flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Frank Lloyd Wright's posthumous gas station opens in Buffalo

Frank Lloyd Wright's posthumous gas station opens in Buffalo

This never built design is like a time-capsule that preserved the enthusiasm and optimism for cars in early 20th century United States.


By BD+C Staff | July 8, 2014
Photos courtesy of the Buffalo Transportation Pierce-Arrow Museum
Photos courtesy of the Buffalo Transportation Pierce-Arrow Museum

A fireplace in a gas station – imagine getting a permit to build something like that today. But that is exactly what legendary American architect Frank Lloyd Wright thought up for a gas station he designed more than half a century ago, and that was exactly what was built in the Buffalo Transportation Pierce-Arrow Museum in Buffalo, New York, for public viewing.

The gas station was intended for creation in Buffalo at the corner of Michigan Avenue and Cherry Street, Architizer reports. From the two gas stations Wright designed, only the one in Cloquet, Minnesota was built, also posthumously in 1965.

Check out this special report from Buffalo local news station WIVBTV.

 

The gas station embodies American modernism as coined by Wright, and is not short of the early 20th century enthusiasm for cars. The station’s architecture is anchored by a large set of stairs that lead to a second-story observation room for customers to wait as their vehicles are serviced. It has a fireplace, restrooms, a copper roof ad two 45-foot poles that Wright referred to as totems.

For more information, visit the museum’s official website.

Related Stories

Architects | Apr 10, 2018

HOK names a physician as its new Chief Medical Officer

Dr. Andrew Ibrahim will collaborate with the firm’s medical planning and design teams.    

Architects | Apr 5, 2018

AIA grants $100,000 to four Upjohn Research Initiative projects

The purpose of the grant is to provide base funds for applied research projects that will advance the design profession’s knowledge and practice.

Architects | Apr 5, 2018

Tech Report 5.0: The Human Touch

Can studying humans at a behavioral level produce better buildings? Cognitive architecture experts are working to find out.

Architects | Apr 4, 2018

How to acquire speaking engagements and hone your skills

So, you understand the benefits, but how do you actually get started with speaking engagements?

Architects | Apr 4, 2018

8 things to consider before using digital media to communicate with employees

The Marlin Company, a visual communications and digital signage provider, published a guide that outlines eight basic questions, along with some advice, about workplace digital signage.

Education Facilities | Mar 30, 2018

How can we design safer schools in the age of active shooters?

How can we balance the need for additional security with design principles that foster a more nurturing next-generation learning environment for students?

Architects | Mar 26, 2018

Designing for homeless facilities: Critical spaces to consider

The City of San Diego is home to the fourth largest homeless population in the U.S.

Education Facilities | Mar 23, 2018

An introvert's oasis: How to create learning environments for all student types

In order to understand why a school day can be so grueling for an introverted student, it’s important to know what it means to be introverted, writes NAC Architecture’s Emily Spiller.

Architects | Mar 22, 2018

The benefits and nuances of integrated design

Achieving integrated design usually means operating under a strong relationship. 

Architects | Mar 14, 2018

Becoming nature: The building design evolution meets the living building revolution

With the environmental movement, sustainability became a marker of innovation in design for the built environment.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category

Warehouses

California bill would limit where distribution centers can be built

A bill that passed the California legislature would limit where distribution centers can be located and impose other rules aimed at reducing air pollution and traffic. Assembly Bill 98 would tighten building standards for new warehouses and ban heavy diesel truck traffic next to sensitive sites including homes, schools, parks and nursing homes.




halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021