About Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867–April 9, 1959) was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures. 532 of them were constructed.
He wrote about 20 books and many articles. He was a popular lecturer in the United States and Europe. Wright’s visionary work cemented his place as the American Institute of Architects’ “greatest American architect of all time.”
Organic architecture
Wright believed in designing buildings that were in harmony with humanity and its environment. He called this philosophy organic architecture.
Wright expressed organic architecture by integrating buildings with the natural world. He was inspired by nature and technology. Seeking an alternative to European models, he used materials and structural forms in often new and innovative ways that reflect the diverse geography of the United States.
Wright’s work includes original and inventive examples of many building types, including offices, churches, schools, skyscrapers, hotels, and museums. Wright also designed many of the interior elements of his buildings, including the furniture, stained glass, and rugs.
Architecture for democracy
Wright’s mission was to create a truly American architecture that would reflect the democratic values of this great country in which he so firmly believed. In creating what he called an “architecture for democracy,” Wright redefined our concept of space. He sought to create nourishing environments, connected both physically and spiritually to the natural world.
Marin County Civic Center
The Marin County Civic Center is the largest existing Frank Lloyd Wright building. It, along with the post office across the street, are the only 2 government buildings he ever built.
When Wright visited Marin County for the first time, he said “You have one of the most beautiful landscapes I have seen, and I am proud to make the buildings of this county characteristic of the beauty of the county.”
He added, “Here is a crucial opportunity to open the eyes not of Marin County alone, but of the entire country, to what officials gathering together might themselves do to broaden and beautify human lives.”
The previous 26 architects the County interviewed proposed to bulldoze the hills. Wright instead was inspired by the landscape. He drove around the site, and after 20 minutes he declared, “I know exactly what I’m going to do here. I’ll bridge these hills with a series of graceful arches and build the buildings upon those arches.” In his own words, the hills and the topography inspired the arches.
"We know that good building is not the one that hurts the landscape but is one that makes the landscape more beautiful than it was before that building was built. In Marin County you have one of the most beautiful landscapes I have seen, and I am proud to make the buildings of this County characteristic of the beauty of the County.”
--Frank Lloyd Wright
Wright died before the Civic Center was constructed. Upon his death a new contract was executed (May 26, 1959) between Marin County and The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. Olgivanna Lloyd Wright, the architect’s third wife and President of the Foundation, signed on its behalf. The drawings for the Administration building were completed in September 1959. They were signed by William Wesley Peters as Chief Architect and Aaron Green as Associate Architect for the Foundation.
Architectural features
The Marin County Civic Center Administration and Hall of Justice buildings dramatically illustrate the kinship of Wright's architecture to the surrounding landscape.
The long horizontal buildings gracefully link the crowns of three separate hills. The circular theme is evident throughout the complex.
Materials throughout the Civic Center are simple:
- Floors are custom-colored composition tile
- Walkways and stairs are terrazzo, and partitions are sheet rock
- The barrel-arched roof is of precast concrete
- The roof is a blue that blends with the sky
- Walls are sand beige
- Basic construction is precast, pre-stressed floor systems with combined steel and concrete vertical supports
Exterior balconies run down the outsides of both buildings. The decorative arches create a sense of rhythm and are made of cement stucco on metal laths.
Gold spheres outline the entire interior and exterior rooflines. They create the effect of rhythmic unity and exemplify the Japanese influence Wright displayed in his work. They have been likened to raindrops and called by some, a string of pearls.
Atrium
Wright first used many features now considered commonplace in these buildings. Atriums run down the center of each building. They widen as they rise from ground floor level to the fourth floor, to create an illusion of upward spiraling ramps. This also creates narrower walkways on the upper floors, where there is less foot traffic. Elevators and stairs link one floor to another.
Atrium plantings provide employees and visitors with the pleasing prospect of either looking inward to the planted, sky-lit malls or outward to green trees and hills.
Detail
The building complex abounds with detail. Elaborate grillwork, accents, and appliqués all follow the "flow of pattern" carefully orchestrated by Wright. Glass and panel partitions separate the walkways around the atrium from office spaces to create an airy, spacious effect. Art exhibits on the first and third floors contribute to the aesthetic harmony of the interior.
Spire
The central architectural focus for the building is the 80-foot diameter dome with its 172-foot, slender gold spire. The spire creates a visual punctuation mark that breaks the horizontality of the two buildings. It was originally designed to serve as an exhaust outlet for the furnace and as a radio tower, which was precluded by new technology.
Administration Building
On the ground floor entrance to the Administration Building is the plaque containing the red "FLLW" insignia square that designates the Marin County Civic Center as an official Frank Lloyd Wright building.
The four-story administration wing was completed in 1962. It is 584 feet long. Office bays are 26 feet wide on one side and 40 feet on the other. The structure houses the County's:
- Administrative, financial and community services departments
- Human resources department
- Library branch and administration offices
All offices in the administration wing have at least one source of natural light, either from outside surface windows of the building or from the skylights in the mall.
Campus model
The Civic Center Site Model is on the first floor of the Administration Building. It shows Frank Lloyd Wright's original plan for the entire complex. It includes some buildings that were not constructed. The skylights over the malls were not part of the original plan but were added later for protection from the weather.
Board Chambers
Board of Supervisors Chambers on the third floor are composed of one semi-circular room that can be divided by a folding partition into two soundproof chambers for the Board of Supervisors and the Planning Commission. The flexibility of Wright's design accommodates changing needs for public participation.
Scenic Overlook
Outside the chambers, is the Scenic Overlook (also known as the Supervisors' Deck). The columns are reminiscent of origami, showing the Japanese influence in Wright's architecture. This is another vantage point for a view of the roofline and an up-close look at the spire.
Library
The Marin County Civic Center Branch Library is contained in the fourth-floor area under the 80-foot diameter dome. In it, Wright made very early use of indirect lighting, and radiating placement of stacks, for easy accessibility.
Next to the library is the Anne T. Kent California History Room. This is a non-circulating research facility that preserves items of historic importance including an extensive collection of information about Frank Lloyd Wright and the Marin Civic Center.
Conservation Garden
The Conservation Garden at the far south end of the fourth floor includes the hill on which Wright first viewed the site and stated, "I'll bridge these hills with graceful arches..." It offers a spectacular vantage point to view the dramatic roofline.
Hall of Justice
The Hall of Justice was completed in 1969. It is 880 feet long and the bays on both sides of the building are over 40 feet wide. The design incorporates unique concepts for courtrooms, jury rooms, judges' chambers, and general judicial space.
This building houses the:
- Courts
- District Attorney offices
- Civic Center cafeteria
Cafeteria patio
The second-floor fountain-garden patio area exemplifies Wright's belief that work environments should be places of beauty. The design of the pond conveys the impression of blending into infinity.
The pond uses re-circulated water and camouflages the heating and cooling systems. It is also home to a family of ducks that return here each spring.
The garden offers an excellent vantage point for viewing the spire with its Japanese influence. Subdued, indirect light creates a warm and relaxed atmosphere in this area.
Circular theme
Use of the Civic Center's circular theme is evident throughout the lobby and courtrooms in the Hall of Justice. The circular courtrooms represented the first break in more than 100 years with the old courtroom design. They have been copied elsewhere in this country and abroad.
Spectators sit in curved rows, and curved tables serve the attorneys and their clients. A lectern in the middle of the well permits the judge and jurors a clear view of attorneys and witnesses.
Underground jail
Aaron Green, FAIA, suggested the concept and site for the underground County Jail to complement Wright's original buildings' design. It was completed in 1994.
The jail is embedded into the hillside at the end of the Hall of Justice wing. This location makes it possible to transport prisoners into the court areas through a tunnel.
There is a scale model of his plan on the fourth floor of the Administration Building outside the branch library.