WRIGHT FAMOUSLY COINED THE TERM “ USONIAN ” TO DESCRIBE A STYLE OF ARCHITECTURE THAT WAS ENTIRELY AMERICAN . WRIGHT ’ S CONCEPT OF USONIANISM RE- FERRED TO THE UNIQUE “ NEW- NESS ” OF THE NEW WORLD , AND REFLECTED HIS VISION OF AMERI- CAN ARCHITECTURE BEING FREED FROM OLD WORLD CONVENTIONS . THE ALSOP HOUSE IS ONE OF ONLY 60 USONIAN HOUSES WRIGHT EVER DESIGNED .
of damage the house has sustained along the way .
“ A lot of people have asked ‘ Are you going to restore the floors , fix the cracks ?’ and the answer is no . Because I want students of architecture , interior design , design and engineering to understand the faults ,” Reed says .
She still has plenty to work on , even without fixing every little crack . Since purchasing the house , Reed has removed the carpeting to expose the original floor , found the original windows and is planning to work on restoring the ceiling to its original , darker color .
Reed says her background as the daughter of a mid-century modern architect has helped to prepare her for the long project and the difficult decisions it requires by giving her insight into the architect ’ s intent .
“ It was immediately helpful to me because I knew what I was
Photos : Top-Right : Wright designed his mid-century modern homes with a focus on the horizontal line rather than the vertical . Windows were also important to Wright and provided a view of the landscape surrounding the home . Bottom-Right : Reed says that living in a Wright house gives a real sense of design and aesthetic . She says that after a while , she started to model her own clothing after the house . Left : Reed has learned more about her own family history since moving to Iowa . Displayed on the right are a series of old papers describing how her great grandparents purchased a team of horses and a covered wagon as they moved to south central Iowa and became corn farmers . Photos by Axel Vazquez
looking at . I know materials , I know the ‘ why ’ to the structure . I understand the aesthetics of what Wright was accomplishing – and I don ’ t say ‘ tried to accomplish ,’ but of what he accomplished ,” Reed says .
Architecture is in Reed ’ s blood and has always been an interest of hers .
Now & Then 7