Fallingwater

The Building of Frank Lloyd Wright's
Masterpiece

Roaring Book Press
(MacMillan)

(pub.10.17.2017)

40 pages

A True Tale with
A Cherry On Top   

A uthors: Marc Harshman

                  & Anna Egan Smucker

      and art: LeUyen Pham

C haracter: Frank Lloyd Wright

O verview from the jacket flap: 

     "In the wooded heart of Pennsylvania a house perches atop a waterfall. The water's tune echoes through its sunlight-dappled rooms and the facade blends effortlessly into the rock and forest behind it. This is Fallingwater, an architectural masterpiece born from the marriage of meticulous research and unbounded imagination, the legacy of the lauded American architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

     This stunning picture book ... guides readers through Wright's process designing Fallingwater, from his initial inspiration to the home's breathtaking culmination. It is an exploration of the creative process; a celebration of potential and the vision required to unlock it. Graceful prose and rich, dynamic illustrations breathe life into the story of Wright and Fallingwater, a man and a home utterly unlike any other."

T antalizing taste:        

 

"Now concrete wings

and long, flat roofs
step up the hillside.

In the thundering water,
scaffolding spreads its spindly legs.

Like branches extending 
from a tree,
the house stretches out over the falls."

 

and something more: I was intrigued by the illustration process described in the Artist's Note written by LeUyen Pham: "I have long been an admirer of the architecture of Frank Lloyd wright, but my favorite among his buildings has always been Fallingwater. Of all those he designed, it is the one that best connects the structure to the environment.  
       While visiting, I spent hours going over each of the rooms of the house lingering on the terraces for as long as I was permitted, sketching on site as much as possible, and memorizing details of the exterior where cameras weren't allowed. I also spent days going over architectural drawings piecing together one level to another... 
       Wright was a controversial figure... [R]everence for his art, however, remains intact. It was his amazing sense of design, inspired greatly by his love of Japanese prints, that most influenced how I painted these images. His devotion to simple lines and clean treatment of materials - stone, glass, metal - has kept his buildings alive decades after their construction."