Toufic H. Kalil House
Encyclopedia
The Toufic H. Kalil House is a structure built by Frank Lloyd Wright
in Manchester, New Hampshire
, in 1955. The Usonian Automatic
design of this house allowed Wright to meet the requirements of Dr. Toufic and Mildred Kalil, a professional couple. Wright used the term Usonian Automatic to describe the design of economical Usonian style houses constructed of modular concrete blocks. This house illustrates Wright's creative use of this inexpensive material.
Typical of Wright's Usonian style, the Kalil house draws its beauty from simple, linear forms rather than ornamental details. Symmetrical rows of rectangular window openings give the heavy concrete a sense of airiness.
The Kalil house was designed in the mid-1950s, near the end of Wright's life. The Zimmerman House was built in a very different Usonian style for Dr. Toufic Kalil's good friend and hospital colleague, Dr. Zimmerman, three lots down, on the same street, five years earlier.
This 1380 square feet (128.2 m²) house contains a living room, kitchen, two bedrooms, two baths and a study. All of the original furniture, most of which is built-in, is still intact. The house is privately owned and not open to tours.
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...
in Manchester, New Hampshire
Manchester, New Hampshire
Manchester is the largest city in the U.S. state of New Hampshire, the tenth largest city in New England, and the largest city in northern New England, an area comprising the states of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. It is in Hillsborough County along the banks of the Merrimack River, which...
, in 1955. The Usonian Automatic
Usonia
Usonia was a word used by American architect Frank Lloyd Wright to refer to his vision for the landscape of the United States, including the planning of cities and the architecture of buildings...
design of this house allowed Wright to meet the requirements of Dr. Toufic and Mildred Kalil, a professional couple. Wright used the term Usonian Automatic to describe the design of economical Usonian style houses constructed of modular concrete blocks. This house illustrates Wright's creative use of this inexpensive material.
Typical of Wright's Usonian style, the Kalil house draws its beauty from simple, linear forms rather than ornamental details. Symmetrical rows of rectangular window openings give the heavy concrete a sense of airiness.
The Kalil house was designed in the mid-1950s, near the end of Wright's life. The Zimmerman House was built in a very different Usonian style for Dr. Toufic Kalil's good friend and hospital colleague, Dr. Zimmerman, three lots down, on the same street, five years earlier.
This 1380 square feet (128.2 m²) house contains a living room, kitchen, two bedrooms, two baths and a study. All of the original furniture, most of which is built-in, is still intact. The house is privately owned and not open to tours.
