Gropius gripe

Residential Architect, August, 2002 by Herbert Beckhard

What prompts this letter is "From Bauhaus to His House" ("End Quote," March, page 96) and its rather astonishing description of the Gropius house, especially the part "Visited by luminaries including Frank Lloyd Wright and Marcel Breuer ..." That is a rather curious statement since the house was done while Breuer and Gropius were partners.

All people "in the know" can verify that the house was, for the most part, designed by Marcel Breuer. So, he didn't visit the house--he designed it. I think the record should be corrected. It doesn't have to say he designed it (which he did), but the record should show that it was at least a Gropius/ Breuer project.

Herbert Beckhard, FAIA
New York City

Senior editor Meghan Drueding replies: Thank you for your letter regarding my March "End Quote" piece on Walter Gropius' house, but none of my research supports your claim. Peter Gitelman, Director of Education for the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities (SPNEA), which owns and operates the house, says, "Breuer and Gropius were partners at the time, so it is natural to assume that each man primarily designed his own house with input from the other. Breuer undoubtedly had some influence--the vertical rafters off the porch are often attributed to him--but there is no smoking gun that confirms his involvement. All we have are many, many oral histories that suggest that Gropius was the main designer of his house."

Likewise, Joachim Driller's 2000 book Breuer Houses concludes that, though there has been much speculation on Breuer's involvement, no solid evidence exists. The SPNEA does acknowledge in a booklet about the house that Breuer designed much of the furniture in it, and I wish the space had been available for me to mention this and other details.