Martin House - Table of Contents....................Darwin D. Martin House Complex- Table of Contents

Entry hall - Darwin D. Martin House

See also:  Edited First Floor plan - HABS

Photos taken in 2011 and in 2018

First floor


2018 photo.
As you walk into the entry hall from the front door on Jewett Parkway, you see the Reception room to the left    ...   To the right is the staircase (note hand rail)   ...   To the right of the staircase is a passage to the outdoor Pergola (note door at far right)

Roman brick used in the interior as well as on the exterior   ...   In the interior, Roman brick is used as a facing for common red bricks in the pier clusters which are weight-bearing columns   ...   Throughout the interior, gilded masonry joints (bronze color in varnish base) are found between bricks   ...   Quarter-sawn oak used throughout the interior



2018 photo.
Staircase between the Reception room and the passage to the outdoor Pergola



2001 photo.
Note date: 2011 - Seven years before  2018 photo above  ...   Stairway to second floor is at the left (note stairs)  ...  Door leads to Pergola, most of which was demolished and will be rebuilt as part of the restoration   ...    The white wall on the right, added by a subsequent owner, covers the two-sided fireplace both in the entry hall and living room     ...   The contemporary model on the table at the right is of the original fireplace which is scheduled for restoration in the future



2001 photo.
Model of the 2-sided fireplace in both the entry hall and living room



2018 photo.
Both sides of the passage to the outdoor Pergola have been 
restored   ...   Note Japanese print towards the right (detailed below:)



2018 photo.
Restored left side of the passage to the outdoor Pergola    ...   Door at right leads to the outdoor Pergola



2018 photo.
Japanese print hanging on the right side of the passage to the outdoor Pergola




2018 photo.
Second floor screen above the passageway to the outdoor Pergola



2018 photo.
Far left:  Reception room   ...   Between the clock and the brick pillar (not shown) is the staircase   ...   Between the brick pillar and the fireplace  (not shown) is the passage to the outdoor Pergola   ...   Restored fireplace at right (detail below:)



2018 photo.
The other side of this 2-sided fireplace is in the Living room




Second floor entry hall



2018 photo.
Second floor screen above the passageway to the outdoor Pergola



2018 photo.



2018 photo.



2001 photo.



2001 photo.
The stained glass windows or "art glass" were integral to this complex. The lines of these windows are ruler straight, a design element embraced by Wright as he thought curves were representative of decadent decoration.

Wright called his windows "light screens" and considered them part of the walls, not merely holes in the walls. The windows were used to create textural changes within the rooms and to control the eye and shape its vision. In Wrightian homes windows were used to create subdued illumination or a "moonlight effect".

Above all Wright believed his windows were an integral part of his overall design and were meant to be appreciated as works of art and most definitely not to be covered with heavy draperies.
 





Special thanks to the following for their cooperation:   Executive Director Mary F. Roberts, Director of Operations Margaret P. Stehlik, and Marketing Manager Caitlin Deibel

Photographs taken by Chuck LaChiusa
Photos © 2018 Martin House Restoration Corporation
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