Wright Here in Oregon
To be saved, the Gordon House had to be moved from its original location in Wilsonville. Now on a site neighboring the Oregon Garden in Silverton, it was rebuilt in its original sun orientation, though without the Mt. Hood and Willamette River views.<
The house turns a private side to the front door and carport, but the entry is clear.
The main space of the home is the high-ceilinged, open flow of dining, living and library areas (though in this photo it is cluttered with displays for a recent fundraiser).
Stereo hi-fi and record albums fit niftily into the built-in cabinets alongside the built-in sofa at the far end of the living room. Wright liked to design furniture into the home rather than have people clutter up the spaces with random furniture not
The built-in sofa extends to the other corner of the living room and built-in shelves for the library; the space is private and perfect for cozy reading, yet feels light and open because of the clerestory windows above the shelves.
Throughout the house, upper level decorative windows cast decorative, dramatic light – like a leaded glass window would – but are constructed simply of glass sandwiched by plywood cut into repeating, geometric “fretwork.”
The view from the kitchen (Wright called it the “workspace”) to the living area shows how narrow the doorway opening is; Wright played with horizontal and vertical proportions to make the most of the modest size and materials of the house.
Contemporary features like under cabinet lighting and wood-clad refrigerator (to match the cabinetry) were innovative at the time Wright designed the house in the late ’50s. Most of the kitchen appliances (including fridge) are original to the h
“In between” spaces like the second floor hallway house built-in cabinets (and even space for Mrs. Gordon’s loom); ceilings of this upper, private floor are lower than those in the public spaces on the ground floor.
The west bedroom (visible at the end of the hall in the previous photo) leads onto a balcony with a sheltering overhang but open views to the main ground floor living space.
The west bedroom opens to a wraparound balcony which originally had views to Mt. Hood and the Willamette River.
