Known as the Hollyhock House for its floral motif — Barnsdall’s favorite — the project was Wright’s first major California project and is a mix of Maya, Spanish Revival and Japanese architectural styles.
With its sunken living room and monumental fireplace, art glass, unexpected water features and custom furnishings — including a fabulous pendant by Rudolph Schindler in the dining room — the house is endlessly fascinating, even if you are not a fan of Lloyd Wright. (In 2009, New York Times architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff acknowledged Wright’s legacy with some critics: “But to many he is still the vain, megalomaniacal architect, someone who trampled over his clients’ wishes, drained their bank accounts and left them with leaky roofs.”)
Not all of the rooms are open to the public. For instance, the home’s clean-lined kitchen with solid mahogany countertops and custom appliances is viewed from behind a velvet rope. (The kitchen was remodeled in 1946 by Frank Lloyd Wright’s son, Lloyd Wright). If you’d like to see more, check out the narrated virtual tour of the house online.
The house is in East Hollywood’s Barnsdall Art Park, home to the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery, the Barnsdall Gallery Theater and the Barnsdall Art Center. The park also has ample picnic space and great views of Griffith Park and the Hollywood sign.
Tickets: Advance tickets are recommended and can be booked online; adults are $7; seniors and students are $3; children under 12 are free. Self-guided tours are available from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday through Saturday.
To find out more about Wright’s work in L.A., watch KCET’s “Artbound” episode “That Far Corner: Frank Lloyd Wright in Los Angeles” by former L.A. Times architecture critic Christopher Hawthorne.