Amy Gregory

Interior Design

Self-Initiated Elective

The Incredible Works of John Lautner.

John Lautner is one of this century's most influential, contemporary, American architects. Practicing architecture for more than 55 years, designing unique and breath-taking houses in and around Los Angeles. Also being responsible for some restaurants.

His works largely concentrated on the relationship of a building in the space surrounding it. Working with the landscape and the views from the building. He creates views that are so staggering, I could only imagine, makes you dizzy. He utilizes water and the surrounding landscapes in his overall designs. Lots of his works contain existing large stone rocks and great old trees as a part of the interior of his designs. He boldly experiments with new industrial processes and materials and considers concrete his most desirable material for his designs. Using concrete, he can create sensuous curves and dramatic straight lines needed for his magnificent spaces.

John Lautner was born in 1911, and raised in Michigan, you can see in his works, that the woods and the deep blue water of Lake Superior were in his soul throughout his designing.

His first taste of building a space was when he helped his father build a chalet-type retreat, which was designed by his mother and looked over the lake from a hillside that was high above it.

His career began at Frank Lloyd Wrights Taliesin in 1933. After graduating with a degree in English from the University of North Michigan, Lautner at 22 became an apprentice to Frank Lloyd Wright for six years.

Frank and Olgivanna Wright had begun the Taliesin Fellowship in September 1932 as an attempt to repair their increasing debt. Frank and his wife decided that offering to allow John Lautner and other students to live with them would be worth an $1100 per year's tuition. John Lautners 'Master' did not like his apprentices to imitate his designs but this was obviously inevitable, he found it difficult to teach individuality to his 30 students. He wanted them to break out into new territory.

John Lautner is one of the few who managed this.

Eventually John Lautner established his own practice in Los Angeles in 1938. His first project was a house for his family in Silver Lake, which was completed in 1940. Lautner took Wright to see his completed house, which showed a diversion of Wrights designs of geometric shapes. There was a casual disregard for neatening up the edges and straight lines. Wrights structured and geometric shapes pointed out his need for control over the landscape, but Lautner rarely expressed this control, so he was able to deal with the space more freely. By breaking free of Wrights controlling design style, Lautner was able to venture out and put his own spin on Wrights organic philosophy.
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John Lautners Buildings are Original.

One of Lautners best-known works is the Malin House, otherwise known as the Chemosphere. Built in 1961 in Los Angeles.

This almost unbuildable site is mastered by a simple solution: a single concrete column, embedded in a wide footing, supports a circular domed house. Steel diagonals support the edge of the eight-sided house. A track brings visitors up the right side of the house; the living room faces the view. This building demonstrates Lautners ability to solve architectural problems in unconventional ways.

In the living room area, wood laminated ...

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