GARDENER'S COTTAGE BECKONS (8/07) Published on August 3, 2007 Author: Tom Buckham - NEWS STAFF REPORTER © The Buffalo News Inc. Even as he conjured up huge houses for wealthy clients such as Buffalo's Darwin D. Martin, Frank Lloyd Wright was intent on creating comfortable living spaces for the less well-to-do. The sentiment is neatly expressed in the Martin House Complex, which contains, in addition to its grand mansion: the more modest Barton House, designed for Martin's daughter, Delta, and her husband, George; a working-class apartment above the carriage house for Martin's chauffeur; and a cottage for the gardener. With the opening of the Gardener's Cottage for public tours this week, visitors for the first time will be able to fully appreciate the sense of "community" Wright sought to instill on the Jewett Parkway campus. Wright and Martin added the two-story structure, which faces Woodward Avenue from the rear of the estate, in 1909 -- four years after the landmark Martin House was built. It was the sixth building on the property, which has more structures than any other site in the architect's vast portfolio. Unlike the other houses, which were abandoned and allowed to deteriorate after the family fell on hard times during the Great Depression, the 1,700-square-foot cottage was continuously occupied until last year, when Buffalo News Publisher Stanford Lipsey and his wife, Judith, bought it for the Darwin Martin House Restoration Corp. And unlike the rest of the complex, which is undergoing a $50 million restoration, the structure is visitor-ready. It has been added to the two-hour "in-depth" tours of the campus conducted by volunteers at 11 a.m. daily except Tuesdays and Sundays. Credit for the cottage's pristine condition goes to Gregory Kinsman, who bought the house in 1987, restored it and built an addition that Leslie Neufeld, assistant director of museum planning for the Martin House Corporation, considers "very sympathetic" to Wright's design. In 1991, Metropolitan Home magazine cited Kinsman's treatment as one of the nation's 10 best restorations. Anyone familiar with Wright's prairie houses, of which the Martin House is widely considered the best surviving example, will quickly see similarities in the cottage design, including: * "Ribbons" of art glass windows on the south, west and north sides. * Built-in planters below the windows and broad eaves overhead, beneath a hip roof. * Piers on all corners -- a vertical counterpoint to the otherwise horizontal design. Of course, the cottage was built on a far smaller scale -- 1,700 square feet -- and at a much lower cost -- $4,500 -- than the neighboring Martin House. Its wood frame and stucco exterior also reflect a modest construction budget. To make tour reservations, call 856-3858 or visit www.darwinmartinhouse.org. e-mail: tbuckham@buffnews.com Sharon Cantillon/Buffalo News A Frank Lloyd Wright art glass window is the highlight of a side entrance to the dining room in the Gardener's Cottage at the Darwin Martin House Complex. Sharon Cantillon/Buffalo News The Gardener's Cottage in the Martin House Complex was occupied until last year.