Frank Lloyd Wright had a radical idea for low-cost construction when Alice Millard, a rare book dealer and antiques collector, commissioned him to design a house in Pasadena. He would use concrete blocks, "the cheapest (and ugliest) thing in the building world," the architect wrote in his autobiography. "Why not see what could be done with that gutter-rat?"
On Saturday, 1,000 architecture buffs got a view of what could be done during a rare tour of La Miniatura, the flawed jewel of a structure Wright built for Millard in 1923. The event, the first public opening of the house since 1992, was sponsored by Friends of the Gamble House.
Andy Brokenshire, a self-proclaimed "huge fan" of Wright, flew five hours from Toronto to tour the house, which is in the midst of a years-long restoration.
"His stuff is just magnificent," said Brokenshire, who works in advertising. "I remember as a kid seeing this house in a book. It's wild to think that I'm actually going into it."
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