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Footnote to the Three Bedroom Cottage, 1982 |
Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians -
December 1982
Hildebrand, Grant; Bosworth, Thomas
"The Last Cottage of Wright’s Como Orchards Complex."
Pp 325-327
Until the early 90s very little had
been written, documented or photographed that
pertains to the Como Orchard Summer Colony. With that
said, there is a very important article documenting the
condition of the Three Bedroom Cottage in 1982 written by
Grant Hildebrand and Thomas Boswoth. "The Last Cottage of
Wright's Como Orchard Complex" published in the
Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians,
December 1982,
Pp 325-327. Because of its "bad condition" the owners
scheduled it for demolition.
They contacted "the
University of Washington to discuss either moving the
building or recording it." Because of the |
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condition, size, difficulties of transport and later changes
to the cottage, the decision was made to "record the
building in its hypothetical original state."
They document
many changes. A small porch was added to the Northwest
corner after completion (now enclosed). An interior wall in
the west wing dividing the Entry Hall from the Storage was
removed. Changes
were still visible on the the walls and ceiling surfaces, as
well as the back of the fireplace.
"All these issues in
the end are minor. The interest of the building lies
in its overall character, and this is not in doubt...
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this modest summer
cottage is that it may well represent the first tentative
step toward the modular planning that will be so important
in his textile block design of the twenties and the whole
series of modularly-planned buildings of his late career."
Also included in the
article is a floor plan, four elevations (north, south,
east, west) drawn by the authors, and one small photograph
by Victor Gardaya. |
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Since very few photographs are
available documenting the Como Orchard Summer Colony, I
contacted Grant Hildebrand and Thomas Boswoth at the
University of Washington. Grant suggested contacting
the Visual Resources Collection, College of Built
Environments at the University of Washington. There
response: After
looking through our slides of works by Frank Lloyd Wright
and a special collection of slides shot by Grant Hildebrand,
I am |
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unable to find any images of
the Wright cottage in Darby. This led me to think that a source for
additional images would be the photographer himself, Victor
Gardaya.
Unfortunately, Mr. Gardaya has passed away
and I do not know where you might proceed from here in
contacting the current owner of his work for other views of
the cottage in its original site.
I'm sorry I wasn't able to track down the
photographs that you are looking for but I hope this gives
you a direction for your search.
Best, Josh Polansky |
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I then contacted Grant again for
further direction. He responded:
If Josh has been unable to
locate the images, I'm afraid they're unlocatable. My own
memories of them are vague at best, and with Victor's death
that route, of course, is closed.
When we set out to inventory the site in 1981 we hoped that
the remaining cottage would be one of the more graceful
ones, meriting restoration, and that its condition might
make that possible. Since it met neither criterion, we
decided that the |
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appropriate action was to record it in its
then-present state. Your photos show a later renovation to
livable condition, but they show too a cottage even more
distanced from any Wrightian ambience, of which, even in its
original state, it was not a strong example; you properly
note that the more elegant features of the cottages were
omitted to cut costs. Whether further documentation would be
useful is a judgement call; my own view is that with your
research and your essay now completed, perhaps all has been
said that merits saying. Grant H. |
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Photograph by Victor Gardaya, 1982 |
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Photograph by Victor
Gardaya, 1982. Viewed from the South. The West wing on
the left was converted to a Dining area and Kitchen. The
South wing in the center includes two bedrooms. The small
exterior Porch, Stairs and half wall to the right is
original but sagging dramatically. The East wing Porch on
the right is now enclosed. An original window under the
porch is visible as-well-as the original board and batten
siding. |
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Photograph by Douglas M.
Steiner, 2009. When comparing this 2009 image to
Gardaya's 1982 image, cosmetic changes have been made over
the past 27 years and are visible on the exterior. The
original board and batten siding has been replaced with
vertical exterior paneling.
The original window that existed under the porch was covered
over with the new paneling. The small exterior Porch, Stairs and half wall to the right
was replaced with exposed stairs. |
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Detail of the 1982 left
side. The West wing on the left was converted to a
Dining area and Kitchen. The South wing on the right
includes two bedrooms. |
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2009: The Fireplace and Chimney
was constructed of stone. The original chimney was increased
in height before 1982. |
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Detail of the 1982 left
side. The
South wing on the left includes two bedrooms. The small
exterior Porch, Stairs and half wall to the right is
original but sagging dramatically. The East wing Porch on
the right is now enclosed. An original window under the
porch is visible as-well-as the original board and batten
siding. |
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