If any admirers of deconstructivism are in the market to buy a house, they will be curious to learn that Peter Eisenman’s iconic structure, House VI, will be up for sale in late May or early June. Owners Suzanne and Richard Frank commissioned Eisenman—a member of the New York Five—to design and build a house on their 6-acre property in Cornwall, Connecticut. Suzanne Frank had previously worked as a researcher and librarian for Eisenman’s Institute for Architecture & Urban Studies. The house, completed in 1975, is an unconventional play on a grid and intended to be a “record of the design process.”
The house stands out for its unusual, and often non-functional, features such as an upside down staircase and a column that separates diners at a dinner table. The upkeep hasn’t been easy for the Franks—the house, while an ambitious conceptual undertaking, has required substantial repairs over the years. The Franks discussed their experience with house in a book entitled Peter Eisenman’s House VI: The Client’s Response.
