Lot 421 : FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT

Frank Lloyd Wright - 1869-1959

Auction Location: United States of America - 2005
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Description:

PROPERTY FROM A TORONTO COLLECTION

SCONCE FROM THE DARWIN D. MARTIN HOUSE, BUFFALO, NEW YORK

SCONCE FROM THE DARWIN D. MARTIN HOUSE, BUFFALO, NEW YORK

measurements note
5 1/2 x 7 3/4 x 10 1/4 in. (14 x 19.7 x 26 cm)

ca. 1905

patinated bronze and glass

LITERATURE

Grant Carpenter Manson, Frank Lloyd Wright to 1910: The First Golden Age, New York, 1958, pp. 145-146
David A. Hanks, The Decorative Designs of Frank Lloyd Wright, New York, 1979, pp. 26 and 92
Frank Lloyd Wirght, The Early Work of Frank Lloyd Wright: The ''Ausgeführte Bauten'' of 1911, New York, reprinted 1982, pp. 47, 50-51 and 53
H. Allen Brooks, Frank Lloyd Wright and the Prairie School, New York, 1984, p. 55
Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer, Frank Lloyd Wright, 1902-1906, vol. 2, Tokyo, 1987, p. 108 (for a design drawing of the model)
David A. Hanks, Frank Lloyd Wright: Preserving an Architectural Heritage: Decorative Designs from The Domino's Pizza Collection, New York, 1989, p. 61
Thomas A. Heinz, Frank Lloyd Wright: Interiors and Furniture, New York, 1994, pp. 83 and 240
Jack Quinan, ed., Frank Lloyd Wright: Windows of the Darwin D. Martin House, Buffalo, 1999, pp. 23, 25-26 and 28
Julie L. Sloan, Light Screens: The Complete Leaded-Glass Windows of Frank Lloyd Wright, New York, 2001, p. 164
Julie L. Sloan, Light Screens: The Leaded Glass of Frank Lloyd Wright, New York, 2001, pp. 78 and 80
Jack Quinan, Frank Lloyd Wright's Martin House: Architecture as Portraiture, New York, 2004, pp. 103, 116, 137, 149, 167-168, 181 and 184

NOTE

Wright employed this sconce design in various public rooms throughout the first-floor of the Martin House, including the living room, dining room, reception room and entrance hall. Most of the sconces were mounted to the large freestanding heating piers that served as room dividers, flanking leaded glass casement windows installed above built-in bookcases. Although period photographs document a large number of these sconces used for illumination throughout the house, a surprisingly small number appear to have survived. The few known examples display slight variations in the configurations of the armatures and wall mounts, which were presumably adapted for different installations. The sconce presently offered is believed to have been installed on the exterior of the Martin House, adjacent to the front door.

Sotheby's wishes to thank Jack Quinan, Professor of Art History, University at Buffalo, for his assistance in the research of this sconce and the following two windows from the Martin House.