Another road trip into Oklahoma – this time we headed to Tulsa which has a rich Art Deco heritage. Tulsa was flush with oil money in the 1930s, the city was booming and Art Deco was the style of the moment.
Today’s trip took us south before heading west into Oklahoma via a larger, albeit rural, highway. We saw a few hawks along the way (not nearly as many as we had seen on Tuesday) but our avian highlight of the day was the Golden Eagle we spotted on the side of the highway! What a magnificent bird!
Upon arrival in Tulsa, we headed directly to downtown where we could see the largest congregation of Art Deco buildings. Armed with our map and information, we began pounding the streets in search of Streamline, Zigzag and WPA. We knew that our time here was limited to 45 minutes or so as we were booked for a tour of Boston Avenue United Methodist Church, but we were amazed at how quickly the time flew! This was a bit of foreshadowing of how our entire day in Tulsa would be.
Tulsa is simply an Art Deco delight! Every building had features on the façade, features on the roof, features behind every door. Details, tiles, light fixtures, frozen fountains – we saw it all! Well, we saw a lot – we simply didn’t have time to see it all! We made sure to visit the Philtower, the Philcade and the Atlas Life Buildings; we also wandered into and around several others. We spotted more buildings on our way back to the car. Art Deco is everywhere!!
Regretfully, we left downtown but, excitedly, we headed to Boston Avenue United Methodist Church – the jewel in Tulsa’s Art Deco crown. Built in 1929, the church is enormous, it dominates the Tulsa sky and it sits, rather aloofly, on its substantial plot of land, requiring – and receiving – the respect it is due.
I heard someone say that its linear tower makes it appear as if it’s a beacon reaching out to extraterrestrials. (Did Mulder and Scully ever visit Tulsa?) You can see how this assessment was reached; however, its straight, vertical lines suggest the church’s reaching toward God. My impression of this building is that it is simply incredible! I truly believe that it is the most stunning, prodigious and sublime church I have seen in this country – maybe even in the world. Not everyone will agree with me but I found this church to be incredibly awe inspiring and wondrous.
Our visit began by staring at the splendid example of Art Deco architecture that sat before us. You simply cannot look at this building without looking up at the sky-piercing spire that stretches high into the Oklahoma sky. After entering the building, we met our tour guide and we were taken throughout the church – both the original building and the added educational building. Our first stop was the sanctuary.
The credit for the design of BAUMC is somewhat disputed. Adah Robinson, a local art teacher, who was, in fact, the teacher of a young, precocious Bruce Goff, is the credited designer. She was not, however, an architect. A local architecture firm translated Adah’s aesthetic designs into technical designs. This is where things get a little fuzzy – Bruce Goff was working as an apprentice for the architecture firm and there is some question about how much of the design was Adah’s and how much was Bruce’s. After all we heard and saw, we all agreed that it was Adah’s design. Bruce did a lot of the architectural drawings but it was Adah who did the research and developed the ideas and symbolism within this magnificent structure. We know Adah was a tremendous influence upon Bruce and I found something here that irrefutably shows this:
The stained glass is Adah’s design found in the sanctuary of BAUMC. The gate is from Bruce Goff’s “Shin’en Kan”. No doubt about where Bruce got his inspiration for that design!
Oh, I digress . . . back to the brilliance that is BAUMC.
The sanctuary is fan-shaped with all lines leading to the pulpit. The interior is a pinkish-rosy color which maximizes the light. The stained glass is brilliant and depicts two of Oklahoma’s native flowers – the coreopsis and the tritoma, each with its unique symbolism. The ceiling, which is a circular dome that symbolizes the infinite, soars and its apex is crowned with a spectacular round stained glass window which I would describe as a modernized rose window. The wall behind the pulpit is covered with a mosaic in shades of pink with accents of gold – just enough sparkle to enhance the mosaic without detracting from it. You sit in this room and try to absorb it all but you can’t. You walk around this room and try to absorb it all but you can’t. Your neck begins to hurt from looking up and around and around.
The rest of the church follows suit to this resplendence, more subtle, of course, but in reference to and in respect of the sanctuary.
BAUMC is an active and vibrant church and its congregation seems to be quite proud of its church and its unique contribution to architectural history.
After one last peek into the sanctuary, we left BAUMC for our next appointment – a visit to the Adah Robinson studio.
Adah’s Art Deco studio isn’t far from the church. Bruce Goff designed this 1400 square foot studio for Adah in 1922. After adding a kitchen in 1924, Adah decided to live in it. The studio is now the home of an affable retired architect who studied under Bruce Goff at Oklahoma University – he gladly showed us throughout his little Art Deco gem. There are several very nice features to the studio – the original terrazzo floors and the tall windows in the two-level living room which provided exceptional light for Adah and her work. There is also an outstanding fireplace with a conversation pit that is the star of the room. Upstairs, there is a balcony with benches overlooking the living room with another outstanding fireplace, this one being of a Moorish influence.
We concluded our visit with a walk around the exterior, soaking up more of its Art Deco ambiance – namely its stucco and tile construction, verticality, streamline features, setbacks and balconies – before heading over to the Philbrook Museum of Art for a delightful lunch at La Villa (the Lemon Thyme with Grilled Chicken Salad was outstanding!). After lunch, we dashed over to another Art Deco wonder - the Fleeger House.
We had been fortunate enough to receive some pointers and assistance with “home visits” from Rick Phillips, a local designer. Rick had put me in contact with the owners of the Fleeger House who had agreed to meet us at the house after lunch. What a find! The Fleeger House is a prime example of Streamline Art Deco. It is as if you’re looking at a 1930’s cruise ship that’s attached to land. In 1937, architect Frederick Vance Kreshner designed the Burtner Fleeger house at 2424 E. 29th Street. The structure was Tulsa’s first concrete home, fulfilling Fleeger’s request that the house’s exterior be easily cleaned. The walls were made of reinforced concrete that was 12 to 14 inches thick and they are striated with streamline-indictative narrow, horizontal bands. The extreme Art Deco of this house was even more apparent when viewed from the backyard across the pool. Before leaving this gem and its generous owners, we were invited to an Open House at the offices of Wallace Engineering that evening. Once we were told about the 300 pounds of barbecue and three kinds of beer, we knew we had our dinner plans in place!
From here we headed over to visit a 1920’s home that has been renovated over the last couple of years by its owner. We had a blast with him! We were escorted around the house and treated to explanations about the acquisition of the period lighting, the vintage range and other era-specific pieces in the house. This guy is an expert estate-saler! We would love to go spend a weekend with him, hitting up what are apparently fantastic estate sales in Tulsa! We were then treated to an Art Deco driving tour of Tulsa in his vintage Checker cab. What a day - and there was still more on the schedule!
With our new estate-saler friend in tow, we hurried over to a 1959 Gene Starr designed house on Victor Avenue. This 4300 square foot house is currently in the throes of total renovation with the design work being done by our new friend Rick Phillips. Rick showed us all of the plans for and pictures of the project. The house has many Mid-Century Modern features – floor to ceiling glass overlooking a wisteria-covered pergola and a signed Esther Williams pool. We just might have to make another trip to Tulsa to see this completed project! Maybe they’ll throw a “Mad Men” party for the celebration!
Next on the agenda was another house visit arranged for us by Rick – a visit to the 1959 International Style Robert Lawton Jones house. Robert Lawton Jones, a principal of Murray Jones Murray, studied under Mies van der Rohe and it is very obvious when you see this house! It was truly as if you had stepped into a Miesian-designed house. The Jones house earned a place on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001 when it was only 42 years old. This is especially significant for three reasons – 1. it was listed singularly, based on its own significance and not upon its inclusion in a historic district; 2. the architect is still living; and 3. it was listed before it was 50 years old which is the generally accepted threshold for inclusion. The house has recently been renovated by architect/designer Brett Logan of Logan Designs who met us at the house. The house is beautiful in its minimalism and it showcases quite an art collection. The deep backyard of this house (the house sits on a two acre lot) looks and feels like a park with paths that offer extraordinary views of the modernist glass wall that makes up the entire back wall of the house. This is not what we expected to see in Tulsa! Another incredible visit!
Darkness was almost upon us when we admitted to the owner that we had not even had a chance to go see Frank Lloyd Wright’s “Westhope”. Although we had been unsuccessful in securing a visit to the house - even with assistance from Rick - we still wanted to at least squeeze in a drive-by. We were promptly shooed from the Jones’ house with the instructions to hurry while we still had some daylight and we were told that the absentee owner did not mind if you walked around the property. We took that advice to heart and treated ourselves to a quick, limited visit of “Westhope”, Frank Lloyd Wright’s only Art Deco designed house, which he designed for his cousin, Richard Lloyd Jones. Even in the dark we were still discovering Tulsa’s architectural wonders!
Our little group headed over to the newly opened offices of Wallace Engineering on Brady Street for the Open House where we were warmly greeted by our hosts. We tested the Oklahoman ribs and pulled pork and checked out the new office space before bidding our hosts adieu and heading back to Bella Vista. We truly had an unbelievably incredible day in Tulsa! Hard to believe that we didn’t see everything that we could have - or should have - seen. I think we could have easily spent two days, if not three, touring Tulsa. Not only did we “meet” many of the city’s architectural marvels, we met many marvelous Tulsans. Tulsa, we thank you for a fabulous day!
What a week!
Today’s trip took us south before heading west into Oklahoma via a larger, albeit rural, highway. We saw a few hawks along the way (not nearly as many as we had seen on Tuesday) but our avian highlight of the day was the Golden Eagle we spotted on the side of the highway! What a magnificent bird!
Upon arrival in Tulsa, we headed directly to downtown where we could see the largest congregation of Art Deco buildings. Armed with our map and information, we began pounding the streets in search of Streamline, Zigzag and WPA. We knew that our time here was limited to 45 minutes or so as we were booked for a tour of Boston Avenue United Methodist Church, but we were amazed at how quickly the time flew! This was a bit of foreshadowing of how our entire day in Tulsa would be.
Tulsa is simply an Art Deco delight! Every building had features on the façade, features on the roof, features behind every door. Details, tiles, light fixtures, frozen fountains – we saw it all! Well, we saw a lot – we simply didn’t have time to see it all! We made sure to visit the Philtower, the Philcade and the Atlas Life Buildings; we also wandered into and around several others. We spotted more buildings on our way back to the car. Art Deco is everywhere!!
I heard someone say that its linear tower makes it appear as if it’s a beacon reaching out to extraterrestrials. (Did Mulder and Scully ever visit Tulsa?) You can see how this assessment was reached; however, its straight, vertical lines suggest the church’s reaching toward God. My impression of this building is that it is simply incredible! I truly believe that it is the most stunning, prodigious and sublime church I have seen in this country – maybe even in the world. Not everyone will agree with me but I found this church to be incredibly awe inspiring and wondrous.
Our visit began by staring at the splendid example of Art Deco architecture that sat before us. You simply cannot look at this building without looking up at the sky-piercing spire that stretches high into the Oklahoma sky. After entering the building, we met our tour guide and we were taken throughout the church – both the original building and the added educational building. Our first stop was the sanctuary.
The stained glass is Adah’s design found in the sanctuary of BAUMC. The gate is from Bruce Goff’s “Shin’en Kan”. No doubt about where Bruce got his inspiration for that design!
Oh, I digress . . . back to the brilliance that is BAUMC.
The sanctuary is fan-shaped with all lines leading to the pulpit. The interior is a pinkish-rosy color which maximizes the light. The stained glass is brilliant and depicts two of Oklahoma’s native flowers – the coreopsis and the tritoma, each with its unique symbolism. The ceiling, which is a circular dome that symbolizes the infinite, soars and its apex is crowned with a spectacular round stained glass window which I would describe as a modernized rose window. The wall behind the pulpit is covered with a mosaic in shades of pink with accents of gold – just enough sparkle to enhance the mosaic without detracting from it. You sit in this room and try to absorb it all but you can’t. You walk around this room and try to absorb it all but you can’t. Your neck begins to hurt from looking up and around and around.
The rest of the church follows suit to this resplendence, more subtle, of course, but in reference to and in respect of the sanctuary.
BAUMC is an active and vibrant church and its congregation seems to be quite proud of its church and its unique contribution to architectural history.
After one last peek into the sanctuary, we left BAUMC for our next appointment – a visit to the Adah Robinson studio.
Adah’s Art Deco studio isn’t far from the church. Bruce Goff designed this 1400 square foot studio for Adah in 1922. After adding a kitchen in 1924, Adah decided to live in it. The studio is now the home of an affable retired architect who studied under Bruce Goff at Oklahoma University – he gladly showed us throughout his little Art Deco gem. There are several very nice features to the studio – the original terrazzo floors and the tall windows in the two-level living room which provided exceptional light for Adah and her work. There is also an outstanding fireplace with a conversation pit that is the star of the room. Upstairs, there is a balcony with benches overlooking the living room with another outstanding fireplace, this one being of a Moorish influence.
We concluded our visit with a walk around the exterior, soaking up more of its Art Deco ambiance – namely its stucco and tile construction, verticality, streamline features, setbacks and balconies – before heading over to the Philbrook Museum of Art for a delightful lunch at La Villa (the Lemon Thyme with Grilled Chicken Salad was outstanding!). After lunch, we dashed over to another Art Deco wonder - the Fleeger House.
We had been fortunate enough to receive some pointers and assistance with “home visits” from Rick Phillips, a local designer. Rick had put me in contact with the owners of the Fleeger House who had agreed to meet us at the house after lunch. What a find! The Fleeger House is a prime example of Streamline Art Deco. It is as if you’re looking at a 1930’s cruise ship that’s attached to land. In 1937, architect Frederick Vance Kreshner designed the Burtner Fleeger house at 2424 E. 29th Street. The structure was Tulsa’s first concrete home, fulfilling Fleeger’s request that the house’s exterior be easily cleaned. The walls were made of reinforced concrete that was 12 to 14 inches thick and they are striated with streamline-indictative narrow, horizontal bands. The extreme Art Deco of this house was even more apparent when viewed from the backyard across the pool. Before leaving this gem and its generous owners, we were invited to an Open House at the offices of Wallace Engineering that evening. Once we were told about the 300 pounds of barbecue and three kinds of beer, we knew we had our dinner plans in place!
From here we headed over to visit a 1920’s home that has been renovated over the last couple of years by its owner. We had a blast with him! We were escorted around the house and treated to explanations about the acquisition of the period lighting, the vintage range and other era-specific pieces in the house. This guy is an expert estate-saler! We would love to go spend a weekend with him, hitting up what are apparently fantastic estate sales in Tulsa! We were then treated to an Art Deco driving tour of Tulsa in his vintage Checker cab. What a day - and there was still more on the schedule!
With our new estate-saler friend in tow, we hurried over to a 1959 Gene Starr designed house on Victor Avenue. This 4300 square foot house is currently in the throes of total renovation with the design work being done by our new friend Rick Phillips. Rick showed us all of the plans for and pictures of the project. The house has many Mid-Century Modern features – floor to ceiling glass overlooking a wisteria-covered pergola and a signed Esther Williams pool. We just might have to make another trip to Tulsa to see this completed project! Maybe they’ll throw a “Mad Men” party for the celebration!
Next on the agenda was another house visit arranged for us by Rick – a visit to the 1959 International Style Robert Lawton Jones house. Robert Lawton Jones, a principal of Murray Jones Murray, studied under Mies van der Rohe and it is very obvious when you see this house! It was truly as if you had stepped into a Miesian-designed house. The Jones house earned a place on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001 when it was only 42 years old. This is especially significant for three reasons – 1. it was listed singularly, based on its own significance and not upon its inclusion in a historic district; 2. the architect is still living; and 3. it was listed before it was 50 years old which is the generally accepted threshold for inclusion. The house has recently been renovated by architect/designer Brett Logan of Logan Designs who met us at the house. The house is beautiful in its minimalism and it showcases quite an art collection. The deep backyard of this house (the house sits on a two acre lot) looks and feels like a park with paths that offer extraordinary views of the modernist glass wall that makes up the entire back wall of the house. This is not what we expected to see in Tulsa! Another incredible visit!
Darkness was almost upon us when we admitted to the owner that we had not even had a chance to go see Frank Lloyd Wright’s “Westhope”. Although we had been unsuccessful in securing a visit to the house - even with assistance from Rick - we still wanted to at least squeeze in a drive-by. We were promptly shooed from the Jones’ house with the instructions to hurry while we still had some daylight and we were told that the absentee owner did not mind if you walked around the property. We took that advice to heart and treated ourselves to a quick, limited visit of “Westhope”, Frank Lloyd Wright’s only Art Deco designed house, which he designed for his cousin, Richard Lloyd Jones. Even in the dark we were still discovering Tulsa’s architectural wonders!
Our little group headed over to the newly opened offices of Wallace Engineering on Brady Street for the Open House where we were warmly greeted by our hosts. We tested the Oklahoman ribs and pulled pork and checked out the new office space before bidding our hosts adieu and heading back to Bella Vista. We truly had an unbelievably incredible day in Tulsa! Hard to believe that we didn’t see everything that we could have - or should have - seen. I think we could have easily spent two days, if not three, touring Tulsa. Not only did we “meet” many of the city’s architectural marvels, we met many marvelous Tulsans. Tulsa, we thank you for a fabulous day!
What a week!
Hi Tina.....Thanks for sharing these wonderful photos!! I am the grand-daughter of Burt and Jeanette Fleeger. I have visited Tulsa several times, but have never been successful in being able to see the inside of the Fleeger house. I have some original photos of the Fleeger house that show it during and just after construction. I have always wondered about the inside. I never knew my Grandparents...Burt died before I was born and Jeanette died when I was 2 weeks old.
ReplyDeleteI noticed, at the end of this posting, you mention "heading back to Bella Vista". Do you spend time in Bella Vista on a regular basis? I currently live in Bella Vista, and interestingly, in 1926, I found out Burt and Jeanette contracted for a lot and summer home in Bella Vista. I am told they spent many summers in Bella Vista during the 1920's thru 1940's. The home in Bella Vista no longer exists and I can find no pictures of it. I grew up in Dallas and I did not know about any of this connection to Bella Vista until AFTER I moved here. Small world...
Would love to meet you sometime if you are in Bella Vista.....Thanks again,
Marla Fleeger Barina
Hi Marla,
DeleteHow nice of you to comment and tell this wonderful story! I certainly have more photos of the interior of the Fleeger House but they will not reflect the way it looked when your grandparents built the house as it has remodeled since that time. In fact, the current owners have probably by now completed a restoration project to bring it back to an authentic Art Deco interior.
I have been to Northwest Arkansas twice. The first time was in 2002 for a Fay Jones architecture tour and then again in November 2011 for my own version of a Fay et al. architecture tour from which the blog developed. We spent that week in Bella Vista as our base for our day trips. It would have been nice to have met you when we were there; you could have joined us for our "architour" in Tulsa.
If you're interested in architecture tours, drop me a note. I'm taking a small group to Buffalo next month to see all of the Frank Lloyd Wright goodies there (plus others, of course!).
Tina