Frank Lloyd Wright: A Blueprint for Human Longevity
In 2019, I was a guide at Taliesin West, Frank Lloyd Wright’s winter home in the Arizona desert. I noticed a trend, most of the guides were seasoned from decades of volunteering at the space. They were at least 60, some in their late 70s. None seemed like “old people” as they led tours in the Arizona sun. Apprentices of Wright’s were still alive, and several would return each fall to spend time at Taliesin West. I passed Arnold Roy, 92 at the time, as I took guests on tour. The Wrights themselves lived long lives. Mr. Wright was 91 when he passed, his wife Olgivana, 86. Many of his apprentices lived well into their 90s: Dodge, 91, Rattenbury, 93, Tafel, 98. This longevity extended to Wright clients as well. Roland Reisley is Wright’s last living client (101 this year), “The house has been wonderful, and my life here has been good. I think the house has contributed to my health and longevity.”
What Frank Lloyd Wright Knew About the Fountain of Youth
Sure we’re living longer, but in 1867, when Mr. Wright was born, the average life span was only 40, and in 2022, right after my tenure ended, the average life span of a man in the United States was still only 74!
This begged the question; can architecture influence human longevity? Science says yes.
When we think of well-being and healthy lives, we often think of headlines encouraging us to exercise, be more mindful, or medical interventions in our physical health. But recent studies on longevity suggest only 10% of the major indicators come from health outcomes. The larger share of these outcomes come from individual behavior (40%) and environmental factors (20%). Author Ben Channon notes in his book Happy by Design: A Guide to Architecture and Mental Wellbeing, that we spend 80% of our time in built spaces. These spaces can affect our mood, and the quality of these spaces impact our happiness and by association, our mental health.
The Wright Aesthetic
When visiting the Martin House in Buffalo New York, I started crying. Mascara-running, “is that woman ok?” crying. I was overcome. When we encounter beautiful things such as nature, art, music or moving social events like weddings or funerals, we experience aesthetic emotions. These emotions can trigger physical reactions we often associate as pleasurable, such as goosebumps, “tears of joy” or shivers up one’s spine. A positive aesthetic experience can transport us or allow us to escape our everyday. The opportunity to escape reality, even for a brief period, contributes to an overall improvement in one’s well-being and lowers stress levels.
“The longer I live the more beautiful life becomes. If you foolishly ignore beauty, you will soon find yourself without it. Your life will be impoverished. But if you invest in beauty, it will remain with you all the days of your life.”
― Frank Lloyd Wright
According to psychological research, our environment, specifically our time in built spaces, impacts our health more than genetics, medical care and lifestyle. The psychologists leading these studies, noted ceiling height and openness can influence emotion, and the movement through a space affects aesthetic judgment. Wright employed an idea called “compression and release.” You enter the space through a lower doorway into a tight hallway which is sometimes elongated to hide the space within. You feel a little uncomfortable and you don’t linger, instead you instinctively want to move out of this tight space. Wright then unveils his sometimes sweeping interiors filled with light and you instantly feel comfortable.
Prospect-Refuge, Wright Spaces for the Caveman Within
In the 1970s, Jay Appleton proposed his prospect-refuge theory. Humans are drawn to spaces that give them opportunities to survey their environment — prospect, without being visible — refuge. Think cavemen and caves. Our primal ancestors needed a way to see their prey without giving away their location to other predators. In Wright’s Prairie houses, he moved away from the traditional homes with entrances facing the street. The front door is often to the side, hidden from immediate view. His homes always feature fireplaces at the center of the home, drawing you in, creating a feeling of warmth and comfort.
The Need for Nature
One of the most profound ways architecture contributes to our sense of well-being is how the space is situated in, or embraces nature. Exposure to plants improves attention in workspaces. In hospital spaces, exposure to indoor plants lowers blood pressure, anxiety and fatigue, and increases positive feelings. Spending time in nature reduces stress, improves our memories, and may make us kinder and more creative.
“Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you.”
― Frank Lloyd Wright
Wright is synonymous with the term Organic Architecture. Taliesin West’s walls are constructed with desert masonry: a mix of boulders collected by hand from the site, and desert sand and water combined to make mortar. Nature becomes the adornment of Wright spaces. The geometry of the peak of the roof on Wright’s office at Taliesin West, follows the exact same angle of the mountain clearly visible in the clerestory windows. His prairie homes mimic the plains of the Midwest. He designed spaces in perfect harmony with their surroundings. He was also a proponent of bringing the indoors into a space with atriums and planters or walls which open to the outdoors.
Usonian Optimism
Wright felt everyone deserved to live in a beautiful space and spent a large part of his career proposing “Usonian” homes. He felt these homes would give us a united identity elevated by nature and beauty. Usonia is an acronym for United States of North America. These Usonian plans were simple and inexpensive enough to build, that they could be easily copied. Wright saw ahead into mass-built neighborhoods, but they were flexible enough to adapt to each clients’ needs.
Organic architecture was a signature of the Usonian. The homes featured skylight openings and other pass-through features to allow you to traverse the outdoors while moving through your home. He intentionally placed each home toward the back corner of the lot-this offered two benefits: refuge (it was harder to see from street level) and a deeper view of the outdoor garden space. The spaces also featured the ubiquitous fireplace clad in natural materials. Wright wanted aesthetic value available to all and insisted that while these homes should be affordable, they should also include decorative elements and fine materials from the surrounding environment. He understood what we now know from neuroscience-aesthetics can generate emotions which contribute to our well-being.
“I believe in God, only I spell it Nature.”
― Frank Lloyd Wright
I toured a Usonian home, The Gordon House near Salem, Oregon. The clever use of space makes the interior seem much larger than it is. The design of the staircase is purposeful and completely obscures the view of the bedrooms upstairs allowing its residents privacy. Walls open to allow airflow and access to the outdoors. Aesthetic notches in the wood allow light and shadow to play throughout the space. The walls are cedar-native to the Pacific Northwest. Wright incorporated Mrs. Gordon’s passion for weaving by designing a little loft for her loom. A clever window directly across from this space, allows ample sunlight in the hallway, and when seated at her loom, positioned so her view was directly into Nature. Mrs. Gordon spent her remaining years as resident and docent, opening her home to architecture enthusiasts from all over the world. She lived to be 89 years old.
References
Ages of apprentices and Wright: The Whirling Arrow, The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, , accessed April, 2025
Wright’s last living client: McLaughlin, Katherine, Working with Frank Lloyd Wright: The Architect’s Last Living Client Shares His Experience with the Visionary, Architectural Digest, May, 2024
Statistics on life expectancy: Center for Disease Control, National Center for Health Statistics, accessed April 17, 2025
Health statistics and built spaces: Wilhem, Jacob J. Architecture and Health: Guiding Principles for Practice, Routledge, 2020
Architecture and mental health: Channon, Ben, Happy by Design: A Guide to Architecture and Mental Wellbeing, RIBA Publishing, 2023
Aesthetic Emotions: Heshmat, Shahram How Beautiful Things Make Our Lives Better, Psychology Today, October 2021
Psychology and built spaces: St-Jean, Phillipe, et. al., A Review of the Effectiveness of Architectural Stimuli on Human Psychology and Physiology, Building and Environment, Vol. 219, 2022
Prospect & Refuge: Akcelik, Gaby N. et. al., Quantitative Urban Environments: Aesthetic Preference Through the Lense of Prospect-Refuge Theory, Journal of Environmental Psychology, Vol. 97, 2024
Usonians: Brennentot, Arnaud, Should We Forget Frank Lloyd Wright? The promises of Usonian Housing, Le Monde Diplomatique, Vol. 95, 2007, p. 16
