First Christian Church in Phoenix by Frank Lloyd Wright

First Christian Church in Phoenix Entrance

In 1949, the Southwest Christian Seminary in Phoenix commissioned the renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright, who was 82 years old at the time, to design a classical university encompassing various programmatic buildings, including a chapel. Wright completed and publicly unveiled his designs in 1950. However, the seminary ceased its operations, and the university was never constructed. Years later, Wright’s widow obtained permission to utilize the plans for the creation of a new First Christian Church. This architectural gem, inspired by Wright’s original vision, was eventually completed in 1973.

First Christian Church Technical Information

Architects: Frank Lloyd Wright | Biography & Bibliography
Location: 6750 North Seventh Avenue, Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Client: Peyton Canary
Material: Concrete, Stone
Typology: Religious Architecture / Church
Design Year: 1950
Project Year: 1972
Photographs: © ArchEyes

Form follows function, that has been misunderstood. Form and function should be one, joined in a spiritual union.

– Frank Lloyd Wright

First Christian Church in Phoenix Photographs

Exterior view of the First Christian Church in Phoenix by Frank Lloyd Wright

In the First Christian Church building, Frank Lloyd Wright uses the same materials that the Taliesin campus to echo the horizontality of the desert but in this case, however, two vertical elements are introduced: the tower and the steeple.

The bell tower was built in 1978 as a separate and free-standing 120-foot tower and completed with a 22-foot cross. Optical illusions were used to look like a triangular shape, just like the church spire. The tower contains more than 300 tons of concrete, stone, and steel and has no inward-supporting structures being one of the most unique of Wright’s designs. The roof was built in foam and colored green to look like oxidized copper due to monetary constraints.

In the courtyard, concrete structures extend from the sanctuary into the yard. They suggest unfinished framing ruins or a concrete grove. The shape of those patterned, angled, supporting fins are repeated inside. To anybody familiar with Frank Henry’s Mushroom Bank, this strategy will seem familiar. These arcades are gratuitous but essential to the building’s relationship to its site and the street.

The lost plans were transformed into a building that has become a local landmark and has been called “one of the 10 best church buildings ever built in America” by the Church Architects Guild of America. It’s certainly among Wright’s more unusual designs — and that’s saying a lot — and one that proved challenging to the phalanx of engineers hired to erect it.

The addition of the baptistery and choir loft and the 1979 addition of an administrative wing, completed by Taliesin Architects, are the only modifications to the original design.

First Christian Church Plans

Floor Plan of the First Christian Church in Phoenix by Frank Lloyd Wrigt

Elevation of the Phoenix church by Frank Lloyd Wright

Phoenix Church Image Gallery

: © ArchEyes

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About Frank Lloyd Wright

Frank Lloyd Wright (1867 – 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright believed in designing in harmony with humanity and the environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture. Wright played a key role in the twentieth century’s architectural movements, influencing generations of architects worldwide through his works.

Full Bio | Works from Frank Lloyd Wright

First Christian Church, Phoenix: A Frank Lloyd Wright Masterpiece