Frank Lloyd Wright's Graycliff: Architecture as Sacred Space
About This Book
Frank Lloyd Wright's Graycliff: Architecture as Sacred Space was published in 2017 by Edwin Mellen Press as a second edition, updated and revised from its original form. The book was timed to coincide with the 150th anniversary of Frank Lloyd Wright's birth.
The work grew directly from Dr. Lubienecki's master's thesis at Buffalo State College. It explores the spiritual dimensions embedded in Wright's design for the Graycliff estate in Derby, New York, on the south shore of Lake Erie. Where many architectural histories of Wright treat spirituality as a secondary concern, this study centers it. The argument is that the Graycliff commission was, for Wright, an occasion to think through his ideas about nature, space, and transcendence in built form.
A second major thread in the book is the story of preservation. Graycliff fell into disrepair after decades of institutional use and came close to being lost. Dr. Lubienecki traces how the Piarist Fathers and a dedicated corps of docents and volunteers rescued the estate and restored it to its original character. This history is also told in his New York History Review essay, How the Piarists and the Docent Saved Frank Lloyd Wright's Graycliff.
Publication Details
Publisher: Edwin Mellen Press, Lewiston, NY Year: 2017 (2nd edition, updated and revised) ISBN: 978-1-4955-0599-7 Author: Paul Lubienecki, Ph.D.
About Graycliff
Graycliff is a Frank Lloyd Wright-designed complex in Derby, New York, overlooking Lake Erie. It was designed in 1926 for Isabelle R. Martin, the wife of Darwin D. Martin, who was one of Wright's most important early patrons. The estate is recognized as one of Wright's Prairie Period masterworks and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Piarist Fathers acquired the property in the late twentieth century and, working with preservation specialists and community volunteers, undertook a long restoration. The site is now open to the public and operates as an educational and cultural landmark.