~Frank Lloyd Wright
If you could spend 24 hours with any person, whether they are still alive or have passed before us, who would you choose? Several people come to my mind, but there’s one in particular I would love to corral for a day.
I don’t know why I find him so fascinating, but it's probably because he definitely was not the average 2.5 children, dog and station wagon kind of guy. He’s been labeled as radical, eccentric and pretentious. But the man was also a gifted visionary who literally thought outside the box and was not the least bit phased by contradicting the mob. It’s that rebel thing. Unfortunately, he died in April 1959, just months before I made my appearance in this world. I may not have been able to personally lend an ear to his take on life and love and architecture, but the 500+ completed works of Frank Lloyd Wright provide me with insight as to what made him tick.
In my travels over the years I’ve had the pleasure of touring many of his buildings. Taliesin in Spring Green, Wisconsin; the Dana Thomas House in Springfield, Illinois; the Burton Wescott Residence in Springfield, Ohio; his infamous Fallingwater in Bear Run, Pennsylvania; the Gregor S. Affleck and Melvyn Maxwell Smith residences in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan; the Gordon House in Silverton, Oregon; and the Guggenheim Museum in the Big Apple. But I really don’t need to journey any further than my own backyard to experience one of his most well-preserved architectural gems.
I first toured the Meyer May House while conducting research for a community college project in 2000. It’s amazing how quickly an entire decade flies by! Since my niece is fascinated by all things history, I had been telling her about the house for some time. When I asked Faith what she knew of Frank Lloyd Wright, she replied, “He built cool houses.” It was definitely time for me to revisit with a partner in crime in tow.
We arrived at 450 Madison Avenue and first headed to the Visitor Center. Before touring we viewed a short presentation on the history of the May family and the efforts to preserve their amazing residence.
Clothier Meyer May and his wife Sophie contracted with Frank Lloyd Wright to design their home in 1908 for $10,000. It was Wright’s first large commission in Michigan and one of only two residential structures (other than summer homes) from his Prairie style period.
The Mays had two children before Sophie succumbed to influenza in 1917 at the age of 38. Several years later when May remarried, Rae Stern and her two children moved in, and an addition was added to the house to accommodate the newly enlarged family. The Mays divorced in the late 1920s and Meyer May eventually died in 1936. The house remained empty for the next six years before it was purchased and rezoned as multi-family housing. Needless to say, many modifications were made to it over the next 40 years.
After Steelcase acquired the house in 1985, extensive research was done to determine its original design. Bit by bit, Wright’s 1909 vision was revealed. With an unlimited budget—which was exceeded! (the actual figure is top secret, but rumored to be between $4 and $10 million)—the restoration took two years and included demolition of the addition, as well as painstaking attention to hundreds of exterior and interior details. The Meyer May House opened for visitors in 1987.
Our docent, Sue, led us on our tour of what is touted to be the most completely and beautifully restored of all Wright’s Prairie houses. In addition to free admission, one the best parts is that photography—even with a flash—was permitted inside the house.
The two-story, T-shaped construction of pale brick with flat roofs is purposefully different from the architecture typically found in the Heritage Hill. The other homes in the neighborhood are overwhelmingly vertical, but the Meyer May house emphasizes the horizontal line. Its broad overhanging eaves draw the eye outward rather than upward.
Wright purposely sited the house on the property line of the corner lot where it resides to take full advantage of the southern exposure and to create a spacious yard for the perennial gardens. A feature unique to the May house is Wright’s use of copper grillwork which accents the living room windows.
As is typical in Wright’s Prairie design, the May house has a hidden entrance. It enhances privacy by deterring uninvited passers-by. You can’t simply walk up and knock on the front door if you don’t know where it is!
Generous banks of art glass windows and skylights allow sunlight to pour into the living room. They were stunning, but it unfortunately was gloomy and overcast on this February day; photographing them was difficult. Thank goodness for Photoshop!
Interior materials were chosen for their natural beauty and also emphasized the horizontal. Iridescent strips of gold art glass were placed in the grout lines of the central fireplace which anchors the house. Wood was rarely painted, stone was left unpolished, and furniture was built in wherever possible.
Neidecken’s pastel hollyhock mural wraps around a dividing wall between the living room and dining room. Painted over during years of alterations, it was carefully recovered from beneath six layers of paint.
Formal high-backed chairs and a four-postered dining room table with attached light fixtures create a room within a room. To the amusement of her children, Mrs. May put fish bowls under each light!
On the second floor one child’s bedroom opens onto an upper balcony, while another faces the gardens. Wright-designed furniture is supplemented by Arts and Crafts pieces of the same period.
One of the twin beds in the master bedroom is a Wright-designed original; the other is a reproduction. On the north wall is a smaller but similar version of the living room fireplace. An adjoining morning room is used for dressing, reading and relaxing.
The house is just as spectacular as I remembered it being in 2000 and, even better, as it was when the Mays lived there in the early 1900s. After touring, I asked Faith what she had learned about Frank Lloyd Wright. Her reply?
“He built REALLY cool houses! It was like stepping back into time.”
Indeed, the path of the great architect may not have literally crossed with mine, but this house definitely speaks to me. When you’re in the neighborhood, you should also discover what Frank Lloyd Wright had to say.
Meyer May House
450 Madison Avenue, N.E.
Grand Rapids, MichiganOpen to the public year-long
Tuesday and Thursday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Sunday 1 to 5 p.m.
Free admission!
1 comment:
I've never been but has always wanted to. Next time around give me a call and I'll go with you.
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