Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

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As the 2017 International Furnishings and Design Association Educational Foundation's (IFDA EF) recipient of the Valerie Moran Grant, I was funded to visit a number of historic, 20th century properties, to experience great exterior and interior design first hand, and in turn, pass along what I learned to my clients' projects. 

In October of 2017, I visited two iconic Frank Lloyd Wright (FLW) homes in greater Buffalo, New York.  The Martin House Complex, designed from 1901 to 1909, was commissioned by Darwin and Isabelle Martin.  My blog entry about the Martin House Complex can be found here.  The second home I visited, Graycliff, is just outside of Buffalo on Lake Erie, and was also commissioned by the Martins, as their summer house, twenty years after The Martin House Complex property.  Plans were completed in 1926.  The Martins started using the property in 1928.  When I visited the property, in 2017, the interior was starting to undergo significant preservation work.  That work has been completed and I look forward to going back!!  For more details on visiting the property, go to the Graycliff Conservancy.

Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959) was an architect, writer, designer and more.  One of the best known architects of the 20th century, who designed, according to Wikipedia, over 1000 structures.  Much has been written about him, so I won't go into his biography here, but if you are interested in reading more about his life, go to The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation.  

Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Approaching Graycliff - KDZ Designs Photos.

According to Frank Lloyd Wright's Buffalo Venture's author, Jack Quinan:

"The house is a product of circumstances that differed significantly from those surrounding the Martin House Complex built twenty years earlier.  During the latter half of the 1920s Wright was embattled - two marriages and a divorce in four years, two significant house fires, flight from the law, a brief jailing...."  Wright was nearly destitute according to Quinan, and Darwin Martin wanted to provide work for him. The house was completed during Wright's post-Prairie style period and prior to his regaining his career in the mid 1930s.

Darwin Martin had retired in 1925 and his wife, Isabelle, wanted to take charge of building a summer home where their entire family could gather.  Isabelle first contacted Wright in March of 1926 - a local contractor began building the house in the fall of 1926, with the completion of the house in early 1928.  

The house was built with three original components;  the main house, the heat house and the garage with an apartment over it.  As you can see in the photos, the house is built with low-pitched hip-roofs.  Darwin Martin died in 1935 and Isabelle, who summered at Graycliff until 1943, died in 1945. The house, after being vacant, was sold to an order of Roman Catholic priests (the Piarist Fathers), who established a boarding school on the grounds and added other buildings to the site.  In the late 1990s, the Graycliff Conservancy was formed and it purchased the entire site.  Much preservation work has been needed to bring the house back to its original condition.  (Details from The "Frank Lloyd Wright Quarterly, Spring 2015.)

 

 

Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Main House Plans - Frank Lloyd Wright's Buffalo Venture, page 147

Graycliff doesn't have the grandeur of the Darwin Martin House - according to the Frank Lloyd Wright Quarterly, Spring 2015 edition, as a summer home, the Martins wanted Wright's eye for detail, but at the same time they wanted a clean, unfussy aesthetic and to be able to relax, away from the city.  

The photos below show both exterior and interior details;  much of the interior preservation work had not been done when I visited, so my photos are not comprehensive, but even undergoing renovation, etc., what a great property!!  And thanks to the Buffalo News and their photos showing the completed interior preservation work, in 2019.

The simplicity of line, along with the simplicity and repetition of design elements (door knobs, light fixtures, etc.), as well as the bringing of the outside in, are all hallmarks of Frank Lloyd Wright's designs, and also certainly speak to Mission and Arts and Crafts design styles.  With the repetition of design elements, including, for example, the windows that flank the living room on the first floor, and line the gallery on the second floor, FLW creates a rhythm to the home.   And provides a relaxed atmosphere....

In addition, the sight lines that FLW provides, whether in the interior, the view along the gallery, or the views outside the living room and dining room, create an expansiveness.  There are intimate spaces as well, including the library off the living room (which I don't show), and the bedrooms;  most of us like both types of spaces, depending on time of day, how we feel on any given day, etc.  The materials used on the outside of the house also move into the inside, for example,  the stones (on the floor and the fireplaces) and provide a strong connection from outside to inside.   

 

 

Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

View of the Front of the House with the Garage to the Right - KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Detail of the exterior stone work on the front of the house, next to the entrance, with a view of the lake to the left - KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Detail of the exterior stone work on the front of the house, outside the kitchen area, on the far right of the entrance - KDZ Designs Photo
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

View from the garage apartment looking at the front of the house - KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Going inside - the front entry in 2017, facing the stairs to the second floor; KDZ Designs Photo
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Going inside - door knobs. escutcheons and locks used throughout the house... KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

More details...hinges used throughout the house...as always, the details make the space! KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Walking into the living room, there are long windows/doors that open to the front terrace that run along the length of the house, from the entrance toward the kitchen, with access to the living room and dining area. The same style windows are on the opposite side of the living room, facing the lake. This photo and the next are from 2017, during the preservation work. KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

A detail of the living room's hearth and fireplace before preservation work was complete; KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

The living room, showing the windows, seating area and fireplace, facing more toward the front of the home, after the completion of the preservation work. https://buffalonews.com/multimedia/graycliff-estate-returned-to-its-original-luster/collection_e0741fb2-cae4-5b11-8042-20657e02298f.html#54
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

The living room, showing the windows, seating area and fireplace, facing toward the lake (rear of the house), after the completion of the preservation work. https://buffalonews.com/multimedia/graycliff-estate-returned-to-its-original-luster/collection_e0741fb2-cae4-5b11-8042-20657e02298f.html#54
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

The dining area; looking back toward the living room; KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

The dining area; looking toward the lake; KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Still on the first floor, several exterior photos of the rear of the house, as it faces the lake. KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Still on the first floor, several exterior photos of the rear of the house, as it faces the lake; windows open from the living room. KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Still on the first floor, several exterior photos of the rear of the house, as it faces the lake, windows open from the living room. KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

The stairs to the second floor, from the front entry... KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

The stairs to the second floor, from the front entry... KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

On the upstairs landing, looking back at the bannister and stairs; KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

The window, looking out from the upstairs landing, above the front entry. KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

The upstairs gallery, that spans the width of the bedrooms, turning left after going up the stairs from the entry. KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

The upstairs gallery, that spans the width of the bedrooms, looking back toward the front entry. KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Isabelle Martin's Bedroom after the renovation. All the family bedrooms had windows facing the lake. https://buffalonews.com/multimedia/graycliff-estate-returned-to-its-original-luster/collection_e0741fb2-cae4-5b11-8042-20657e02298f.html#54
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Pre-renovation photo of the hearth in Isabelle Martin's bedroom. KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Isabelle Martin's Bedroom after the renovation. https://buffalonews.com/multimedia/graycliff-estate-returned-to-its-original-luster/collection_e0741fb2-cae4-5b11-8042-20657e02298f.html#54
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Darwin Martin's Bedroom after the renovation. https://buffalonews.com/multimedia/graycliff-estate-returned-to-its-original-luster/collection_e0741fb2-cae4-5b11-8042-20657e02298f.html#54
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

One of the upstairs baths, pre-renovation. KDZ Designs Photos.
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

Upstairs baths after renovation, with the original tile. https://buffalonews.com/multimedia/graycliff-estate-returned-to-its-original-luster/collection_e0741fb2-cae4-5b11-8042-20657e02298f.html#54
Graycliff – A Quick Tour Through Frank Lloyd Wright’s Summer House for the Martin Family

Graycliff

View from one of the bedroom windows of the lake. KDZ Designs Photos.

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