CHICAGO, IL.- On May 19th 2015 Wright will present Frank Gehry’s Winton Guest House at auction. A work of art forced to relocate, Wright will find a new steward for this important structure.

A seminal work, The Winton Guest House introduces Gehry’s “village concept” where rooms become individual structures, the overall plan foreshadowing his iconic design for the Guggenheim in Bilbao. Composed like a Giorgio Morandi still-life, the structure is made up of six geometric-shapes clad in a variety of materials including stone, Finnish plywood and lead-coated copper. Completed in 1987, The Winton Guest House won House and Garden’s design of the year award and made Time’s “Best of 87” list. It is a breakthrough structure exhibiting the sculptural vision for which Gehry is most well-known.

“Frank Gehry is one of the most important architects of our time and the Winton Guest House project initiated, in many ways, his rise to prominence. It’s been a great pleasure to understand, document, preserve and share the house for the past four years, and I am hopeful that the next owner of this key work will continue the stewardship of his legacy” — Victoria Young, University of St. Thomas

The auction presents a rare opportunity to acquire an architectural masterpiece by one of America’s most important architects of the second half of the 20th century and to preserve this significant work for future generations. The Winton Guest House is estimated at $1,000,000 – 1,500,000 for the sale of the building only; the land is not included, thus Frank Gehry’s iconic structure will need to be relocated.

The sculptural structure will be offered in Wright’s Design Masterworks sale alongside a highly-vetted selection of the best and rarest works by architects, designers and artists of the 20th century. Works from the auction will be on view in Wright’s New York gallery and the Winton Guest House will be represented by a model of the house created after the example by Gehry in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York. Receptions celebrating Gehry’s Winton Guest House will be held in Minneapolis and New York.

History of The Winton Guest House: Mike and Penny Winton commissioned Frank Gehry to design their guest house after reading a feature on the architect in the New York Times in 1982. Their residence, situated on twelve-acres on Lake Minnetonka, was designed by Philip Johnson; so as not to compete with Glass’s vision, Gehry designed the house as a large outdoor sculpture. In 2002 the Wintons sold their property to Kirt Woodhouse who subdivided the land and subsequently donated the Winton Guest House to the University of St. Thomas in 2007. The structure was moved 110 miles to the university’s Daniel C. Gainey Conference Center in Owatonna the following year. St. Thomas has since sold the property and The Winton Guest House now needs to move.