Archinect - News

Spiral-shaped David and Gladys Wright House finally sells

2020-08-20T15:23:00-04:00

Even among Frank Lloyd Wright’s scores of iconic properties, this sweeping spiral house still stands out. The Arizona home, which the celebrated architect built for his son David in the 1950s, just sold for $7.25 million. The deal wraps up a two-year effort to sell the estate, which originally listed for $12.95 million in 2018 before a price cut last year brought the tag down to a buck shy of $10 million.

The David and Gladys Wright House saga previously on Archinect.

Watch the video below for a fascinating tour of the Phoenix estate.

Previously on Archinect: David and Gladys Wright House back on the market. Image via davidwrighthouse.org.

David and Gladys Wright House back on the market

2018-09-11T14:17:00-04:00

Phoenix, Arizona–based developer Zach Rawling bought a Frank Lloyd Wright–designed house for $2.3 million in 2012, when its previous owner wanted to demolish the landmark. In 2017, Rawlings donated the David and Gladys Wright House to the Taliesin West School of Architecture, but in June of this year, Rawlings and Aaron Betsky, the architecture school dean, announced in a joint statement that the donation was being revoked due to fundraising concerns.

Image via davidwrighthouse.org.

In their joint statement, Aaron Betsky and Zach Rawling wrote:

The relationship between the School and the House is formally manifested in the David Wright House Collaborative Fund, a supporting organization of the Arizona Community Foundation. The principal focus of the David Wright House Collaborative Fund was to develop a vehicle to raise the $7 million endowment on which the pledge of the House for the benefit of the School was conditioned. Over the past year, we have learned that the fundraising timetables of both parties do not lend themselves to a joint campaign. With the School in its fledgling years, the prevailing thought was that the divergent donor interests would effectively divide its support base rather than enhance it. Uncertainty regarding future capital improvements at the House and the long-term cultural development of the site in Phoenix increased this concern. For this reason, by mutual agreement and out of mutual respect, the Scho...

David and Gladys Wright house pursues landmark status

2015-09-21T17:43:00-04:00

The organization seeking to turn the David and Gladys Wright House in Phoenix into an educational and cultural center filed for historic landmark protection last week, seeking official status for a 6.1-acre site before following through with plans to open it to the public. [...] The designation would provide preservationists with a nice ending to the long saga of this spiral residence, which at one point in 2012 was slated for demolition.

Editor's Picks #295-Happy Holidays!

2012-12-26T01:48:00-05:00

Finally, Orhan Ayyüce posted a quote of John Chase’s Shopping for Architecture LA Forum Newsletter, from December 1989. citizen concluded "My old colleague John certainly knew how to turn a phrase. ..My opinion is that merely expanding the list of things to pick out or specify for a design --while certainly adding important variables-- still is not sufficient to get at the complexity of architecture".

News
Donna Sink spoke for architects and Wright-lovers everywhere when she commented "YAY" in response to the news that the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy has facilitated the purchase of the David and Gladys Wright House in Phoenix, Arizona, through an LLC owned by an anonymous benefactor. The transaction closed on December 20 for an undisclosed price.

The property will be transferred to an Arizona not-for-profit organization responsible for the restoration, maintenance and operation of the David Wright House.

Talks with Kermit Baker the AIA’s chief economist along with architects like Neil Denari and firms like Legat Architects, led Robbie Whelan to write Demand for Architects Builds Momentum-Billings for Design Jobs Rise for Fourth Straight Month, Reflecting Improving Housing Market and Institutional Demand.

The Miami Herald reported that Zaha Hadid Architects will design a tower to be built on a site directly across from Museum Park. The selection of Hadid wa...

David Wright House Saved - Preservation Success

2012-12-20T17:25:00-05:00

The Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy has facilitated the purchase of the David and Gladys Wright House in Phoenix, Arizona, through an LLC owned by an anonymous benefactor. The transaction closed on December 20 for an undisclosed price. The property will be transferred to an Arizona not-for-profit organization responsible for the restoration, maintenance and operation of the David Wright House.

Buyer drops bid to purchase David and Gladys Wright House

2012-11-13T17:23:00-05:00

“While the prospective buyer strongly supports efforts to preserve the David and Gladys Wright house, he has concluded that for personal and business reasons, this is not an opportunity he will pursue at this time. He has every confidence that a preservation minded buyer will be found, and that the house will be preserved," representatives of the prospective buyer told Joffe.

Video tour of the David & Gladys Wright House

2012-11-06T18:22:00-05:00

The David & Gladys Wright house has recently sold and we were able to tour it in June of 2012 - Immediate Community support is needed to ensure the future of this very significant home.

As reported yesterday, a buyer was found to save this Frank Lloyd Wright house. Twitter user @jculpjr just pointed out to us this video walkthrough of the property.

Frank Lloyd Wright's David House: Sold & Saved

2012-11-06T11:36:00-05:00

The current owners have reached an agreement to sell the early 1950s home to a buyer who wants to preserve and restore it, real-estate broker Robert Joffe said Wednesday. The property is being sold for the listing price of nearly $2.4 million to a buyer who wishes to remain anonymous

The cost of living in a "landmark status" Frank Lloyd Wright home

2012-10-26T14:13:00-04:00

Its owners are hoping to sell the house before Nov. 7, when the City Council is scheduled to vote on giving it landmark status, which they oppose. Though they agree that the house ought to be saved — “The property is gorgeous,” Mr. Sells said in its master bedroom one morning — they say they must first safeguard their investment, as well as their livelihood. “If it becomes a landmark,” Mr. Sells said, “we’re out of business.”

Historic Frank Lloyd Wright home escapes demolition

2012-10-08T13:04:00-04:00

The developer says it had been issued a valid demolition permit; the city of Phoenix says whoever issued the permit made a mistake. A deal was signed on Monday between the developer and the city of Phoenix that delays demolition of the home for one month.

Wright Masterwork Is Seen in a New Light: A Fight for Its Life

2012-10-03T11:34:00-04:00

It’s hard to say which is more startling. That a developer in Phoenix could threaten...to knock down a 1952 house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Or that the house has until now slipped under the radar, escaping the attention of most architectural historians...a spiral home for his son David.

Save the David and Gladys Wright House

2012-08-22T16:56:00-04:00

A remarkable Frank Lloyd Wright house in Phoenix is under threat of demolition. Wright designed the house for his son David and it is unique among all his residential designs. Your support is needed to urge the City of Phoenix to approve historic preservation designation for the house thereby extending its temporary protection from demolition.

Via Kevin W. in the Forum