Robie House

Category: Building

More than one hundred years ago, Frank Lloyd Wright sparked an architectural revolution with the opening of his Oak Park studio. The Robie House, built on the University of Chicago campus in 1910, is one of two museum sites maintained by The Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust. Through its restoration and preservation efforts and many programs, the not-for-profit Preservation Trust presents Wright's structures, as well as his architectural and artistic principles, to a worldwide audience. The Robie House features bold horizontal lines, daring cantilevers, stretches of art glass windows and an open floor plan -- the Robie House inspired an architectural revolution.

The Robie House stands in stark contrast to the University's Collegiate Gothic structures and is unrivaled today in its architectural drama and adventure--unexpectedly changing with each angle of vision. Upon its completion, shocked neighbors likened the home's long, low design to a steamship, with its two rectangles, or vessels, abutting each other and visually separating the living areas from the utility spaces. The broad central chimney serves a unifying function, locking the pieces into place.

In January 1997, the Preservation Trust assumed management, restoration and interpretation of the structure, which was added to the National Trust's collection of 19 historic sites. The Preservation Trust has planned a ten-year timetable for the restoration of the Robie House, which will remain open to the public during all phases.