The Bear takes a breath in episode five of its fourth season as Carmen «Carmy» Berzatto—the perpetually stressed chef who’s spent three and a half seasons trying to save his late brother’s struggling Chicago restaurant—trades his usual anxiety for a peaceful architectural pilgrimage. The episode starts out with Carmy arriving at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Oak Park property, where a close-up of the National Historic Landmark plaque introduces his tour. The scene shows Carmy examining Wright’s signature elements: the barrel-vaulted playroom ceiling, the studio’s stained glass skylights, and—appropriate for a chef—the home’s antique stove.
Wright arrived in Chicago in 1887 as an apprentice to Louis Sullivan, and in 1889, borrowed $5,000 from his mentor to purchase land in Oak Park, a semi-rural village that offered respite from the city. The home Wright built there would become his primary creative space for the next two decades, where he pioneered the Prairie School movement and produced more than a third of his life’s work.
Illinois, Oak Park, Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio.
The shingle-style residence initially reflected Wright’s early influences, but the interior revealed his vision of domestic space. Wright abandoned Victorian formality for warm, open central areas that prioritized family life over rigid social hierarchy. The home evolved continuously during his residence: In 1895, he added the barrel-vaulted playroom seen in The Bear episode. Its scale is carefully tailored to a child’s perspective but demonstrates Wright’s intelligent manipulation of space.
The 1898 studio addition housed Wright’s architectural practice for eleven years, featuring the octagonal, double-height drafting room where he worked alongside 14 associates. During these Oak Park years, Wright designed numerous houses throughout Chicago and the surrounding area with gently sloping roofs, low proportions, sheltering overhangs—all elements that would define his Prairie style.
Arthur Heurtley House, Oak Park, Illinois.
The episode also showcases two neighboring Wright houses. The Arthur and Grace Heurtley House, completed in 1902, is emblematic of Wright’s mature Prairie Style, with its horizontal emphasis and seamless integration with the landscape. The Nathan G. Moore House was originally built in 1895 in Tudor Revival style with half-timbered upper stories and a pitched roof, but it was completely transformed after a 1922 fire damaged the top two floors. Wright’s redesign added distinctive Mayan and Gothic-inspired motifs that reflect his later experimental period, creating what many experts consider one of his most unusual residential works.
The production team took exceptional care in filming here. The crew gained access to normally restricted areas, including the kitchen and drafting room balcony, where Wright’s collaborators Orlando Giannini and sculptor Richard Bock once worked.
Longtime Trust volunteer Lourdes Nicholls told Wednesday Journal that actor Jeremy Allen White was allowed to interact with the home in ways typically off-limits to tourists, like touching the wood and furniture.
Nathan G. Moore house, Oak Park, Illinois.
After Wright left Oak Park in 1909, the home and studio were eventually divided into separate residences. The property changed hands multiple times throughout the mid-20th century, even being converted into apartments before the Frank Lloyd Wright Trust acquired it in 1974 and undertook comprehensive restoration.
Today, the home and studio operate as a National Historic Landmark, offering tours to visitors. The Trust anticipates an increase in tourism following the episode’s premiere, introducing a new generation to Wright’s revolutionary ideas about domestic space and the integration of art into daily life.
Julia Cancilla is the engagement editor (and resident witch) at ELLE Decor, where she oversees the brand’s social media platforms, covers design trends and culture, and writes the monthly ELLE Decoroscope column. Julia built her background at Inked magazine, where she grew their social media audiences by two million and penned feature articles focusing on pop culture, art, and lifestyle.
