Review: ‘This Is Frank Lloyd Wright’

A work of art - and the artist behind it - can mean many different things to many different people. Such is the case with Midwestern architect Frank Lloyd Wright, as detailed in Ian Volner's 'This is Frank Lloyd Wright.” Part biography, part picture book, this brief, young adult book showcases the multiple identities of Wright - famed architect, notorious philanderer, beloved son, disappointing father - as well as comic depictions and illustrations of some of his most famous works. The result is a small, sturdy book that provides a balanced - if thin - overview of the life and works of a complicated artist.

Beginning with the story 'and the mythology” of Wright's extended family, Volner portrays Wright as a determined, talented man who let nothing - not family, not heritage, certainly not propriety - stand in his way. Volner condenses Wright's life down to its choicest moments, summing up complicated experiences, such as Wright's turn as a furniture maker or the tragedy at Taliesin, into single pages. These sharp, clean passages provide a foundation for future exploration, while the illustrations serve to pique curiosity and, at times, provide an emotional connection.

There are no great revelations in Volner's work. Knowledge of Wright's successes - as well as his leaky roofs, many affairs, and antisemitism - are well documented. The freshness, then, comes from Kirkham's charming illustrations, particularly the interior of Wright's Oak Park Chicago home.

'This is Frank Lloyd Wright” is part of British publishing house Laurence King's This Is... series of biographical books about influential artists. The series, aimed at middle to high school students, is expansive in terms of historical reach, including artists from da Vinci to Warhol, but remarkably restrictive in terms of subject, as the series features only books about white male artists.

But I digress. This is Frank Lloyd Wright is a unique gift for the budding prairie school artist or the armchair architect.