Farnsworth House

A 1951 single-story glass-and-steel house beside the Fox River, conceived as an experiment in transparency and minimal structure.

The floor is raised above the floodplain, while only the service and bathroom core remains opaque.

Disputes over privacy, condensation, and cost accompanied its lasting status as a landmark of minimal dwelling.

Like a domestic Barcelona Pavilion, it defines space with little more than planes and frame.

Minimal

Architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe