Frank Lloyd Wright believed that the interior furnishings of a home should be visually unified with the surrounding architecture, so it's no wonder that he often created furniture specifically for some of the buildings he designed. Now Design Within Reach has teamed with the late architect's foundation to bring several of those pieces back into production - no Wright house necessary...
We've heard that Wright's furnishings can sometimes be a bit, um, less than comfortable, but that doesn't mean we're not still rather fascinated with their design. You can check them out in person at the Berkeley store and other Design Within Reach studios across the country.
Related Post:
Before & After: Emily Henderson Transforms a Senior's Studio Space
Monica & Austin's Charming Bungalow
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Ercol Bar Stool
How To Cook Fluffy, Tasty Quinoa
True Greek Recipe: Paximadi Bread Salad with Tomatoes, Feta and Capers
Oh, wow.
Not really a fan of Frank Lloyd Wright furniture. Now his LAMPS on the other hand....
http://www.maclinstudio.com/frllwrtamita.html
TI know it may seem like heresy to criticize FLW designs, but the couch leg flare-out really seems quite wrong to me. They make it look like the couch is wearing shoes that are too big, like a clown.
To my eye, there's nothing new or different about these pieces--at least the ones pictured. Because FLW design made such an impact, and there have been so many copies and variations over the years, this collection just looks like all the Craftsman/Mission stuff everyone bought in the '90s.
I prefer the furniture he designed in the FLW room at the Met.
http://photos.igougo.com/images/p351794-Grand_Rapids-Beautiful_window_design_of_Meyer_May_house_designed_by_Frank_Lloyd_Wright.jpg
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_BGqZjmBFxqs/RfIXUGvURCI/AAAAAAAAANs/C81SV1dZs6s/s400/IMG_52791 7-30-2006 2-25-54 PM 2592x1944.jpg
And I totally agree with the comment about the lamps!
What I love about the chairs in the FLW room in the Met are the wide arm rests that act as side tables. So practical. I wish DWR had done those pieces.
I'd have to agree with Jts regarding that leg flare--very odd looking.
"What I love about the chairs in the FLW room in the Met are the wide arm rests that act as side tables. So practical. I wish DWR had done those pieces."
I agree - However the reproductions of those are made by Cassina of Italy. They were used in the FLLW-themed coffee bar aboard Oosterdam - beautiful pieces.
These are US reproductions -
i guess i don't know much about the company DWR, but an $1,800 chair is definitely not within reach for normal people. I LOVE FLW and have several books about him and his work. I'm glad these pieces are in production...but after a brief moment of excitement, I guess I'll go back to looking at them in my books. :)
Can I suggest C. R. MacIntosh's designs, contemporary to FLW's, but with more whimsy to 'em: http://www.sculptart.co.uk/crm.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Rennie_Mackintosh
I respect and admire Mission and FLW works, but something about MacIntosh just works for me. That said, we have more Mission-like than MacIntosh-like detailing in our own home. Hmmm. Hadn't really realized that before.
This just doesn't sit well with me. The whole logic behind his furniture was for it to fit the room it is designed for. Mass producing his work flies in the face of what he was trying to accomplish.
They are beautiful, but it would be a disappointment to FLW.
I wonder how long it will take for them to drop the line?
I think Copeland Furniture in Vermont has the exclusive license to build furniture designed by FLW, most likely that is were these came from.
allisonharris, just what I was thinking when I saw this...
The copyright for the Barrel chair in the bottom pic is owned by Cassina (I Maestri collection).
DWR may carry the chair, but they don't manufacture it - or it would be a major copyright infringement.
And no, the Barrel chair, while gorgeous, is not terribly comfortable... better displayed as a piece of art in its own right, or used as a very occasional chair.
Emmanuelle --
Cassina doesn't own the copywright - The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation does.
The FLLW Foundation licenses the FLLW designs to be manufactured for sale by whomever they deem appropriate - whether it be Cassina or someone else. Note in the description on the DRW site that these are fully-licensed reproductions, Made in the USA.
Obviously DWR doesn't manufacture it - DWR doesn't make manufacture anything they sell...
...but it's not a Cassina reproduction either.
Nikki Moore, I totally agree with you on the DWR issue. I get the brochure and then go to West Elm, or the second hand store because their prices, on even the smallest items are not within reach of the average person at all. I must agree with everyone about the lamps (gorgeous) and just the right scale. The furniture is way to craftsman for me and has an overall masculine feel to it that I am not attracted to.
It's true that the FLW foundation gives the rights to anyone that they please and that is the problem. The quality of Licensed versions is all over the place. As for the people on this blog who think that $ 1,800.00 is a lot to pay for a chair that takes so much time and skill to make like the barrel chair has no business buying quality goods. If West Elm made furniutre to this quality, it would cost just as much. But they don't. They make complete and utter junk. I sometimes go into the Ferrari dealer and then march right across the street where I then buy a Ford Focus... get a clue.
And a USED Ford Focus, at that! Lol!
But, to allison et al, let me get this straight... since the furniture was originally designed to be site-specific, y'all think that's where it should stay? That seems kind of a shame.