When one looks at Nature through the glass walls of the Farnsworth House, it takes on
a deeper significance than when one stands outside.
Hi everyone, ken here, welcome to "ThisHouse"!! These words were spoken by Mies Van der Rohe
about his modernist masterpiece, the Farnsworth House.
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In the early 20th century, technology and industry were rapidly transforming society,
ushering in the age of Modernism, which aimed to address the transformation of Western Society
through both philosophy and art.
One of the earliest adapters of this movement was German-American architect Ludwig Mies
Van der Rohe.
As he observed cities losing their individual character and subsequent need for craftsmanship
from the flooding of mass produced items and housing, he responded with design practices
which would facilitate a new approach to beauty.
For the first time in the world’s history, technology was filling homes with radios,
televisions, and modern appliances- items which traditional architecture had never before
addressed.
Many of these items, while desired for their function, were not viewed as beautiful as
the traditional home had no pre-designated place for them.
Instead of rejecting this new lifestyle, he openly accepted change as an inevitable step
into what we now know as modern living.
Perhaps the best example of his approach into the highly speculative, but unknown territory
of design can be found in his build, the Farnsworth House.
In the late 1940s, Edith Farnsworth, a wealthy patron of the arts, commissioned Mies to design
for her a modern week end get away along Illinois’ Fox River.
After years of submitting drawings and studying the land, Edith and Mies agreed on a final
proposal- A 1,500 square foot glass box interrupted only by a central core to conceal all pre
designated functions of the house.
The home would be located in the flood plains, about 5 feet above the 100 year flood mark
to allow for once in a generation experiences of water arriving just below the cantilevered
terrace.
Furthermore, all structural support for the buildings would be found along the exterior,
creating a skeletal support system of steel beams painted pure white.
The result offered flexible spaces, only implying which functions should play out in each area
of the house, but lending no solid definition for said functions, allowing the house to
evolve with the introduction of new and unknown future technology.
The central core of the house was placed off center, allowing for various sets of proportions
to be used for each implied space and offering a separation between the sleeping area and
public areas of the house, such as the office, living, and dining areas by means of a single
wardrobe acting as a partition.
The main core appeared as a single wood block, housing the kitchen cabinets and appliances
out of sight from the living area.
Nestled in the same core, you could find the bathroom hidden away.
And if you turned the corner, to the face opposite the kitchen, you would find a fireplace
resting below built in cabinets designed to conceal anything from a radio to a television.
Even though the house offered only one room by technical definitions, the separation of
spaces created by the core lead to more intimate areas such as what could be colloquially referred
to as the bedroom which offered full privacy for Edith from the public spaces found throughout.
If living in the implied, without planar elements for separation, proved to be too ambiguous,
cleverly planned curtains could be drawn to further divide space to offer a less permanent,
but more private boundary.
When it was finished, the Farnsworth House received mixed criticism.
On one hand, some people claimed that the outright rejection of tradition undermined
American values.
While on the other hand, more people praised it for being a reflection of the current times
in offering adaptive coexistence with a more technological lifestyle.
One person who did not like it was Edith Farnsworth herself who refused to pay for the house.
She sued Mies, claiming that she never approved of the plans and that he had basically conned
her out of money.
The courts rejected these claims as there were years worth of documentation proving
that she had approved every step of the design process.
She continued to use the house for week end getaways, even hosting parties to showcase
the genius of Mies Van der Rohe.
And perhaps she got her just deserts, because in 1954, just 3 years after the house had
been completed, a once in a hundred year flood occurred, filling the house with 2 feet of
water, destroying many of her personal items.
Then, in 1968, the state of Illinois, through eminent domain, seized a portion of the property
to build a highway.
Edith sued to divert the construction, but ended up losing the case.
She retired to her historic villa in Italy and sold the Farnsworth House to Peter Palumbo,
an international collector of fine art and architecture who restored the house and filled
it with a portion of his art collection.
Then, in 2003, he placed the house up for sale, prompting preservationists to ban together
for a fundraiser, offering support to the National Trust for Historic Preservation to
purchase the home for public use.
Today, Mies’ modernist Masterpiece, officially named the Edith Farnsworth House, is open
to the public for tours.
If you have ever visited, I would love to read about your experience down below in the
comments section.
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