First American Edition of Frank Lloyd Wright's Buildings Plans and Designs

Frank Lloyd Wright. BUILDINGS PLANS AND DESIGNS. New York: Horizon Press Publishers, 1963. First American edition and first edition in English; limited edition, one of 2500 for-sale copies (2600 total copies), this is no. 104 E. (100) plates loose as issued on cream and gray paper with staple-bound text booklet with foreword by William Wesley Peters, introduction by Wright, and plate list, all protected by a paper chemise and held in a large cloth and printed paper-covered boards portfolio with a pasted yellow label and silk ties. Sweeney 1534 and 87.

DOA 25 3/4 x 16 in.

From a Private Collection, Washington, D.C.

Buildings Plans and Designs is based on Frank Lloyd Wright's Wasmuth Portfolio (1910) which was the first publication of his work. It was published in Germany as Ausgeführte Bauten und Entwürfe von Frank Lloyd Wright by Ernst Wasmuth and included 100 lithographs. The majority of the copies set aside for American publication were unfortunately destroyed in the horrific fire at Wright's Wisconsin home, Taliesin, in 1914. (The fire was set by an employee who also murdered Wright's mistress, her children, and several others at the property.) As noted in the text booklet, this American and first English-language edition of the portfolio was produced in 1963 from one preserved copy, with only a few small changes from the original in German.

Portfolio sunned and scuffed with small damp stains, a few scratches and small tears, corners lightly frayed and rubbed, and some creasing and edge wear to folding panels; chemise with offsetting and marks from portfolio as is common, light creasing, minor edge wear, and tears at corners; booklet with light scattered foxing, creasing, and scuffing, as well as minor tanning at lower edge of front cover, and a couple of small tears on front cover and limitation page; plates with occasional scuffing and light scattered foxing, edges with slight wear and minor toning. Very good in good portfolio and chemise.