Fallingwater

Stewart Township, United States

Open to visitors

The interior is normally open, possibly ticketed.

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Fallingwater, a modernist masterpiece in Stewart Township in Pennsylvania's Laurel Highlands, is Frank Lloyd Wright's iconic 1936 weekend residence for Edgar J. Kaufmann Sr., owner of Pittsburgh's Kaufmann's Department Store. Constructed of locally quarried stone, reinforced concrete, steel, and plate glass, the three-story house is famously built partly over a waterfall on Bear Run stream. Its defining feature is a series of cantilevered terraces that extend outward from a central chimney without visible support—a bold expression of Wright's organic architecture philosophy. The residence suffered significant structural problems during and after construction, including cracked concrete and sagging terraces, which were only fully remedied through extensive renovations in the late 1990s and early 2000s. A guest wing was added in 1939. Wright also designed much of the built-in furniture throughout the house, which is filled with artworks and decorative objects. Operated as a museum by the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy since 1963 and recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Fallingwater has become one of the world's most celebrated examples of modern architecture.

Architect

Frank Lloyd Wright

Movement

modern architecture organic architecture

Built: 1936
Type: single-family detached home, historic house museum
Materials: steel reinforced concrete
Heritage: part of UNESCO World Heritage Site, National Register of Historic Places listed place
Place: Stewart Township, United States

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Location

39.90639, -79.46806