Greene & Greene: The Blacker House by Thomas A. Heinz, Randell Makinson, Brad Pitt

Building upon the success of his earlier book, Greene & Green: The Passion & The Legacy, author Randell L. Makinson, Hon. AIA, joins with Frank Lloyd Wright scholar and photographer Thomas A. Heinz, AIA in producing this rich monograph on the Robert Roe Blacker House, the largest most elaborate of the refined Greene & Greene style. New color photography provides the first full documentation of the house following its extensive five-year restoration, for which Mr. Makinson served as a restoration architect. This informative study is highly enriched by new research into the earlier Blacker and Canfield houses and the families' backgrounds as purveyors of building products, examining the major roles these played in the final designs of architects Greene & Greene.

Additionally, newly discovered archival photographs from Manistee, Michigan, and Brantford, Ontario, Canada bring greater understanding of the origin of this architectural masterwork. The authors candidly discuss the interiors, the decorative arts, the furniture, the disintegration of the original fabric of the house and its contents, and the restoration of the Blacker House begun in 1994. An interpretive photographic essay by Brad Pitt provides his personal visions of the Blacker estate and reflects his broad passion for architecture. Three artists--three views of the Blacker house, one of the most significant treasures of the International Arts and Crafts movement and of architects Greene & Greene.