If you liked Monday's post about Victor Lundy's swooping Unitarian Meeting House, you'll love this Frank Lloyd Wright design. Writing about Victor Lundy’s Unitarian Meeting House on Monday made me think of Frank Lloyd Wright’s earlier design for a Unitarian church near Madison, Wisconsin. In fact, Wright’s progressive “country church” clearly influenced Lundy’s organic approach to the tent-like spiritual space constructed on the suburban fringe of Hartford. Considered one of Wright’s most significant contributions to American architecture (and that's saying something, I guess) and completed near the end of his career, the First Unitarian Society Meeting House proved to be one of the architect's most personal projects. Wright’s parents were early members of the First Unitarian Society, and though he apparently did not attend on a regular basis, Wright was also a member of the church, joining in 1938. Commissioned in 1946, the sprawling suburban complex is an intimate expression of the architect’s faith, an abstraction of color, texture, and form that reflected Wright's long-standing connection with the church and its community. ![]() Carol M. Highsmith, photographer. A portion of the Unitarian meeting house, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and completed in 1951 in Madison, Wisconsin, was commissioned by the First Unitarian Society. Dane County, Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 2016. Courtesy of the Library of Congress, 2016631048. ![]() Carol M. Highsmith, photographer. A portion of the Unitarian meeting house, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and completed in 1951 in Madison, Wisconsin, was commissioned by the First Unitarian Society. Dane County, Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 2016. Courtesy of the Library of Congress, 2016631049. Located in the Village of Shorewood Hills (now within the city limits of Madison), Wright’s (originally more rural) hilltop church pays tribute to the tenets of Unitarianism through its close association with nature and its unique formal response to the congregation's liturgical needs. Almost origami-like in appearance, the mostly horizontal Meeting House is a single story with two wings extending east and west. Its signature feature, the prominent copper roof with an angled prow, expresses the modular diamond shape that defines the building's overall form and detail. While the diamond motif establishes the geometric character of the building, Wright's choice of materials, including native limestone, copper, and glass, provides a distinctive textural quality and natural color. Reflecting Wright's organic philosophy, the tawny-colored limestone establishes a sense of geography, and the large expanses of glass help to integrate indoor and outdoor space. The centerpiece of the interior, the soaring glass auditorium, faces the morning sun and places the minister at its dramatic apex. Throughout the building, ceiling heights vary to define space and create different moods. Horizontal bands of windows with wide overhangs provide a sense of shelter but still offer a connection to the natural landscape. Common at the time, Wright designed the church as a multi-purpose complex, organizing the plan into zones that would accommodate both religious and social functions. The church took almost five years and (in true Frank Lloyd Wright fashion) almost four times its original $60,000 budget to complete. For his part, Wright accepted a minimal fee for his time, volunteered his Taliesin apprentices, and gave two lectures ("Architecture as Religion") to raise money for the project's continuation. The congregation also volunteered, helping to transport more than 1,000 tons of limestone from a quarry located 30 miles away from the church property. ![]() Carol M. Highsmith, photographer. A portion of the Unitarian meeting house, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and completed in 1951 in Madison, Wisconsin, was commissioned by the First Unitarian Society. Dane County, Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 2016. Courtesy of the Library of Congress, 2016631050. ![]() Carol M. Highsmith, photographer. A portion of the Unitarian meeting house, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and completed in 1951 in Madison, Wisconsin, was commissioned by the First Unitarian Society. Dane County, Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 2016. Courtesy of the Library of Congress, 2016631052. An example of Wright’s late Usonian architecture in a rare non-residential setting, the First Unitarian Society Meeting House is an expansive, horizontal expression of religious space. The church is more than just the traditional aggregate of steeple and chapel and more than the universal postwar Modernist box. Evocative of place and sympathetic to the congregation's needs and beliefs, the structure gives an impression of communal unity and spiritual truth. Imbued with an unorthodox vocabulary, Wright's unified design conveys the specific symbolism of Unitarian tenets and displays modern architecture's capacity to express spirituality.
Completed in 1951 at the culmination of Wright’s remarkable career, the First Unitarian Society Meeting House proved to be one of the architect’s most critically significant works, a highly personal project that expressed his unique architectural philosophy and theological beliefs. In many ways, architecture was religion to Wright, his design for the church “a form of prayer.” Though two additions by Taliesin Associated Architects would be completed after the architect’s death in 1964 and 1990 (with another addition by The Kubula Washatko Architects, Inc. in 2008), the property remains wholly Wrightian, a masterpiece of organic materials, symbolic expression, and personal faith. In 2004, the First Unitarian Society Meeting House became a National Historic Landmark. You can find more information about the site here. Image at top: Carol M. Highsmith, photographer. The Unitarian meeting house, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and completed in 1951 in Madison, Wisconsin, was commissioned by the First Unitarian Society. Dane County, Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Courtesy of the Library of Congress, 2016631047.
1 Comment
4/29/2024 06:12:33 am
It's inspiring to learn about the pioneering spirit that drove Wright to create spaces that not only embraced modernity but also fostered a sense of community and inclusivity. Thank you for sharing this fascinating glimpse into one of Wright's masterpieces and its enduring legacy!
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorThis architectural historian cannot stop thinking about buildings, food, and that vintage rug she found online. Archives
July 2020
Categories
All
|