Exhibition Catalog - Lawrence Technological University

Photograph by Megan Smith
Photograph by Megan Smith
out water” – suggested further problems with the
existing house. 65 Despite the considerable amount
of work invested in the drawings, the Afflecks never
followed through with construction of the Pergola
House, and no extra rooms were ever added to the
original structure.
The reason for this increased need for space, in addition
to the knowledge gained from living in the
residence for a decade, seemed to have much to
do with unexpected circumstances in the Afflecks’
personal life. When they originally commissioned
the house, the couple told Wright they had “only
three persons in our family, our son is 15, and in a
couple years there will only be two.” 66 So Wright no
doubt designed the house to be used in the long
term by only two people. But shortly after completion,
Mary Ann’s arrival boosted the occupancy
once more to three. And at almost the same
time a tragic event occurred in young Gregor
P.’s life when a chemical explosion nearly blinded
him while a student at Olivet College. Years later,
Gregor P., now in his mid-twenties, was still undergoing
periodic surgeries to remove glass from his eye,
was unable to drive a car, and was living with his
parents. Gregor and Elizabeth therefore conceived
the Pergola House with the knowledge that they still
had a young girl to raise and a semi-incapacitated
young man to house indefinitely.
Despite the temporarily crowded conditions,
Gregor and Elizabeth Affleck loved their house and
spent the rest of their lives in it. But like many Wright
homeowners, enjoyment of their house came at
a price. As an object of curiosity, the house attracted
a constant stream of visitors and trespassers
eager to glimpse Wright’s work. The Afflecks
good-naturedly accepted their role as stewards of
a work of art. In the late 1970s, Gregor P. estimated
that his father’s visitors’ register contained nearly
10,000 names, while Mary Ann recalled the special
circumstances of owning a landmark house: “As
I was growing up that was probably the biggest
drawback; we could never sleep in on Saturday
mornings because of the likelihood that someone
would want to see the bedrooms – and mother insisted
the rooms be spotless. I think we had people
visit from almost every country.” She also claimed
that “mother and dad enjoyed the unusual. . . And
dad liked nothing better than to have his puttering
around interrupted by a visitor who wanted to talk
about the house.” 67 Wright himself came by whenever
he was in town or at Cranbrook and the Afflecks
hosted him on more than one occasion.
Gregor was particularly fond of mentioning his
wife’s regard for the house. Less than a year after
moving in, he related to Wright that “the house has
changed her outlook on life a lot and we even
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