Exhibition Catalog - Lawrence Technological University

wall separating it from the single entry to the garden.
The opening housed a “light well” (called a
“lantern” by Affleck) centered over a small pool
at ground level, with operable windows that could
open to allow cool air to circulate vertically from
below the house; this was a smaller-scale version
of an element he first used at Fallingwater. Perhaps
realizing that the square light well impeded
circulation through the loggia, or influenced by Affleck’s
suggestion to move or eliminate it, Wright
changed it to a rectangular shape and pushed
it off to the side, while also removing the spur wall
screening the garden entry. These gestures made
the space asymmetrical but opened it to better
circulation patterns.
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Photograph by Harvey Croze
Photograph by Harvey Croze
Another alteration to the original plans during the
design phase dealt with the relationship between
the house’s public and private areas. The first plan
seems to show no elevation difference between
public wing and bedroom wing, while later drawings
– and the house as built – depict the private
bedroom wing a half-story higher than the loggia.
All of the early floor plans and most other drawings
also showed the loggia as a separate room,
capable of being closed off from the rest of the
house. No doors, however, were ever installed,
and instead the loggia serves as an intermediate
space for passing through rather than a room
onto itself. 32
Possibly the most important modification to the
original concept – and certainly the one with the
biggest financial impact – concerned the nature
of the materials. As cited above, as part of their
“requirements” list the couple asked for “the laminated
stone which is not native of Michigan, laid
in the same manner of that at Fallingwater.” 33 In
early August 1940, after Wright had sent the Afflecks
his first drawings, they still favored stone
walls but a conflict seems to have arisen between
Gregor and Elizabeth. “Mrs. Affleck still thinks that
she likes stone,” Gregor wrote to Wright. “Personally,
I like brick and also the money that could
be saved by using it.” 34 Wright’s response was
equivocal. The series of elevation and perspective
drawings made by Wright and his apprentices
in the summer of 1940 include some that clearly
anticipate stone walls and others where the material
could be either stone or brick. In September
Gregor continued to mention stone but at some
point afterward the decision was made to switch
to brick. Although the house was eventually constructed
with brick walls, two aspects of the proposed
stone design survived. The first was a rough
stone retaining wall along the hillside that bowed
out from the northeast corner of the carport to the
entry drive. The second was more subtle. Gregor
had added a handwritten message to a letter