Russel and Mary Wright

Book excerpt: Russel and Mary Wright: Dragon Rock at Manitoga, explores the home and woodland paths imagined by Russel and Mary Wright in Hudson Valley New York; a modernist haven that allows for ambiguity, and the natural world where the spirit could flourish. In the era of TV dinners and suburban conformity, Russel and Mary Wright were individualists. The Wrights rejected rigid modernism that did not allow for ambiguity, let alone the natural world. Here we find multiple binary factors: New York City and the sublime Hudson Valley landscape, commercial mass production and handmade nuance, Japanese aesthetics and American ideals, queer attraction, and family yearnings. Wright: Dragon Rock at Manitoga traces a journey, beyond an exploration of space, but a way of life, the story of the creation of a haven where the spirit could flourish. Our understanding of the Wrights's architectural, design, and environmental achievements, synthesizes four archives, including the estate of the Wright family, The Center for Photography at Woodstock, The Russel Wright Design Center at Manitoga, and the Russel Wright Papers at Syracuse University. With a clarion voice, we examine this partnership, revealing new understandings and cultural relevance.