Do you want to capture the "Prairie style" look in your home?

Do you like the clean simple lines of the furniture, the warm tones of the textiles and rugs, the interplay of colored and clear glass in geometric abstracts?

How do you achieve this look?

This following information is geared for the homeowner who wants to decorate with a "Prairie style" influence, or for a professional interior designer who wants to create this look for their client. Whatever your motivation, I hope you find this site interesting and informative.

A Bit of History

In the late 1800's, architect Louis Sullivan inspired a group of Midwestern architects to create a new architect for America. He encouraged them to break from the past and to create buildings that would blend with the flat landscape around them.

These architects looked at nature and saw the plains of the Midwest. They created homes that were low and broad-based, with a strong sense of horizontal lines, deep sheltering eaves and low terrace walls that reached out to nature. They eliminated hallways and let rooms open and flow into each other. They took several windows and placed them next to each other creating a band of windows that let light in and created a feeling of openess. Each home was to be individual and organic in its site on the land. The themes and color schemes of nature -- gold, rust, yellow, green -- invigorated interiors. Thus the "Prairie School" movement was born.

Frank Lloyd Wright emerged as one of the leaders of this movement. In 1887, Wright stepped off the train in Chicago from Wisconsin. The city was bursting with creative energy and architectural promise. A massive reconstruction was underway in the aftermath of the great Chicago fire of 1871. Wright's architectural career unfolded along with the rise of the Prairie School.Though Louis Sullivan inspired Wright and a generation of young architects with his ideas about nature, it was Wright, Sullivan's employee for nearly six years, who led the search for a new form for the American home. Eventually, he would open his own studio in his home and invite the brighest young talents to join him. Wright collaborated with these artists and design professionals to create an environment by designing not only houses, but furniture, fabrics, lighting art glass and accessories.