Marion Mahony Griffin, Frank Lloyd Wright's First Employee

By Jackie Craven, About.com Guide

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Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin in Sydney, Australia, 1930

Wikimedia Commons

Marion Mahony was the first employee hired by Frank Lloyd Wright, and she became the world's first woman to be officially licensed as an architect.

Born:

February 14, 1871 in Chicago

Maiden Name:

Marion Mahony (pronounced MAH-nee)

Died:

August 10, 1961 in Chicago

Education:

1894: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

Associations:

After graduation, Marion Mahony worked briefly for her cousin Dwight Perkins, who encouraged her in her architectural career
In 1895, Marion Mahony joined the Chicago studio of Frank Lloyd Wright, where she worked for nearly 15 years
In 1911 Marion Mahony married architect Walter Burley Griffin, forming a partnership that lasted 28 years

Marion Mahony's Projects With Frank Lloyd Wright:

While she worked for Frank Lloyd Wright, Marion Mahony designed furnishings, light fixtures, murals, mosaics, and leaded glass for many of his houses. After Wright sold his practice in 1909, Marion Mahony completed Wright's unfinished houses, in some cases serving as lead designer.

1909: Edward P. Irving House, 2 Millikin Place, Decatur, IL
1909: David Amberg Residence, 573 College Avenue, Grand Rapids, MI
1909: Robert Mueller House, 1 Millikin Place, Decatur, IL
1910: Adolph Mueller House, 4 Millikin Place, Decatur, IL

Marion Mahony's Projects With Walter Burley Griffin:

Marion Mahony met her husband, Walter Burley Griffin, when they both worked for Frank Lloyd Wright. Along with Wright, Griffin was a pioneer in the Prairie School of architecture. Marion Mahony and Walter Burley Griffin worked together on the design of many Prairie Style houses.

Cooley House, Grand Street at Texas Avenue, Monroe, LA
1911: Niles Club Company, Club House, Niles, MI

Marion Mahony in Australia:

Marion Mahony drew watercolor perspectives for the prize-winning Town Plan for Canberra, Australia designed by her husband, Walter Burley Griffin. In 1914, Marion and Walter moved to Australia to oversee the construction of the new capital city. Marion Mahony managed their Sydney office and handled private commissions.

1926: Ellen Mower Home, 12 The Rampart, Castlecrag, New South Wales
1926: Creswick Home, Castlecrag, Sydney, New South Wales
1927: S.R. Salter Residence (Knitlock construction), Toorak, Victoria, Australia
1927: Vaughan Griffin Home, 52 Darebin St., Heidelberg, Victoria, Australia

Marion Mahony in India:

Marion Mahony and Walter Burley Griffin later practiced in India where she supervised the design of more than a hundred Prairie Style houses.

About Marion Mahony Griffin:

Like many other women who design buildings, Marion Mahony was lost in the shadow of her male associates. Nevertheless, Marion Mahony contributed greatly to Frank Lloyd Wright's career and also to the career of her husband, Walter Burley Griffin.

In addition to her home and furnishing designs, Marion Mahony is widely praised for her architectural renderings. Inspired by the style of Japanese woodblock prints, Mahony created fluid and romantic ink and watercolor drawings decorated with flowing vines.

Some architectural historians say that Marion Mahony's drawings were responsible for establishing the reputations of Frank Lloyd Wright and Walter Burley Griffin. More than half of the drawings in Frank Lloyd Wright's Wasmuth Portfolio were by Marion Mahony. Published in Germany in 1910, the Wasmuth Portfolio influenced the great modern architects Mies van der Rohe and Le Corbusier. Marion Mahony's lush drawings are also credited for winning Walter Burley Griffin the prized commission to design the new capital city for Australia.

Working in Australia and later in India, Marion Mahony and Walter Burley Griffin built hundreds of Prairie houses and spread the style to distant parts of the world. Their unique "Knitlock" houses became a model for Frank Lloyd Wright when he designed his textile block houses in California.