© Mark Hertzberg (2026)
The timing was fortuitous for Wright in the Round when I had an opportunity to photograph Frank Lloyd Wright’s David and Gladys Wright House (1950) in Phoenix a week ago, shortly after posting my photos of Wright’s VC Morris Gift Shop in San Francisco. The Phoenix house was designed for one of Wright’s sons. The visit to the house was part of the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy’s annual conference.
The house was on the cusp of being demolished in 2012. It is still standing only because of a bulldozer operator who fortunately questioned his assignment when he arrived on site. The house was originally sited in a grove of citrus trees. By 2012 the trees were lost to urban sprawl, replaced by large homes. Developers had obtained a demolition permit so they could replace it with “McMansions.” The bulldozer operator called City Hall wondering if he was really supposed to raze this unusual house. Fortunately he talked to people in the historic preservation department, not the department that had let the demolition permit. The mayor then sent police to guard the property and it was saved.
The early afternoon light was less than dramatic, but I had fun looking at the house in the abstract:
The house is now in good hands, thanks to its current stewards. The Building Conservancy presented its prestigious Wright Spirit Award to Bing Hu, Wenchin Shi, Amanda Hu, and Christina Hu at the end of the conference “For protecting the David & Gladys Wright House with a preservation easement.” Amanda Hu accepted the award from Jeffrey Herr. (Come to think of it, the bulldozer operator should have gotten a Wright Spirit Award in 2012 along with the mayor and other officials.)
I end the Wright House photos with a selfie:
The World of Wright almost lost this house. There is now danger of losing Wright’s George D. Sturges House (1939) in Los Angeles to neglect. The Los Angeles Conservancy added it to its list of endangered historic resources because of its deteriorating condition due to prolonged deferred maintenance. The house, in the Brentwood Heights neighborhood, is Wright’s only Usonian design in the city. One of the features of the house is the dramatic cantilevered balcony. The current owners have reportedly spurned efforts to engage in discussions about preservation of the house and there is concern that it may have to be demolished.The house has been designated a Historic-Cultural Monument (HCM). The Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety has issued a notice of code violation. I took these photographs in 2007 and 2010:
I urge you to support the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy which seems to face another demolition or deferred maintenance challenge each time it helps achieve a “save.”
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