Flying Arrow House Vancouver, Edgemont Village house photos, Fred Hollingsworth Home British Columbia, Canadian residence

Flying Arrow House in Vancouver

6 June 2023

Design: Fred Hollingsworth

Location: Edgemont Village, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Flying Arrow House, Canada

West Coast Modern Searches for Buyer to Save Last Remaining Fred Hollingsworth-Designed Flying Arrow House

One of only six Flying Arrow houses ever built, the modest, efficiently designed, post-and-beam home was inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright’s Usonian design

West Coast Modern is announcing today that it is looking for a buyer for Fred Hollingsworth’s last remaining Flying Arrow house. Originally one of six, the home is located on a 9,660-square-foot lot in Edgemont Village that puts it at high risk of demolition unless a buyer who appreciates its heritage and architectural significance can be found.

“As a relatively modest home on an oversized lot in a neighbourhood that has seen a considerable amount of demolition activity over the past few years, this architecturally significant home is in real danger of being lost unless a buyer can be found,” says Trent Rodney, Co-Founder at West Coast Modern. “As the only surviving Flying Arrow house, this home is a rare early example of modern design by Fred Hollingsworth – Canada’s answer to Frank Lloyd Wright.”

Originally built in 1950 for Jim and Berenice Atkins, the home was part of Hollingsworth’s Flying Arrow collection of modern, efficiently designed dwellings, which were themselves variants on his signature “Neoteric” vision of modest, repeatable post-and-beam homes rooted in nature.

The 1,363-square-foot home features well-thought-out design elements that were innovative for the time – including a vaulted ceiling with exposed scissor trusses that adds a feeling of space and clerestory windows that let in light while maintaining privacy from the street. A monumental five-foot-tall fireplace and solid brick wall ground the home as well as provide colour and texture.

A strong advocate for organic architecture, Hollingsworth believed in designing homes to fit into their natural surroundings and using natural or locally made materials at a time when many homebuilders still looked to Europe for design inspiration and imported materials.

Hollingsworth’s innovative approach may stem from his atypical career path. Instead of attending architecture school, Hollingsworth was discovered by Thompson, Berwick & Pratt – a large Vancouver architectural firm – when he went to have them approve the plans he had designed for his now famous family home. They were so impressed by his talent that they offered him an apprenticeship, which he accepted.

A great admirer of Frank Lloyd Wright, Hollingsworth was offered a job at his Taliesin studio after his apprenticeship, but ultimately turned it down, preferring to start his own practice.

“Fred Hollingsworth’s designs were heavily influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright’s organic architecture principles and this is particularly apparent in his early work,” continues Rodney. “Given the similarities between the two men’s designs, the Flying Arrow House is the closest you can get to buying a Frank Lloyd Wright home in B.C.”

The Flying Arrow House is being listed for $2.295 million. Prospective buyers are invited to tour the home on Sunday, June 4th, 2023.

About West Coast Modern
West Coast Modern is Vancouver’s only real estate agency specializing in selling design-led architectural homes. From mid-century classics to contemporary new builds, West Coast Modern has consistently created one-of-a-kind storytelling experiences for each work of architecture they represent.

Their unique following of design-literate clientele look to them for inspiration to craft their life the West Coast Modern way.

West Coast Modern is gaining unprecedented access to buyers from around the globe who understand the value of well-designed spaces. Their proven marketing platform regularly earns coverage from top publications like Architectural Digest, Dwell, Monocle, Elle Decor, THE PLAN, designboom, Western Living, STOREYS, Montecristo, NUVO, the Globe and Mail, the North Shore News, and the Vancouver Sun.
With this proprietary program, they have successfully secured new custodians for a majority of Metro Vancouver’s most significant modern houses, such as the famed Arthur Erickson Starship House, which sold for the highest price per square foot for a historic home, and the newly completed Eaves House by McLeod Bovell, which sold for $12.1 million.

Flying Arrow House, Edgemont Village, Vancouver images / information received 060623

Location: West Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

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