Day five was blessed with bright sunlight as we headed back to Minneapolis for a visit to Frank Lloyd Wright's Willey House. This commission produced the famous Wright quote "Hosanna! A client!!" The Great Depression and his scandalous private life resulted in him having no business since 1929. But in 1933 Malcolm Willey, a professor at the University of Minnesota wrote Wright asking the great master if he could design a house costing no more than $8,000. Desperate for a commission he accepted the challenge and the granddaddy of the Usonian house was born. What was special about our visit is that the home is under restoration so we got to see how Wright actually constructed the framework. A drive through downtown showcased the Frederick R. Weisman Art Museum (Frank Gehry - 1993), Foshay Tower (1929), IDS Center (Philip Johnson - 1972) and Wells Fargo Center (Cesar Pelli - 1988). Then it was Allen Christian's House of Balls. He is a sculptor who carves old bowling balls into amazing art forms. Allen also is handy with a welding torch, producing wild sculpture, and a plasma cutter that he uses to transform pots and pans into art.
