Featured work
Residential
Avery Coonley
Arthur Heurtley
A. Goetsch & K. Winckler
Fallingwater House
George Barton House
I. N. Hagan House
John Storer
Frederick C. Robie
Taliesin West
Ward W. Willitts
Institutions
N/A
Towers
Price Tower
Commercial
Anderton Court Shop
Imperial Hotel & Annex
Museums
Guggenheim Museum
Places of worship
Annunciation Church
Beth Sholom Synagogue
Featured Books
Top 5 selling books
Frank Lloyd Wright's Houses
Fallingwater Rising: Frank Lloyd Wright, E. J. Kaufmann, and America's Most Extraordinary House
Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater: The House and Its History
Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House: The Illustrated Story of an Architectural Masterpiece
Frank Lloyd Wright's
Taliesin and Taliesin West
Elkins Park, Pennsylvania 1954
Beth Sholom Synagogue
With each of the places of worship that were designed by Frank Lloyd Wright such as the Unity Temple and after, expressed his sense of the divine present in the congregation, gathered in a building designed for its use; and this religious building is recognized as the most expressive place of worship designed by Wright; The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has listed the Beth Sholom synagogue as one of the seventeen American buildings designed by Frank Lloyd Wright to be preserved as an example of his architectural contribution to American culture.
In this great synagogue he took advice from a range of scholars who understood Jewish symbolism; indeed, the congregation's rabbi, Mortimer J. Cohen, is credited with the architect on the designs. Wright's concise was to include in the building visual references to both American and Jewish forms. The great blue plastic pyramid that stands over the 1000 seat auditorium can be seen as either a tent or a mountain: the "holy Mount Sinai" on which God gave Moses the ten commandments and according to Wright's own testimony, the hexagonal basis of the building is reminiscent of two joined hands because "when one enters a place of worship, he should feel as if he were resting in the very hands of God". This imagery is strengthened by the two lateral extensions on the front of the building corresponding to the thumbs. The general aspect of the building is suggestive of Mount Sinai, the place of the Divine revelation. It also reminds of the ancient tent tabernacle used by the Children of Israel while wandering in desert and as a reference to traditional Native American tents.
The
Torah (the holy books) is seen as the source of light; at night the
pyramid glows from within like a beacon. The sanctuary roof is
supported by a steel frame, with each of the major beams measuring
over 35 meters in length; this means that the pyramid needs no other
internal support. Members of the congregation speak as warmly of
this building as do the Unitarians who worship at Unity Temple.
The interior of the building is divided into two floors. The ground floor includes service areas and a central lobby leading to two symmetrical large lounges located to the north and the south sides of the building. One lounge has a capacity of more than one hundred sitting places; the second lounge, which is equipped with a kitchenette, serves as a place for refreshments for Bar Mitzvah and other festivities. The ground floor also includes two separate Bridal Suites serving the brides and grooms and their attendants for the wedding ceremony. At the east side of the lobby and separated from the other rooms by glass doors, is the Sisterhood Sanctuary. This smaller prayer hall accommodates about two hundred twenty people. The Holy Ark, located at the east end and made of American black walnut wood, contains seven Torah scrolls. The bimah is surrounded by two Menorah chandeliers of aluminum. A ner tamid (oil lamp) hangs over the Holy Ark. Memorabilia from the old building of the synagogue, including the ner tamid, are on display in a specially arranged Memorial Alcove at the southwest corner of the room.
The main prayer hall is situated at the first floor and is
accessed from two stairways located at both lateral sides of the
front entrance. The stairs are covered with sand colored carpets
suggesting the peregrinations of the Children of Israel in the Sinai
desert. The same color dominates the main prayer hall, which lays
below a 35 meter (110 feet) high dome. There are 1062 sitting places
inside the synagogue; they are arranged around the bimah in a number
of sections and in a way that enables everyone to feel close and
take an active part in the service.
The Beth Sholom Synagogue is located at 8231 Old York Road,
Elkins Park, PA 19027. If you are looking for publications on Frank
Lloyd Wright's Synagogue Design click
here.