The Modern

Period Room
The construction of
the exhibited interior
1870 to 1950

Edited by
P€nny Sparke, Brenda Martin
and Trevor Keeble

ll Routledoe
Chapter 6

'A man's house is

his art'
The Walker Art Center's /dea
House project and the marketing
of domestic design, 1941-7
Alexandra Griffith Winton

ln 1941, rhe Walker A( Cenrer of Minn€apolis, Minnesota, built and exhibiled /de6
House Amercs's first museLrl..-sponsored, fully functonalmodern exh]b tion house,
cr€ated to present ideas on home building in 6 dom$lic environmenl. The Wa ke'
followed /dea House h 1947 with a post'war leration of this s.me project /oee
House 4 whlchgamered nationalmedia attention andlh€ interest ofolher mlse-_s
ldea House ptedares by several years both the Aft and Architecture Cas€ S:-r.
House prolect and the lvluseum of Modern Art's House in the N,4r.rse!- C: t:_
series. ln addilion lo the two inhabitable and completely lLrns':r _:,:::
conslructed on rnlselrm grounds, al least six other ldea Hous€s .ie-r::'- :
suburban subdivision. were planned bul never buill ldea Ho$e 1...:..^. .'.:
1961 to make room for the Tyrone Guihrie Theatr€, designed by l"l __:,.: : -::: _ :
archrect Ralph Bapson. ldea House llwas demalished in :9€E :3.i- :_ = :,'_ :

Bracketing the ends ol the Great Depress on a.! , :'

An Csnler's /dea House exh'bilions synlhesized .s::: :
co sJmplio. o' home desrgn. bo owing r"c__o
t,srng ano inousrry rn oroer to convince rls vrsrlorc o
of desisn to their lives. The form of this unusla
Al.r.nda Gtilfth Winto.

symbol of lhe American Dream: the sinqle-family house.' By assuming rh€ format of
the modelhome, /dea House attempted to disrupl its convenliooal role, encouraging
vewers to boffow from a range ol solutions, rather than accept ng a prepackaged,
standardized home design. These dwellings created a p€diciparo.y consumer spec-
racle oI the lvpeexperienced inWorld's Fair exhibilions and commercial modelhome
deve opments, n wh ch v s tors wer6 introduced to a variely oi modern arch teciural
conceprs, materials, and lechniques, as well as lh€ most up 1o-date home applianc€
rechnology. ln contrast to those types of home displays. how€ver. the /dea House
goods and materials were selected by museum cu€tors. The houses themselves
were des gned by a rch tects retained by the Wa ker, rather tha n commerc a spon-
sors. While they took the conventiona form of mode homes, shall argle lhat the
ldea Houses were. in l6cl. polemical exercises in relorm household and musec
logical Aimed at aclivating the arl museum as a r€l€vant socialand cultural insitution
ior the wdest posslbe population, and mising th€ quallty ol home desgn and tech-
nology by serv ng as exempats. ldea House ttavetsed the bounds of arl, polil cs, and
business in new and innovative ways. The very siructurc ol the ldea House exhibi
tions, with meir extensve .iidactic intormation and immedlale physical access.
€ncouraged vsitors to nvolve themselves activ€y in the tholghtful desgn afd
turnishing of their own homes. at the s6me time transtoming ther museum experi
ence These projects rclled a period of Ameican history in which the spheres of
governm€nt social policy, economics, and arch tocture were inBxtrcaby entwned,
and hols ng was a prlorty ol governmenl as much as commercialenttes Discusson
of the prolect is complicated by irs role 6s a museum exhibition, and its archilectural
and museological methods are arguably inseparable. The Min goals oJ provid'ng
qua iy home-des gn advice and reinvent ng lhe museum experence are what made
the prolect pop| ar in its day and nteresting now lt s necessary ro treat th€ houses
both as exhibitions and as houses, and lhe interplay ol commerce and the museum
is perhaps ossenlial lo discussion of the project: the oveMhelming commorcial influ-
€nce on home design and furn sh ngs was what nsp red the proied n the f rsi place.
The summer ol 2000 saw the relfcarnarion of /dea House /l or al least a
portion of il, inside lhe WalkerA.t Center galleries. As part ol a larger exhibilion called
The Hame Show rhe V',la ker re creat€d rhe lv ng room of /dea House // and opened
it up for vstors to explore lle ldea House ll te-.tealion io ns those for lhe Case
Sludy House Project 11983) and Le Corbusier's 1925 Pavilion de L'Espril Nouveau
{2000) as important modern interiors partially reconslructed within the conlext of a
r. useum €xhibit on.'z Th s genera y thouqhtful and cons dered re'creat on ot the 1 947
ving room n a mrseum dedcated io contemporary art poses a numb€r of qlestons
abour the evolving int€eretations of rwentieth cenrury design and architecture within
current curalorial praclic€, and highlights the shilling significance ot lhis materi6lfrom
1947 to th€ present day
Perhaps the mosl remarkable aspecl ol th s re cr€aton is how much of
rhe matedal from ldea House llis siill manufactured today The Walkels Summer
2000 calendar brochlJr€ staies:
 'A man s house is his an

A partal re cre.ton of the holse s m€ n living space seryes as a toca

poi.t ntheexhbtonga eres,leat!rnghlslorca y acc!rate maiera s and
lurnish ngs by such des gn luminares as Charles and Ray Eames. Alvar
Aalto, lsamu Noglch. Walter von Nessen and George Nelson

A the furnishings were acq! red new lron'r Kno Herman Miller, and other m€kers
Eva Ze sels Town and Co!nrry d nneMare was a so re ntroduced shortly before rhe
exh b t on ope ned, in a Zeise a lthorized reprodLrction, € nd was featured n the v n s-
room(Figure6.1) lnhe.essay Tl-re Exh bton st Holse,'arch tect!re histor€n Beatrz

Manllacturers have played a crlca roe n promoting modern archltect!re

throlqholt tl-re cent!rvr the d sco!rse aro!nd the modern hoLrse s funda
menla y inked to lhe com mercializat on of domestc life. ln the end, a

the dilferent forms of exh bton were iea y advertisements 3

At the beg/nnrng of ihe tweniy f rst century, the lruits ol thrs persistent p.omotion
and adve(sement of modern d€sgn were ceary ev denl I The Home Show br| 1
s no onger the manufacturers but the designe6 who are on dispay: 'good des gn
s now a branded entity, and its deslgners are descrbed as'uminares. Whle in the
otgna ldea House ll terature, scant mention was made of any parlc!ar deslgnerl
here they are celebr t es.
/dea House i/ was created f rst and loremost by a muselm as an exhlb
tondwe ng, and n recreatng t n part, it is nec€ssery to examine ihal defnitive
aspect n greater detail By reying on modern sampes of the orgna fLrrn sh ngs,
rather than nowvaluable period pieces, theexhblon enabed vstors to nteract
freey with the flrn shings and accessores within the vngroom ln encolrag ng
thls close, tdct e lnteracton between vs torand oblect, the exhibitlon shared a sirong
partc parory element w1h rs antecedenl. However, sgn f cant add tona elements
of the orgina prolecfs context and content were efl olt No prce st or manu
fdcturer's €ddresses or other references to the oblects roies as consum€r items
were dispayed. lnste€d, didacric labes sted the objects oriq na d€tes an':l manu'
fact! rels and, wh ere relevant, the prod led ite ms V ewers woLr d have
Lrce rs of reiss
benefted fronr earningtheprcesofsomeoitheseobjects nI947, I only to target
lher h storical perspectve on the contrast between the goas of the origina i.lea
House project, to promote reasonaby prced modern homes and fLrrn sh.gs. and
these same f!rnishlngs curent statls as design cons ln 1947. the cost of ar Ea,nes
LCW was around US$25, which wo!d be US$185 today, wir e a

arolnd US$550 from an aulhorzed reta/er, and an orlgi.a char from 1917 could
br ng thousands at aucton a Th s s key nformation ln he p ng the vew€r to contex
tuallze tl-ris object and ts conrpex h story, ncorporat ng botir its c!ratora and
commerca dentities
Alexandra Grifiith winton

r8
L

ln its general uneasness to engage these works as consumer tems/ €l

ether hlstor ca y or n th€lr cu rrent m: n ifestation as deslrab e deslg n icons, the Home
Show nstallation reilected not the exempary, consLrmer-oriented goa s of the orlg
ina projecl, but was inslead a formally accumte dsplay of h srorcaldes gn -a period
room. The apparcnt lransparency of the orginal /dea House project, n which the
museum attempted to act €s a conduit for good design, created a museum
sanciioned conslmer spectace that was benefica to bolh consumer and manu
facturer at a tme when both aflordable housing and mantaifng a productive
consumer economy were naliona priorltes. The declson to focus on the form ancl
ob)ecls al ldea House llin this re creation, rather than its origifa cons!mer oienta-
tion, reflects both th€ inc.easlng dlstance today between the average vs tor and the
arch tect-designed hon're advocated by the /dea House c!rators, and the ncreasing
histor ca mportance of the desisners of th s period.
 ? man's hous€ b hi3 .d'

ldea House Ii a groundbreaking domestic

dwelling proiect in the American Midwest
n Janla ry 1 940 the Walke r A.t Center, established as a pr vate aft collection n 1 875,
became one of over 100 c vic arts centers across the Un ted States operaled under
the a!spices of the Federa Arts Prolect (FAP) of the Works Project Administaton,
Franklin D. Boosevet's massvefedera program to empoythe scores of unempoyed
Americans durng the Depression. Daniel S. Defenbacher, an arch tect by tranng
and a veleran admlnlslrator ol the FAP, was named ts d rector Binging to the
Walker rhe FAP mandate to empoy artists and foster creativty and interest in
the arts among the genera pop! arion, he immedlaley reorgan zed the institution,
rad ca y tansform ng it nto a center for contemporary art and design. DeJenbacher
relmag ned the roe 3nd mission of the art mlseum, seeking to activate its cuhura
influence by rendering ts projects reevant to the lives ol people who did not fee
welcome in a tradltiona m!se!m. Recaling the ph osophies of John Cotton
Dana at the Newa.k Vluseum earlier in the century, he perceved the muse!.n as
'a repository for lhe possessions, the g orous relics, the intimate triviata of dead and
myste.ious ancestors,' in stark d stinction to fte art center, which sought to make aft
inall ts folms, ncluding nduslrial des gn and advedising, re eva nt to 'h uman mea n ng
and contemporary experence.5 Among his ear est and mosr infuental prolecis
\Nas ldea House, a project that would illustrate Defenbache. s prem se that, 'As a
consumer, every man uses art. .. . His medium he obta ns from stores, manufac-
turers, and buiders. His composton is his environment.'6
ln October 1940, Defenbacher wrote to a local building materia s vendor
to solicit in kind contributions to the Walker Jor an !pcominq proiect ln coniuncton
wth a three-pad exhiblton tted American Living. \le mlseum planned a fully func
tonal, completey f!rnlshed house, .s
Defenbacher beleved that models and
draw ngs were no longer a suflicent means of experenc ng the spatialand materal
innovations of modern design. Thls exhibition hoLrse, called /dea House because t
was meant to present mu tipe ideas about home desgn, materials, and decomtion,
was designed by ocal architects Malcolm afd tvliriam Lein, and built on a plot beh nd
the Wa ker on iis andscaped grounds. lt opened to the public n June 1941. /dea
House ran fmm June through November, after wh ch the museum panned to use
ihe holse as a classroom and laboratory for design and home decorat ng programs.
Def enbacher explained:

The exh bton home has been designed by architects who have bee.
retained in the Art Center staff forthis pu.pose. The house exemplifies up
to-date open plannins and mutpe use of space'. The major feaiure in
planning has b6en to obtain the maxim!m spaciousness within the cubic
content of the average live room house. The house w lbe so'ca ed
modern n appearance, but will not have the box- ke character, which so
Alexandrr Grifi hh winron

many peope dis ke .. The house wilbe open to the pubic day
afd evening and on Sunday lor six n'ronths We w provlde gLrards and
attendants at all times We wil charge 10 cenG admission to the house
until our inv€shent has been returned to us. Alter lhat. admission will

Taeeting vendors and manufacture.s ol home building suppliss and furn6hings.

Delenbacher promoted the economic and publicjelations benefils ot convibuling
goods to the exhibnlon, while at the sam€ tlme he anempted to protect the nsltu
tion from the potentia tainl ol commercialsm, writng, 'We are an educational
institution interested only in giving fie layman informalion and ideas. We are, there
fore, unrenricled by the need for commercial exploitation which accompanies the
average mode hor.e plan.3
The Walkeis choce of a sinqleiamiv house, rather lhan a mode ap6.t
ment. reflected a longsbnding American interest in home owne.ship, especially the
free sranding private house in suburban sunoundinqs.e /dea House (subsequently
refened to as idea House / to distlngu sh it irom th€ 1947 /dea House //) w6s bu i
al a tme when the economy was jlsl begnfng to recover lrom the Greal
Depression, and there was deep general concem over America's impending involve
ment in World War ll. The Depression years saw housing stan lo plunge dramalically
hom the boom yearc of the 1920s, and I nancial dlress was so widespread that by
1933,49 percent ol the nat ona home mortgaqe debt was in dsfauli and each week
fiere were around one thousand home forcclosures.'o
8y 1934 the situaiion was so dire thal Congress passed lhe National
Housing Act, ntended to provlde some relief for both the general popu lai on and the
real-esr.te lndustries. The Federal Housing Administraton, founded as parr of ths
act, soughl to stimulale home ownership by offering. together with cooperating
banks, longrerm mo.tg€ges coverlng up to 80 perceni of a home s value. This was
n contrast to prevallng mortgage practces, wh ch dBmanded from 40 to 50 p€rceni
ol a home s value in down-paymenr, with lhe principal wlthin as few as three
dLre
yea6. Additional home improvemenl and modemization loans were also available
ihroLrgh the FHA, a owing borroweG to renov.le lhe r homes or plrchase malor
app ances they otherwise co! d nor allord By 1938 the hols ng industry appeared
to rebound, with as rnany 6s one in eight Amencan homeowne.s pa.licipating n the
FHA loan prcgrams. US Census 8u.eau statistics indicate lhal homeownership
incrcased signiiicanty lrom I930 to 1950, and Minnesola consistent y ranked amo.g
the states with the h ghesi homeownersh p rates natonwde.r'
From its inception, the FHA exened a powerful inlluence over the appeac
ance ot fte homes il helped to linance. ln a series ol leatlels called lechnical
Brl/etns,lhe FHAlss!ed d rect des gn and consruction advice 10 homeb!ilders, wilh
ltles incuding Maden Design a.d Mechanical Equpnent fot the Homel, Ihe
lormer addressed th€ meaning of 'modern as understood by rhe FHA. detining it
as a primarily pragmatrc use of space, an economrc use ot malerials, and iudicious
 'A m.n's house is his ad'

app caton of lechnoogy This was olt ned in dstncton to faddsh desiqns wih
sly stc leatures having noth ng to do wlh the slrlcture or functlon of the house
We panned modein homes, the guide expaned, wolld receve lrgh ratnqs hom
FFA eva Lrators. wh e'modern stc' homes would not. The after booklet addressed
new app ances for the home, ncludlng dshwashers Anotlrer booklet, Ie.hrrbrl
Buletin # l Prinddes of Planning Sma Hauses, prescribed building standards and
desgn pincip es by Lrstrating sampe homes, estab sh ng standards to wh ch FHA
homes woud adhere Jor decades. Tlrs booklet was contnlousy updated afd
expanded n ts 1940 ileration, t presenled € revoltionary deslgn that a owed for
varat ons n pan and mat€ra s wth n € slandard zed s ng e-storey, one'fam y holse
footprnt n spte of the nnovatve pan, the elevatlons lstrated ln the guide 1ea
t! red convent onal det€ s, w th sma windows and pitclr ed roofs Th s holse, wh ch
became known as the FHA mnmLrm'house, was desgned to provide the mosl
efficeit use ol space wth the greatest economy of means.rs
N/lode home exhiblions were extremey popuar evei during the
Depresson, and among the types of'average mode home projects lrom whch
Defenbaclrer solght lo d st ng! sh /./ea House I were a n!mber of demonstratlon
dwe ngs sponsored by lndlstry and housifg exh blons at highly popular Wond s
Fairs and expositions.ra
At the 1939 World s Fair n New York, to cle but one exampe. The Town
ol Tomotrow slrowcased 15 sigejamly house designs sponsored by at east 56
buldng prodlct manlfacturersr5 Accord ng to offcial far documents, archtecls
panic pat ng ln th s prolect were nstructed that the town shou d appear'nethertradi
lonal nor modernstc n desgn. lt sl-rold be noden 16 Visitors to the Town ol
Tomorrow recev€d a glde to the products fealLrr€d in the houses. as a means
of stmuatng cons!mer interest and ed!cation n home desgn and constrlction.
€nd'assist ng prospective lrome bllders to obta n more value lorthe r money.'r7 The
estmaied constrlcton costs for the 15 desgns th€t comprised the Town ol
Tomonow ranged from arolnd US$5,000 to ove. US$35,000 t3 Wilh the average
FHA home costinq aro!nd US$5,199 in 1940, this range reflects an effort to prov de
rea isticexampes for midd e cass consurners, as wellas fantasy showpiecesre
Among the other exhibits of nlerest to homeowners were the Home
Build ng Center, where makers ol b! ding slpplles showcased the r goodsr tlre
Home Flrnsh ng Bu d ng, for lhe dsplay of flrniure and decoratve iems, and the
Consumeas Buildinq, which offered fa rgoers advce on budgeting home co.str!c
ton and repa r, as well €s the Conslmels Unon of ihe Unted States, lic dsp.y,
wh ch so!gh1 to'dramatze the need of consumers for reliable and oblect ve .for
maron on the products that compel ng manufacl!rers askthem to b!y.':r ln conlrast,
Fa r presdent Grover Wha en prom sed manlfactlrers d rect, panned and s nr!1:n.
eo!s contact wlh great masses of consumers'who wo! d be guided and inl !enced
bvthedispavs. Esewhere, vistors could experence Norman Be Geddes f!i!rstc
v s on of domestlc and lrban le in America n I 960 in h s pop! ar Futuranra exh b t on
for cenera Motors.'?r
 Alex.ndra Griftith Wi.ton

ldea Hause ltele.ied Ihe agenda of the FHA'm nimum house : a small
house wth the most log calpanniig and lse of technoogy, but wirhout exrraneous
decorative features, understanding modern' as a me€sure of technology and llv ng
standards r€ther than an aeslhetic categorizarion lr also adapied aspects of rhese
ear ler commerc a exh ibitions: the permanent, f! nctional dwe ng, and the enrphasis
on consumer oltreach, wlth a hosr of didactlc marerials av€ a b e to visilorc However.
it iefocused th€se niliaiives n € new way Unlike these ear er mode home exh bi
tions, in which the architect was typica ly chosen by the sponsor with prodLrcr
pacement and sales as the primary goa s, /dea House / was not sponsored dirccrly
by industry, nor was t desgned to showcase specitic products or materials. Bather,
it was ntended to introdlce the concept of architectu.a panning and the lse ol
modem nraterials to the general publc n a way that would prepare rhem for their
own buildlng programs "
Constrlction on /de€ House / began Jan!€ry 1941, and this rare winter
n
tme buiding project ln the bitte.y cold M nnesota climate was chronicled in
weeky lpdates nthelocal papel3 lFgure 6.2). Built ofa kiln-drled tmber frame
sheathed ln w€ather treated composite board, the house was desgned witlr the
extremes of th€ M nnesota c mare in mind L ke rhe FHA minimum house of 1940.
the house s relativelyopen plaf re ed on s iding parttonsto de neare lnterorspaces.
Whle the plan oi /dea House /was compacl and open in the manner of rhe 'minimum
house, the exieior, w th ts huge windows € nd asymmetr ca rooiline, were a depaF
ture from the small windows and conventional pitched roofs ol the FHA s illustrared
desgns lt comprsed a living room, bedroom, ktchen, guestroom/srudy. barhroom,
and servce rooms. The Joyer led directy nto the living area, and a glasswalled
partton betweef this area and the living space helped to keep the cold oul during
the w ntermontl-rs. The v ng area feat! red a rge expanses ol weather proof w ndows
th€t s d horzontally 1o open and close, and coud be removed eas y for cleanfg.
A separate €ntrance ed out from the livng area nto the landscaped museum
grounds. n consideraiion of the long, dark winlers, the large windows a owed
for max m!m sunlight, wh e the overhanging eaves he ped ro keep the nreror cool

The bedroom and adiacent study, which was designed to funcrion as a

guest bedroom when needed, were ocaled off the v ng and d n ng area, away from
the servce rooms They were delineated by a eather-clad soundproof s d ng scre€n
that partitoned the stting area from the sleepng area. The klrchen exemplified
efficiency and the atest in techfoogy. Featuing stainless stee watts and ce ng,
the ktchen boasled alle ectrc appliances, including a Wesr nghouse refrigeraror and
dishwasher and a Frigida re range. Adlacent io the kitchen was a utl ty room, a rea-
t v€ y newullipurpose room type that typ ca y housed appliances such as a uromatic
nr

wash ng-mach nes.,s The bathroom was paced between rhe lving area and
bedroonr, and was desgned to be hyg enic and easy ro cean, using ihe mosr upro
dale fixtLrres. The second floor of /dea Horse / consisted solely of an enctosed sLrn
porch, and expoited an extensve use of glass tor nraximum sola. exposure.
 'A m.n'. hou.. i. his.rr'

:1

62 Sty stcaly, /dea House / reflected a general ambivalence to modernist

design, whlch in domestic architecture was understood as the boxlike structu.es so
many people dislike, as Defenbacher explained in his letter to potential vendors lt
was de\oid ot lypical modernist characteristics, such as a tlal roof or use ot indus-
trial maierials However, filled wlth modern conven€nces, hygienic appliances, and
employing economical use ol mater 3 s and space, t reflected the F HA definition of
'modern.' lt exhibhed a stylistic reticence bas€d on the desire io appeal to the
greatest number of people. and an emphasis on modemity as a measure ol living
srandads. Additionally. the FHA considered overtly modernist homes to be risky
loans, perhaps providing the Walker incentive to present a house that visitors could
rnore rea stically mlne for'ideas,'23
Despte irs srarus as a WPA arr center, the Walker received v€ry lirtle
govemment lundinq for the consnuction of /dea House /.,7 With almost no budget
to construct the house, Defenbacher solicited mate als and goods from local
businesses.,s Tho maiority of ths low.cost, locally produced goods and materjais used
i^ ldea Hause lwe.e donated by local suppliers. All lhe l|rlrtne lat ldea House I
came fronr a srng e retailer, New Eng afd Furniture, lt is not clear fiom the exh bton
archives il this was 6 curatorial decision based on lhe quality of their merchsidse.
Alexandra Gifi ith Winton

or one of convenience, suggestlng thal, if spte of the ntenlions of the Walker ro

display the best exampes of home equipment, the goods dspayed to. cets
taln extent refected both oca ava lab lity and the exgences of a very imred

l\4any vendors pace sa es representatives on-site for rhe d!r€

solght 1o
tlon of the exhibition. The Walker briefly considered hirng one or two people to
provide nfolmatlon to visitors on a the var ous goods w th n /dea House 1 bul ultlm-
aiely came up wth a solution that offered businesses the opportln ry to promote
then w.res and vstors the chance to visii the house wthout be ng oveMhe med by
saespeople /dea House /was extensvey doclmented in af Lrsr€red inserr in rhe
Minneapalis Star an.l Trlbune published in conjuncton with lts open ng.3o While this
lnse rt resembled an ed tor a feature ariicle, it was in fact a pald adve.tisement orga n
ized by the Walke. to co ncicle wlth the plblic open ng of /dea House / n €dd tion to
descript ons of e€ch area of the house, the nsert conta ned dozens of adve.t sements
lor comp€nies and goods lncluded ln the house, lncllding Andersen Windows,
noeum insta ers, mill wo*ers, a varety oi elecronlc hoLrseware manufacturers,
and the loca e ectrc ut ty, Northern States Power Company On eaving the house,
a vistors received a copy of lhe insert and an enveope f ed with promotona
literat!re from the vendors ot appliances and goods featurcd inside the house. Each
envelope also conta ned an ln{ornration reqlest form, perm tt ng visitors to ask tor
even rnore deta ed nformation on setuices and items of their cho ce. n th s wav,
the vislors coLrd view and experence the house wiiholt mmedlarely apparent
commercial interventon, yet they st had access ro :l pe.t nenr infomatiof abolr
any item or product dsplayed n the house, and the vendors benefiied irom the
expos!re allorded by the exhibltion.3l
The Wa ker's success in soiciting materials and goods lot ldea House I
was dle in p€ft to manipulation of its lnique poston between the consumer and
producers, through wh ich 1 sought to sha pe visltors' tastes in goods, a nd its wi I

ngness to use sales methods such as the advertor € I format of the explanatory guide,
a iechniq!e that, as Kate Forde has shown, w€s ncreasinsly employed bv Amerlcan
advertlsers from the ate 1920s.3, Rarher rhan se ng goods, however, the Watker
claimed t was se ng iis ldeas, and the implicalions of these deas were hghly
appealing to businesses with realgoods to se . The museunr appeared ro possess
what the trade desperaiely needed: an akeady estab shed c ienrete, spectfica y inter
ested in bu d ng modern homes. Th s wos ref ecred nol on y tn the ease wirh which
the Walker was able io soicl mareras, bur also ir rhe adverris ng placed by
contrbuling vendors nlle Trlbune ard Srar insert Typca ofrhese, rhe ocat
Westingholse appliance dea er took out a f!llpage notice enloining readers ro vsr
/dea Hodse / to see for themseves rheir latest producr, the 1941 modet 'Marrha
Wash nston' refr ae rator:

The ldea House has, and every house needs, Wesrnghouse for berler
iving. On your vsit b rhe ldea Hause, see for youlself rhe resulrs of
 'A man's house is his ad

Wesl nghous€ eng neerins skill, scientfc res€arch - and modern des g.
See the 'N4artl-ra Wash nglon' today, n the Wa ker /dea House \E
refrgerator that looks as good as it lsr33

Sgnfcanty, the gulde concedes that b!ldng costs rendered /de,

House / beyond the reach of most prospectve bLr ders. At around US$7,000 for
constrlcton a one, witholt and, appliances, or f!rnishings, it was cons derab y more
expensive than the average FHA-sponsored new home.3] The g! de sdesteps th s
rather slbstanla obstac e to ts vewers' ablny lo bLr d their own /dea Holseslye
homes by r€ nforc ng that t was not meant to represent a rea house, blt instead
t incorporated as many ideas as possible nto ts des gn, claiming, Th s house is ,ot
a n'rode or dea for any particulai iam y grolp. ft s a House of ideas which may be
app ed to afy hon-re of any price 35
n spite of its proh btive erpense, ldea House lproved exceptiona y
popu arwirh the oenera publi., and bvthe eid o1 tsexhbton in the aut!mn ol194l,
56,000 peope had vsted the holse, ol whom 9,666 requesled product lnforma-
t on 16 There s no evidence n dicatlng that /dea Horse / was !sed, as Defenbacl-rer
orginally slgsested, as a aboratory tor the mlseLrm's home design programs aiier
l closed to v sitors n 1941. t is not c ear lrom exir b t on documenls why the holse
cosed. or whether attendance was high enough to pay for b! ding the holse, as
Defeibacher had ntialy hoped. tholgh Word War , which Amerca entered
immed €tely fo owing the €ttack on Pearl Harbor oi December 7, 1941 !ndo!bted y
contr bLrted to ts cosinq /dea House /was s!bsequendy !sed as stalt lrousins, and
the W€ ker continued to honor requests to v st the holse throlghout the 1940s.

Idea House ll: a post-war 'House ol ldeas'

Beg nning in the altumf of 1945. Defenbacher, c!rator H de Feiss and Assistanl
Dnector William Fredman beqan plann ng another l! 'sca € domestc arch tecture
e^b|ar, ldea Hause II31Wh e /dea House /addressed hous ng ssles of the pre-
war perod, wth ts ecofomic.l use of materals and space and of the atest
appliafces. /dea House //faced a dlfferent set of ho!s ng issues. Most mportant was
the e\traordinary post w.r hous ng crisis exacerbated by ret!rn ng vet€rans and ihe r
f€milies, and the con.omtant explosion of tract housing deveopments ol varyig
q!a ity across Amer ca
Defenbachels dec sion to coit nLre /dea House project at th s t me was
ogcal and practcal, consderng the n€tonwide preocclpation wth hoLrsi.q and
the severly of the post war housinq crisis N4 ons of fam es and young nra,red
coLrpes were forced tove wth relatves remporary m tary hoLrs.g converted
nto emergency holsnq, and even converted chck€n coops and barns 3a The
government sought to st€ve ofl polentia porc€ ifstab ty€nd Lrnrest p.ovoled by
the housing crLrnch by providlng substanua fnancia benelts 1o retur.ing so{iiers
Al€x.ndr. Gifi ith Winron

The Serviceman's Readllstment Act, co.nrnon y known as the G B of Rights. took

ellect ln 1 944 Provld ng funds ior veterans educat on and afforda b e housing were
rhe b s hlghesr mandares. under rhe alspices o{ the FHA ln 1946, the veier€ns
Adrn nistration establshed the Veteran s Emergency Hous ng Act, under which
veterans were exempt from down'payments on certa n loans wh e Gls q!€ ified for
home oans, the program did not rernedy the lnclerying housnq shortage, whch
was exacerbated by nf ation and shotuges of esse nt a bu cl ng materials re By some
estmates, the nlmber of housing unlts needed n 1946 aone exceeded the tota
number built from 1940 5.40
Whle ldea Hause / atlempted to slggesl solltons to American cof
s u mers preoccLrp ed w th economic hardshlp and mpendlng invo ve menl n wa r. /./ea
House /isought to prescr be housing de€s fora genera p!blc reloclsed on a critical
hous ng shortage This was coupled wilh a bewilderlng number of new construclion
matera s, home app ances, ard a s!.feit of d scretionary ncome lor the f rst time
in decacles ar ln ts concepton, ldea House ll \|as a d rect response to the rapid
proliferaton of standardDed hous ng deveopments respond ng to th s shortage, of
which Levittown, James Levitt s factory bLr t housing deve opment beg!n in 1946-7
is the best known.i'? These deve opments were popLrar becalse they were very
inexpensve and qucky brlt The prce of the ear est Lev ttown home was
a3
U 5$6,990, against a n average lamily ncome of US$4,119 Wh e a varety of exterior
det€is and paint coors dlferentiated ther exteriors, each Levittown house
possessed dentlcal plans. With easy payment pans and glaranieed FHA oan
approval, developments slch as Levttown offered convenient, quick sollions lo
fam lies in need of homes.aa
All of these elements provoked the Walker to pursue ldea Hause ll.Ile
exh bition s press release emphatca y descr bes ihe !rgent need for good ho'rs ng
desgn

The excessve demand for holrsing has opened flood gates for cheap
conslr!cton, mpossble desgns. shoddy materias and ind scrlminate
taste. Many blyers and buildels will accept anyth ng that wil approxl
matey keep out the worst weather. Bad house architectlre is more
45
p ent fu today than can be excused even by cure nt extreme cond tions

Like ts predecessor, l.lea House ll was not me€nt to be a model home. nor a
prescrlpton for prefab deveopment. twas,literally, a holseof ideas, where vstors
could come and absorb new concepts in design, bLr ding materials, fLrrnishings and
technology, and appiy them where and how they wished n their own homes, prefer
ably with ihe a d of an arch tect. As wilh /dea House I pans to the house were never
made avalab e for purchase.
The Walker asain needed fundins for this next experimefta and expen
sve prosram. This time, the project was made financa ly possibe by a unque
co aboration between the museum and a ocal bank, Northwestern Naton€ Bank,
 'A man's house is hb ad,

specfca y its Home listitLrle rn t Addit onal flnd nq was provded by the oca sas
ut ily, M nneapolis Gas Lighl Company. Northwestern Baik founded rs Home
lnstitute shorty a{ter World War as a respofse 1{] both the crricalhousi.q shorraqe
.nd rsing conslnrer conlus on over the financla costs and pracrcai apptcarion
oJ new blildng materasi6 The Home nsrirure pedsed ro €sssr rs members n
budget nq then b!iding prolects, wth a sp€ca emphasis on undersr€nd ng rhe uses
and managinq the expenses of new bLr d ng marerla s. The /nsrirute also prov ded a
comprehensive refe.eice colecton of over one hundred vol!mes on b!ilding.
remodelng, aid decoralng aswe asan extensve co ection oJw€ paper, {abrc.
and pant samples literior des gn specialisrs were on hand ro assist clstomers n
devs ng plans afd bldgets for the r home projecrs
The des gn br ef for /dea Horse //was a modest holse for a f am y of f olr
that provided fexible Lrse ol public spaces, afforded prvacy for all f.m y members.
and lsed read y ava abe s, wth minim!m specialDed build ng materia s or
'natera
techniques /de, House // was d€s gned by Be ss, Friedman and Malcolm Le n, who
together w th h s wife M r€m had designed tl-re origlna /dea House t opef ed to rh€
pLb c in September 1947 and rema ned on view for s x months Measurl.g 19,000
cublc feet, this sp t evel house featlred an open plan, wth prvate living spaces
delineated by Jod ng pari rions. Tl-re house was bL t !s ng str€ ghtforward gyps!m
board constrlclon and read y availabe build ns materas sLrch as concrete bock.
pywood, and s ass (Fsure 6 3)
The iving room was tlre argest and most f er b e space i. the holse, and
the museum s d dactrc materials refened to it as a folr i one room: rf I a famly
could ea1, pay, work, or enterta n ll featlred extensve expanses of Wfdowa rM,
€ prefabrc€te':l product somewhere between a traditiofalw ndow and a curta n wal,
wh ch helped the small space to fee more lntegrated nto the erleror qarden. The
room was furnished wth the most progressive flrn t!re desgns of tlre d€y, nclud ng
Eames dning and lolnge chars irom Hermai Vli er. Kno Plannng Unt sotas,
a Saarnen Grasshopper char.so from Kno . ghtinq fxtlres designed by Water
von Nessen, and b! t- n storage Lrn ts by George Nelson. ca ed Storaqewa iM. Whie
many of these 1! rn ture des g ns are today cons of midrwent eth centLr ry des g n i.
1947 they were n€w !ntested prodlcts by des giers argey unknown to lhe qeiera
prblic ldea House ll nventories typca ycte onlythelurntlre manlfactlrers not
the des gners' names.lr Un ke ldea Hause I. numerols manufact!rers sLrppl,ed the
furn shinss Several oithesedesgns exp o ted techno og es or melhods deveoped
as part of the war eflort: the Eames's mo ded plywood f!rniture evolved {rom the I
work for the US Army creatlng sp ints. and George Nelson c€ med thal irs eary
mod! ar storage designs came from obse.ving stacked €mm!nition slorag€ n fslrter

Tlre kitchen cold be opened to the vnqroom or cordoned off wth a

s dnq screen. ll was a compact space, fe€tlring € the laresl home appliafces,
nc!dng a d shwasher Wh e more €nd more househods possessed these app
ances. and womei became ncreas fg y important consLrmers oi l-ro..e eq!ipmeni.
 .:,-

IDEA HOUSE II
wrsh radn:tr J &dc icL!

there are nd cation s that new tech no ogy cou d aclua y add to a homemakel s stress
n Seplember 1947, the month idea House i/opened, an a.ticle appeared in Mccal/'s
tillecl 'So Yo! ar€ Learning to Cope wth your Fange and Refrgerator' ft advsed
readers on the most efficient !ses of these app ances, slggest ng that many were
lnfamiliar with how best to use them. By relnforcig tl-re impoftance of a newy
equ pped kilchen, and emphasting the anx ety t mighl cause, this Mccal/'s edilora
ntersected with the pub caton's considerabe cons!mer apphance advertsing in a
manner that bolh reintorced ihe role of Mccal/'s €s a homemaker's reference. and the
adve ft sers' agendas ol promoting goods !e Byoffering advice ostens by lree of com
mercia subtext, /./ea House /i soug ht to ca m just these lypes of cons u r.er a nx et es.
 T

Tlre livng quarters were on tl-re lpper eve. noneofthemostsignJcant

contrasrs between the 1941 and 1947 ldea House pta)e.Is, ldea Hause lllearved
dist nct, specific areas lor clrildren Thepanleatured roonr lor two ch drei'sseep
ing areas, wnh loding pafttlons lor privacy, and a shared study and play area
(Figlre 64) The house had ony one bathroom, whch was typca lor new house
constrlctlon at the rime 50
While ldea House // was not especially innovative when compared to
nf uentlal modern homes of this period, such as the Eames's Case St!dy House 8
n Los Angeles (1945 9), t was not necessarily ntended to push the bolndares
of modern arch tecture. nstead, it represented a moderate, modern home to wh ch
vsitors could id€ntfy as both reasonable and attanabe, lsing readily avalabe
home bu dlng materas. ralher than the many lndustral materia s lsed in the
Eames houser t was aso markedly mor€ nnovatve than other ocal mode
homes Forexampe.theStPa! Home Show,l!st across tlre Missssipp river from
Minneapo s. featu.ed a mode holse va led at US$]5.000. wh ch w.s S ven away
inalng€wrtingcontestattheendof ts exhibition n September 1947. W th ls ow
profle, hpped roof, €nd sma wndows, ths holse by contrast emphasnes /de,
House lls.narc progressive eements, slch as lhe ramb ng splil'leve panaid

n lerms of cost, ldea House 1l was even more prohibitive than ts pre-
decessor While or q na estimates were around U S$'l 1 ,000, the com p eted p rolecl
Alexandra Grirlith Winron

came in we over three times that amolnt Accord ng to a prvate sector study
pub shed in November 1947, lhe averase cost ln Mnneapols of buildng and
lurnshing a typca six'room house wth one bath, excldlng and costs. was
US$]l,700. The casr oI ldea Hause //, in splte ol its organzers efforts to Lrse

standard buildlng methods and inexpensive materials, was well oul of range of the
average home blryer.53

Public reaction to ldea Housell: 'How livable is

a modern house?'

n otdet Iat ldea House llto succeed, either conceptla y or financa y, t needed a
wide aud ence, and so the Wa ker €Lrnched an extensive p!b cty campa gn wth the
opening of the house in the autumn ot 1947. Just as n the frst /de, House, visilors
received an nfolmation packet J ed with promotlona materials from manufacturers
featured in the holse. Both Northwest Natonal Bank and Minneapois Gas Liaht
Company partlc paled in extensive d rect mal campagns. in ludl.g ldea House 11
promotonal stlflers in bank sl€tements and gas b s.5a Th€ Walker, logether with
the Minneapahs Marning Tribune sponsorcd a etter wrI ng competition for readers
lnterested n experencing life in o modern holse Four dislinct famly types were
sought oui to spend a weekend a\ ldea Hause 1l: a yolng m€ded colpe with no
ch dren, a coupe wth young children, a workng colpe with teenage children,
and a colpe wth a teenage ch d at home and anothe. away at college. Hundreds
of contestants wrote n, describng ther clrrenl lvifg c rcumslances and ther
nlerest in modern hols ng des gn. The winnerc of the competition, a of them white
and mldde-cass, argey reflected the hornogenols population of M nnesota at

One of the winning entres dd not meet any of these or ginal citerla, yet
made a compelling case lor inc usion. Lois Miller, Heen Tu y, and DorothyV ne wrole
to the Wa ker, explaining that the competition organ zers had eft out a snable and
mporlant classification, the'large army that fa s !nder the three g rs who share an
apartmenf grcup, and expressed keen nterest in ldea House // n the r chee !.
fonhrght demand to be lnc lcled in th s expor€ton of modern ving, theseyoufg
professionals a soarticu atedlhe qrow nq mport€nce ofwomen, often wth theirown
ncomes, as active criiics and consumers of modern design. As Misses Tully, M er,
and Vlne wrote in the r competition letter, 'We have no nlaws or teen-age children,
ln lact we don'i even have hLrsbands . . Don'lyo! thlnk yo! re overooking a malor
factor ln yo!r household cross-secton? We buy food and subscribe tothe papers and
jrav our phone bills iust ike any fam y . and we know whal we wani n the way
of comlonabe living'56 (Fgure 6.5). Of partcu or interesl to these women were the
comfort and convenlence afloded by househod appliances slch as dishwashers,
and enough coset space and hot water to accommodate a three of them w th ease
- ali uxuries in the post-war housing crss.
 'A m.n's hous€ i3 hir an'

6.5

ldea House lltece\ed a grcat dealof national press from both popLrar and
trade pubications. One mnor mention of the project in the New Yotk Tines
Magazine on Navenbet 2,1947 produced over 400 requests to the Walker for infor-
mation 57Mccal/s's secured exc lsve consumer rights to cover jdea House /1 and
publishedanatceonlhehouse n ts January 1948 ssle The articie introduced the
project to a natlon of mag€z ne readers, and the Wa ker was slbsequenlly nLrndated
with.eqlests for information from readers across Ameica. Progressive Architectue
hed exclusve trade pub caton rights and Jeatured an extensive, ustrated artice on
t for ts FebrLrary 1948 issue, exposing l.lea House lllo atchlecls and desiqners

ln the autumn of 1948, l/fe arranged for ihe Stensruds, a fam y w th two
young children, to live in the house for a week and doclmenl the r reactions to the
desigf, furnshngs, appliances, and other aspects at ldea Hause /t The ensuing
article, 'How Livabe is a N4odern House,' offered a frank assessment of the design
program and furn sh ngs by a stereotypca y whlte, middle class Ameican family,
publish€d in a wdey read gefera'nterest magazine.5e The lead sentence of the
aaricle ifdcates a heathy skeptcsm of modern arch tecture's photogenic appeal:
'Modern architecture makes handsome movie sets, offices, hote obbies, and photo
graphs, but how is itforyear-rcund iving?'. With photog€phs ofthe Stensrlds in the r
own home contrasted with their /dea House stay, the article voiced the fam y's
gefera enthusiasm for idea House /l but they indlc.led that they prefered adapt ng
some of its features to the r own house, to moving to.n entirely new modern home.
 Arexandra Grilfi th \Mnton

Eager to captalize on the press and altento.t ldea Hause ll geneftted,

retailers featured it in their consumer advensifg Eva Zeisel's new Town and
Co!ntry dinne.ware, produced by Minnesota based Red Wing Pottery, appeared n
an adve.tisement in a loca paper for Jacobs & Co depart.nent store. The adve(s ng
copy assumed that readers would vs1 /dea House and urged them ro seek oul the
dinnerware: 'Red Wng's Town and Colntry as featured n /dea House ll Look
lor this gay modern pottery when yo! vlst, and see how we ltfits intothe modern
concept of graciols, nformal living 60 ln March 194A, Fonune nagaz ne contacted
the Walker to enqlire about using ldea Hause ll n conjunction with an Olclsmobile
car advertsing campaign The campaign featured sketches of 'modern des gr
homes together with the atest mode Odsmobiles, both o{ whlch:re described
in the advertsng copy as 'Flturamic 6r n ths unmstakable reference to Normar
Bel Ge.ldes Futurama pav on €1 the 1939 New York Wodd's Fan, two prevailing
nf uences of the post war period converge in an adverts ng mager the s ng e family
suburban ho!se and the automob e. Futurama, sponsored by General Motors, the
parent companv of Odsmoble, prope ed visitors on a massive conveyor bet
across a arge diorama of Amerco n 1960, where famlles ved n slblrban devel
opmenis, ancl Lrrban cefters dominated by hlge skyscGpers were reached by car
While no evdence suggests that either the w ndow d spay or the car advertisement
were ever produced, these exampes emplrasze the dstnction between the
ecofomic c mate of the first /dea House and lhe post war envronmeni of the
second Free from the financ€ constraints of ihe depresslon and the manlfacturino
restrictons of the war years, businesses aclively sought consumers dsposabe
ncomes lhrough nove marketng technques, an.l idea House i/ slggested such

While the horse afiracted around 35.000 vslors farJewerth€ntheanlic-

palecl 100,000 - t qenerated a sreat dea ol local and nalional nterest from people
ooking to buld a house, and ihe Wa ker receved h!ndreds ol requests from vstors
to purchase the p ans to /de, House //62 Peop e who fever vislted the ho!se
l-roping
saw t in the Mccal/'s featlre €nd wrote to the nrlseum wth h ghLy specfic lech_
n calqueslons The muse!m a w€ys referred these correspondents talne EvetYday

Att Auade v dedicared 1a ldea Hause ll, tent.dt.g them that it was meant to be a
'holse of deas,' not a model holse, and recommende.l the lse of a tra ned arch
recr in generaring a house plan rhat was specifc to individua needs and budgets
ldea Hause ll clased pemanently to the pub lc n J u y 1 948 and, like 1s predecessor,
became Walker staff housing,unt ts demolitlon ln 1968
Mlseums across the cou.try took rcIe al ldea House //s popllarty,
and many ol Defenbacher's colleagues wrote to lrim inqurng aboll ihe logistlca
consderations of the project. Philp L Goodwn, a New York archltect, IVoMA
trLrslee, and co desgner wth Edward DlJrre Stone oi the'1939 Mlselm of Modern
Art bLrilding, wror€ to h m in 1948, ask ng for advice on creating a slm ar exhib ton
 ? n.n s hou.. b hi. an'

ln connection with the Mlseum of Modern Aft here n New York. I have
had lalks with Mr. Philip Johnson on lhe sublect of erecing a house by
some well-known archited n the very small garden aitached 10 our
museum. Mr. Johnson informs me that you have done something of th s
kind €cently wirh astoundingly successtul rcsulrs . . . Would you be good
enolgh 10 coni rm th s, and a so let me know how ong the house stood
in the garden, and any orher delails. such as cost of ereclion, taxes, etc.?
Were you ab€ to sell the house when yoLr had finsh€d with ii n fie
qarden, and what was lhe removalco$?63

tvloMAdid in fact pursu€a similarproject, and MarcelBre]jet s Hause in the Museun

6arde, went on view from April 14 to October 30, 1949. Designed as a house for a
growing lamilY, Breler's pan allowed lor an extension to be b! t over the garage,
providing additional space and privacy as the children grew older, and thls was lhe
verson built for MoMA. Like the /de, Houses, BreLrels house was f! y turn shed
and wired lor electriciy. Marenals and contractjng work wefe contfibured in kind and
listed in ihe MoMA bull€tln dedcaied to the projeci.6'Much of rhe fumiture was
designed by Breuer. includinq what may have been lhe world s lirst remote-contro
television, which retaited lor an astonishing US$900.65 Furnishings and household
tenrs nol designed by Breler were suppled by the Manhattan modern design
retailer, New Design, lnc., so that rather than representing a selection of goods
the nterior ot the House in the
curated by museunr siaff irom nlrnerous sources,
Museum Gard€n was more closely tied to a specific r€tailer. Unlike the Walker,
MoMA €nd Breuer did make plans lorlhis house available tor purchase, and the dodi-
cated MoMA bLrlelin incLuded approxmate construciion costs tor various sub!rban
locations around lhe New York Citv area.6
While many scho ars cons det the Hause in the Museum Gaden, aa^g
with the Case Study House project in Calitornia. as true halbingels of modern home
design in Amerca. both of these prolects commenced well alter the Walker's /dea
House prog€m.67 Despire its original populanty, the /dea House proiect is little-known
loday. lor a variety of reasons. Filst and for€mosl, MoMAs decision to employ
Brcuer gLraranteed the houses egacy whhin the history of archilect!re, whereas
none oJ the /dea Housa architects ever achieved the national prominence Breuer
enjoyed. Unllke the ldea Houses, eteoet's house slrvives, having been moved to
upstate New Yo( in 1950. Addilionally, Breuer's house was designed along the lines
of a conventional ..ode home, as a complete house deslgn with pans avaiabe for
plrchase, rather than the almosl ephemeral concept of the 'house of ideas ' At least
tour versions ol this house were buih throughoutlhe Northeasl shorlly aller the exhr
biton 63 Nonetheless, the /dea House project. with its fLrlly funcl ona flrn shed
houses and extensive documenlalion and cataloguing of items fo. vieweG benelir,
was in a like hood a dir€ct modelfor MoMA's more farnols endeavor

105
 'A m.n's ho$e is his rrt'

ln conneclion with lhe Museum ol Modern An here rn New York, I have

had lalks with Mr. Philip Johnson on the subiecl ol €rectinq a house by
some well known architect in the very small garden attached to our
museum. Mr Johnson lnlorms me that vou have done someth no ol this
k nd recenily with .stoLrndingly successf! res! ts . . Would you be good
€nough to confinn th s, and 6 so et me know how ong lhe house stood
in lhe garden, and any other deta s, such as cost of erectiof, taxes, etc.?
Wsr€ you able to sell the house when you had linished wnh it in the
garden, and what was lhe removal cost76

MoN/lA did in f6ct p!rsle

simiar prcject, and tvlarcel Bteuet s House ln the Museun
a
Garden went on view tron'r Apr 1 4 to October 30. 1 949 Designed as a holse for €
grow ng fam y, Breuer's pan a owed for an extenslon to be buit over the garag€,
provid ng add ronal space and privacy as the ch dren grew older, and this was the
version builr to. MoMA. Llke ihe ldea Houses. Breueds house was lully lurnished
and wired lor electricity Materials and conracting work were conlributed io kindand
listed in the MoMA bulletin dedicaled to the project.d Much ol lhe furniture was
deslgned by Breuer, including what may have been the world s I rsl remoie-contro
televlsof, which reta ed for an €slonishing u5$900 65 Furn shings and househod
items not descned by Breuer were sLJpp ed by the Manhattan modern desgn
retailer, New Desgn, lnc, so that rath€r than represent ng a selecton of goods
curated by mus€um slatt trom numerous sources, the inlerior ot lhe House in the
Museum Garden was more closely tied to a specific retailer. Unlike the Walker.
MoMAand Ereuer did make plans for this house availade for purchase, and rhe dedi
cated lvlotvlA bullet n lncluded apprcximale constructon costs for varous suburban
66
ocalions around the New York Ciiy area
While many scholars considet lhe House in the Museum Garclen, aary
wth the Case Study Holse projeci in C€ fomia, as true harbingers ol modern home
design in Amenca, both of these projscts commenced well atler the Walkels /dea
House prog€m.57 Despite its original popula.ity, the /dea House proied is little known
today, for a variety oi reasons. Fnst and fo.emost, MoMAs decision to employ
Breler guaranteed the house s wi$ln the histo.y of archilect!re. whereas
egacy
none ol ihe /daa House architecls ev€r achieved the naton€ prominence B.euer
enjoyed. Unlke the ldea Houses, Bte€t s holse slrvives, having been moved to
upstate New York in 1950. Addilionally, Bteuefs house was designed a ong the l.es
ot a convenliona model home. as a complste house design wilh pans av. ab e ior
purchase, rather than the almost ephemeral concept ol the 'house ot deas.' Ai leasi
fourversions of this house were built throughoutthe Nonheast shorlLy ailer ihe exh '
biron63 Non€thesss, the ldea House project, with i1s fully luici,ona fu.nsh€d
houses and extensive documentatlon End cata oguing of ftems lor viewers' benelit
was n a kelihood a d rect model for MoMA's morc tamous endeavor.
Aloxandra Grifiith wi.ton

Conclusion
n ts concepton, lle ldea Hause project was nlrnscally de€ stic, €nd the ve.y
gravlry of rhe housing sirlar on 1 soug ht to address prec lded ts m med ate slccess
Most Americans s nrpy d d not have the tlme or resources to h re €n arch tect, buy
la.d. and build a ho!se, especlally when arge hols ng deve opmenls offered easy
financ nq €nd rap d constr!ction Neverthe ess, both holses articu aled some oi the
most press nq ssues ol their t me: lire d re need for q!a ity l-ro!s ng, mproved iving
sta.dards throlgh technoogy and a concomitant deinition of modern'to ndicate
th s mproved standard and tlre cons!mefs mportance to both lhe economy and to
sood design va purchasng power. As sugg€sted by 1s name, ftiea House's rea
contr b!1on to hous ng !nd muse!m pract ce took the ephemeral forms ol deas
Ln discusslng /dea House /, Defenbacher wrote tlrat 'a man's hoLrse is h s

arl, mplylng that the average homeowner is an active producerof afts mplybyvntue
of f!rn sh ng his or her home The cons!mption ol constrlcton materals. app
6e

ances, fum sh ngs, and other holseho1:l ltems are necessary to th s creatve act, and
both /dea Housesserved as exempary lustrations of this concept. Appropiating the
melho{is of commercial home deve opers and cons!nrer goods manufact!rers. the
/.1eaHouses ntersected the words of ndustry and art nstitltion naradica manner,
creatngac!ratora nterventon ln tl-re convenliona experience ol the modelhome
These promotiona tech n q les were not ntended to sell specilic goods or mate r a s.
blt rather to promote a collectlon of deas abolt homebu d ng and desig.. The ldeo
ogc€ refusa to make ether ol the /dea House bleprnts availabe to the plb c
conrr buted to the project s eventla obscLrrty,bltitconfrmsthewakeasdua goas
of provid ng creatve and obiectve suggestonsto the vlsltor/homeowner, and re mag
n ng the nalure of the a.t exh bton Tlre hlgh €ttendance ligures oi the exhibltons
and the nationa med€ nterest in the hoLrses renlorce both the severitv of the
l-rous ng crs s exlant throughout both exh biiions, €nd the degree to wh ch hous ng
was a nat onal preoccupat on They a so slggest that the /dea Houses were, n fact,
nflentalto ndvdlals nterested in l-romebuiding. and art institutions seeking info
vatve ways of both attracting vlsitors and displaying desgn.

Acknowledgements
A vers on of th s paper was originaly pub shed lf Journal of Design Histarv 117: 4,
pp 377 96) €nd ls reproduced wth kind permssion of the Desgn Hlstory Society
a nd Oxford U niversitv Press. I am most qratef! to the Jou.nrl s ed toria board, and

partlc! ary to Grace Lees-Maflei, for the r many he pf! slggestions and comments.
Speca thanks are dle a so to.lill Vetier at the W€ ker Art Center Archives, whose
generous assstance and deep knowedge of the idea House prolect he ped to make
th s research possible, and to Karen Gys n, who made the Walkels €rchival photo
graphs of /dea House avaiable lor thls pub caton
 As Gwenloryn Wishl Amercns have long used domesl c archt€cture and debates
has obsery€d,
su(oundino 1 soca and polll€lasendas The sing€Jam y houss has proved
as a h€ans of shapins
the mosr popular and ledile icon ol lam y le and ecoiomc success across s€veBl ceotu.ies of
Amoica hstory. Se€ G. Wiohr, Buildih1 rhe Dte6h: A S.cial Histoty ol Housins tn Anetica,
Cambrds€, MAr MIT Press, rsA3.
The Museum ol ConiemporaryAn, Los Anqeles 1939 exhibnion on the Case Study houses leatured
Itr -sca e reconsrucrons ot som€ ol them; see E izbeth A 1 snith, ed, Btuepnnts fat Maden
Living: Htstary and Leg y ol the Crse Srrdt, /ldrses 1€r cablogrel Los AngeLes aud Cambidse,
MA: MuseumotContemporaryA, LosAng€esandMITPress, 1939.AfulscalereproduclonolLe
Corbuse,s 1925 Pavi on de L'Espril Nouveau was pad 01 the same insliulon's 20C'l exhbiiion,
LEsptuNouveau:PuisninPans,91a25;seeCarolSEleandFraneoseDuclos,l'EsprlNouyeau:
PDisn rn Pans 1914-25.a\ caraoqde), Los Anqeles and N€w York Museum of Contemporary An,
Los Angelesand Harry N Abrams,200l.
B Coomna,'The Exhibitionst House, in F. Ferguson, €d.,.41rhe End of the CentDry: Ane Hunded
Ya6 al Atch'tectute, ttew \otkN Ab,ams, 1993, p l5l
Harry
LiS Govemment Bureau of Labor Slatsrics Codsumer Prce ndek, wwwbsgov/cp/*dab laccessed

As N coas Malfeihas shown, Dana sousht to relorm th€ role oi the museum throush h s exhiblons
olindusta desiqn which,lke Defenbacher he 1et we,e clos€r to lhe lives and nl€resls ol most
peopre rhan painrino or scurprure s€e N Maftei, Jorin cohon Dana and the Po rcs 01 Exhiblns
lndusta An n th€ US 19as 29, Jodnalof Design Hisror, 13 4, 2000, pp. 302-4; Defenbache,,
F.rcwod ta Walket Ad Centet lpamphled, 1940, p 4 n Ho qer Cah I Pap€rs, ro 11A7,ttame111
Archives ol American Art, Smlhsonian lnsitulon, Wash nqton, DC.
Delenbacher, Foreword to Walker A.t Cente,, p 1A

Danie S Delenb..her ro Joseph Wo6hek, rhe Koh er Company, October 3, 1940, in Dneclors
Fievoan 6lS. Dctenbacher, box s, foder 2, Wa ker A C€n1€rArchivcs,lvlnnoapolis, MN

See B. Kellv,'The Hous€sof Levnown inlhe Conlexl ol PosMarAmercan Culure, nD Sralonand

B Sc611er, Ptesetuin1 the Rece,r Prst Washngton, Dci Hisroric Preservalon Foundaron, 1995
Avaiable al www cr.nps.qov/n/pub cariontbu lerins/suburbs/resources htm, access€d May 22,2005
10 R.Iober, Iechnota?r as fteedon: Ihe New Dal and the Etect rGt Maderniatian of the Aneican
AomeBe.ke€y,CA:Unive'snyofCalornaPress,1996,pla0:\lliq6\,BtidingtheDEan,p24A
Despl€ its Aoallo sbb ne Am€rcan home lle thouqh mprov€d lvnq sbndards, the FHA did no1
vew a llami es as equa y des€ryng ol rs rasources h activ€ y pa.tic pated in d sciminalory lend nq,
en.oumqinq neiqhborhood racia and sthnc homog€ne ty bV relusins lo end moneyin pr€domnanny
Alrcan American or Jew sh ar€as, cla m ns rhal the rsk ol bad oans was too hiqh Trrese'red inins
pmcrces coniinu€d overly unrl 1950,lwo years aiter a s"preme coun,ued thatsuch endino prac
riceswerediscrmnaroryand leoa, and covsny through the 1960s For some Ameicans, the FHA
enabedhomeown€rshpwhen I had been bur a remole dream Forolhers t simplv re nforced ilre
norion thatrheAm€rcan Dream tselt could bea resliclvecovenanr, selecl vely access b ed€pendiag
For example in lhe posl war period th€ FFA refused ro r€scind ordeny oans
ro James L€vr',s L€vittown deveropmefi, even rhouqh h€ exp.ess y lorbade rh8 sal€ of L€vitrown
homes to anyone but'memb6rs oJ rhe Caucasan race, alhoush nonwhite domestic srait we.e
perm t1€d at Levlrtown See Nsw Yuk hnes, Marcn 19 1949, pp. 12,19; W gh\, Buildng the Drean,
p. 24A; fabev, Technotasy as Feedan, p 1AE; Measuihg Aneia: fhe Deehnrat Censuses frcn
7790 200q US Census Bureau, US Depannent ol Commerce, Economica and Statisrcs Adminls
ralon, Api 2002, pp. 124-B
12 Th$e leatlers, pubished as le.hni.a/ Bul/errs, were published b€1w€en 1936 and 1946 Sev€ra ol
lbem, nolaby Mode,n Oesisn and'PrnciplesotPannnsSmallHouses, we.e €vised severalrimes
fhe new editions took nlo account chanOes n domesl c housns d€sisn and
Alexandra Grifiith Winton

l3 Amodernhousesdefnedas"modern"iDthesens€qeD€,ayus€d twl be kelvtobeJound10

be a h.use ol unusualvat ly and convenience, b!t lhal t posses
rarey be surmsed Su.h houses are moden n the e emenral sense ' FedeE Hous'nq Admin
station IFHA) lechr,.a/ Brl/erir *2: Maden Desrgn, rc\ ed., Wash nqton, DC US Goverimenr
p, n t ns 0 tt ce 940, FN A, Ie.hnica L Bulenn n1: Pnncrpies al Ptanninlj Snall Houses, er e.1
1 ,
WashnOton, DC ils Gavernmenl Prnlns 0t1.e, 1940, pp 14-15
14 H Searnq, Case SIudy H.uses i the G€nd Moden lradran, Biteptinr. f.t Maden Li'ns,
p I03rB Pon, A Brs.ory ol,odsing tn llew Ya* Cny: Dwellhg ryp€^ ard SDcia/ Chrrge N€wYork:
Columba Fr€ss, 1990, p 232
15 Ptrnz, A Hisla.r of Hausns in New vatk Cny: Dwentns rype ahd Sociat Chans., p 233
1.4 cuxuGland sociai Aspects of the New'/otk wa ds Fan. 1939. al spe.i.t thtetest ta l1lanen
prepared forlhe Natona Advsory Comm n€€ on Women's Pa.l cipal on, New Yo Wo dt Fan, New
Yor[, ]939, p 49 {ita cs added).

1a Archnectual Fatun 71, J'J]y 193s p 66

rs 'FHA says teud roward ow prced homes lrownq,' Minrerpoiis Stnday InbDte an.t Jawat, Jrne 1,

20 The Home Bu d ng Ce er also re'nlorced the mponance of € ectc {y as a key lorce m modern, nO
theAmercanhomewtha a.q..sca e mura by Frances Scort B,adJord wtrhelectctyas tstheme
Yatk Wotid s Fatr Infatnraton Man6l New Yo* Word s Fan 1939, unpasinal€d manuall€nlr€s
^!ew
are a phabet.alacc.rd ng ro1a r d€panmeihl

21 Ne|| Yatk Wa d s Fan lnbnaion Ma.MI Vlna en cir.d nt J Me k e, Iwe.rieth Centutv Ltnhed:
tnttjstrai D6r9n in Amet 6, Pl adelph a, PA Temp e Unive,sly P,ess 1979 p 197 n th s h llhly
rheatca erriibir,on w rour ol a vson ol Am€,ca 20 ye s rrence
esconed via a arg€ conveyor bei Be Gedd€s' Flru€ma was by lar rhe mo popuar erh'b r on al
the 1ar, drawins an €slmated 27,500 vstors da y. lt aso €xerl€d a proJound nfuence on subse
quenr coDorare exh'btiois, r€del nns llre way i wh.h busnesses .ou €d consumere tar
'n
€nvnonments s€e Me kle 'A Mcocosm ol rhe Mach ie'Age \Nat d Twenreth century Lihted,
pp 139 2l0.SeeasoB.Marchand'TheOesgne69orotlreFan Norman Be Geddes, Th€ Geiera
Motd6 F,iu€ma and rhe Vis t1o1h€ Factory Translomed, Desarn,sslee 3 2, 1932, pp 23-40
22 Searnq,',Case Sludy Houses n rhe Giand Modeh Tradton Biteptjnlslat Li'ns, p 1A9
23 A Bauv€t, ldeas fot Madeh Livrn1: Ihe ldea Hause PrcEc Evetrtlay Art Galtery lbtoc\ltel,
M nneapois r!4N WalkerArt Center,2000, p 6
21 Minneapats f bLne Rnd Sta, ,/o!rnar .lune l,1941, unpasnared isen
25 Gw€ndolyn Wlqhi norss thal the un ry room was a re.e y evo ved room rype pu,plsey reded 10
hous€ new app anc€5 yel bVrhe m d I940s l was commonylound n mosr.ew homes SeeWdohl
Building the DteBn p 255
26 t^ Technitul Bolenn #2: Madeld Desrgr, rhe FNA syslems ol propedy ratns and adlusrment ror
ad our Ths booker mad€ erprcr the FllA posron on hohes ol s.-.a ed
mode,ndessn'|ratlealur€dextaneousfearoreslharmiqhtbevuneraberoshits.tasho. Ihe
bu eni is qu r€ c earrhal rhes€ bomes wou d r€ce ve row jatinss lor 'nonconrormny' to FNA apprded
deiin tons of good desgn.
27 Rol Ueland of rhe Minnesota Arts Counc , n a memo b ns Board of rhe Tru ees. daled rhar rh€
WPA was anrous abdur supporr ns the constructon of an erh bton hols€ when the r€a needs ot
lood, corhins aidsheierot so maiypeop e are sn unsal sl ed rleand recommend€d thatthe house
belunded sepaGtely rrom th€ Wa ker's WPA proiecls aid exh bitionrelaled documenisseem ro bea,
th 3 out, rhouqh there s no €rsr,ns budsel o, other document 10 absodtely carfy rhe ssue. Memd
lrcm Bo f Ueand ro Soard ol Trusrees, M inesob Arts Coui.r Oclober 25, 1940, n /dea House /
Exhbir'on F es, box 1, fold€r 9
2€ Fuids we/e sd mted and the prolecr so experm€n1a that Defenba.her appeared ro a member
of the wa ler fam ly for ass stanc€ Arch € D wa ker aqreed to persona y rake our rhe mongage on
/deE House /when rre Wall€r was u.abe 1o get ba.k lund'nq ld.onstucion on ts own Se€ /.te,
Ao'se / Exh'b lon F es, box I lold€r9, Walk€rArl CenterArchves
 'A man's hoBe b hi3 rd'

29 Some bus nesses dd €recr the wa kefs petil on Jor soods fo, a varety of reasons The aqesr ..3
d€panm€nr slor€ Oay1ont relused to contbtrte n any way because rhe h.use woud be open on
Sunday, a coil cr wth rher st d 10 answer any of rh€ Walar's
.equesrs see /dea Bodse, Exh b r on Fies, b.x r, io der 9
3a Mhndpats ftibune Ju.e r, r94r, unpaqnared ios€n
and StarJDlrnal,
3r roder9 wark€rAn cenrerArchves
/de, House /Exhib10n Fres, bor 1,
32 K.Ford€'CeluodDreams the Ma*etiS ot Cutex in Amer.a.1516-35, Jajtftlol Design Htstary,
15 3,2002, pp 181 2
33 Mihheapalis Ttibune and Stat Joua8l June l, 1941, unpaq nded nsert
34 Wherh€FNA oance ng was 1lS$200C0, the maiody of oans we.e lor US$6000-3,000 See
\tuisft, Buttttn? rhe D,ean, p 212
35 'Th s house s ,o.a modelor d€arlor any pancuar lam ly group h s a ,Drse of /ders wh.h may
b€ alp ed to any hom€ ot any prce Aclua ly lhe house adequat€y fts the ne€d5 of two people wth
o, wrhoul one younq crrld . The cost otlhe rdea tDlseas't sbnds s excessve forlhe av€,ase
bu der because rher€ arc more reliiemenrs and morc /Zeas n it than the averaqe home owner woud
y ne€d .. By the seecron and ellminal on wh ch wou d nalura ly be appied by the ird'
n€cessar
vdualbu der the basc /dea tolse clu d be bu ial reasonabe.osl The mosr derotthe
'mportant
H.use B spaciausness, An Exptanatary Gutde to t1e ldn Haose, p. 12
36 /de, House / Exhibl on F les bor 1, Jo der L Walke, A Cenrer Arch ves
37 n 19!15, the Wa ler esbbrshed rhe Everyday an Ga lery to d splay ndusral d.s'qi and obj€.ls ol
every day househod use N ds Bess, a Bauhaus educared arch l€ctand dessner cural€d rh€ 9a lery
Fe,se, wrro em'sraled toAmerica n 1933, camelo ire Wa/kerbyway oINewYork, where srreworked
n the olfces ot a numberol prom,neii archl€cc and desqners, incudinq Busse Wiqhr Gbert
Rohde and Norman Bel Geddes She a/so tausht unde, Fobde at the Desisn Laboratory, a WPA
sponsorcd schoo inlluenced bV the Bauhaus Fohd€ hoped the s.hoo woud I a need lo, an
Anerican desOn s.hoo rhal c.odnates t6n'iq n esrhelcs, products, machne iabrcaron and
merchandisins.'Fo. moreon R€ssscateet,see trlea Hause OBt Htst.ry Ptatect, 1999 2AAA, \r\]a Let
A( Cenrer Ar.hves pp 2213 45 6 For dela s on nre D€s qn Labohrorv s€e WPA Esrab shed
Oes@n Schoo,'New vork rmes Dec€mb€r2 1935,19;J Keyes, wPAEdu.ato.sBraznsLa wrh
Schoo n Dessn lndustry, New Yod nmes, O.tober 25, 1936 Nb h was at the Desgn Labohto,y
thai sh€ mer achite.r W ah Friedman wnh whom she co aborated on a number ol prolects.
n. ud nq a house n nonhem New York Slal€ bu lt n 1939 and subsequently tedured iu /rchrr-!du'a,
Fecord l'Plvwood 6nd Fedstone Used n Same Nouse W lam Fredman and Hide Bess,
Arch)tectutal Recad 45, Matc6193S pp 41 3l
Fredman loined the Walk€r as Assislanl D rector or
Exh bnions n 1944, and Be ss was appointed cu,ato, of Every&y Art n 1945
3a w sh\, BL)tdins the Dftah, p 2a2

4A Ponz, A Hista.r al Houstrts )n New York Aty,p 145 Some blamed ourdared bu ld iO .od$ aid regu
lalonslhatlaledtotakeac.ounioli6wbudngmal€rasandlechn'toesdeveopeddurinsthewar
for suqqsh construcron rates The tvlonsanto Coeo,aton pubisrred Ma,ce B.euers un,ea zed
des sn addrcss nq ie antc paled hous iq dsls rhe prelabrcat.d Pas 2-Po nr hous. b! r oJ p ywo.d
coaled wth l/lonsanto planc, n irs aponymoos maqazn€ n 1943 By 1946, anolher Mo.srrro arl cle
l ted, 'Can We Bu d Enoush Homes? ca ed 10,lhe ,elom ol buid ng srandards to nco@orare new
halerals such as pwvood 3nd pasti.s, producls prodlced by rhe compa.y oespre Monsanto's
J nanca slake n ihe wdespread ac.eplance and use of thes€ produ
o1th€ many comp carons inherent rn housins constru.ton mmedatey a1re, the wa, M Ereue,,
'Des sn no ro Lve rhe Posr war House Modsafuo, 22: 5, 1943, pp 22-4; can We Buld Enouqh
'i
Homes?' Morsdn.o 26:3 1946 pp. r€ 2l
4l As Rona d Tlbey rras shown muchcommerca manuta.tuing was coiverled ro detense product/on
dunns the war, cuna rhe purcriase ol errensve app ances. worl€rs n3tead saved ther exta
'nq
inc.me See Tob€V, recnmlogy as Frcedan,p 166
 SeeWrsht, Auilding rhe Dr€m, pp 251 3:seeasoM.Fil€r,'Bu dinq Orqanc Form Arch tecto.e,
Ce6mics. Glass and M€1a nrher94osandl950s,'nVnalFams:AnenanAftantlDesignin
the Atunic Ase, l94A Ea le\ cdtalogu€l, New Yo Brookvn Museum and Harry N Abcms, 200l

KT Jackson, C€bg.ass Fronne. The Subuhanizatih af the Unrled Sts.es, New York: Oxlord
Univerety Press, 1985, p sio.ica
234; Us c€nsus Bureau ncome lables - Faml es Table I
H

Ava lab e at www census gov/ncome/11p/h stinc/CP U Fs/famiv/fol lsr accessed Mav 22 2005
ln I94s, the down.payment on a Lev ttown home was US$90, wirh monthlv pavmenrs oJ USS53 See
Nsw vork rmes. MarchT.ls4s D.2lrB Kev, The Fousesol Levntown n the conlexl ol Postwar
Am€rcan CuLture' Manv of the deveopmenis w€re a so poor v bu I evenlualv promplng a Senate
investgation. See Hayden,'Mddel Hom€s fo. |re M lions: Arcrr tects Drcams, Buider's Aoasts,

Resid€nrs' Di€mmas. n Bl@olnts fat Modeh Lilins, a. 199

Undated press releas6, /dea |tolse rr Exh b ton Files, box 15,lo der I1, Walk€r Ad Cenier Archves
For more on the l_lome ns1lule, soe'Bank Proodm tor Home Panners'Aanting 15: 3 1947

For a .ompete descrpton 01 /de, Hodse //, 15 constucron maleia s, iechn ques furn srrings a^d
appiances see Everyday Art ALane v,5,1947
B Co om na, Rel ecr ons on the Eanee Notse The Wa* ol Cha es a.tl Fav Eahe.: A Legacv of
/rvenrrbn {ex caralosu€1, New Yolk The Vitra Oesg^ Museum and Ha.,Y N Abftms, 1997 137_3:
'Furn sh ns a Postwar House, Monnnta, 2215\, 1943, pp 25-5
'So You are Leamng to Cope wih your Aanse and Refrigeralor, Mccal,'s, Sepr€mber 1947
pp 43 50 Th s is ihe same technque used 1o re nlorcs reader ovarvea ier n the rw€nl elh centurv
in women's maqarnss such as lhe Ladbs Hane Jaunal ds.lentonstared n Jenniler Scanon's
sttd\, tnafticuhte Lanoihqs fha Lat76 Hane Jaunai, Gendet and the Pbnises af CansLhet
culrue, London: Rouredge, 1995 p 5
Bldwer, ldeastat Made,n Living p 12
E Mccoy,'case Study House #S, Bluepnnts fd Maden Lilns, pp 51 3
52 '$l5,OOONometob€qivenawayinJinOeConresl Parlol 51 Pau Hom. Show' Min,eap./is Libune
23 1947 p 12
Sepr€mb€r
p 14: Mhheapalis Sunday lrb!,e,
B aurel|, Nov€mb€r 2, 1947 p 12

Dane S Delenbacher to Henry l,,lcKnght, Edlor of l@r, Novenbel 12,1 t, n ldea Haue ll
Erhibnon F les box r5,loder rr, walk€rancenrerAr.hves
Accordins 10 the l95o c€nsus, no ess rhan 99 p€rc€nr ol lh€ state s a most three mi ion resdonts
were whn6 F Stooos, Consus Bureau, Census 2C00 SpecLa Repods Series CENSF
Hobbs and N
4, Denasrcphic ftehtts ]n rha 2afi cenlu4l Washngron Dc: US Govehment Prntnq ollice 2002,

M ler, H€en Tury, rnd DorothyVine io D S Delenbache., Septembet 24,1941,in ldn Ho6e
Lois
bion Files, bor 16, fode.5, Wa ker An C€n1€r Arch ves
// Exh
Blarueh, ldns lat Maden Lvins p 13
MD.Giies, rhsFrousewil Help \ar Ptan \aq aw^, Mccalls Hohena*irg, vol 75 Januarv 1943
pp 4-4-53 d€a llous€ rr lor the walk€r Art csnt€r, P@s€s'@ ar.hnecturc,2a 2, 194A, pp 3941
59 'How Livable is a Modein House?, Ltte,25 {16),1943, pp 105€.
60 Minneapolis Mahing Ttibune Adobe r 1 6, 1 947 From rhe /de, Hduse // scrapboo k, Walke r An C edte r

61 A. D Thomas lor Folbes io D. S. Det€nbacher, March l1 I943, in /de, Ho,se // Ethibnon Fi€s, box
r5, lo der r r, wa ker Ar( cenr€r Archives
62 Detenbacher was dislrauqht thar /d6, Holse // was drawing as manv vsilors as he had hoped,
^or
wr tins 10 Henry Mc(niqhr ol L@k masaz ne on Nov€mber 12, 1947,'We are Oeting about one thnd
of ihe expecr€d an€ndance io /de! td,se // Be eve me, we.re pa nlu y surprsed There is nothing
t s a good show and €xcol€nt a.chlleclure in any leaque /dea Holse //
Exhlb r on Fil€s, box 1 5, 10 der I I , wa ks Ad c€nler arclrives.
 'a nan s house is his art

63 Phlip L Goodw n 10 Walker Ad Center, Novemb€r 3, I947, n /d6aHols6lExhbton Fiies, bu 15,

Museun af Maden Art BLllerin, 16 \1\, 1949

65 see scienB l Dst6ted, 4, 1949, pp. 65-9.
Whil€ tho Walk€r and lvloMA were ih€ only two Am6rcan museums 10 exhbl full-scale, luhished
and functona houses, many museums held nnovaive exhbtons ol mod€rn home lumshinssand
i^leror designs n rhe ale 1940s Some, lik€ A exand€r Gnad's Fot Madeh Living e\hiblon at the
Devor lnsiiiure of Ans in 1949, leatdred compeley decoGted room env ronmenb iiom modeh
des qne6 such as G€oroe Ne son,1h6 Eameses, and For€nc6 Kno . Sii orh€rs pursrcd dommercar
panneGhipsrop@molethenpolects,suchasMoMA's6oddDes,gnerhibniods,suhledAloinl
prosram lo stifrurale the besl modeh desqns ol home lumishng, which learurcd qoods avairab e
lrom the Merchand se Marl n Crricaoo See M Ft ednan, F6m Futuhha ra Matahha, in Ut6t

ln general, schoars wriling about dwelinq des sn du nO the md lwenteth century appear unaware
oJ /d6, House ln her essay'Cas€ Sludy Nous€s: ln ihe Grand Modern Tradition, He en Searng ays
oulrh€ ich and compex hisioryoflh€ anl€cedents ol the Case Study Proj€cl, boih n Amerca and
Europe, and dontifies Br6u6/s HoDe in the Musem 5atden as a 'museoloqial and lempo.ary
ve6 on of the Cas€ Srudy Hous€s,'mak ng no meniion of the earler /dea House projecl;see Searins,
'Cas€ Study Proj€d: ln the G6nd Madenlnditian, in Bl@ptints lot Maden Livins, p.117) Bealtz
Coomina, nh€r€ssay'TheExhbtionistFouse cites lh€ issu€ ol Eve.ydav An Arede d*a\ed\a
/d4 /ld,s€ //as an exanple of rhe popular appea ollh€ exhib i€d inledorinlhe middi€ oflh€ twen
iieth cenrury, bul makes no menlon of the exhbition 1sef. See B. Coomna, Th€ Exhibronst
Hause, n At rhe Ehd of the Centuty, p 141.
L. Hynan, Matcel Bteuet, Atchnecr fhe CErcet ahd rha Bjldings, N€w Yorki Harry N AbGms 2001 ,
p. 296: .l Dr rer, ate@, Houses, M Cole and J Ve(nde, tans, London: Phaidon Press, 2000,

D. Detenbacher, 'A Man s House is ns aft, Everyday al aBnetty, 5, 1e41, p 1

1rr