In all honesty, FLW’s defining accomplishment was worth the two days of driving. The cantilevered house appeared cleaved from the same majestic rock and powerful falls that had originally drawn the Kaufmann family to these Pennsylvania hills, and to the architect who was a master at melding form and function, shelter and surroundings.
I think even I could be convinced to give up travel given his magnificent window on the ever-changing world of this wooded wonder.
Alas, my room with a view is still just a dream; which is why just last week Jimmy and I, along with Jim’s son Steve, found ourselves in pursuit of yet another FLW masterpiece, this one just an hour’s drive from Reno in California’s Sierra Nevada mountains.
After a yummy breakfast just steps from Steve’s midtown fixer-upper (remember, Steve had no kitchen in which to replicate these decadent crepes),
That tribute was originally destined to be a clubhouse in Madison, Wisconsin over three-quarters of a century ago, but that's another story. Suffice it to say, California natives Dariel and Peggy Garner fell in love with FLW's Nakoma plans, dusted them off, and proceeded with their retirement dreams in 1994 on a 1,280-acre parcel of land that they turned into a residential community called Gold Mountain, complete with a resort, spa, clubhouse and an 18-hole golf course called "The Dragon".
I decided to wander the premises, my curiosity at the moment greater than my appetite. FLW’s signature design elements were everywhere.
Food, on the other hand, was becoming something I could sink my teeth into. The rest of the family had arrived (Rachel, Jim’s daughter, and her husband Brian had come up from Lake Tahoe to join us after a long weekend with friends over the 4th); our table was waiting.
I made Jim promise, if we’re going to do Frank Lloyd Wright, let’s really do it RIGHT!