12 Things You Didn`t Know about Frank Lloyd Wright`s Hollyhock

 12 Things You Didn’t Know about Frank Lloyd Wright’s Hollyhock House By: Tristan Bravinder
http://blogs.getty.edu/iris/12-­‐things-­‐you-­‐didnt-­‐know-­‐about-­‐frank-­‐lloyd-­‐wrights-­‐
hollyhock-­‐house/ The Getty Iris Says: Cannibal women, psychic intuition, Rudolf Schindler, and more must-know
facts about the recently restored L.A. landmark
One of Los Angeles’s architectural gems is back! After a six-year extensive
restoration, you can once again tour Frank Lloyd Wright’s first commission in
this city.
Hollyhock House is a gorgeous Mayan Revival style house with 17 rooms and 7
bathrooms. Oil heiress, theater producer, single mother, and social activist Aline
Barnsdall commissioned the house, and it was originally intended to be part of
an avant-garde arts and theater complex known as Olive Hill, now known as
Barnsdall Art Park. Barnsdall tapped Wright for the job when she bought Olive
Hill in 1919. Wright was hired to design multiple buildings, but he only finished
the plans for Hollyhock House before being fired. He wasn’t on the job long
enough to see the house completed in 1921.
This project marked a transitional moment for Wright, as it heralded the end of
his prairie style home period. It also marked a turning point in the history of
modern architecture in Los Angeles; the house’s construction brought three
seminal architects—Wright, Rudolph Schindler, and Richard Neutra—to the city.
All three went on to create iconic buildings throughout Los Angeles, defining
California modernism in the process. It’s one of the many L.A. treasures listed
on HistoricPlacesLA.org, a historic preservation resource from the City of L.A.
and the Getty Conservation Institute.
Here are 12 facts about this newly reopened historic landmark.
1. Hollyhock is Not Someone’s Last Name
Hollyhock flower against the Hollyhock motif. Photo: Lily Spitz
Unlike Wright’s other Los Angeles commissions, “Hollyhock” is not someone’s
last name. Before it was even designed, Barnsdall decided to name the house
after her favorite flower—hollyhock. Wright used the name as inspiration,
implementing an abstract hollyhock motif throughout the house’s façade and
interiors. Actual hollyhock flowers are located in the central courtyard and the
exterior spaces.
2. Project Restore Came to Its Rescue
Hollyhock receiving fresh concrete in September 2013. Photo: Project Restore
Hollyhock House is almost 100 years old, and with age comes much need
conservation work. Due to financial limitations, Wright used hollow clay tile and
plaster instead of poured concrete to build the house. These materials made the
structure susceptible to water and seismic damage. Over the years, the house
has confronted intense leakage problems, sagging concrete beams, distorted
paint color, cracks in the pool, soil settling, and the impact of some pesky trees.
In 2005, a restoration team fixed damage caused by the 1994 Northridge
earthquake, but many other problems remained. Their work lead to a ton of
discoveries about the original 1921 house, as well as previous conservation
efforts in the 1940s, 1950s, 1970s, and early 2000s.
Luckily for the preservation of Wright’s work, Project Restore assembled a team
of experts to spearhead the conservation and restoration of Hollyhock House.
Initial funding was provided by the California Cultural and Historical Endowment
and grants from Save Americas Treasures. Additional support was provided by
the City of Los Angeles and the National Parks Service.
Project Restore was awarded the 2014 California Restoration Award for their
work on Hollyhock House. Full slideshows of the whole conservation process
can be seen on Project Restore’s website.
3. タチアオイハウス
Japanese Kwon Yen sculpture. Photo: Sarah Waldorf
During the construction of Hollyhock House, Wright was also working on the
Japanese Imperial Hotel. The Japanese project became a source of inspiration
for the Los Angeles home. The inclusion of Kwon Yen Buddhist sculpture,
screen paintings, and an open floor plan, which allows visitors to flow from room
to room, are all nods to Japanese art and architectural traditions.
Wright also incorporated the idea of “compression and release” in Hollyhock
House. When you walk through the main entrance, the roof and walls are low
and narrow, leading to an overwhelming sense of release once you move into
the living room with its expansive high ceilings and lowered floors.
4. It Includes Symbols for Earth, Water, Fire, and Air
Frank Lloyd Wright’s concrete sculpture. Photo: jwpictures.com
Another Japanese-inspired idea is the metaphorical inclusion of the four
elements—earth, water, fire and air—in the house. The concrete bas-relief of the
fireplace represents earth, the fireplace itself and the torchiere lamps allude to
fire, the skylight references air, and the entire home is surround by a moat
representing water.
The concrete bas-relief, considered one of Wright’s greatest works of art, is said
by some to be an abstract representation of Barnsdall as an “Indian Princess”
on a hill overlooking the city.
5. Some Furniture Pieces Are Original—And Some Are replicas
Original dining room chairs. Photo: Sarah Waldorf
After a century of use, it is understandable that some of the furniture had to be
replaced. The curator of Hollyhock House, Jeffrey Herr, used old photos to find
or reconstruct exact replicas of objects and furniture in the house. But many of
the pieces are original, including the dining room chairs from 1921. The chairs
feature a hollyhock motif along with what looks to be a human spine—perhaps
an expression of Wright’s macabre sense of humor.
When touring the house, visitors can guess which objects are original and which
are exact replicas.
**Spoiler Alert** Speaking of replicas, one item known to be a copy is the grand
couch located in the living room. At some point during the house’s life, the
original couch mysteriously disappeared.
6. Rudolph Schindler Left His Mark on the House
Hollyhock staffer Lily Spitz demonstrating a Rudolph Schindler camouflaged lock
Due to time restraints, budget decisions, the architect’s preoccupation with
projects in Japan, and tensions with Barnsdall, Wright did not finish construction
of the house. Rudolf Schindler came to Los Angeles to work as project manager
for Hollyhock House under Wright, and he was hired to finish the remainder of
the home after Wright was fired by Barnsdall.
Schindler contributed several architectural features to Hollyhock House,
including the camouflaged locks and Barnsdall’s bedroom. After developing his
own successful body of work in the city, Schindler urged Richard Neutra to
follow. Through the Hollyhock commission, three important architects wound up
in Los Angeles.
7. …And So Did Wright’s Son, Lloyd Wright
Wright’s eldest son, Lloyd Wright, was an architect in his own right, and he also
worked extensively on Hollyhock House. Lloyd was his father’s right hand man
during the early stages of construction when Wright was in Japan and Rudolf
Schindler had yet to be brought on as project manager.
In the 1940s, Lloyd spearheaded a restoration of the house while simultaneously
taking some creative liberties and adding several new design elements such as
cabinets. These cabinets remain today, even though the rest of Hollyhock
House stays true to its original 1921 state.
8. Aline Barnsdall Was Drought Savvy
The house includes an underground plumbing system to allow water to flow
from the central courtyard into an interior moat and then out again to the main
pool outside. Due to its impracticality and wastefulness, Barnsdall discontinued
the water flow to the fireplace moat shortly after its completion. Was Aline a
water conservation pioneer?
9. It’s Had Killer Views from the Beginning
View of the Hollywood Sign (left) and Griffith Observatory (right) from the Hollyhock House
Hollyhock House offers exceptional views of many of the city’s landmarks,
including the Hollywood sign and the Griffith Observatory. However, completion
of Hollyhock House predated both famous sites—the sign went up in 1922 and
the Observatory opened in 1935. Did Wright have a psychic intuition of what lay
ahead?
10. Watch Out for the Piranhas!
Promotional image from Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death
Being in Los Angeles, it was only a matter of time before Hollyhock House was
repurposed as a movie set. In 1989, the building was used as the Piranha
Temple in the cult classic Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death.
Many people often confuse Hollyhock House with a different Wright home, Ennis
House, which is located two miles away. Ennis House has had more screen
time, starring in Blade Runner, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Twin Peaks, Rush
Hour, and House on Haunted Hill.
11. Its Bookshelves Are Historically Accurate
Hollyhock Library. Photo credit: Sarah Waldorf
To be 100% true to the period, the Hollyhock House library contains historically
appropriate books that have been donated by Angelenos. If you have any books
in good condition from the 1920s and 1930s, you can donate them to the house.
For more information, check out Barnsdall.org.
12. The House Once Belonged to a Girl Named Sugartop
Portrait of Sugartop found in the Hollyhock House
Barnsdall was infamously a single mother by choice, for she wanted a child but
not a husband. In 1917 she gave birth to a daughter named Betty, also known
as “Sugartop” because of her white blonde hair. Photographs and paintings of
Sugartop are displayed throughout Hollyhock House. Wright planned with
Sugartop’s needs in mind, particularly in the designs for her bedroom and the
outside areas of the home.
Mayor Eric Garcetti speaking at the grand reopening of the Hollyhock House, February 13, 2015.
Photo: Lily Spitz
Hollyhock House is located at 4800 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA, 90027,
and the house is open from Thursday to Sunday, 11am–3pm. Admission is $7 for
adults and $3 for students and seniors with ID. Additional information can be
found on Barnsdall’s website.
The Getty Iris June 23, 2015