Wingspread

Frank Lloyd Wright designed and built Wingspread as a residence for Herbert F. Johnson and his family in 1938-39. It was his largest and last Prairie style building. Set on property near Lake Michigan in Racine, Wisconsin, the 14,000 square foot home is surrounded by lagoons and ponds, and the home eases gently into the open space. Multiple sculptures and gardens enhance the landscaped grounds.

The home is in the shape of a pinwheel – four wings stretch from the Great Hall, a huge space with floor to ceiling windows and a central fireplace that has five hearths on three different levels. There is also an aerie at the very top of the great room – a circular stairway rises next to the fireplace to reach the glass space – which was requested of Mr. Wright by Johnson’s son. He wanted to have a look out where he could watch for his father’s airplane as he returned home to the family from his many trips.

The pinwheel extensions split the home into zones and housed the bedrooms and the kitchen areas. Johnson’s daughter’s bedroom was in the extension seen in the background of the above photo.

Made almost entirely of natural, organic materials — a warm red brick, wood, quarried limestone, and stucco — the home emphasizes Wright’s embrace of the natural surrounding lands.

The Johnson family (Herbert was the grandson of SC Johnson of Johnson Wax fame) lived in the home for over 20 years. In 1959, the Johnson’s moved into a smaller home (referred to as “The House”) on the property and gave Wingspread to the Johnson Foundation for use as a conference and education center. Since that time, it has served as a primary think tank for non-profit corporations, and is said to be the birthplace for the ideas for both National Public Radio and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Wingspread was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1989.

The center was one of nine buildings in the Racine/Kenosha, Wisconsin area featured on this year’s Wright and Like Tour held on June 5th. The tour is sponsored by  Frank Lloyd Wright® Wisconsin, a non-profit organization devoted to preserving and sharing Wright’s Wisconsin heritage.

A second Wright landmark, the SC Johnson Administration Building, also a National Historic Landmark, was also featured. (Photos of the Johnson Administration Building including rare photos of the Penthouse floor to be posted soon.)

Tagged as: architecture, Frank Lloyd Wright architect, Frank Lloyd Wright® Wisconsin, Herbert F. Johnson residence, historic building, Johnson Foundation, Prairie School architecture, Racine Wisconsin, Wingread, Wisconsin, Wright and Like 2010 Tour