The History

Bruce Alonzo Goff (1904 – 1982) was an Organic architect, best known for his eccentric designs that flew in the face of conventional architecture. His design philosophy came from the abstract term called, “continuous present,” coined by Gertrude Stein, which he described as living the past and present in one continuous stream. Goff thought that was the ideal of architecture, architecture design with no conventional beginning, middle or end but continued. 

At age 12, he became an intern for an architectural firm in Tulsa, OK, named Rush Endacott & Rush, eventually becoming a partner in the firm in 1930. Around this time, Goff and his high school art teacher Adah Robinson worked on Tulsa’s Boston Avenue Methodist church.

In 1942, Goff accepted a teaching position at the University of Oklahoma’s School of Architecture.  He proved to be a very popular professor—architectural students from across the country flocked to Norman with the hope of studying under him. This would prove to be his most professionally prolific period as well. 

In 1955, Goff was forced to resign from his position at the University of Oklahoma after being accused of “endangering the morals of a minor,” though many historians believe he was actually forced from his position because of his homosexuality.

Following his break with the University of Oklahoma, Goff travelled to Bartlesville to live in the Price Tower and to continue his practice. For many years to follow Goff worked in places around the Midwest and to the coasts, including the Pavilion for Japanese Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. 

Though well regarded in his time by Frank Lloyd Wright and cited as an influence by both Frank Gehry and Philip Johnson, Goff never attained the same level of canonization in the architectural world. With the future of Goff’s work uncertain, this documentary uncovers the mystery behind the man and the current nature of his designs.