After the owner, Lord Palumbo, decided to put it up for sale and the state of Illinois said they could not buy it, Mies van der Rohe’s masterpiece went to auction where it risked falling into the wrong hands. For example, those of a rich American businessman set on dismantling it piece by piece and taking it to another state to rebuild it according to his own needs.
Last December, conservationists led by the National Trust unexpectedly won their battle, managing to buy the lot for the considerable sum of 7.5 million dollars. As promised, they have opened it up to the public, for the moment by appointment only (from Tuesday to Saturday, 10 h – 16 h, 18 dollars per visitor). E.S.
Farnsworth House
14520 River Road, Plano, Illinois
T +1-312-9221742
http://www.landmarks.org
