Frank Lloyd Wright’s last-ever single-family design, the beguiling Norman Lykes House, has returned to market seeking not one, but six buyers to jointly own this desert sanctum for $1.5 million each.
Perched dramatically within Phoenix’s Mountain Preserve foothills, the home unfurls Wright’s motif of interlocking circles into a graceful paean to organic architecture. Crescent windows ornament sandstone walls that cascade into a circular courtyard, where a half-moon pool mirrors the cobalt desert sky. Inside, 3,095 square feet of living space abounds in earth tones, with Wrightian touches like built-in bench seats and mahogany paneling.
Beyond mere aesthetics, the Lykes House exemplifies Wright’s zeitgeist of harmonizing structures with their environments. Its concrete bulk collects cooling breezes while circular forms nod to indigenous architectures. And its 1959 origins place it during Wright’s philosophic zenith, when the architect ruminated on cycles and processes through his designs.
Indeed, intersections of circles fill the home, from the kitchen’s portholes to the slate great room’s conversation pit that encourages gathering. Bedrooms center around Paladian windows and a shared bath, while the signature mahogany-drenched office incorporates clever built-ins.
Although completed in 1967, the home remains a portal into Wright’s late-career élan. The living room balances mid-century modern warmth against Wrightian restraint, united by a lone fireplace. And the spare kitchen’s harvest gold counters bridge Wright’s earth-toned palette with groovy atomic-age charm.
This Frank Lloyd Wright finale, on the open desert’s edge, asks $9 million total for six owners to collectively steward. For the architecturally devout, it gifts a rare chance to dwell within Wright’s philosophical grace. The Lykes House grants everyday respite in a sanctuary where circles never end but instead frame the fluidity between nature and mindful living.
