Nathan G. Moore House (Moore-Dugal House) - Oak Park, Illinois
Posted by: Hikenutty
N 41° 53.575 W 087° 48.031
16T E 433591 N 4638196
The Moore-Dugal residence is Frank Lloyd Wright's first independent commission after he left the offices of Adler and Sullivan in 1893. He found the building "repugnant", but did took the commission for the "chalet" because he needed money.
Waymark Code: WM1X90
Location: Illinois, United States
Date Posted: 07/25/2007
Views: 72
The following excerpt can be found in tour 11 of the "WPA Guide to Illinois":
The evolution of Wright's philosophy of open planning and harmony of site and structure is documented by a series of Oak Park houses (all private residences), several of which are along Forest Avenue. The N.G. MOORE HOUSE (1894), 329 Forest Ave., is a compromise between Wright's ideas and Mr. Moore's taste for half-timbered English cottages. Next door is the more typical HILLS HOUSE (1906). Others include the ARTHUR HEURTLEY HOUSE (1902), 312 Forest Ave., at the rear of which is the finest and oldest of the magnificent oaks along Forest Avenue; the GALE HOUSE (1905), 6 Elizabeth Court; and the BEACHY HOUSE (1906), 238 Forest Ave.
The Moore-Dugal House is one of 25 buildings designed by Frank Lloyd Wright between 1889 and 1913 in the village of Oak Park, Illinois. As the guide says, Wright wasn't altogether happy about this building and was quoted as calling the house "repugnant." However, he was just starting out his career and needed the commission. At that point he wasn't able to pick and choose his clients.
Although it is an extremely ornate structure and very unlike his later work, you can see the planes becoming evident in the design and even a low cantilevered extension of the roof line near the entrance.