Artborne Magazine FEBRUARY 2017 | Page 9

ArchitectureFlorida Southern College by Stephanie D ’ Ercole

Esplanade ( left ) and William H . Danforth Chapel ( right ) at FSC , photos by Stephanie D ’ Ercole
About an hour outside of Orlando , past derelict mom-and-pop convenience stores , warehouses , and modest homes wrung out by the hands of time , sits the largest single-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture in the world . Florida Southern College ’ s campus in Lakeland is host to the conception Wright called the “ Child of the Sun .” He designed 18 structures total , 12 of which were built under his guidance from 1938 to 1958 . Wright was 70 years old when approached to design the buildings ; he undauntedly accepted the proposal . His vision for the campus was one of edifi ces rising “ out of the ground and into the light , a child of the sun .”
On a sunny day , apropos of the collection ’ s ( and the state ’ s ) epithet , I trekked to Lakeland to take in the architecture for the fi rst time . I ’ m abashed to admit I had never seen the structures in my nearly 29 years as a Floridian , and I should have been eager to rectify this shortcoming as a cultural consumer and an enthusiast of Wright ’ s designs , but even the sunshine didn ’ t seem to shake the somber mood I was in that day . Desiring a completely unperturbed experience — fueled by my misanthropic inclinations at the time — I opted for the self-guided tour when I arrived .
I began my tour at the Usonian Home , which was designed by Wright in 1939 , though constructed posthumously , in 2013 . “ Usonian ” was the word Wright utilized in lieu of “ American ” when referring to his
Orlando Arts & Culture , v . 2.2 prospective vision for the architectural landscape in which previous conventions were broken . From there , I continued exploring , weaving in and out of rhomboid patches of sun created by Wright ’ s expansive esplanades , which are a conduit between the buildings . With its tessellating geometric and linear elements , a relevant sense of modernity , oblique and asymmetrical features that skillfully maintain harmony , and monumental scale , the collection is wonderfully representative of Wright ’ s architectural sensibilities .
The most impressive and striking , to me , were the chapels . Though far from identifying as a religious person , houses of worship have always allured me . Seeking respite from the heat , I sat alone for a while in the William H . Danforth Chapel . Sunlight spilled through the stained glass windows and onto the glossy fl oor . I started to cry . The sheer pulchritude of the moment , aesthetic and empirical , provided a much-needed cathartic release . I considered how glad I was that I made the journey to the college , albeit initially begrudgingly . After all , there are far worse places to weep than in a Frank Lloyd Wright chapel .
You can see more at : FLSouthern . edu
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