AFFLECK HOUSE

Modern house with wooden exterior and large windows, surrounded by lush greenery and trees.

Affleck House is a gem. Gregor Affleck, an engineer who invented fast-drying paint used in car manufacturing, and his wife Elizabeth in 1941 asked Frank Lloyd Wright to design a home atop a wooded ravine in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Wright delivered a striking version of his “Usonian House,” an affordable home built with inexpensive materials, but without skimping on innovations including abundant skylights and windows built into the floor for natural air-conditioning. Evoking Wright’s 1936 masterpiece Fallingwater, Affleck House’s large living room opens onto a cantilevered terrace overlooking a pond at the foot of the ravine. 

Interior of a wooden living room with large windows, cushioned seating, lamps on tables, and decorative elements. The room features wood-paneled walls and ceiling, and a polished wooden floor, creating a warm and inviting atmosphere.

In 1978, the Afflecks donated the house to Lawrence Technological University, where it is a key teaching tool in the College of Architecture and Design. As with all flat-roofed Wright buildings, maintenance is costly. So in 2009, alumni formed a Restoration Council to preserve Affleck House; their support and the sustained efforts of faculty and staff led the FLW Building Conservancy to honor LTU with its “Wright Spirit” preservation award in 2024. The University recently created the Affleck House Maintenance Fund, which will raise sufficient funds by the end of 2025 to cover all maintenance, upkeep and capital expenses at Affleck House in perpetuity. Michele and I are delighted to support this fund, as well as a newly created Affleck Scholarship supporting an architecture graduate student and a new Affleck Fellowship, supporting an outstanding young academic in the field.

Group of five people smiling and leaning out of a wooden-framed window in a house with brick walls and large glass panels.
Interior of a modern architectural space with wood paneled walls, large glass windows, and skylights. The room features built-in wooden furniture, table lamps, and brick elements, with natural light illuminating the area.
Outdoor wooden balcony with overhead beams, a white mug on the ledge, surrounded by lush green trees.