Tour the Gropius House and the Codman Residence in Lincoln, Massachusetts
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When Walter Gropius joined the faculty of the Harvard School of Design in the late 1930s, he built a home for himself and family in nearby Lincoln, Massachusetts. Its modern industrialized design was a bold new vision for residential architecture, and the house has since been registered as a National Historic Landmark.
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Just a short walk away from the Gropius House stands the Grange, a modified Georgian-style mansion built in the mid-1700s. It was home to five generations of the Codman family, including Ogden Codman Jr., a well-known architect and interior designer. Note the classical columns and the use of wood ornament to imply stone quoining.
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At the rear of the home, Gropius designed a simple porch enclosed with steel columns and screening. His use of lightweight industrial materials here was a preview of design trends to come.
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Gropius used materials from the New England vernacular—fieldstone, clapboard, and brick—as well as those that would become hallmarks of modern design, such as steel, concrete, and glass block. A metal spiral staircase gives the building an industrial feel.
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Gropius situated his masterpiece on a field stone plinth and carefully integrated exterior and interior design.
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Portions of the roof were left open to create patterns of light and bring sun into the residence.
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Light and shadow are a vital part of Gropius’s design.
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Modern architecture is so often associated with materials like steel and concrete, but Gropius used local brick and wood to craft the same forms. I love how the shadow of the tree on the brick wall has just as profound an effect on the overall design experience as the tree itself.
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Glass blocks let light flood into the residence while also offering privacy.
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Distinct lines and patterns create a painterly composition.
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Columns and a pediment frame the front door of the Codman Residence.
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The plinth is made from artfully assembled fieldstone.
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An American decorative bench adjacent to the entrance.
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The shutters on the home’s façade are more ornamental than functional.
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The Codman Residence added a formal Italianate garden in the 1930s—around the same time the Gropius House was being built. Note the combination of fieldstone walls, pergola, and forsythia.