Frank Lloyd Wright: An Autobiography, Signed by Wright, First Edition Thus, 1945

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Frank Lloyd Wright: An Autobiography, Signed by Wright, First Edition Thus, 1945

Name: Frank Lloyd Wright: An Autobiography, Signed by Wright, First Edition Thus, 1945
Brand: Frank Lloyd Wright
Rating: 4.9 (39 reviews)

About the Item

Wright, Frank Lloyd. Frank Lloyd Wright: Autobiography. London: Faber & Faber, 1945. First edition thus, second printing. Signed and inscribed by Wright on title page, dated 1952. Rebound in gray ¼ leather and cloth boards, with gilt titles, tooling, and raised bands to spine, and a new archival slipcase with photograph inlay. This is a stunning inscribed and signed first edition thus, second printing of Frank Lloyd Wright: Autobiography. The book was printed by Faber & Faber Limited, in London in 1945. This thick book contains 486 pages, and has a subtitle: "Five Books in One Volume." There are 16 black and white photo plates in the book, front and back, bearing 76 pictures of various Wright-designed homes. It has been beautifully rebound in ¼ gray leather and cloth boards, with gilt titles and raised bands to the spine, and a new archival slipcase. An original inscription is written in ink on the title page, reading: "To D. Jacob Davies from Frank Lloyd Wright. Taleisin. Sept. '52. Greetings!" Taliesin West was Wright's winter home and his school in the desert in Scottsdale, Arizona. He lived there from 1937 until his death in 1959. The recipient, "D. Jacob Davies" (1916-1974) was a rather famous Welsh Unitarian Minister who became a prominent figure within his denomination in Wales and Welsh public life in general, thanks to his roles as a minister, broadcaster, activist, writer and journalist, and editor of a Unitarian journal. During his 70-year career, American architect Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959) championed a personal belief that architecture should address the physical and social needs of the inhabitant, while remaining in harmony with nature. While most famously known for his edifices like Falling Water and the Guggenheim Museum, his career ranged from private houses to community centers, public housing projects, office buildings, and churches, and defined modern American architecture. His mastery of space, form, and human-centered design revolutionized the field of architecture and earned him a place among the greatest thinkers and artists of the 20th century. In a volume that continues to resonate more than seventy years after its initial publication, Frank Lloyd Wright: An Autobiography contains the master architect's own account of his work, his philosophy, and his personal life, written with his signature wit. In 1932, the first edition of the Autobiography was published, as only “three books in one volume.” It became a form of advertising, leading many readers to seek out the master architect to learn from him. Thirty apprentices came to live and learn at Taliesin, Wright's Wisconsin home studio and school, under the master's tutelage. By 1938, Taliesin West, in Arizona, was the winter location for Wright's school. The book was later republished in 1945, partially re-written with new material added. This 1945 edition is divided into five sections devoted to family, fellowship, work, freedom, and form. Wright recalls his childhood, his apprenticeship with Dankmar Adler and Louis Sullivan, the turmoil of his personal life, and the background to his greatest achievements, including Hollyhock House, the Prairie and the Usonian Houses, and the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo. CONDITION: Very good condition overall. Octavo. Rebound in ¼ gray leather and cloth boards, with gilt tooling, titles, and raised bands to the spine. The autograph and inscription on the title page are both legible and without fading or smearing of ink. Interior pages are healthy, without foxing or stains. 16 black and white photo plates in the book, front and back. 486 pp. Book is presented with a new matching gray archival slipcase with an inlaid photograph of Frank Lloyd Wright on the front. Dimensions: Book: 9 3/4" H x 6 1/4" W x 1 1/4" D. Slipcase: 10 1/8" H x 6 1/2" W x 1 3/4" D.

Creator:
Frank Lloyd Wright (Author)
Dimensions:
Height: 10.13 in (25.74 cm)Width: 6.5 in (16.51 cm)Depth: 1.75 in (4.45 cm)
Materials and Techniques:
Leather,Paper
Place of Origin:
England
Period:
1940-1949
Date of Manufacture:
1945
Condition:
Additions or alterations made to the original: Rebound in ¼ gray leather and cloth boards, with gilt tooling, titles, and raised bands to the spine. New archival cloth slipcase. Work by Felton Bookbinding Ltd., in Ontario, Canada, in May of 2022. Wear consistent with age and use.
Seller Location:
Colorado Springs, CO
Reference Number:
Seller: BK08651stDibs: LU909728701522

Shop All Frank Lloyd Wright

Frank Lloyd Wright

Without question the greatest architect the United States has ever produced, Frank Lloyd Wright and his philosophy of “organic architecture” — of buildings that exist in harmony with their natural surroundings — had a profound influence on the shape of modern life.

Wright gave us some of the most elegant and iconic buildings in America: residences such as Fallingwater, in rural Pennsylvania, the Robie House in Chicago, and Taliesin, Wright’s own home; and masterful institutional structures that include the Unity Temple in Oak Park, Illinois, the Johnson Wax headquarters in Racine, Wisconsin, and the Guggenheim Museum in New York. Whenever possible, Wright designed the furniture for his projects, to ensure an affinity between a building’s exterior and interior.

Wright’s wooden chairs and tables for his “Prairie Houses” of the early 1900s have sleek, attenuated forms, influenced by both the simplicity of traditional Japanese design and the work of Gustav Stickley and other designers of the Arts and Crafts movement.

For Taliesin and several residential projects, Wright designed severely geometric chairs that are marvels of reductivist design. He revisited many of these forms in the 1950s in furniture licensed to the North Carolina firm Henredon, adding a decorative frieze-like element to the edges of tables and stools. Owing to a cross-licensing agreement between Henredon and Heritage at the time, Wright's lines of the era are usually labeled Heritage-Henredon.

The works on 1stDibs also show how happily Wright embraced new forms and materials. His desks and chairs for Johnson Wax have a streamlined look and use tubular steel to the same effect as designer Warren McArthur, who collaborated with Wright in the interiors of the Arizona Biltmore Hotel. For the Price Tower (1956) in Oklahoma, Wright designed angular wooden desks as well as upholstered pedestal chairs made of chromed steel — audacious furniture for his tallest completed building project.

The beauty of Frank Lloyd Wright’s furniture designs is that while many of us wish we could live in one of his houses, his vintage sofas, storage cabinets and armchairs connect us directly to his architecture, and to the history he made.

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