Product Description

This is the first thorough guide to the design and history of "Kentuck," a splendid mountain house in Southwestern Pennsylvania designed in 1953-1954 by Frank Lloyd Wright. Inspired by Falling water, the famous house only seven miles away that Wright designed above the waterfalls of Bear Run, local businessman I. N. Hagan and his wife, Bernardine, commissioned the 86-year-old Wright to design this home.

Kentuck, constructed on an isolated knoll, or knob, is now owned by Lord Palumbo of London and is open for public tours. This vivid account offers a straightforward story of how the house came to be, detailing the many complexities faced by the Hagans--from difficulties in dealing with Wright, to topographical errors and the unresolved issues in the plans. Despite the many problems they encountered, the Hagans and their contractor managed to construct a building of great beauty, dignity, and serenity. More than fifty photographs, drawings, and diagrams accompany a detailed descriptive text to illustrate how the peculiarities of the plan, based on the equilateral triangle, resulted in a house that generates countless vistas, indoors and out, and spatial effects of great charm and intimacy.

Frank Lloyd Wright's House on Kentuck Knob brings to life an unusual work of residential architecture. It is the perfect introduction to Kentuck, and for those who have visited there--a lovely reminder of this luminous but modest house.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #325320 in Books
• Published on: 2000-05-18
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 112 pages

Review
"Frank Lloyd Wright's House on Kentuck Knob is spendidly written; simple, alive and captivating. Donald Hoffmann draws the reader right into the adventure of how Mr. and Mrs Hagan acquired the site and got Wright, by then a quirky octogenarian, to design the building. Clearly the book, with all its illustrations, will be a steady seller for visitors who combine visits to Falling Water and Kentuck Knob." -- David Lewis, Carnegie Mellon University

Review

About the Author
Donald Hoffmann served as art and architecture critic for the Kansas City Star from 1965 to 1990, was assistant editor of The Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians from 1970 to 1972, and is the author of seven books on the architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright, including Frank Lloyd Wright's Falling Water.

Previous books: The Architecture of John Wellborn Root 1988 Frank Lloyd Wright : Architecture and Nature 1986 Frank Lloyd Wright's Dana House 1996 Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater 1993 Frank Lloyd Wright's Hollyhock House 1992 Frank Lloyd Wright, Louis Sullivan and the Skyscraper 1999 Understanding Frank Lloyd Wright's Architecture 1995 Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House 1984 Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House 1988

Customer Reviews

Well written description of Wright's building
Don Hoffman's book gives and accurate description of how this magnificent home came into being from its inception to completion. It discusses how the sketches evolved due to the environmental considerations of the landscape showing how Kentuck Knob was build to coordinate the house and the hill upon which it was built into one organic structure.

It explains Wright's architectural philosophy as to why he makes the decisions he did when building this house.

Visually the book itself is elegantly designed with excellent photographs giving a true feel for the nature of the house and providing some insignt to the wise, artistically minded people whom conceived of and lived in Kentuck Knob so happily and with such a great respect for the environment which the house occupies.

As a child I spent a great deal of time in this house, being close family friends with the original owners, so I would know if there were any inconsistancies with the book and reality and find it most accurately written.

This would be a great gift for anyone interested in architecture, environmnetalism or whom is a particular fan of Frank Llyod Wright's architecture. Also it is so beautifully done that it would just be a pretty coffee table book to keep for yourself or for in a guest room.