He's not a doctor but still makes house calls

Justin Gunther (B.S.'00/H&S)

Justin Gunther (B.S.'00/H&S) was named Most Outstanding Biology graduate the year he graduated from VCU. He planned to be a doctor.

After a gradual change of heart and dramatic change of direction, you might say he does make house calls.

He was manager of restoration at Mount Vernon and has been curator of buildings and collections at Fallingwater, the Frank Lloyd Wright house at Bear Run, Pennsylvania, since February 2007.

What does it mean to worry about the roof, the windows, the furniture and grounds in two such pivotal American houses? Not so different from your house, it turns out.

"The house still requires constant attention," Gunther says of Fallingwater.

Q: What exactly is your job at Fallingwater? What kinds of projects are you working on?

A: As Curator of Buildings and Collections at Fallingwater I oversee the preservation of Fallingwater's buildings and the care and management of its collections and landscape. Caring for the buildings, objects and natural setting of Fallingwater is a wonderful blend of preservation and curatorial management, and my job constantly presents exciting challenges and learning opportunities.

Before I arrived at Fallingwater, an extensive restoration to stabilize the failing cantilevers and combat water infiltration was completed. While the structure has been strengthened and leaks eliminated, the house still requires constant attention. Spalling [crumbling] concrete due to rusting reinforcing steel, cracking stucco due to expansion and contraction, and deteriorating masonry joints are just a few of the issues that are ever present at Fallingwater.

This past summer we finished repainting Fallingwater, returning the house to its original ochre color chosen by Wright. This project is completes almost two decades of research beginning in the early 1990s with historic paint analysis and the testing of over 120 exterior paint systems from four different manufacturers.

We are currently evaluating the possibility of replacing all the window glass at Fallingwater. To connect the house to its dramatic landscape over a waterfall, Wright used glass extensively. By 1988 the effects of so much glass and no shading by curtains or blinds was taking its toll on the interior woodwork and collections. To address the high ultraviolet levels, newly available Saflex UV protective glass was installed. Saflex, a three-part laminated glass system, consists of a UV filter sandwiched between 1/8-inch glass layers.

Nearly 20 years later, this glass is delaminating, causing cloudiness in the glass and compromising its UV protection capabilities. Replacing the failing Saflex glass with another protective glass system will restore the seamless transition between interior and exterior spaces as Wright intended and protect the woodwork and collections from damaging heat, sunlight and UV radiation.

Fallingwater is the only great Wright house open to the public with its setting, original furnishings, and art work intact, which makes managing its collections particularly rewarding—although high visitor traffic, as well as high humidity, and other environmental factors, present many challenges to protecting the collection. I am responsible for more than 950 works of art -- prints, paintings, sculpture, furniture, ceramics, art glass and miscellaneous household objects. Especially significant are the 169 pieces of original walnut furniture that Wright custom-designed for Fallingwater -- one of the most complete ensembles of Wright-designed, site-specific furniture.

I also develop the exhibition program and organize installations and touring exhibits. Currently touring the country is an exhibit titled, "Fallingwater en Perspectiva: Felix de la Concha Paints Frank Lloyd Wright's House on the Waterfall." You can find out more about this exhibition at the online catalog. Coming to Fallingwater this spring is "Brian Ferrell: Balance," an exhibition of cantilevered furniture by this local Pennsylvania artist.

Q: Would you comment on your previous experience at Mount Vernon and any connections to what you are doing at Fallingwater? Do you see any stylistic or cultural links (or contrasts) beyond the obvious, that these are both American homes? What about the relationship to the natural environment in Washington's working 18th-century farm compared to Wright's emphasis on that relationship at Fallingwater?

A: As manager of restoration at Mount Vernon, I oversaw the preservation of the plantation's historic buildings. I was Mount Vernon's principal architectural conservator and carried out repairs and restorations using 18th-century materials and techniques. My principal projects were the restoration of the mansion's Little Parlor and the Gardener's House. I was also curator of an architectural fragments collection consisting of thousands of objects removed from Mount Vernon's historic buildings during restoration projects over the past 150 years.

Although the periods of the two houses are different, managing the care of these homes is actually quite similar. Preservation and curatorial standards and philosophies can be applied to historic properties across periods.

Both Mount Vernon's George Washington and Fallingwater's Frank Lloyd Wright had an intense love of nature and created homes that took advantage of their natural settings. Washington chose a bluff overlooking the Potomac with breathtaking, panoramic views and Wright the cascading waters and rock ledges of Bear Run. For each site, nature and architecture are integral to the experience. Washington, however, sculpted the landscape with vistas and formal gardens, whereas Wright allowed Fallingwater to emerge from its site. Mount Vernon conquers its hilltop while Fallingwater grows from and becomes part of its surroundings.

Land and water conservation are central to the mission of Fallingwater and its parent organization, the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy. Another of my jobs as curator is managing the care of this landscape and maintaining the house's natural environment. The setting of Fallingwater has remained intact throughout the years, and the preservation of this landscape is extremely important to Fallingwater's integrity.

Q: Your undergraduate degree at VCU is in biology, pre-med—and you were very good at it. Is it useful to be a doctor in the house?

A: Science and art appear unrelated; however, the two disciplines often overlap. As a curator I frequently utilize my science background to understand materials and construction technologies. I apply this science to determine appropriate conservation methods for both architecture and art objects. Landscape preservation at Fallingwater has also tapped knowledge in ecology and botany gained as an undergraduate at VCU. The chemistry and engineering of how things work, and making things work, is fascinating to me, in the body or in the structure of a house or the ecology of a landscape.

Q: How did your VCU experience lead you toward historic architecture and prepare you for your work?

A: Although I was a biology major at VCU, I took most of my history and electives in the art history department. My parents had given me a love of history, and the architectural environment of the campus and the city of Richmond stimulated me to explore outside of the sciences.

Dr. Charles Brownell's introductory course in architectural history turned me on to architecture. His passion and knowledge for the subject was inspirational, and his later guidance helped me through my transition from medicine to historic preservation. I am extremely grateful for his confidence in me.

After graduation and a year of medical school at VCU, I realized I was not pursuing my passion and took a leave of absence. I took master's courses with Dr. Brownell and worked for the Historic Richmond Foundation and Preservation Alliance of Virginia. I decided not to return to the School of Medicine and earned my M.F.A. in historic preservation at Savannah College of Art and Design.

Q: Why maintain these places? Why is this work important?

A: Sites like Mount Vernon and Fallingwater help define our collective past and are monuments to American idealism and ingenuity. Preserving and interpreting their history and architecture contributes to the wealth of our unique heritage. As a preservationist and curator, it is my mission to protect and interpret this history and inspire current and future generations to remember and honor their past.

Find more information on Fallingwater and visiting there at http://www.fallingwater.org or call 724-329-8501.