Kraus House

Kirkwood, United States

Exterior only

Visible from the street; the inside is private.

Opening hours: "by appointment"
Phone: +1 314 822 8359

From OpenStreetMap — confirm before travelling

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Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright for glass artist Russell Kraus, this brick and cypress house in Kirkwood, Missouri exemplifies Wright's radical modernism through its rejection of the right angle—the entire structure sits on a parallelogram blueprint, with custom angles extending even to the bedroom and bathroom fixtures. Conceived in 1950 and constructed over the following decade (never formally completed), the house presented such geometric challenges that most contractors refused the work until a former Seabee named Lee Patterson undertook the difficult build, requiring specially made bricks to realize Wright's angled vision. Set on 10.5 acres in Ebsworth Park at the western edge of Kirkwood, the residence includes a carport, attached shed, and a dedicated workroom, and was home to the Krauses for roughly four decades. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997, the house is now maintained by St. Louis County Parks and Recreation and remains open to the public by appointment.