The Wright design

Retired couple build tribute to famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright with attention to symmetrical details Retired executive Robert Lurie can't help but smile at the contrast between his adoptive home town of Charleston and the four-story house he built here. Lurie, founder of the nationwide Bright Horizons Corporate Daycare Centers, and wife Jane took years to create a 6,400-square-foot modern dwelling on Kiawah Island's oceanfront. It's inspired by famed designer Frank Lloyd Wright, whose styles are part of the "modern" school of architecture even though his work dates to the 1920s and he died 44 years ago. Still, on a comparative basis, Wright's career is unquestionably new. For instance, match him with Robert Mills and the other architects who designed churches and homes in historic Charleston. Their works stretch back to the 18th century. "We talk about going back to the early part of the 20th century (as modern), realizing that Charleston comprises 200 to 300 years," Lurie said from the couple's terraced, wood-framed home, which happens to be flanked by two towering antebellum-style homes. But the couple didn't build the home just to be modern or different. "We always liked contemporary architecture," Jane Lurie said. "I've always been a Frank Lloyd Wright buff," her husband said. "It's not your typical sight for the beachfront, (but) it fits very nice into the beachfront." Indeed. Professionals were so impressed with the dwelling that the contractor, Buffington Homes of Kiawah Island, won a national award for the 20th annual Best in American Living program's "best one-of-a-kind custom homes (built for a client), 6,501 square feet and over." The competition -- open to builders, architects, designers, developers, land planners and interior designers -- is co-sponsored by the National Association of Home Builders and Professional Builder magazine. Buffington and other winners will be honored at the International Builders Show on Jan. 19-22 in Las Vegas. "Our building company specializes in complex structures in a harsh environment," said Cathy Buffington, partner. The complexities include constant ocean winds, hurricane proofing and severe heat and humidity and its associated mold and mildew problems. But the Luries' home presented additional troubles. "Typically, custom trim work facilitates disguising minor imperfections associated with drywall. However, this particular home had to be exactly textbook perfect," Buffington said. Corners were all exact right angles, bricks symmetrical and every line 100 percent straight. In one case, the builder demolished and replaced poured concrete floors "due to an angle that was slightly off," she said. "It was an interesting process to get this accomplished in South Carolina," Robert Lurie said. "Any time you try something that's not the normal process, it's difficult." Even with the Wright-like attention to symmetrical detail, Lurie acknowledges that the architect would not have considered the house to be within his style. It's more an homage to the architect; that's why the title of Buffington Homes' entry was "Wright Revered." "If Frank Lloyd Wright were to stay here, he would not view it as his house," Lurie said. Construction subcontractors thought the home looked Japanese. Actually, that wasn't so far off. Wright was influenced by Japanese design, and one of his crowning achievements is the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo. But the design in many cases follows Wright's "prairie period" from the 1930s to the 1950s and is influenced by his home designs from the Chicago suburb of Oak Park, Ill., to Taliesen West in Arizona and his work at Auldblass Plantation near Yemassee. Except for a rolling, grassy front yard, the Luries' home is built into the woods. "We kept all these trees, (including) a grove of pines," Jane Lurie said. The imposing rear deck has a decorative pool and red concrete that leads to a crossover to the beach. The home is on a deep, narrow lot, which posed a challenge. Wright typically built horizontally. To get around it, the Luries designed a garage and entryway at ground height so that the main floor is really up a level. "We deliberately staggered the house," he said. The Lurie home is Wright-inspired in more than just architecture. It has tables, chairs -- even bathroom vanities -- that are Wright designs. For instance, many tables are Stickley (a popular Wright design); one is an original. The architect would craft not only the structure but the furniture, decorations, lighting -- the whole works. "It was unusual for an architect to do that. He wanted to do it this way," Robert Lurie said. Among other features in the Luries' home: -- Wood, primarily white oak, predominates throughout the four-story home. The oak is lighter than Wright used in most of his works. There are plenty of other textures -- red concrete floors, a brick fireplace, ceramic sinks and granite countertops. -- Ceilings, railings and other features have a carved wood trim that represents a "pathway to discovery." That's in keeping with Wright's use of repetitious elements, such as a tree of life, Jane Lurie said. -- The terraced back patio has a angular look, with porch rails that include iron designs with the tree-of-life pattern. "One of the basic tenets was bringing the outside in," Jane Lurie said. -- A brick fireplace with a hearth is repeated on each floor (winding up in the fourth-floor master bedroom). The Luries used Norman brick, a thinner brick shipped from Nebraska, to give the fireplace a cozier feel. But it's not as thin as the Roman brick that Wright favored. -- Ceilings rise to 9 feet on the second floor from 8 feet on the first, opening up to a great room with a 24-foot-high ceiling. It's all open space, another Wright concept. -- The dining room is based on the Dana-Thomas House in Springfield, Ill. (The Luries have a framed photo of the home hanging in the house.) A long wooden table sits under a lighted ceiling. The chairs are all wooden with high, straight backs; the Luries added their own touch with a slight curve to them. "We found a place -- Swartzendriber in Goshen, Ind. -- that does prairie-style furniture," he said. -- The kitchen, maintaining the rustic theme, includes stainless-steel ovens and wooden cabinets -- even a Sub-Zero refrigerator hidden behind a wooden door. -- Extensive second-floor shelving and wall nooks display the Luries' collection of pottery assembled over a decade from California to North Carolina. While the Luries have dreamed about a contemporary home for years, they did not seriously consider it in their former home in New Jersey, where Bright Horizons was based. They've visited the Charleston area since 1996, finally deciding to buy a lot on the Kiawah beachfront. That's when the dream became reality. The couple is moved in, but they still have a few minor improvements left, such as deciding a use for a concrete open space near the front door. "I think we have made good progress for the first year," she said. Jane and Robert Lurie of Kiawah Island assembled a team of artisans to design and build their Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired home. Here's a list (the artisans are local unless otherwise noted): Contractor -- Buffington Homes (Dan Buffington) Architect -- Grady Woods, Spivey and Woods Art glass -- Bob Hines, Hines Studios Cabinetry -- Dale Hostedler Custom prairie-style furniture -- Swartzendruber Hardwood Creations, Goshen, Ind. Metal detail and railings -- Jamie Fuentes, Carolina Ornamental Iron Painting -- Frank Leigh Window treatments -- Windows by Winona

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