Photo by Lizzy Brooks

The Bavinger House, made of stone, glass and ironstone, features circular rooms, live plants, water, and a bridge connecting the house to the outdoors. Eugene Bavinger, former OU school of art faculty, built the house designed by Bruce Goff, former OU architecture instructor.

A world-renowned architectural landmark crafted by an OU art professor in the red dirt and prairie grass is getting new life and public attention.

The Bavinger House, located in east Norman, is the last standing Bruce Goff house that remains unchanged. Eugene Bavinger, former OU school of art faculty, and his family lived in the house for 48 years. Liz Brooks/The Daily

The Bavinger House in east Norman, a unique structure of glass, stone and 200 tons of ironstone, was designed by Bruce Goff and built by Eugene Bavinger in the early 1950s. It has attracted architecture enthusiasts and designers from across the country.

The house is constructed in a spiraling floor plan with unconventional features like circular rooms, an indoor stream that once housed live fish, and a bridge connecting outdoors. Stairs and living areas are suspended from a single column running through the middle of the structure and an art studio on the fourth floor.

The house has won many architecture awards, including top honors from the American Institute of Architects, and is listed in the Oklahoma Historical Society.

Goff directed the school of architecture from 1947-1955. Eugene Bavinger, who died in 1997, joined the art school faculty in 1947, where he taught painting, drawing and design for the next 33 years, son Bob Bavinger said.

“Some architects feel it is the birthplace of sustainability,” Bavinger said. “The fact that it combines nature and incredible architecture really makes it unique.”

The house, which was home to Nancy and Eugene Bavinger for 48 years, has been vacant for almost a decade and is in need of renovations, Bavinger said. The family opened the home to annual tours in the 1960s and 1970s.

Growing up in such a well-known house, Bavinger met an array of people, including members of former President Jimmy Carter’s administration and author Albert Albee.

Now, Bavinger is preparing another generation to take over. He and his son are renovating the house, hoping to again open it to the public. Their plans include expanding the parking lot and cleaning up the landscape.

“We just want to open the house up for tourism and education, to fulfill the wish of Nancy and Gene,” Bavinger said.

The house is one of only a handful of places in Oklahoma on the national register of Historic Places, said Susan Atkinson, City of Norman historic preservation planner.

“Some people consider it a national treasure,” Bavinger said. “We just try to keep the house true to its architecture.”