is also a welcoming pavilion constructed by the Fay Jones School of Architecture from

The University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the Flagship campus, flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and ...

that tells visitors not only about the Bachman–Wilson House but also about

and his works elsewhere.

Articles

October 14, 2001: Memories of a Famous Architect - New York Times

March 7, 2008: AIArchitect This Week , For the People: Preserving Wright’s Usonian Houses

November 21, 2008: Frank Lloyd Wright Renovation Receives Merit Award - Inhabitat

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20160304043509/http://www.preservationnj.org/site/ExpEng/index.php?%2Ften_most_11%2Findex_detail%2FBachman_Wilson_House 2011: 10 Most Endangered Historic Places in New Jersey]
April 19, 2012: A Frank Lloyd Wright House in NJ ready to deconstruct and reconstruct

January, 14, 2014: Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art Acquire A Rare Frank Lloyd House, Preserves an architectural treasure

February 12, 2014: Crystal Bridges Museum Acquires Frank Lloyd Wright Usonian House

References

External links