Barbara Elsner was only vaguely familiar with Frank Lloyd Wright’s style of architecture when she and her husband, Robert, bought theFrederick C. Bogk Housein 1955.
“We were living in Whitefish Bay and we had two children, then for a time we raised our two nephews after their mom died suddenly,” she said. “At that time we had four kids under 4 years old and we had to find a bigger house fast.”
When she walked into the 4,000-square-foot Milwaukee house, she loved it immediately, and her husband said ‘if you like it, we’ll buy it.”
They moved in with the toddlers and eventually had three more children. Over the years the couple —and later their children —learned about the home and the architect who built it.
Barbara, who recently moved to a smaller apartment, said living in the home became an important part of her life as she became involved in various Frank Lloyd Wright organizations as well as preservation endeavors in her neighborhood.
Today, her daughter, Margaret Howland, lives in the home with her two childrenand is also involved in Wright organizations and preservation.
“After living here, my mom started understanding the value of the home and she educated herself,” Margaret said. “She is oneof the founding members of the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy.”
The women will be opening the 1916 house to the public as part of an event titled “100 Years New — Wright in Time” on Oct. 26.
But this isn’t the first time it’s been opened.
Barbara said she’s held fund-raising events for Wright organizations there over the years and that “people from all over the world have contacted me asking if they could come and see the house, and I have let some of them see it over the years.”
It’s nosurprise that it’s of interest to the public, as it has many unique features, and it was built while Wright was also working on the lmperial Hotel in Tokyo, so it also has Asian influences.
Its unusual features include that it is built of all concrete with a brick veneer, it has a clay tile roof, it has an elaborate facade of concrete ornamentation just under the roofline, and there are wide and deep mullions around the home’s many leaded art glass windows,which have small squares of gold that glitter in the sun.
Some wall areas on the first floor are made of brick and have wide mortar between them that displays a distinct pattern, there is an elegant floor made up of small pieces of tile, and built-in and freestanding furniture that Wright designed and that was built by theNiedecken-Walbridge Co.There is also furniture from a line that Wright designed and personally suggested they buy.
Margaret said the home’s many windows and unique lighting on the ceilings and sconces are also attractions.
“He was all about bringing the outside in,” and he wanted the occupants to have spectacular views from inside, she said.
“There was originally a lot to the south that overlooked beautifully landscaped gardens that belonged to a neighbor,” said Barbara. Unfortunately, a house was eventually built there.
Other than the loss of the gardens, the home hasn’t changed much over the years, although some work has been done.
Barbara, who is the third owner, said the previous owner added a powder room on the first floor, and that she updated the kitchen, had work done on the home’s exterior overhangand replaced the carpeting on the first floor.
But whenever they did work in the home, they consulted individuals who knew Wright’s work and who could tell them how to best make the changes.
She said that when they first moved into the home, they wanted to do some landscaping, so her husband wrote to Wright to ask if there were any landscaping plans for their home.
Wright said no, but he did tell them what furniture they should add.
“He wrote us a letter and basically said ‘buy my furniture,’ as he had designed a line of furniture for Heritage Henredon,” said Barbara.
“We couldn’t afford it then, so over the years as the pieces came up for sale at auctions, we bought them.”
Later, they decided they wanted to replace the worn carpeting on the first floor that Wright had designed.
Because the architect had died (in 1959), they called his third wife,Olgivanna Lloyd Wright,for suggestions.
“She suggested brighter colors, so we went with that,” Barbara said. “The base color of the rug is orange. It was originally a soft beige with more muted colors… We had the rug custom made. It’s the same design only brighter.”
The women recently talked about the home they both lived in for many years.
Q:Did any other famous architects work on this home with Wright?
Barbara:Niedecken (George Mann Niedecken)worked on the interior, as Wright was in Japan building the Imperial Hotel whenthe house was being built. He (Niedecken) designed the light fixture over the dining room table. He also made subtle changes to some of the furniture.
Q:What kind of wood was used in your home?
Barbara: It’s all walnut on the first floor and gum wood on the second floor.
Q. In addition to the built-ins, what furniture did Wright design for this house?
Barbara:The large desk in the living room and the dining room set.
Margaret:My parents bought the dining room set from the daughter of the original owners.
Q:Are any accent pieces original?
Margaret:The piece over the buffet in the dining room. It’s a 17th-century Chinese hand scroll painted with palace ladies and plum trees on silk by a famous Ming dynasty artist.
Barbara:It was left in the house for the original owners by Wright. I’m sure he chose that piece for above the buffet.
Q:Margaret, what do you enjoy most about living in your childhood home again?
A. I love the wonderful patterns the sun makes on the brick. There is also a playfulness to this house. When I was young, we used to run around the house, then jump over the fish pond. The openness encourages kids to move around.
Q:Tell me about the fish pond.
Margaret. It’s a pond with awaterfall element. It was supposed to give the homeowners the soothing sound of water. We have goldfish in it now.
Barbara:There is a frieze over it with cranes on it.
Q:What colors did you use when you painted the lower level of your home?
Barbara:We used all original colors. We have a celadon green ceiling, the lower part of the walls is gold, and the tops are a silver/gold.
Q:How did you change your kitchen?
Barbara:We had it done in 1959. We consulted staff at Taliesin, and they designed the kitchen. The windows, marble countertop and sink are original, but we added the lower cabinets and put in new linoleum flooring.
Q:How is your home laid out?
Barbara:The front door is on the side of the house and there is an entryway. The first floor has the open concept living room and dining room, the kitchen with a pantry, and a half bath. The second floor has the master bedroom and bathroom, two other full bathrooms, a living room and three other bedrooms. The bedroom over the garage was probably maids’ quarters.
Q:Do you have a favorite spot here?
Margaret:It depends on the time of day and year. In winter I tend to be next to the fireplace, whether it’s on or not. In summer I like to spend time in the seating area in the living room that is near the dining room. If I’m reading, I like to sit in the seating area near the entryway.
Do you, or does someone you know, have a cool, funky or exquisite living space that you’d like to see featured in At Home? Contact Fresh home and garden editor Nancy Stohs at (414) 224-2382 or emailnstohs@journalsentinel.com.
If you go:
100 Years New: Wright in Time. The Burnham Block 100thAnniversary Celebration.A celebration of Frank Lloyd Wright’sFrederick C. Bogk Houseand his American System-Built Homes on Burnham St. Events will support the restoration of the Burnham Block homes.
Bogk House event:At 2420 N. Terrace Ave. Starts at 6 p.m. with a program at 7:15 p.m. on Oct. 26. Event includes a lecture, “Modern Before the ‘ism,’ ” by Eric Vogel, chair of 3D Design at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design. Refreshments and appetizers will be served. Space is limited.
Tickets are $150 per person, payable by check or credit card in advance. Reservations are required. Make checks payable to Frank Lloyd Wright Wisconsin, P.O. Box 6339, Madison, WI 53716-0339. For credit card payments and/or more information, call Sherri Shokler at (608) 287-0339.
Evening reception and program:Event on Nov. 16 to honor 100 years of Frank Lloyd Wright in Milwaukee. Will include a short presentation and displays of Wright designs. Time and speaker to be announced later. At the Zimmerman Architectural Studios Inc.,2122 W. Mount Vernon Ave. Event is free.
Readers seeking more information about the Nov. 16 event can call the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s School of Architecture and Urban Planning at (414) 229-4014.
