Frank Lloyd Wright was a world-renowned architect, perhaps his most unusual work is a dog house – at the request of a boy. However, the building never served its purpose.
Frank Lloyd Wright is a legend in the world of architecture. The American, who lived from 1867 to 1959, designed the famous Guggenheim Museum in Museum, among many other buildings. But perhaps the most unusual design that the star architect produced was for a kennel.
In 1956, Wright received a letter from Jim Berger, a 12-year-old boy from San Anselmo, California. Jim already lived in a house designed by the famous architect. Now he wanted to have a matching kennel for his Labrador Eddie. So he asked Wright, who by then had long been a world star in his field, for a draft. And the architect actually delivered.
Architect Frank Lloyd Wright designs dog kennel in his style
The twelve-year-old had given precise instructions in his letter and also given his dog’s dimensions, among other things – after all, the hut could not be too small. He also added that the kennel would be used mainly in winter. He also promised payment, Jim delivered newspapers and wanted to save money.
Wright initially put off his young client by saying he was “too busy”, but then submitted a draft a year later. It contained elements typical of Wright’s style as well as the design of his parents’ house – for example a triangular shape or the gently sloping roof with an overhang. Of course, Frank Lloyd Wright didn’t ask for any money either.
Unfortunately the dog didn’t like the hut
Now the design just had to be implemented. When Jim was older and joined the army, his father and brother built the kennel – six years after Wright sent the plans for it. However, it never served its actual purpose: Labrador Eddie rarely used it because he preferred the warm home. And so, after a few years, the architectural project ended up in the trash.
Nevertheless, the kennel can now be visited by anyone who is interested. Jim Berger and his brother built another example in 2010 for a documentary about Wright, which Berger later donated to his home in Marin County. It has recently been on display there in a building also designed by Wright. The kennel is the smallest “building” Frank Lloyd Wright ever designed and “one of the most charming of his entire career”.
Quelle: County of Marin
