FALLING WATER-TIMELINE

1935

Edgar Kaufmann commissions Frank Lloyd Wright to design a weekend house for his family near Bear
Run.

1936

After some doubts and heated arguments, construction of Fallingwater began in 1936. Local craftsmen
and labourers were hired, and materials were directly excavated from the Kaufmanns’ land. First
working drawings of Falling Water completed (January). Construction of Fallingwater begins (April);
foundations completed (July); living room cantilever ready to pour (August).

1937

Construction begins on Wright’s design for Edgar Kaufmann’s corner office on the tenth floor of
Kaufmann’s Department Store. A one-room interior executed primarily of cypress wood, the office
included louvered windows and built-in storage cabinets designed on a two-foot-square module. The
focal point was an abstract mural formed of six layers of cypress in a geometric design, based on 60- and
120-degree shapes. Taliesin apprentice Manuel Sandoval constructed the mural and installed the office.

Construction of Falling water ended by the fall of 1937, and the Kaufmann family began using their
weekend retreat to share the home and explore its surroundings with friends—long hikes through the
woods, refreshing plunges under the falls, and reading or dining al fresco. The Kaufmanns move in
(December).

Fallingwater was a masterpiece of Wright’s theories on organic architecture, which sought to integrate
humans, architecture, and nature together so that each one would be improved by the relationship.
Wright believed that architecture must not only sit comfortably within its natural landscape, replicate its
forms, and use its materials, but must also cultivate and reveal the dormant qualities hidden within its
setting. Fallingwater accordingly grows from the site’s rocky landscape. Its concrete terraces float above
the falls, drawing attention to the water while respecting its space. Their horizontal forms and ochre
colour recall and highlight the boulders below. Although the terraces appear to hover, they are in fact
anchored to the house’s central stone chimney using cantilevers. Wright’s houses typically expand from
a central fireplace, which he believed was the focal point of any home. Wright intended the circulation
of the building to have a sense of compression when indoors and of expansion when approaching the
outdoors. Hence the expansive terraces occupy about half of the building, while the interior spaces are
small with low ceilings, creating a sheltered cave amid the rugged landscape. The building draws nature
inside its three floors: natural cliffs protrude from the central fireplace, southern light enters through
expansive corner windows, and the sound of rushing water is always present. Wright’s careful attention
to detail offered such unique features as a hatch on the first floor over stairs leading directly to the
streambed below, customized niches to display the Kaufmanns’ art collection, and built-in furniture to
complement the space.
Fallingwater was designed in two parts: the main house (5,330 sq.ft) and the guest house (1,700 sq.ft). It
is centre around the fireplace, cut into by a rock which brings the waterfall physically inside. The natural
surroundings incorporated throughout the house, such as the living room which includes steps that lead
directly to the water below.

The house includes:

First floor: Open living room, compact kitchen, and simple rooms.

Second floor: Three small bedrooms.

Third floor: Study and bedroom.

Dark and narrow passageways were designed to give a sense of compression that contrast in dramatic
style with the sense of expansion in the larger rooms. Wright designed the ceilings to be relatively low –
only 6'4” in some places, to direct the eye to the outside.

Externally, the chimney is extended upwards to make it the highest point on the house. Long
cantilevered terraces made of reinforced concrete protrude in a series of right angles to add an element
of sculpture as well as a strong horizontal emphasis. Wright allowed nature to determine the building's
elements, including a trellis beam, bent to accommodate a pre-existing tree.

The house uses a large amount of glass, with no exterior wall facing the waterfalls. Instead there is only
a central stone core for the fireplaces and stone columns. Wright used 'corner-turning windows' without
mullions to 'break the box of the house and cause the corners to vanish'.

Despite suggesting that the house's concrete surfaces be coated in gold leaf, Wright only used two
colours throughout the house – a light ochre for the concrete and a Cherokee red for the steel. This
limited colour palette created a unified and organic composition.

1938

It quickly gained fame when Time magazine featured Wright and a drawing of the building on the cover
of its January 17, 1938, issue. Indeed, Wright added a guest house to the site in 1939 to accommodate
the Kaufmanns’ curious visitors.

1939
Such was Fallingwater’s popularity that in 1939 a guest house, connected to the main house by a
cascading concrete canopy, was added to accommodate larger parties. Fallingwater guest house is
completed.

1947

Fallingwater proved that Wright was not an outdated architect ready for retirement but an enduring
visionary ready for the next phase of his career. Some of his most high-profile commissions came after,
including the Guggenheim Museum in New York City. The Kaufmanns continued to reside in Fallingwater
but quickly noticed that the main terrace was beginning to sag, later recognized as the result of Wright’s
refusal to use additional steel despite his contractor’s suggestions. The terrace was repaired decades
later by adding steel cables.

1952

In 1952, shortly after the death of Liliane Kaufmann, Edgar Kaufmann and his son discussed the future of
Fallingwater, agreeing the house and the land surrounding it should eventually become accessible to the
public. Within three years, the elder Kaufmann will also die, passing the duty of preserving Fallingwater
on to Edgar jr. who sought to guide the future of Fallingwater as a public resource. Then living in New
York City, where he was teaching at Columbia University, Edgar jr. became a less frequent visitor to
Fallingwater, in part due to the discontinuation of overnight train service to Bear Run.

1963

In October 29, 1963, during a public dedication ceremony, Edgar Kaufmann jr. entrusted the Western
Pennsylvania Conservancy with preserving Fallingwater and the Bear Run valley surrounding it. The
Kaufmann Conservation on Bear Run not only honored his parents but paved way for it to become a
cultural center open to public visitation. In his remarks, Kaufmann described it thus:

“Designed for this setting, the house was hardly up before its fame circled the Earth; it was recognized
as one of the clearest successes of the American genius, Frank Lloyd Wright…It's beauty remains fresh
like that of the nature into which it fits. It has served well as a home, yet has always been more than
that: a work of art, beyond any measures of excellence. Itself an ever-flowing source of exhilaration, it is
set on the waterfall of Bear Run, spouting nature’s endless energy and grace. House and site together
form the very image of man’s desire to be at one with nature, equal and wedded to nature…”

Fallingwater opened as a museum the following year, with the Kaufmanns’ thoughtfully selected
furniture and curated art collection intact. The conservancy continues to maintain the building and
welcomes about 150,000 visitors per year.

1964

Fallingwater opened for public tours in 1964 and saw 29,792 visitors its first season. Steadily increasing
since, annual visitation now exceed 180,000 with over 5.7 million people touring the Kaufmann’s
weekend retreat, a house designed for a family of three. Ever vigilant, Edgar Kaufmann continued to visit
the house and was instrumental in guiding its transition to a museum and continued serving as an
advisor to the staff until his death in 1989.
1974

The former tenth floor corner office of Edgar Kaufmann, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright , is donated to
the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, where is becomes their first twentieth-century period room.

1976

In 1976, Fallingwater became a National Historic Landmark, the same year as Frank Lloyd Wright’s home
and studio in Oak Park, Illinois, and Taliesin, his home and school in Spring Green, Wisconsin.

1979

Edgar Kaufmann jr. and the Edgar J. Kaufmann Charitable Foundation fund the construction of a visitors
pavilion, designed by Paul Mayen. The pavilion burned and was rebuilt by 1981.

Edgar jr. becomes more involved in Fallingwater operations overall through art commissions. He returns
some objects to the house and removes others.

1985

Lynda Waggoner engaged to consult on collections and give Fallingwater a more lived-in quality.

Edgar jr. publishes "Fallingwater: A Frank Lloyd Wright Country House."

Visitation breaks six figures at 106,200 .

1989

Edgar Kaufmann, jr. dies in New York (July); on the same day, Fallingwater experiences largest flood
since 1956. His ashes are scattered at Fallingwater.

1995

Robert Silman Associates engaged to address deflection of cantilevered terraces.

2000

Paul Mayen dies (November 3), ashes are scattered at Fallingwater.

Fallingwater named a Commonwealth Treasure by Governor Tom Ridge and the Pennsylvania Historical
and Museum Commission.

2001-2010

2002

In 2002, WPC carried out a major structural repair, using tensioned cables to strengthen the sagging
cantilevers and prevent future movement. The restoration cost was estimated to be $11.5 million.

Restoration team led by Robert Silman Associates installs post tensioned high-strength steel cables
beneath the floors and alongside three of the four beams of Falling Water’s main cantilever, as well as
several of the east-west joists. The process works much like a suspension bridge in which the cables are
anchored at either end of the expanse and following a bent path (i.e., rising in the middle), structurally
support the bridge deck.

2003

As a model of sustainability, a state-of-the-art, closed-loop, zero-discharge waste water treatment

facility is installed. The system, designed and installed by CH2MHill, treats waste water that is then
recycled for other uses on the property such as non-potable water and drip irrigation.

Bohlin Cywinski Jackson completed renovations of the former dairy barn purchased by the Kaufmanns in
the 1940s into offices, meeting and event space. The Barn at Fallingwater receives a Silver LEED
certification and wins a number of AIA local and national awards including one of the Top Ten Green
Projects, American Institute of Architects, Committee on the Environment.

2006

Painter Felix de la Concha becomes the second artist-in-residence at Fallingwater. The 18-month
residency resulted in nearly 50 paintings, which capture Fallingwater at various times of day and in all
seasons. From the collection an exhibition entitled “Fallingwater en Perspectiva” was organized and
toured four venues in the United States.
2010

Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) drawings completed by students of the College of
Architecture at Kent State University. These are held at the Library of Congress and available online
through their website.

2011-Present

2011

Fallingwater celebrates its 75th anniversary with publication of “Fallingwater;” an international

symposium, “Private Domains/Public Displays: The Modern House Interpreted,” on presenting the
modern house museum; a gala celebration, which included a light and sound show projected on the
building by Luftwerk; and a concluding exhibition at Concept Gallery of the paintings of Felix de la
Concha.

2013

Construction of 700-foot ADA-accessible pathway completed, connecting parking lot to birds-eye view
of Fallingwater.

2015

In 2015 joined nine Frank Lloyd Wright buildings across the United States in a bid for World Heritage List
inscription by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Cork floor of servants quarter’s bathroom replaced and relaid in patchwork pattern similar to original.

2016

High Meadow residential facility designed by Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, opens to rave reviews and
received AIA Pennsylvania Silver Medal.

Architectural Preservation Studio conducts a laser scan of the exterior of the main house and guest
house.

Fallingwater sees its highest attendance with 181,082 visiting the site.

2017
Architectural Preservation Studio conducts a laser scan of Falling Water’s interiors.

2018

The impact of dramatic freeze-thaw conditions often lead to spalling, or falling away, of Fallingwater’s
concrete exterior. Preservation technicians replace a rolled roof edge in the summer of 2018.

MATERIALS USED

Preserving Fallingwater has been ongoing almost since its completion. From daily maintenance and
housekeeping tasks to larger efforts to protect the house, the care of Frank Lloyd Wright’s masterpiece
is paramount to the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy as it continues the important practice of
monitoring and preserving Fallingwater for future generations. Fallingwater is a composition of varied
materials—stone, concrete, steel, glass, and wood—each imbued with qualities that celebrated what
Wright termed “organic architecture.” Like organic elements in nature, these materials have shown
signs of deterioration over the past eighty years, due in large part to their exposure to a range of climate
conditions, especially humidity and sunlight that have impacted the collections and the severe freeze-
thaw conditions of southwest Pennsylvania and water infiltration that affect the structural materials.
The preservation of Fallingwater is ongoing, and one reason visitors are asked to refrain from touching
objects and furnishings in the house.

Reinforced Concrete

The impact of dramatic freeze-thaw conditions often lead to spalling, or falling away, of Fallingwater’s
concrete exterior. Preservation technicians replace a rolled roof edge in the summer of 2018.

Fallingwater provided Frank Lloyd Wright with an opportunity to utilize a modern material with great
structural capabilities that could be extended into dramatic cantilevered terraces, stepped and curved to
provide a canopy walkway, and smoothly shaped to provide interest to stairs, eaves, and ceilings. Yet,
reinforced concrete also provides the most preservation challenges to the house, and as early as the
1950s portions of the reinforced concrete fabric of the house were being reconstructed. The
composition of the concrete used at Fallingwater for the walls was a mixture of cement, sand, and
rounded river gravel. Within the concrete, steel reinforcements, long rods of different diameters, were
added, laid in a crossed formation or bent to provide additional strength. The rounded tops of parapets
were formed of a cement and sand blend, applied by hand after the wall had cured. This “cold joint,”
where the two applications meet, has resulted in long irregular cracking that also served as an entrance
point for water to seep between the concrete walls and its finish stucco coat.
The same mix of concrete was used for the house’s trellises, long expanses suspended over the drive or
cantilevered over terraces. The east trellis, off of the living room, which collapsed in 1953, 1973, and
1982 due to falling tree limbs, was last rebuilt using post-tensioned thread bars under the direction of
Taliesin Associated Architects. More recently, in 2012, a beam of the drive’s trellis was replaced due to
structural failing, and a section retained for study, should it be necessary in the future.

The replacement of all roofing surfaces in 1987 and 1988 under the direction of LD Astorino and
Associates necessitated the recasting of several curved ends and corners of the concrete eaves. In 1990
a comprehensive analysis of the concrete and stone masonry was conducted by Wank Adams Slavin
Associates in 1990. That same firm submitted a two-volume preservation master plan for Fallingwater in
1999 which included recommendations for the care and treatment of concrete as well as the other
building materials used in the house.

The most invasive preservation action occurred during the years 2001 and 2002 when a structural
strengthening of the living room cantilevers was conducted. From the time of their moving in to 1955,
the Kaufmanns documented the deflection, or downward tilting, of the terraces to be approximately
four inches. In 1994, a University of Virginia graduate student’s thesis research concluded that the
terraces had deflected further, one to almost seven inches from its original position. This sparked a
fuller investigation of the cantilevers by Robert A. Silman Associates, and crack meters and tilt meters
were applied a year later to the terraces to record any changes. Their resulting five-volume structural
analysis report informed much of the restoration that occurred from 1998 to 2002.

The analysis suggested that the concrete and steel of the terraces was overstressed due to errors in the
design of their reinforcement, which meant they could no longer function as designed. The first step
taken in halting the deflection was to install shoring and a steel support beam beneath the living room
terraces. This was followed by the removal of the flagstone floor from the living room and the subfloor
materials in order to expose the concrete beams beneath. A post-tensioning cable system was
employed, where bundles of high strength steel cable were first anchored into the concrete piers
beneath the house and then attached to the sides of three of the four the major reinforced concrete
beams located in the living room and tightened. This provided a support system that stopped the
terraces from deflecting further and was all but invisible once the floor was replaced.

In 2011 cracks appeared in the reinforced concrete piers under the house, and so in 2013 a series of
crack and tilt meters was installed to gauge the deflection, if any, of the terraces. Twelve crack meters
monitored the master bedroom terrace and the concrete piers underneath the house, while four tilt
meters affixed to the east terrace and west terrace of the living room and the master bedroom terrace
monitored any vertical changes. A decade after the post-tensioning system was mounted, the terraces
have only shown movement to approximately 1/100th of an inch. Fallingwater is continued to be
monitored on a semi-annual basis.

Stone Masonry

Preservation efforts inside the guest house pool involved an inspection and eventual replacement of
steel supports for the stone steps leading into the water.

Preservation efforts inside the guest house pool involved an inspection and eventual replacement of
steel supports for the stone steps leading into the water.

Stone is perhaps the most symbolic of the materials used at Fallingwater. Pottsville sandstone was
acquired from a nearby quarry to use in building walls, and laid in a rough, shifting manner to imitate
the natural stone ledges found jutting out along Bear Run. Projecting beyond the line of the mortar as
much as three or four inches, this technique was meant to help unify the house to its site, and the effect
is one of making it appear that Fallingwater is growing out of its landscape. A recently acquired series of
fifty photographs taken in 1936 and 1937 show the assembly of stone and the manpower needed to
erect the walls, and help in understanding the way in which the house rose.

A team of Fallingwater’s preservation maintenance technicians resets large capstones following repairs
to the wall of the plunge pool in 2017.

A team of Fallingwater’s preservation maintenance technicians resets large capstones following repairs
to the wall of the plunge pool in 2017.

From a preservation standpoint, the arrangement of the stone and the deep crevices between each
present opportunities for water to pool or seep into the walls, leading to damage on interior ceiling and
wall surfaces. The ledges of each row of stone have small depressions within which water accumulates,
and permits for the accumulation of snow that, once melted, is drawn into the joints of the walls. The
mortar, too, can be responsible as any gaps between it and the stone will lead to hairline cracks and
separations that with seasonal freezing and thawing often become more problematic over time.

For horizontal surfaces, flagstone was used throughout to provide seamless transitions between the
exterior and interior. These relatively thin stones, averaging around two inches in thickness, were hand
laid and assembled freeform across the floors, terraces, and stairs of the house. They fit snugly against
the boulder of the living room hearth, and when used on the interior are waxed to appear wet like the
stream bottom of Bear Run. When the living room floor was removed in 2001 to install the post-tension
cable system, 557 stones were individually numbered, stored safely, and later reassembled like a giant
jigsaw puzzle.
A thorough cleaning of the exterior stone walls is performed periodically, the most expansive
undertaken between 1989 and 1992 under the direction of Wank Adams Slavin Associates. In 2012, two
sides of the chimney mass were cleaned to remove salt build-up, staining, and biological growth.
Removal of moss on the capstones running along the tops of the roof parapet, a key indicator of water
infiltration, is part of routine preservation maintenance and various areas of the house are repointed as
needed as part of the ongoing care of the masonry.

Glass

Glass is an important element of Fallingwater’s design, acting as a protective barrier between indoors
and outdoors, but also as a framework to the nature beyond. Frank Lloyd Wright specified quarter-inch
thick polished Pittsburgh Plate Glass for the house and it was used in all windows, the full-height doors
leading to the terraces, and in horizontal applications such as skylights and the telescoping hatch doors
leading to the stream below the living room.

It also plays a role in illustrating the engineering properties of the house’s cantilevered design where
glass meets glass to create an “invisible” corner window. Wright uses this technique to show there is no
need for the traditional vertical supports at the corners of his rooms, and the absence of a corner
mullion provides an uninterrupted, if not dramatic, view to the outdoors. From the exterior, especially
when the house is lit at night, the glass seems to disappear entirely and enhancing the effect of
Fallingwater as a “lantern in the forest.”

In 1987, the original window glass was replaced with a laminated ultraviolet light filtering glass that
helps to protect the interiors, furnishings, and artwork from harmful sunlight. In 2010, many windows
began to show signs of delamination, or cloudiness, especially evident around their frames, a main
indicator of the glass’s failure. Fallingwater’s Window Legacy Fund was established soon after to create
an endowment that provides for continued care and replacement of the window and door glass, and
consequently its collections.

Steel

The use of steel at Fallingwater is both invisible and everywhere apparent. Reinforcing bars used within
the concrete provide tensile strength , and are inserted in varying ways into the liquid material as it is
formed. In walls and floors, it is arranged as a woven mesh while in the covered canopy of the stairs to
the guest house, it is laid as a series of concentric arcs. Repairing concrete will also often mean exposing
or working around embedded reinforcing bars, in some cases cutting through them, which can add
difficulty to a preservation project. If exposed, the bars are coated with a noncorrosive agent to keep
them from rusting within the new concrete.
The windows and door frames at Fallingwater are also made of steel, and were specified by Frank Lloyd
Wright to be manufactured by Hope’s Windows of Jamestown, New York. At a time when sashes were
traditionally made of wood, the steel was a relatively new material for Wright, who in the January 1938
issue of Architectural Forum wrote, “Steel sash came within reach…for the first time.” The
manufacturing process, rolling steel into Z or T shapes to ease fabrication, allowed for a variety of
special shapes. Originally painted “Cherokee” red, the name for a variety of earthy red hues preferred by
Wright over his career, the color deepened with subsequent near-matches by other manufacturers, but
returned to Wright’s specification by Edgar Kaufmann, jr. in 1976.

In 2000, the original but somewhat deteriorating steel sash windows and doors were restored, with
many layers of paint removed, corroded portions replaced, and the painted finish reapplied. In 2012, a
second large-scale restoration of the steel sash was conducted on a selection of windows and doors
throughout the house, and this preservation continues to be part of Fallingwater’s annual maintenance
plan.

Specialty Finishes

The use of cork tiles on the floors and walls in Fallingwater’s six bathrooms was at Edgar Kaufmann jr.’s
suggestion, feeling that Frank Lloyd Wright’s specified stone floors would be too cold when leaving the
shower. The natural color of cork, a tree bark product, related well to the palette of materials Wright
specified overall, and had the added acoustic benefit, warmth, and softness underfoot. When used as a
flooring material, the cork tiles were hand waxed, giving them a shiny finish that supplemented their
natural ability to repel water.

As a wallcovering, the cork was left unwaxed, its natural state and color provided visual interest though
it began to show water damage in locations were water leaks persist. . The effects of water damage on
the cork is still evident in the guest bathroom of the main house, yet the bath in the guest house was
restored in 2007 with the concrete wall surface renewed and repainted before new cork was applied.
The variety of bathroom configurations in the house was such that cork covered part or all of the walls
and was sometimes used as flooring within the shower stall.

The largest room without flagstone flooring is the kitchen, where a nine-by-nine inch asbestos tiling
product was specified for ease of maintenance and comfort for the Kaufmanns’ cook. In 1988, after
nearly fifty years of wear, the kitchen flooring was replaced with a solid vinyl product, cut to size and
custom colored to match the “Cherokee” red of the original. A second replacement, in 2013, gave the
floor a fresher appearance and closely resembles the original in size and color.

Paint
Fallingwater’s stucco-covered concrete has always been painted, its original light ochre color specified
by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1937. Despite the architect’s proclamation in the January 1938 issue of
Architectural Forum that the rounded roof edges would keep the concrete walls clean by allowing water
to roll off, the paint finish soiled often. Organic debris from overhanging trees, collecting and degrading
on the concrete surfaces, also produced prime conditions for encouraging fungi along the roof joints.

Peeling paint was also becoming an issue as the house aged, with so many layers applied that the walls
appeared as if the stucco had loosened. Between 1937 and 1959, the house had been repainted at least
six times, using a variety of paint manufacturer products, and in 1978 the house was sandblasted to
remove all of the paint before the concrete was waterproofed and covered with an acrylic-based paint
coating.

The exterior paint continued to fail, particularly on the building’s vertical surfaces. Between 2001 and
2006, Fallingwater evaluated over 120 exterior paint test panels produced by four different
manufacturers in applications on and near the guest house before selecting specially colored ochre
tinted exterior flat paint product developed by PPG Paints. Like any house, the interior and exterior
concrete surfaces of Fallingwater are repainted periodically.

Furniture Conservation

Wood conservation efforts, such as touching up finishes on the black walnut veneer of the guest house
desk, occur each winter.

The nearly 170 built-in and freestanding wood furnishings designed by Frank Lloyd Wright for
Fallingwater share many of the characteristics of the house itself. Fabricated of North Carolina black
walnut, the tables, shelving, desks, and banquette seats feature cantilevered horizontal elements, their
edges and corners rounded to soften the line and suggest the rounds edges of the concrete parapets.
Door fronts and table top veneers contain a light colored band of sapwood within the grain field to give
them movement and variety.

In 1986, conservation of Fallingwater’s wood furnishings was undertaken with funds provided by the
Getty Grant Program and the National Endowment for the Arts, with later support from the
Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. The work entailed cleaning woodwork, making small repairs, and
addressing structural concerns where water damage or deterioration had occurred. During this time, a
large section of the second floor hall cabinets was removed and replicated. The damaged piece, stored
away for reference use by the conservation team, still provides insight into the construction methods
used to realize Wright’s designs.
The uneven quality of previous restoration treatments was corrected and since the completion of that
intensive conservation effort, general woodwork cleaning and repairs to a selection of furniture has
been part of Fallingwater’s annual winter maintenance program. A standardized series of conservation
treatments was established by conservators Thom Gentle and Victoria Jefferies, in many cases
improving upon restoration methods used in the past, and continues under the direction of Sean Fisher
of Robert Mussey Associates. Year-round, Fallingwater’s housekeeping team maintains the general
condition of the wood furniture, with light dusting the only method used to maintain its finish.

The upholstered zabuton floor cushions, banquette seat cushions, and lounge chairs also require
occasional updating. The fabrics are vacuumed regularly, and when reupholstery is necessary, fabric is
used from stock saved in our collections storage for just that purpose. In the spring of 2014, the two off-
white T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings lounge chairs were recovered in a replacement fabric of the same shade,
but not the same texture, of the original. Seat cushions for the dining table and desk were also
recovered at that time, using the red-orange colorway of the same wool fabric.

ost-completion

The total project cost was $155,000 (equivalent of around $2.6 million in 2015). The house was owned
and occupied by the Kaufmann family until 1963, when it was entrusted to the Western Pennsylvania
Conservancy (WPC). In 1966, it was designated a National Historic Landmark.

Its location has meant it requires continual restoration and preservation work which is carried out by
WPC, in particular, cracks open in the concrete as the cantilevers sag

As well as being architecturally influential, Fallingwater has proved culturally influential, providing
inspiration for buildings featured in Alfred Hitchcock's film 'North by Northwest', 'The Bugs Bunny Road
Runner Movie', and the Thunderbirds's Tracy Island base.

PROBLEMS

Fallingwater falling down?

The Kaufmanns loved Wright’s radical proposal to literally suspend the house over the waterfall. But
Edgar Kaufmann Sr., ever the pragmatic business man (who had also studied engineering for a year at
Yale) prudently sent a copy of Wright’s blueprints to his engineer; who found the ground unstable and
did not recommend that he proceed with the house. Wright was not happy with his client’s lack of faith,
but permitted an increase in the number and diameter of the structure's steel reinforcements—
Kaufmann agreed to proceed. Its worth noting that the engineer’s warnings later proved valid, an issue
that “haunted” Wright for the rest of his life.

Wright is famous for pushing the architectural envelope for dramatic effect. We see this is in the vast
cantilevered wooden roof of Robie House in Chicago. In Fallingwater he chose ferro-concrete for his
cantilevers, this use of reinforced concrete for the long suspended balconies was revolutionary. He
boldly extended the balcony of the second floor master bedroom soaring six feet beyond the living room
below.

However, due to the lack of proper support, cracks began appearing in the balcony floors soon after
they were poured. Over the years since, cracks have been repeatedly repaired as the cantilevers
continued to sag. By 2001 some of the 15 foot cantilevers had fallen more than 7 inches. To avoid a
complete collapse, an ingenious system was devised using tensioned cables to correct the problem and
stabilize Wright’s masterwork.

Almost from the day of its completion, Fallingwater was celebrated around the world. The house and its
architect were featured in major publications including the cover of Time Magazine. Over the years its
fame has only increased. According to Franklin Toker, Fallingwater’s most important contribution to
Modern Architecture is surely the "acceptance of Modern architecture itself."

REFERENCES:

https://fallingwater.org/history/about-fallingwater/designing-fallingwater/
https://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/wiki/Fallingwater

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/later-europe-and-americas/modernity-
ap/a/frank-lloyd-wright-fallingwater