|
Sales sample outside
the gift shop at the Home & Studio |
THE MIDWAY GARDENS
SPRITES The Midway
Gardens Sprites are a favorite decorative item for FLW fans and building
owners. These elongated statues were
designed for the now-demolished Midway Gardens entertainment facility (S.180)
on Chicago’s South Side near the Robie
House/University of Chicago area.
Sprites of various sizes are sold through catalogs and at the Ginko Tree store at the Frank Lloyd Wright Home & Studio. Several design
variations exist. The statues are
also the source of a legendary dispute between Wright and the sculptor, Alfonso Iannelli. To
keep this story short, Iannelli claimed that he designed
the sprites for Wright and was entitled to credit as the designer. Wright, in a strongly worded letter,
assured Iannelli that – while Iannelli
no doubt believed his own story – history will show that Wright designed the
sprites and Iannelli merely executed the
design. Needless to say, the two never
worked together again. |
A sprite watches
over the woods in Okemos, Michigan at the Edwards Residence (S.313) |
A variation at the Howard Anthony Residence (S.315)
in Benton Harbor,
Michigan |
New
10/31/2011 Revised
10/03/2012 |