The Mother Art Is Architecture - Frank Lloyd Wright

The Nature Of Art & Architecture

Falling Water

• His actual quote was, "The mother art is architecture. Without an architecture of our own we have no soul of our own civilization.Brainy Quote. *

This might sound rather pompous coming from the mouth of an architect. Even one that is renowned as Frank Lloyd Wright. Instead, it is more of an observation on the development of civilization and culture. Architecture enabled domestication and helped to protect us from the constant need to deal with the elements. This is a very basic need for humans to thrive.

Without it we don't have one of the very fundamental requirements for psychological growth in the opinion of Abraham Maslow. According to Maslow, if you are spending all of your energy to stay warm you won't have much time for higher levels of development. So in this way architecture is the mother of all art. Without it we would not have probably been able to spend much time on the development of the esthetic qualities of life. This seems to be a pretty logical conclusion to come too.

So without architecture there would likely be no arts. We would likely not have graphics, dance, music, or even written language that is poetic. We would be anchored to the most pragmatic functions of life. If you consider the early cave paintings it could be inferred that the simple pictures of people and animals on the walls of the cave were perhaps the first marriage of art and architecture. But from that example we see an early association between people having dwellings and the development of culture and artistic expression.

Interpretation Of Forms & Function

The range of aesthetic expression in architecture has changed significantly. This has been coincidently been coupled with the development of technology, materials, and artistic vision along with the practical utility of the spaces that we design. In schools of architecture there is a lot of metaphor. In the first image of this article there is a very organic and collaborative association of the forms and function with that of the environment that is build into. In this case the house was actually a part of the landscape by design. Instead of the traditional thought of placing the house so the very beautiful water could be observed was trumped by the integration of it into the very structure of the house. It gave rise to an experience of the water and the setting that would not otherwise have been realized.

Architecture As The Beginning Of My Art

Architecture was one of the first forms of art that I started to explore. As an architectural designer I have used it to influence the rest of my artistic work for a long time. It helped me understand the rational form and even the rational abstract. It has influence both my sense of beauty and how light works in spaces to create feeling, passion and emotion.

It has also helped me to establish a relationship between set, and setting. It often suggests the context for the way I think about art.

Lately I have been spending a lot of time doing concept artwork for a possible TV show. I have never really been a conceptual artist accept in the practice of architectural design and environmental art.

So it follows that this new role for me is inspired a lot by architecture. A lot of the conceptual art that I am doing involves creating various spaces. What is new to me is the fact that this project is science fiction.

But not everything I am designing is related to buildings. I am working on designs from spacecraft to androids. Not areas that I am particularly versed in.

Yet architecture has influenced my understanding of even these types of forms.

The Great Arch

One of the very last parts of my concepting project is to develop a artistic language for the design of the art that will be developed by other artists. This is a factor that I am still not very comfortable with. I hope that the work that I have done helps to inspire and encourage the professionals who will come after me to create great sets and help to build a certain continuity and feel for the production.

I Love Feedback

So what do you think about Wright's quote? Is architecture the mother art? What kind of impact has architecture had on you and your understanding or practice of art? Do you agree with his statement or do you have another way of looking at it? I would love to know your thoughts.