Desk

Description

Frank Lloyd Wright considered the Avery Coonley House in Riverside, Illinois, to be one of his most successful projects; he designed everything in the house, including the carpets, table service, and linens, and, according to one anecdote, “even some of Mrs. Coonley’s dresses to harmonize with the interiors.” This desk was made for the home’s rear guest room and reflects the intersecting geometric forms and broad cantilever of its exterior architecture. Wright collaborated on this desk with Milwaukee interior designer George Mann Niedecken, who initially worked for the architect in 1904. Although the feet moldings are more typical of Niedecken’s designs, he likely worked from Wright’s own sketches to complete the desk.

Desk

Frank Lloyd Wright

1908

Accession Number

38857

Medium

Oak

Dimensions

144.9 × 102 × 60.6 cm (57 × 40 1/8 × 23 7/8 in.)

Classification

desk

Museum

The Art Institute of Chicago

Chicago, United States

Credit Line

Purchased with funds provided by the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts