Photos © Mark Hertzberg (2025)

One of the entry way hallway windows is reflected in the two story living room windows that overlook Lake Michigan.

One of the aspects of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Thomas P. Hardy House that continually fascinates me is the shadow play from the seven windows in the entry hallway. I had the opportunity to have fun with the reflections and shadow play again when I met at the house with Sam Lubell yesterday. Lubell and photographer Andrew Pielage are working on a book about 50 Wright homes for Rizzoli (more about that in a future post).

As Robert McCarter has pointed out, the floor plan of the house is delineated in white in the windows: the square in the middle represents the public areas, the two story living room and the dining room one floor below. When I lead tours of the house I remind the guests that the only computer Wright had when he came up with such designs was the one between his ears.

The rectangle that bisects the square represents the bedrooms at either end of the two main floors. We now add to the drama of the seven Wright-designed windows the leaded glass inserts in the two sliding entry doors (one north, one south). They replicate the design of Wright’s living room windows, which were taken out by the second stewards of the house (1938 – 1947) because they leaked. They were replaced by clear windows.

These quick happy snaps were taken with my phone camera…elapsed time, except for the top photo, seven minutes. Every time I turned I saw another photo. Thank you Gene and Tom and Joan Szymczak, for rehabilitating the house for us to enjoy!

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