Philip Johnson, The Glass House, New Canaan, Connecticut, 1945 - 1949, Photo by Staib via Wikimedia Commons, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
Philip Johnson’s Glass House and The Architecture of Transparency
The Art Minute University: This post was written by Ryan Maler, a student at Southwestern University, Georgetown, TX.
The Glass House, designed by architect Philip Johnson, is set in a rural landscape in New Canaan, Connecticut. The modern home has a minimalist aesthetic. The home is surrounded by scenic woodland views and is seamlessly integrated into the environment through its transparent design. The transparency causes the home to appear relatively absent in the scenery.
The paradoxical element present in this architectural masterpiece is the combination of industrial building components and the natural environment. With this contradiction, Johnson presents and interesting juxtaposition of industrial design and Mother Nature’s setting; however, due to the innovative use of glass walls, nature appears to be the dominant factor in this piece.
“Don’t build a glass house if you’re worried about saving money on heating.”
Philip Johnson
For $30,000, you and 10 of your closest friends can have dinner at The Glass House, and after your guests leave, you can stay the night. Click here for more details.
Click here to read about the experience in The New York Times.
