Seamour and Gerte Shavin House
Encyclopedia
The Seamour and Gerte Shavin Houseis a Frank Lloyd Wright
designed Usonian home
in Chattanooga, Tennessee
.
Missionary Ridge
in Chattanooga was completed in 1952. Seamour was a building materials
salesman. It is the only building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in Tennessee. Both the
exterior and interior of the house use primarily crab orchard stone and treated Louisiana cypress wood. The stonework is reminiscent
of Fallingwater
. The house is sited on top of a hill to take advantage of the view of the
Tennessee River
and Lookout Mountain
.
The home features a kitchen, den and bathroom at the top of the hill, and sleeping areas down
some stairs on the lower, or eastern, side of the hill. The den/living room is the focal
point of the home, featuring a large stone fireplace. Mitered
glass in one
corner and wood framed corner glass doors that open outward allow the eyes to wander both
outside the home and around the interior.
There are many classic Wright details, such as a stunning example of a 12'x16'x16'
cantilevered roof over the carport that is similar to the Goetsch-Winkler House. There
are double clerestory
windows with cut-wood light screens. The home has a hidden
entrance. The Shavins' house contains built-ins and furniture designed by Wright, resulting
in a unified design scheme.
Wright, who died in 1959, never visited the site of the Shavins' house during or after its
construction. Marvin Bachman, an apprentice of Wright, supervised the construction. In 1951,
Bachman was killed in an automobile accident. During the summer of 1952, Bachman's sister,
Gloria, and her husband, Dr. Wilson visited Seamour and Gerte Shavin and helped them move
into their new home. On the drive back to New Jersey, the couple decided to commission Wright
to design the Bachman-Wilson House
.
Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1,000 structures and completed 500 works. Wright believed in designing structures which were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture...
designed Usonian home
in Chattanooga, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
.
History
The house was commissioned by newlyweds Seamour and Gerte Shavin in 1949 and the home at 334 North Crest Road onMissionary Ridge
Missionary Ridge
Missionary Ridge is a geographic feature in Chattanooga, Tennessee, site of the Battle of Missionary Ridge, a battle in the American Civil War, fought on November 25, 1863. Union forces under Maj. Gens. Ulysses S. Grant, William T. Sherman, and George H...
in Chattanooga was completed in 1952. Seamour was a building materials
salesman. It is the only building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in Tennessee. Both the
exterior and interior of the house use primarily crab orchard stone and treated Louisiana cypress wood. The stonework is reminiscent
of Fallingwater
Fallingwater
Fallingwater or Kaufmann Residence is a house designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright in 1935 in rural southwestern Pennsylvania, 50 miles southeast of Pittsburgh...
. The house is sited on top of a hill to take advantage of the view of the
Tennessee River
Tennessee River
The Tennessee River is the largest tributary of the Ohio River. It is approximately 652 miles long and is located in the southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. The river was once popularly known as the Cherokee River, among other names...
and Lookout Mountain
Lookout Mountain
thumb|right|See seven statesLookout Mountain is located at the northwest corner of the U.S. state of Georgia, the northeast corner of Alabama, and along the southern border of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Lookout Mountain, along with Sand Mountain to the northwest, makes up a large portion of the...
.
The home features a kitchen, den and bathroom at the top of the hill, and sleeping areas down
some stairs on the lower, or eastern, side of the hill. The den/living room is the focal
point of the home, featuring a large stone fireplace. Mitered
Miter joint
A miter joint , sometimes shortened to miter, is a joint made by bevelling each of two parts to be joined, usually at a 45° angle, to form a corner, usually a 90° angle...
glass in one
corner and wood framed corner glass doors that open outward allow the eyes to wander both
outside the home and around the interior.
There are many classic Wright details, such as a stunning example of a 12'x16'x16'
cantilevered roof over the carport that is similar to the Goetsch-Winkler House. There
are double clerestory
Clerestory
Clerestory is an architectural term that historically denoted an upper level of a Roman basilica or of the nave of a Romanesque or Gothic church, the walls of which rise above the rooflines of the lower aisles and are pierced with windows. In modern usage, clerestory refers to any high windows...
windows with cut-wood light screens. The home has a hidden
entrance. The Shavins' house contains built-ins and furniture designed by Wright, resulting
in a unified design scheme.
Wright, who died in 1959, never visited the site of the Shavins' house during or after its
construction. Marvin Bachman, an apprentice of Wright, supervised the construction. In 1951,
Bachman was killed in an automobile accident. During the summer of 1952, Bachman's sister,
Gloria, and her husband, Dr. Wilson visited Seamour and Gerte Shavin and helped them move
into their new home. On the drive back to New Jersey, the couple decided to commission Wright
to design the Bachman-Wilson House
Bachman-Wilson House
The Bachman-Wilson house, in Millstone, New Jersey was originally designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1954 for Abraham Wilson and his first wife, Gloria Bachman. Ms. Bachman's brother, Marvin, had studied with Wright at Taliesin West, his home and studio in Scottsdale, Arizona.The front façade of...
.
External links
- Chattanooga Shavin Residence - Frank Lloyd Wright - pushpullbar2
- Seamour Shavin House, Chattanooga, Tennessee - Frank Lloyd Wright Designed Buildings on Waymarking.com
- TN Encyclopedia: SHAVIN HOUSE
- Wright Studies - Seamour and Gerte Shavin Residence, Chattanooga, Tennessee (1950) (S.339)
- http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_30352.asp17 December 2002 - Frank Lloyd Wright House On Ridge Turns 50 - Real Estate - The ChattanooganThe ChattanooganThe Chattanoogan and its website "Chattanoogan.com" is an online media outlet that concentrates on news from Chattanooga, Tennessee. It is published by John Wilson, previously a staff writer for the Chattanooga Free Press. The website was launched on September 1, 1999, and calls itself "one of the...
] - Shavin Residence - FLW - a set on Flickr
- The Only Frank Lloyd Wright Building In Tennessee
- All-Wright Site - Frank Lloyd Wright Building Guide - Tennessee
- Wright Chat :: View topic - Couple of Shavin House photos