LACMA

This lamp was designed by the American architect Frank Lloyd Wright around 1902. Architects are usually thought of as individuals who create buildings rather than design lamps but Wright believed in complete design unity. He felt that a building, its setting, and everything inside it should all go together to create one look. When you look at this lamp, can you get any ideas of what the house that it comes from might look like?

This lamp came from a home that Wright designed known as the Susan Lawrence Dana House. Knowing that Wright liked to design houses and home furnishings that looked good together, what colors do you think you would find in the house? What kinds of shapes do you think you would see on the inside and outside of the house?

Wright called his ideas about architecture "organic design." He wanted his buildings to fit into the landscape around them. The shapes of many of his buildings, like the Susan Lawrence Dana House, are low and long. They seem to echo the wide open spaces and low horizon line of the Midwest Prairie. This style of building has come to be known as the Prairie style.

Think of some different kinds of landscapes and what types of houses would best fit in them. Imagine a house for the woods, the mountains, or the beach. What about a house for a very hot place or a very cold one? Pick one house that you like the best and think about what kind of furniture would go into this house.

You can see this lamp in the American art galleries on the third floor of the Art of the Americas Building at LACMA.

Search Collections Online to see more designs by Frank Lloyd Wright.

Linden Glass Company, Frank Lloyd Wright (United States, 1867–1959)
Table Lamp from the Susan Lawrence Dana House, Springfield, Illinois, 1902–1904
Metalwork, leaded glass, bronze, brass, and zinc, a) Base: 20 1/2 x 12 x 8 7/8 in. (52 x 30.5 x 22.5 cm);
b) Shade diameter: 29 in. (73.7 cm)
Gift of Max Palevsky (M.2000.180.44a-b)
Photo credit: © 2009 Museum Associates/LACMA