Modding about Fallingwater; Frank Lloyd Wright house in HL2

by Christopher Grant { Sep 5th 2006 at 4:55PM }

If talking about music is like dancing about architecture, then what is writing about architecture like? Anyone with an affinity for the art and science of designing great buildings knows there is no better way to experience them than to walk through them; to experience the sense of scale intimately; see how light affects the space; see how the location affects the light, and so on. Unfortunately, that dictum still holds true, but for how long?

One architecture student slash level modder chose Frank Lloyd Wright's tree-nestled modern masterpiece Fallingwater (aka the Kaufmann House) to recreate using Half-Life 2's Source engine. Anyone who's visited western Pennsylvania and taken the time to stop by Fallingwater knows the value of experiencing it first-hand.

The video walkthrough (embedded after the break) does give some sense of scale, but lacks the same polish that all video games exhibit on closer inspection. Though you miss the craftsmanship in the details, you do get an unparalleled appreciation for the way Wright tucked his house into the woods. Using "noclip" mode, the video's tour guide takes us up above the house and the waterfall providing a point-of-view entirely absent from the real experience.

[Via Boing Boing]

Tags: Architecture, Fallingwater, Frank Lloyd Wright, FrankLloydWright, Half-Life, Half-Life 2, Half-life2, HL2, Kauffman House, KauffmanHouse, Mods, Source

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

dsub @ Sep 5th 2006 5:09PM

speaking as someone who has been to, and walked through Fallingwater, this is an excellent recreation of the home. From what I can Remember, everything, including the path leading up to the house is identical in this recreation. Fallingwater is one of the most amazing places I have ever been to. The way Frank Lloyd Wright literally blended a modern home with the wilderness is something that should be seen first hand by any who have the opportunity.

david @ Sep 5th 2006 5:07PM

the source engine still makes me pee myself a little

juicebytim @ Sep 5th 2006 5:12PM

So when will this be available to download?

C. Grant @ Sep 5th 2006 5:14PM

dsub: tell me that bird's eye view isn't incredible though. Seeing the whole topology of the landscape and how the building sits right in there is pretty amazing, and something that is more "big picture" than the details that are missing in the rest of the video.

C. Grant @ Sep 5th 2006 5:15PM

juicebytim: it is available. You can find it through the links above, or just go here:
http://www.cstrike-planet.com/maps/969

Subnet6 @ Sep 5th 2006 5:26PM

"If talking about music is like dancing about architecture, then what is writing about architecture like?"

How about sniping about architecture or headshotting about architecture? This is a very good looking mod. I have not personally been to fallingwater, though I've studied lots of photographs and I plan to visit someday given the opportunity. I really enjoy the modding community for endeavors like this. In my opinion this demonstrates that gaming can be an evocative medium for appreciation/homage of life and art in a very high form, worthy of our attention.

I remember playing a quake 3 mod in an oversized model of fallingwater. While it was pretty to look at, it was not the best layout for a 2 on 2 death match. :)

Obviously using the Q3 engine didn't allow the level of detail seen here but it was good in its day.

Kudos to the modder. Keep on keepin on brotha!

Crosswayboy @ Sep 5th 2006 5:28PM

Awesome idea. Great execution.

I wouldn't mind playing a few games of CS on that badboy though...

ill trooper @ Sep 5th 2006 5:30PM

That is truly one of the modern great gems in house design, from the master himself. If you aren't familiar with Frank Lloyd Wright, I'll quote Clinton Sparks: "GET familiar!"

Design-wise, Wright was awesome, if not so much in his personal life, where he was reputed to be the biggest asshole ever... Put the DVD documentary by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick on your Netflix queue, or better yet, buy it:

http://www.amazon.com/Frank-Lloyd-Wright-Burns-Novick/dp/B00005MEPO

Dude was a trip, with two lifetimes: The petit ingenue in his youth... Designed the Ennis-Brown house in L.A. (Deckard's home in 'Blade Runner'), Falling Water (which he finally drew out on paper during the client's 3-hour drive to see the plans, after spending months apparently designing it in his head), Johnson Wax building... Broke and sidelined by 60, and then... OVERDRIVE. A second coming in the 50's. Guggenheim Museum NYC, the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church... Prolific 'til the end, at nearly 72.

Awesome. I guess you can tell I'm a fan.

"Less is only more where more is no good."
- Frank Lloyd Wright

Goober @ Sep 5th 2006 5:32PM

Well, I can cross this off my list of things to do. Wish I'd done this ages ago, love that house.

Seroth @ Sep 5th 2006 6:59PM

Anyone else notice the infamous "stuttering" present in this video? I sure can, and I am glad that there's more evidence that I'm not the only one suffering from it.

pusgums @ Sep 5th 2006 6:20PM

@david:

I think that's the waterfall sound, not the source engine.

Frexy @ Sep 5th 2006 6:21PM

as a student architecture myself, I find this to be very very interesting..

Ok, FLW is a good architect, not exactly my kind of stuff (give me Sir Norman Foster any day over FLW), but this is a GREAT way of showing the models of your own designed house to your teachers, let them walk through themselves!

All this 3D max stuff is a bit difficult if you want to make it 'interactive'.
Though this mod could be the perfect presentation solution...

If I had this mod in hands, I'd make tons of architecture recreations ^^;

dsub @ Sep 5th 2006 6:28PM

I agree Chris, the bird's eye view offers a vantage point that I've never seen before, and it gives you a much better appreciation for the overall landscape of the property.

copa @ Sep 5th 2006 6:28PM

"I wouldn't mind playing a few games of CS on that badboy though..."

Yes, it reminds me of Frank Lloyd Wright's dying words:

"My only regret is that I was never able to complete Fallingwater. With animated porn sprays and racist 13-year-olds tossing smoke grenades."

Patrick @ Sep 5th 2006 7:11PM

This Cameron Frye's house from Ferris Bueller's Day Off? The one where Cameron's kicks his fathers Ferarri and it runs off the edge and smashes.

ken @ Sep 6th 2006 12:36AM

The map looks pretty cool, but how do you load the map up? I downloaded the file, what do I do with the downloaded fallingwater bsp file?

Falkenad @ Sep 5th 2006 8:09PM

Nothing short of amazing. Frank added a new dimension to architecture. Good work!

Roddie @ Sep 5th 2006 7:41PM

Same mapper also did the Farnsworth house, worth checking out.

Mies van der Rohe > Frank LLoyd Wright

Moogle @ Sep 5th 2006 9:42PM

Downloading the map now... well, that was quick.

My favorite FLW story was that he would often visit his clients in the homes he designed and would be very steamed that they moved anything. He would move every piece of furniture back to the location it was 'supposed' to be in, ignoring their protests.

I'm not a huge FLW fan, but my mom is an artists and architect, so I've heard a bit about him.

ill trooper @ Sep 5th 2006 10:39PM

van der Rohe was amazing as well, but I wouldn't pick either one over the other - plenty of room for both of their buildings on this planet.

Andy @ Sep 6th 2006 4:53AM

A quick comment - its great to get the movie on Joystiq but the source of the story is actually http://www.digitalurban.blogspot.com a small blog but lots of similar work on it if people are interested...

Cheers

Andy

Kasperg (author of the map) @ Sep 6th 2006 5:47AM

I'm glad people like the map. My main worries were the bad framerates and maybe the lack of vegetation. Fortunately, this was never meant to be "playable" and I included as much detail as possible.
My map of Farnsworth house is very inferior to this one, mainly because I included the Half-life 2 furniture instead of modelling Van der Rohe's chairs and stuff. I also have LeCorbusier's Museum of Western Arts (Tokyo) but I still need to convert it to the Source engine.

Hamson @ Sep 6th 2006 4:13PM

Wonderful job Kasperg! I've never been there myself, but it looks beautiful. It was very peaceful to watch the video for some reason. Put me on the edge of sleep! Keep up the good work!

Ernest @ Sep 6th 2006 4:19PM

Great job, Kasberg!
I'm just looking on youtube, but this is exactly the kind of stuff that makes me wish I had mod-capable FPS games like Half-life 2(and knew how to really play effectively without getting motion sickness) - just so I can try out and "visit" these awesome recreations/maps and try things out. Tried playing HL2 a few years ago at a friend's place and then remembered why I never finished Tomb Raider nearly a decade ago. Reason I love playing Guild Wars is because for what it is, everywhere I go looks damn pretty and nice/interesting to just look at - it's like cyber-tourism to go to places I never could in reality.