"Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer presents a narrative in correspondence from the 'Guggenheim Letters,' a remarkable archive that, in its entirety, would make a stack equal in height to the model of the Guggenheim Frank Lloyd Wright made in 1946. Here is a very personal and detailed account of the creative struggle required to build the extraordinary Guggenheim Museum. It is a seventeen year saga which saw the firing of the first curator, the death of the donor, and the creation of six complete sets of plans and 749 drawings. Ironically, Wright died six months before completion of the museum. From its opening in October 1959, The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum has been recognized as Frank Lloyd Wright's crowning achievement. Pfeiffer demonstrates that the story of its construction is arresting as well." -- from back wrapper. Contents ordered chronologically. Includes an index. Printed in black-and-white.