Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art has announced that it has acquired the Bachman Wilson House, designed in the 1950s by Frank Lloyd Wright, and plans to move it to its facility in Bentonville, Ark. The restored house, which is located in Somerset County, N.J., was placed on the market in 2012 by its owners after it was periodically damaged by flooding of the nearby Millstone River. Numerous architectural experts have concluded that moving the house offers its best hope for long-term survival.
One of Wright's celebrated Usonian houses, the Bachman Wilson House will be transported 1,200 miles by J.B. Hunt, an Arkansas carrier, at no charge. The sellers, architects Lawrence and Sharon Tarentino, have agreed to supervise the dismantling and packing process.
The 200,000-sf Crystal Bridges Museum was founded by Alice Walton, who is the daughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton. It opened in 2011 in a facility designed by Moshe Safdie. Terms of the purchase were not disclosed, though the market price was $1.5 million.
“We’re honored to be able to preserve and share this significant example of American architecture, as Frank Lloyd Wright’s work embodies our own mission of celebrating art and nature,” Rod Bigelow, Crystal Bridges executive director, said in a statement.
The Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy is on record as supporting the move. “Facing a difficult dilemma after upstream construction and water ‘management’ projects contributed to a repeated untenable flood hazard for their property … the Tarantinos reluctantly concluded that the house required relocation,” Janet Halstead, executive director of the conservancy, said in a statement.
The relocation is expected to be complete by early 2015.
Related Stories
Architects | Dec 9, 2019
Jonathan Moody promoted to CEO of Moody Nolan
New four-member Executive Team also named.
Big Data | Dec 4, 2019
AEC data's coming out party
AEC firms are finally putting to use project information they’ve been storing in their computers for years.
Building Owners | Dec 2, 2019
What building owners and AEC teams need to know about New York’s Climate Mobilization Act
On April 18, 2019, the New York City Council passed the Climate Mobilization Act, a suite of laws aimed to meet the city’s commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.
| Nov 26, 2019
Steinberg Hart and Holzman Moss Bottino Architecture combine to elevate design, expand opportunities and strengthen client relationships
This union creates a national architecture firm with enhanced design capabilities and expertise.
| Nov 8, 2019
Philadelphia architecture firm EwingCole acquires Baltimore firm Gaudreau
Philadelphia architecture firm EwingCole acquires Baltimore firm Gaudreau.
Multifamily Housing | Nov 7, 2019
Multifamily construction market remains strong heading into 2020
Fewer than one in 10 AEC firms doing multifamily work reported a decrease in proposal activity in Q3 2019, according to a PSMJ report.
Architects | Oct 29, 2019
Top takeaways from the Lean Construction Institute Congress 2019
More than 1,600 Lean experts gathered in Texas this month for LCI Congress 2019. Here are key takeaways from the event.
Giants 400 | Oct 25, 2019
Top 50 Airport Sector Architecture Firms for 2019
AECOM, Gensler, HNTB, Corgan, and HOK top the rankings of the nation's largest airport terminal sector architecture and architecture engineering (AE) firms, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2019 Giants 300 Report.
Giants 400 | Oct 24, 2019
Top 125 Retail Architecture Firms for 2019
CallisonRTKL, Gensler, MG2, NELSON, and Stantec top the rankings of the nation's largest retail sector architecture and architecture engineering (AE) firms, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2019 Giants 300 Report.
Architects | Oct 11, 2019
SMPS report tracks how AEC firms are utilizing marketing technology tools
With thousands of MarTech tools and apps on the market, design and construction firms are struggling to keep up.
