This book was originally published a few years ago -- a coffee table book -- but it's now available in this smaller format hardcover version, and anyone interested in landscapes or architecture wouldn't want to be without it.
The Gardens of Frank Lloyd Wright
As the late landsape architect James van Sweden says in the foreword, "Confident and unafraid to obscure his architectural designs with trees or to create bold splashes of color with plants, he created layers of beauty that resulted in a seamless exchange between inside and outside."
Beautiful color photos illustrate Wright's ideas. At Taliesin, he wanted a great view from the living room windows, so he dammed a stream to create a pair of lakes and planted huge bur oaks and white pines. He designed planters, statuary, and stained glass windows to complement his gardens, and many of them drew their inspiration from nature.
The book includes a number of his landscape "plans," and they are a testament to simplicity.
Aside from Oak Park, Taliesin, Taliesin West and Fallingwater, the book includes a discussion of four other Wright properties: Kentuck Knob in Pennsylvania (one of my very favorites); Monona Terrace in Wisconsin, The Robie House in Chicago and the Walker House in California.
There's also a section on Wright's favorite plants, and some of his landscape design tips. They sound very simple, yet they're worth repeating, such as "Take as much interest in the house surroundings as you do the house interior," and "Expose the house foundation to show where it meets the ground."
You'll want to take this book along with you whenever you visit a Wright property -- it's a great reference and will remind you that although he's celebrated as an architect first and foremost, his landscapes were just as important.
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