Robie

House
Chicago, Illinois, USA
FrankLloydWrightPreservationTrust
Exteriordrawing(FLWFDN2011)
FLWFDN
FLWFDN
2
Frederick C. Robie

House
Frederick C. Robie

House, completed in 1910, is widely considered

tobeFrankLloydWrightsmostaccomplishedPrairiestylework.This
architecturalstyle,therstthatwasuniquelyAmerican,ischaracterized
bydominatinghorizontallines,bandedrowsofwindows,andspacious
andopeninteriorplans.Theexteriorisdominatedbygentlysloping
roofsandbuildingmaterialsinlinewithWrightsideasonthenatureof
materials:brick,wood,steel,limestone,andconcretestucco,thelast-
namedbeingusedtocoverthemassiveexpansesofsotsunderthe
cantileveredporches.
Homes like these were designed to oer their owners great vistas
from the many windows and balconies. Open spaces on the rst
and second oors of the interiors of the homes were intended to
continue to the outside through these windows. The relationship
between architecture and natureone of the most important
inuences on Wrightis emphasized throughout the open and
owingdesignofFrederickC.Robie

House.
WeoftheMiddleWestarelivingontheprairie.Theprairiehasabeauty
ofitsownandweshouldrecognizeandaccentuatethisnaturalbeauty,
itsquietlevel.FrankLloydWright
3
The design & construction of
Frederick C. Robie

House
In1908,FrederickC.Robie,ayoungandambitiousChicagobusinessman,
decidedhewantedtobuildasturdy,functionalandstrikinglymodern
homeforhisfamilyinHydePark,anelegantChicagoneighborhoodand
hometothecampusoftheUniversityofChicago.
Robiewantedahousewithanabundanceoflightandgreatviewsofthe
surroundingneighborhood,yetonethatalsomaintainedhisfamilysprivacy.
Hedidntlikesmallconningroomsandthoughtthatowingspaceswere
essentialinawelldesignedhome.InFrankLloydWright,hefoundan
architectwhonotonlyagreedwiththeseideals,butwhocouldtransform
themintoauniquephysicalexpression.
Fromtherstwehadadenitecommunityofthought.FrederickRobie,
onmeetingFrankLloydWright.
TheactualsiteitselfhelpeddetermineFrankLloydWrightsideasand
plans.Measuring18meters(60ft.)by55meters(180ft.),thecornerlot
wasthreetimesaslongasitwaswide.ThesedimensionsledWrightto
thinkofthehomeintermsoflong,narrowrectangles.Thehometherefore
consistsprimarilyoftwolongandnarrowvessels,eachsimilarinshape
tothehullofaship,onesetontopandslightlyo-centeroftheother.
Whenviewedfromabove,thetwovesselsareeasytosee;however,from
thestreet,eachblendsintotheother,formingwhatlookslikeasingle,
continuoushorizontalstructure.
Tofurtheremphasizethehorizontallinesofthehouse,thehorizontaljointsof
thered-orange,iron-spottedRomanbrickswerelledwithacream-colored
mortarandthesmallverticaljointswerelledwithbrick-coloredmortar.From
adistance,thiscomplexandtime-consumingprocesscreatesanimpression
ofcontinuouslinesofhorizontalcolorandminimizestheappearanceof
individualbricks.
RobieHousewasoneoftherstresidencestoincorporatesteelbeams
directlyintoitsdesign.Thesestrongbeamsintheceilingsandoors
werenecessarytocreatethecantileveredbalconies,whichappearto
besuspendedinmid-air.Asthesteelbeamsalsocarrymostofthe
buildingsweight,theexteriorwallshavelittlestructuralfunction,which
in turn allowed Wright to ll them with large numbers of doors and
windows.Moreimportantly,thesteelstructureeliminatedtheneedfor
internalstructuralcolumnsandwalls,thusunderliningtheoverallopen
planfavoredbybothWrightandRobie.
BothMrWrightandmyselfwerehighlyinaccordoneverylinetothe
lastinch.Andweagreedthatthereshouldbenodeviationwhatsoever
fromthesespecications.
FrederickRobie,onworkingwithFrankLloydWright.
Thebrickwork(FLWFDN)
Floorplandrawings(FLWFDN2011)
4
Theentirebuildingllsapproximately841.9m
2
(9,062squareft).Thefront
doorandmainentrancearepartiallyhiddenonthenorthwestsideof
thebuildingbeneathanoverhangingbalconyinordertocreateasense
ofprivacyandprotectionforthefamily.Theentrancehallitselfislow-
ceilingedanddark,butthestairstothesecondoorcreateasenseof
anticipationasthevisitormovesupward.Onceupstairs,thelightlled
livinganddiningroomscreateasharpcontrasttothedarkentrance
hall,makingthelivingareasseemevenmorespacious.
The ground floor of Robie

House was designed for general

everyday use, with a billiard room, playroom, and service ar-
eas. The rst oor contains a kitchen and guest room as well the
homes formal areas, including the living and dining rooms. These
two rooms are separated by a central chimney mass, but the
spacesareconnectedalongtheirsouthsides,andthechimneymass
itselfhasanopeningabovethereplacethroughwhichtheroomsare
visuallyconnected.
Thesecondoorcontainstheprivatefamilyspaces:threebedrooms
surroundingacentralhall.Therstoorfeaturesalongbalconythat
stretchesnearlytheentirelengthofthehome.
WhenclientsliketheRobieshiredFrankLloydWrighttodesignahome,they
receivedmorethanjustahouse.Wrighttypicallyalsoprovideddesignsfor
furniture,lightingxtures,wallhangings,rugs,and,insomecases,evendish-
es.WithRobieheworkedwithandsupervisedGeorgeMannNiedeckento
createwhathetermedacompleteenvironment.Aswellasfurniture
fortheentrancehall,diningandlivingrooms,Wrightalsocreatedthe
29dierentartglassdesignsthatcanbefoundin175ofthehouses
windowanddoorpanels.
Thecontractorfortheproject,H.B.BarnardCo.ofChicago,began
construction on April 15, 1909, Frank Lloyd Wright did not supervise
theconstructionofthehousehimselfexceptintheearlieststages.He
closedhisOakPark,Illinoisstudiointhefallof1909andleftforEurope,
turningoverhisexistingcommissions,includingtheRobieHouse,to
fellowarchitectHermannvonHolst.
TheRobiefamilyFrederick,Laura,andtheirtwochildren,FrederickJr.
andLorrainemovedintothehomeinMay1910,althoughallofthenal
details,includingrugsandfurniture,werenotcompleteduntilJanuary
1911.Thenalcostofthehomewas$58,500$13,500fortheland,$35,000
for the design and construction of the building, and $10,000 for the
furnishings.Robiesoriginalbudgethadbeen$60,000.
Idoubtverymuchiftherewasasingleextrascrew,orpieceofhardware
necessary;itwasperfectlywonderful.Thedetailedarrangementwasso
perfectthatBarnard(thebuilder)afterwardstoldmethathemightas
wellhavebeenmakingapieceofmachinery.FrederickRobie, onthe
buildingprocess
Theentrance(FLWFDN) LivingRoom(FLWFDN)
Diningroom(FLWFDN) Kitchen(FrankLloydWright
PreservationTrust)
Glassandlightxturedesign
(FLWFDN)
5
From 1910 to today
Unfortunately,theRobiefamilystenureintheirnewhomewasshort-lived.
Asaresultofnancialproblemscausedbythedeathofhisfatherand
thedeteriorationofhismarriage,Robiewasforcedtosellthehouse
afterlivinginitforonly14months.
Robie sold the house and the majority of the custom-designed
furnishingstoDavidLeeTaylorinDecember1911.Taylor,presidentofa
Chicago-basedadvertisingagency,boughtthehouseasaChristmas
presentforhiswife,Ellen,andtheirsixsons.HisChristmascardread:
ToMomma/Our$50,000house/Pop.
MisfortunecontinuedtofollowtheresidentsofRobie

House,andin
October1912,TaylordiedsuddenlyandbyNovember,hiswidow,Ellen
Taylor,hadalreadysoldthehousetoMarshallDodgeWilberandhis
wife,Isadora.They,alongwiththeirtwodaughtersMarciaandJeanette,
movedintothehouseonDecember3,1912.TheWilberswerethelast
familytoliveinRobieHouse,residingtherefor14years.
InJanuary1926,theWilberssoldtheRobie

HousetotheChicago
TheologicalSeminary.Theseminaryusedthehouseasadormitoryand
dininghallformarriedstudents,althoughitwasprimarilyinterestedin
thesiteforpurposesoffutureexpansion.
In1941,agraduatestudentattheIllinoisInstituteofTechnologyaccidentally
discoveredthattheSeminarywasmovingaheadwithaplantodemolish
Robie

Housetoerectanew,largerdormitoryonthesite,andheinformed
hisinstructors,includingLudwigMiesvanderRohe.Thethreatofdemolition
arousedastormofprotest.Aletter-writingcampaigntosavethehouse
wasorganized,andWrighthimselfwrotealettercallingthehousea
sourceofworld-widearchitecturalinspiration.AlthoughtheSeminarys
plansweresubsequentlypostponed,thecrisiswasavertedmorebythe
onsetofWorldWarIIthanbyachangeofviewbythepropertysowner.
AmoreseriousthreattotheexistenceoftheRobie

Housearose16
yearslater.OnMarch1,1957,theSeminaryagainannouncedplansto
demolishRobieHouseonSeptember15inordertobegintheconstruction
ofadormitoryforitsstudents.Thistime,aninternationaloutcryarose,
and Wright himself, then 89 years old, returned to the Robie House
accompaniedbythemedia,studentsandneighborhoodorganizersto
protestagainsttheintendeddemolition.Commentingonthethreatened
demolition,Wrightquipped,Itallgoestoshowthedangerofentrusting
anythingspiritualtotheclergy.
ThethreatofdemolitionwasonlyavertedwhenWilliamZeckendorf,a
friendofWrightandpresidentofaNewYork-baseddevelopmentrm,
boughtthehousefromtheChicagoTheologicalSeminaryinAugust
1958.HedonatedthehousetotheUniversityofChicagoin1963.Forthe
next34years,theUniversityusedRobie

Houseasoces:rsttohouse
theAdlaiE.StevensonInstituteofInternationalAairsandlaterasthe
headquartersfortheUniversitysAlumniAssociation.
Duringandafterrenovation(FrankLloydWrightPreservationTrust)
6
InJanuary1997theUniversityhandedovertherunningofthehousetotheFrank
LloydWrightPreservationTrust.BeginninginMarch2002,thePreservation
Trustbeganahistoricmulti-yearrestorationoftheRobie

House,with
theaimofreturningthebuildingtoitsoriginalconditionwhencompleted
in1910.
Itisdicult,ifnotimpossible,todiscussmodernAmericanorinternational
architecture without mentioning the signicance of Robie

House.
Amongstalltheplauditsthehousehasreceived,twospecialdistinctions
standout.InApril1957,itwastherstbuildingtobedeclaredaChicago
Landmarkbythenewly-formedCommissiononChicagoArchitectural
Landmarks. And in November 1963, it was certied a United States
RegisteredNationalHistoricLandmark.Therstnationallandmarkin
thecityofChicago,andthersttobeselectedsolelyonthebasisof
itsarchitecturalmerit.
ThearchitecturalsignicanceoftheRobie

Housewasprobablybest
statedinafarsightedarticleinHouseandHomemagazinefrom1957:
Aboveallelse,Robie

Houseisamagnicentworkofart.But,inaddition,
thehouseintroducedsomanyconceptsinplanningandconstruction
thatitsfullinuencecannotbemeasuredaccuratelyformanyyearsto
come.Withoutthishouse,muchofmodernarchitectureasweknowit
today,mightnotexist.
FrederickC.Robiewasneverindoubtaboutwhathehadhelpedto
create.LongretiredandlivinginanapartmentinCleveland,helooked
fondlybacktohappiertimesandcalledthehousenamedafterhim
themostidealplaceintheworld.
Exteriordrawings(FLWFDN2011)
7
In arranging the kitchen, Wright outed contemporary textbook
rules for placing the sink and the stove far away from each other.
He positioned both near one another against the north wall, as far
as possible from the dining room, so that the bustle of the kitchen
would not disturb the family during meals.
The intricate geometric design of the
houses gates echoes the art glass
windows. Indeed, Wright saw the gates
as serving a similar function to the
windows, as they helped to create a
uid space between the interior and
the exterior, all the while conserving
a sense of privacy.
Although Wright occasionally designed art glass using stylized
forms from nature, the 29 dierent designs of the Robie
House art glass are simply abstract geometric forms.
Restoring the roof back to its 1910 appearance was only made
possible by the discovery of a small number of original tiles that
had been stored in the houses wine cellar. The custom-made
reproduction hip and ridge tiles t tightly to the planes of the
roof deck, as they would have done when the house was rst built.
Wright integrated ower boxes or planters into his
drawings to ensure a greater synthesis between the
building and nature.
FrankLloydWrightPreservationTrust
FrankLloydWrightPreservationTrust
FrankLloydWrightPreservationTrust
FrankLloydWrightPreservationTrust
FLWFDN
FLWFDN
8
Frank Lloyd Wright

ArguablyAmericasgreatestarchitectandamongtheworldsmostgifted,
FrankLloydWrightwasalsoamanofboundlessenergy.Inacareerthat
spannedover74years,hedesignedmorethan900worksincluding
houses,oces,churches,schools,libraries,bridges,museumsand
manyotherbuildingtypes.Ofthattotal,over500resultedincompleted
works.Today,over400ofthesebuildingsstillremain.
However,Wrightscreativemindwasnotconnedtoarchitecture.He
also designed furniture, fabrics, art glass, lamps, dinnerware, silver,
linensandgraphicarts.Inaddition,hewasaprolicwriter,aneducator
andaphilosopher.Heauthoredtwentybooksandcountlessarticles,
andlecturedthroughouttheUnitedStatesandinEurope.
FrankLloydWrightwasbornin1867,intheruralfarmingtownofRichland
Center,Wisconsin,justtwoyearsaftertheAmericanCivilWarended
andpassedawayattheageof91,in1959.
WhilethereisevidenceofWrightattendingbothhighschoolandthe
UniversityofWisconsin-Madison,thereisnorecordofhimgraduating
fromeither.In1887WrightmovedtoChicago,andbytheearly1890she
wasalreadyheaddraftsmanatthearchitecturalrmofAdler&Sullivan.
DuringthistimehedesignedandbuilthisownOakParkhomeand
lateraddedanattachedstudiowhenheestablishedhisownpractice.
Thoughatumultuousprivateandprofessionallifewouldensurethat
Wrightwouldalwaysbesurroundedbycontroversy,hewasalsorec-
ognizedasabrilliantarchitectbyhispeers.
Nootherarchitecttookgreateradvantageofsettingandenvironment.No
otherarchitectgloriedthesenseofshelterasdidFrankLloydWright.
Abuildingisnotjustaplacetobe.Itisawaytobe,hesaid.Wrights
worknotleastRobieHousehasstoodthetestoftime.
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Facts about
Frederick C. Robie

House
Location:..................................................... Chicago, Illinois, USA
Architect:.................................................... Frank Lloyd Wright
Date:.............................................................. From 1908-1910
Construction type:............................... Residence
Construction materials:.................... Steel beams iron-spotted
........................................................................... Roman bricks
Style:............................................................. Prairie
Original Cost:.......................................... $60,000
Floor area:................................................. 9,062 square feet (841.9 m
2
)
FrankLloydWrightPreservationTrust
9
A Word from the Artist
As an architectural Artist my desire is to capture the essence of a particular
architectural landmark into its pure sculptural form. I rst and foremost
do not view my models as literal replicas, but rather my own artistic
interpretations through the use of LEGO bricks as a medium. The LEGO
brick is not initially thought of as a material typically used in creating art
or used as an artists medium. I quickly discovered the LEGO brick was
lending itself as naturally to my applications as paint to a painter or metal
to a blacksmith. As I explore how to capture these buildings with the basic
shapes of the bricks and plates, I nd the possibilities and challenges
they oer almost magical.
Robie

House
Our third architecturally signicant home, after Fallingwater and Farnsworth,
the Robie

House sets itself apart as being the largest, most detailed set
in the LEGO Architecture line to date. This model has been nearly 3 years
in the making; starting back in 2008 this structure was originally being
considered alongside Fallingwater and a few other Wright masterpieces.
Due to the complex forms, specic architectural proportions and subtle
accents it became evident that an accurate representation would take
some time to develop.

The entire model is based on the 33-degree LEGO roof slope element.
One of the most identiable characteristics of the structure is its shallow
roof pitch, lending to the strong expressive horizontality. This one piece
would establish the scale and thus the level of detail. Some of the details
required sideways construction to achieve upper window placements
and the iconic vertical wedge- shaped points found at each end. Other
The Scale Model line LEGO

Architecture in the 1960s

The history of current LEGO

Architecture series can be traced back

to the beginning of the 1960s when the LEGO bricks popularity
was still steadily increasing. Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, the then
owner of the company, began looking for ways to further expand
the LEGO system, and asked his designers to come up with a set of
new components that would add a new dimension to LEGO building.
Their answer was as simple as it was revolutionary: ve elements
that matched the existing bricks, but were only one third the height.
These new building plates made it possible to construct more
detailed models than before.
This greater LEGO exibility seemed to match the spirit of the age;
where modernist architects were redening how houses looked, and
people were taking an active interest in the design of their dream
home. It was from these trends that the LEGO Scale Model line was
born in early 1962.
The name itself was a direct link to the way architects and engineers
worked, and it was hoped that they and others would build their
projects to scale in LEGO elements. As with LEGO Architecture
today, the original sets were designed to be dierent from the normal
brightly colored LEGO boxes, and also included An Architectural
Book for inspiration.
Though the ve elements remain an integral part of the LEGO building
system today, the Scale Model line was phased out in 1965it
would be over 40 years before its principles would be revived in the
LEGO Architecture series we know today.
notable details include the use of 1x2 plates to show the texture of the
brick faade and its coursing wrapping the entire home and the sunken
courtyard highlighted by 1x1 tile steps.

Lastly, this model was originally and intentionally left open inside so that
a ameless tea light or small battery-powered light bulb could be used to
illuminate the 88 windows from within.
2011TheLEGOGroup