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SC Johnson Wax Headquarters
1 review for SC Johnson Wax Headquarters
Yoo hoo! Calling all Frank Lloyd Wright devotees!! Over here, in Racine, WI.....
Frank Lloyd Wright struggled off and on in his career, but when he found a client who shared his vision (and had the budget to indulge Mr. Wright), magical things happened. Herbert Johnson, then President of the S.C. Johnson Wax company, was one such visionary and in 1936 construction of this modern masterpiece began.
The building was meant to be the world headquarters of Johnson Wax, a working building and, is in fact, still operating in that capacity today. Wright wanted it to be a "living" building, a free and open space that would be a stimulating place to work. Later, he said of this building "There in the Johnson Building you catch no sense of enclosure whatever at any angle, top or sides....Interior space comes free, you are not aware of any boxing in at all. Restricted space simply is not there. Right there where you've always experienced this interior constriction you take a look at the sky!"
The Johnson Wax company has carefully maintained the integrity of the building and the interior, so it is on the National Register of Historic Landmarks. It is utterly breathtaking to see the interior of the Great Workroom just as Frank Lloyd Wright envisioned it, still operating as an office today, right down to the desks he selected! It is a wide open space, filled with Wright's dendriform columns, a miracle of engineering in themselves. The tour guides do a great job of walking visitors through the struggles and complexities of the building.
I could go on forever about this place, but any number of websites out there will do a better job as I'm neither an architect or an historian, merely a fan of FLW. An amazing building that has been wonderfully preserved, it is absolutely worth a visit. Sure, you have to get schooled on the Johnson Wax company at the end of the tour, but I didn't mind as this company has done such a wonderful job preserving this gem.
Love Frank Lloyd Wright? Get thee to Racine! Be sure to call ahead of visiting as the tours sell out and reservations are strongly encouraged.
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