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Many
Masks: A Life of Frank Lloyd Wright by Brendan
Gill and The
Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright: A Complete Catalog
by William Allin Storrer.
Brendan Gill's approach to the life
of Frank Lloyd Wright as a man wearing a series of masks
over his ninety years - from artist-writer-dandy to professional
great man - is as an analogy that may not be appropriate.
Wright's personal relationships and relationships with clients
are the focus of the book, particularly his willingness
to lie in order to deflect emotions or to garner jobs. As
such, the book reads much like contemporary tabloid fare,
though it does provide insight into the architect's life
beyond the built structures that remain and speak to us
in different ways. Although a satisfying read, mainly because
Gill has an ability to put us into the time and place of
the situations, the book does not give us the depth that
Wright's life deserves. A life of masks, or facades, is
a fitting device to create a story, but not a device suitable
for the life of the "greatest American architect".
Storrer's catalog of all of Wright's
built work makes a suitable companion to Gill's biography,
since illustrations in the latter are common for notable
buildings but sparse or nonexistent for lesser-known ones
mentioned in the text. The catalog is in three parts: an
introduction, a roughly chronological, illustrated catalog
of built works from S.000 to S.433 (Storrer's system for
cataloging), and a section of maps and driving directions
for every building. Updated in 2002, the third edition of
the field guide and catalog is indispensable to any serious
Wright enthusiast as a means to experience his genius firsthand.
Masks: 
. . or . . 
Catalog:
. . or . .
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