The Prairie Style grew out of the Chicago suburbs shortly after the turn of the 20th-century. Led in a part by Frank Lloyd Wright, the loosely associated group of architects known “Prairie School,” sought to create a new housing style with original designs more specifically related to the American Midwest. Contemporary to, and sharing some of its basic philosophies, the Prairie Style is often considered an off-shoot of the American Arts and Crafts Movement, which sought to refrain from many of the excesses often associated with the preceding Victorian age. Wright and his contemporaries felt that the formal hierarchy of the Victorian age house was outmoded, pretentious and non-democratic. In reaction, they created interiors with multi-functional spaces which flowed freely from one room to another. Taking cues from the expansive flatness of Midwest, the Prairie house is predominantly horizontal in its massing. Much greater emphasis is given to connecting the house to nature is both literal and metaphorical.
The most notable aspect of the Prairie-style home is its emphasis of the horizontal line, as well as its consistent integration of interior and exterior features. The materials utilized in the exterior construction of the house are often found, where suitable, in the interior as well. Narrow passage doors that previously connected interior spaces are avoided, and instead offer wider openings often outfitted with pairs of glazed doors, pocket doors, portieres (curtains), or simply left open. The idea of horizontality is also reflected in the extensive millwork often found in Prairie-Style homes, both on the walls and ceilings. The individual or paired, vertical double-hung preferred in Victorian times (referred to as “guillotine windows” by Frank Lloyd Wright) were replaced with continuous “ribbons” of casement windows offering broader views to the exterior. Windows, particularly those in the more formal areas of the house, are often embellished with art glass with stylized natural motifs or geometric patterns. As was popular with other Arts and Crafts styles of the time, built-in furniture is a frequent feature found in Prairie-Style houses.
Prairie-Style homes are often, or at least appear to be built closer the ground from which they “spring.” Exterior terraces and porches that adjoin the home are often generous, and encourage living in, the out of doors. Brick and stucco are perhaps the most prevalent exterior materials, while horizontal wood siding and shake-shingles are occasionally utilized as well. Roof forms are typically shallow in pitch or even flat. This horizontal aspect of the roof is often exaggerated through broad cantilevers and deep soffited eaves.
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