5. The Museum Could Have Been Hexagonal

Photo: David M. Heald © The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York

In all, Wright drew up seven designs for the museum. While six of them adopted the curved spiral that has become so famous today, one of them proposed a series of hexagonal levels without ramps or curves, adopting the conventional staircases and elevators for visitors to get around. Luckily, Wright, Guggenheim, and Rebay decided against it, and the organic spiral plan entered into construction.