photo: Stewart Hass & Associates – click to enlarge
You always have to wonder what Frank Lloyd Wright would've done if he'd designed all the gardens to go along with his houses. This is the Turkel House in Detroit, the only built example of a two-story Usonian. It was commissioned in 1955 for Dorothy Turkel, later passed through several owners, fell into vacancy and disrepair, and then was bought by Dale Morgan and Norman Silk, owners of a floral business in the nearby suburb of Birmingham, who restored it over the next four years.
I saw the house and gardens last summer on an APLD tour … and it's well worth a visit if you're ever in the area. The extensive gardens were designed by landscape architect Norman Hass, who explained that the landscape's predominant new wave and new perennial plantings complement the modern design of the house.
Hass also noted that the owners have added a number of whimsical touches of their own, as seen near the terrace fountain. There's another full size standing buddha statue elsewhere, and the glass globes appear in numerous garden beds.
Inside the house, there's a red tile floor, and although there was not originally an outside terrce, Hass designed one and matched the concrete pavers to the color of the floor inside. It works beautifully to extend the house out into the new landscape and tie the two together.
The owners also wanted a place where they and visitors could enjoy their modern sculptures, so Hass designed a sculpture court, (also seen from above in photo number two), placed between the street side of the property and the house.
I don't know if FLW would have approved of all the garden elements, but it's definitely a standout, as is the house, unlike any other you're likely to see. The house is open to visitors from time to time, so check the website frequently for tours and special events.
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