Brand=Building. Frank Lloyd Wright and American Business

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1 Brand=Building Frank Lloyd Wright and American Business STUART GRAFF PRESIDENT AND CEO FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT FOUNDATION

2 From Branding to Architecture Intellectual property and marketing attorney Branding Innovation Corporate counsel Defining/Supporting innovation, branding, and competitive strategies Protecting innovation and differentiation Global business leader Building business on the basis of strongly differentiated brands Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation CEO Crowded FLW space Brand licensing program 2

3 Frank Lloyd Wright s American Journey June 8, 1867 April 9,

4 An American Journey 1867: Born Richland Center, Wisconsin God-Almightly Lloyd-Joneses Unglaciated Driftless landscape Froebel and nature 4

5 Study Nature, love Nature, stay close to Nature. It will never fail you. 5

6 An American Journey 1886: Less than one year of engineering studies at University of Wisconsin Hon. D.F.A

An American Journey 1888-93: Studio of Louis Sullivan, Chicago

Columbian Exhibition Japanese Pavilion and Asian Art Daniel

in Rome, partnership An American Architecture rooted in

7 An American Journey : Studio of Louis Sullivan, Chicago Pioneer of Modern Architecture Form Follows Function World s Columbian Exhibition Japanese Pavilion and Asian Art Daniel Burnham s offer: Ecole des Beaux-Arts and the American Academy in Rome, partnership An American Architecture rooted in democratic values and American Transcendentalism: Whitman, Emerson, Thoreau 7

8 An American Journey : Wright opens own Studio Hires Marion Mahony, one of the first licensed women architects In America The Prairie School Years National Reputation Form and function are one The space within 8

9 An American Journey 1909: Scandal: leaves wife and children, takes mistress to Europe; Wasmuth portfolio published : Begins building Taliesin, the shining brow, an autobiography in wood and stone 1914: Murders, Fire end of the Prairie designs 9

10 An American Journey : Experimentation and Adventure 10

11 An American Journey 1930 s: Olgivanna Wright establishes an apprenticeship program at Taliesin in Wisconsin 11

12 An American Journey : Taliesin West pure geometry A Creative Outburst Florida Southern College Price Tower Marin County Civic Center Kalita Humphreys Theatre The Guggenheim Usonian Automatic 12

Structural innovation 36 states, 3 countries, global influence 1100 structures designed,

13 America s Greatest Architect 70+ year career of bold experimentation Pioneering use of open floor plans; new materials; new lighting, heating, cooling, and other mechanical systems Structural innovation 36 states, 3 countries, global influence 1100 structures designed, over 500 built, 440 remain, 73 open to the public today Inspired by Nature and American values 13

14 Branding Frank Lloyd Wright 14

15 The Branded Man I thought if I could to lead an unconventional life Created a uniquely American architecture, democratic in values, incorporative by design Always seeking excellence, quality, beauty the ordinary would never do Unbound by history, yet deeply rooted in it Limitless innovation Connected to nature, but also to the world and people around him 15

16 A Differentiated Architecture Breaking the Box Inside and outside flowed together Designed to the human scale ORGANIC ARCHITECTURE 16

17 Creating a Brand 17

18 Creating a Brand 18

19 Creating a Brand 19

20 Creating a Brand 20

21 Creating a Brand 21

22 Creating a Brand 22

23 Creating a Brand 23

24 Creating a Brand 24

25 American System-Built Houses (1915) I would rather solve the small house problem than build anything else I can think of Standardized prefabricated houses Over 960 drawings for the project 30 unit variations 25

26 Expanding the Brand 26

27 Personifying the Brand Organic American Architecture Style Manner of speaking and writing Quotable Honest Arrogance Individualist 27

28 Extending the Brand: Licensing Wright Furniture, fabrics, paint, wallpaper, rugs, china, crystal, silver 28

Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation VISION: Inspire the world through beautiful spaces that are thoughtfully designed and experienced MISSION: Preserving Taliesin and Taliesin West for future generations,

29 Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation VISION: Inspire the world through beautiful spaces that are thoughtfully designed and experienced MISSION: Preserving Taliesin and Taliesin West for future generations, and inspiring society through an understanding and experience of Frank Lloyd Wright s ideas, architecture, and design PROGRAMS: Public Access: Tours, Art Exhibitions, Performances, Lectures, Farm Education: The School of Architecture at Taliesin (M. Arch.); K12 and Adult Education programs Preservation: Leadership in the field of values-based preservation to enable visitors to experience Wright s legacy themselves Innovation: Test new materials, structures, techniques in architecture, construction, and design 29

30 From Building Wright s Brand to Building Buildings for Brands 30

Understanding Business/Businessmen American men of business

Harley Bradley Bradley Plow Works Darwin D.

Ward Willits Adams and Westlake Foundry William C.

31 Understanding Business/Businessmen American men of business with unspoiled instincts and ideals B. Harley Bradley Bradley Plow Works Darwin D. Martin Larkin Soap Co. Ward Willits Adams and Westlake Foundry William C. Winslow Winslow Ironworks Edgar Kaufman Kaufman s Department Stores Avery Coonley Finance and Seeds Herbert F. Johnson SC Johnson Wax Harold Price Oil Industry 31

32 The Larkin Building Buffalo, NY 1903 Color renderings by David Romero from b/w photography 32

Secretaries Sophisticated premiums The Larkin Idea magazine Larkin

33 Larkin Branding Larkin Soap Company: marketing innovation Not just soap household staples Diverse catalog Direct selling model Larkin Secretaries Sophisticated premiums The Larkin Idea magazine Larkin Parties By the 1920 s, a stylish home would claim the Larkin Look 33

34 I wish to unite the interests of employer and employee, making all work more pleasant and better paid. John D. Larkin 34

35 From the Larkin Idea to the Larkin Building Communicating values and global ambitions to both employees and the community at large HONEST LABOR NEEDS NO MASTER SIMPLE JUSTICE NEEDS NO SLAVES 35

36 Exterior: Seal off filth, noise, smoke 36

with quality, hygiene, and democratic value Leadership and design combined

37 Interior: transparency, space, light, air Open air, natural light, visibility between management and workers reflected the company s concerns with quality, hygiene, and democratic value Leadership and design combined to create shared values among employees, managers and executives, and customers 37

38 Innovation as a brand value Fireproof construction Magnesite fireproofing/soundproofing Early air conditioning Wall-hung toilets Open floor plan/natural lighting Pneumatic vacuum cleaning system Adjustable desks and chairs Electric intercoms Purified drinking water 38

39 Organic by Design Organic architecture represented the synthesis of interior and exterior, form and function; it joined the built environment and the lives of those who inhabited it In the Larkin Administration Building, Wright achieved the full integration of a building, its surrounding environment, its management and its workers, in a single, unifying design 39

40 Company liquidated: 1942 Demolished:

41 SC Johnson Headquarters Racine, Wisconsin Administration Building Research Tower

42 A Family Company Still privately held today, with leadership in the hands of family members, SC Johnson has referred to itself as a family company for nearly a century. Its core values include: Progressive: profit sharing and a pension Community: Community fund, precursor to the United Way Respect for employees and customers: "The goodwill of people is the only enduring thing in any business." Innovation: Self-expression and entrepreneurship Risk-taking: Carrying customers through the Depression Quality was and is critical, both in products and in design of the working environment 42

43 Anybody can build a typical building. I wanted to build the best office building in the world, and the only way to do that was to get the greatest architect in the world. Herbert F. Johnson 43

44 A Place Where Work is Important Workers and management connected visibly Interaction could be spontaneous and direct An enduring symbol of the company s creative and adventurous spirit. 44

45 Innovation Inspired from Nature 45

46 Stem, Calyx, Petal: Strength 46

47 A Forest of Columns Supporting a Glass Sky 47

48 Designed to be as inspiring a place to work in as any cathedral ever was to worship in -Frank Lloyd Wright 48

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50 The Research Tower 50

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53 Brand Becomes Buildings Progressive: a streamlined new design for a hopeful future Community: a symbol of renewal for a troubled community Respect for employees and customers: open floor plan encouraging interactions between management, workers, visitors Innovation: in every detail of the buildings Risk-taking: 40% of the company s net worth went into the Admin building 53

Innovation-Inspiring Innovation ADMINISTRATION BUILDING

circulation Use of Pyrex tubing to create privacy,

materials work with structure to dampen noise RESEARCH

wall Space encouraged unconventional thinking Central

54 Innovation-Inspiring Innovation ADMINISTRATION BUILDING Expanded steel mesh to reinforce concrete Improved air circulation Use of Pyrex tubing to create privacy, translucence Shadowless illumination Sound-absorbing materials work with structure to dampen noise RESEARCH TOWER Tree-form cantilevered construction True curtain wall Space encouraged unconventional thinking Central core for services Silicone rubber gaskets for glass joints SC JOHNSON 54

55 These buildings continue to inspire us to think differently and work differently. -Fisk Johnson 55

56 Buildings Building Brands Both the Larkin and Johnson designs communicated the values of the companies that built them, representing corporate culture in material form In his commercial work, Wright created an organic architecture sympathetic to the relationships and values upon which his client companies realized their commercial success 56

57 Lessons from Wright s Work 57

58 Branding Architecture Today Architecture remains an important vehicle through which companies communicate their values: innovation, collaboration, dominance, power 58

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61 Wright Principles Look around: what gifts does Nature offer? Observation and intention Build to bless the landscape; be of the land and not merely on the land Design at the human scale Enhance organic relationships Building to land Building to people Building to purpose People to people The longer I live the more beautiful life becomes. If you foolishly ignore beauty, you will soon find yourself without it. Your life will be impoverished. But if you invest in beauty, it will remain with you all the days of your life. -Frank Lloyd Wright 61

62 THANK YOU ECONOMIC CLUB OF FLORIDA! 62

Hierarchy in office buildings

Hierarchy in office buildings Pei Zejun student number 4302400 peizejun@gmail.com MSc3 Graduation Studio : The Place of Work (Fall 2014) Irene Cieraad Research Seminar AR3Ai055 22/10/2014 1 Existing Case