Vacation: Part 20 - Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin and Hillside School

Taliesin. In Welsh, it means "shining brow". Frank Lloyd Wright began construction in 1911 and it has been a work-in-progress ever since - not only for Wright himself, but for the Taliesin Preservation, the trust that looks after the estate. It has been and continues to be in a state of evolution - just as Wright planned it. In 1991, the American Institute of Architects chose Wright as the "the greatest American architect of all time". Taliesin is on the National Historic Registry. And Wright's influence on architecture is unquestioned.

My interest in FLW is multi-fold. We're both Wisconsinites and I love his prairie-style architecture. I'm also researching two plays I plan to write on FLW.and I've been wanting to tour Taliesin for a couple years now. I was headed back to WI from IA and decided to take the north route through Dubuque instead of the eastern route. It was a gorgeous day and I thought "today is the day I tour Taliesin"! This is a long post, so if you're not a FLW fan or a fan of architecture I might lose you quickly.

The visitor center. Wright designed this but never saw it completed. His original plan was to build a restaurant, and the center does include a cafe, along with a bookstore and gift shop. You hop on a bus here and you're taken to Taliesin, the Hillside School or wherever else depending on what tour package you purchase. My 2-hour Highlights Tour, which included portions of both Taliesin and the Hillside School, cost $57, a mere pittance for a Wright fan.

Midway Barns (1938).

The Romeo and Juliet Windmall Tower- used to pump water into Taliesin. It's the oldest structure on the property (1896). The tower was torn down and rebuilt in 1990 using the original foundation and roof.

Hillside School - Wright built this school (basically from the right side of the large building LEFT) for his two sisters who started the first co-educational school in Wisconsin. The building to the right of those double doors in the Taliesin Fellowship - architectural school (1932).

The backside of Hillside.

The bridge connecting Hillside to the Taliesin Fellowship architectural school.

Hillside School. Toward the bottom of the picture is an old horse trough with a ring to tie horses to. It now serves as a flower planter.

Hillside Theater. I hope to have a staged reading of my play, CHROMOSOME 21, there someday. Wright's apprentices designed the stage curtain - representing the property and buildings of Taliesin done in that "Wright-esque" graphic style. Wright even designed the chairs, which weren't as uncomfortable as the tour guide let on. Actually, they weren't uncomfortable at all. This shot is take from outside looking in a window - no interior pictures are allowed.

Looking across into the architectural school at Hillside.

Outside the Hillside Theater.

The front entrance to Taliesin.

Front entrance up-close. The space to the right is Wright's office. Upon entering I promptly sat my ass on his desk chair. Inspiring!

Above and below pictures. Obviously a 97-year-old building has the occasional crack or buckle. Actually, this sort of thing happened quite frequently while Wright was building and rebuilding Taliesin. His apprentices learned by doing, so if they made a mistake in construction or rebuilding, Wright let it be. Taliesin is spoken of in three phases - each following fires that destroyed portions of the home. Taliesin I (1911), Taliesin II (1914) and Taliesin III (1925).



The red-colored trim used throughout Taliesin and Hillside was representative of the mixture of natural elements from the ground and river that the indians used for painting. Wright called it a, "Cherokee red". Obviously, this goes hand-in-hand with Wright's philosophy of incorporating his architectural designs with Nature. "Organic" architecture is another philosophy of Wright's - use of natural materials from the building site and the again, the parallel to building and Nature.

Cow stanchions used in the garden near Wright's bedroom. (I accidently deleted this picture and will have to add it when I get home.)

Wright's bedroom. It was being refurbished so we didn't get a look-see. The floor is sagging so they're raising it 1/8 inches per week until they return it to "level". This approach is done to minimalize any possible damage to the upper floor or basement during the leveling process.

Looking out over the valley from the crown at Taliesin. This might have been one of Wright's views if he left his bedroom to come outside for coffee.


Unity Temple, commissioned in 1886 by Wright's uncle and built by the architect Silsbee, who Wright later worked for. It was built solely for the Lloyd-Jones family and is still owned and maintained by the family.

Frank left his first wife in Chicago for Mamah Borthwick Cheney. They never married; she was the inspiration for Taliesen. Mamah Cheney died in 1914 at Taliesin when a Bahamanian servant went ballistic and took a hatchet to her head and to two of her children (from a previous marriage) and 4 Taliesen fellows (students). Then he set the place ablaze - one of three fires that partially destroyed Taliesen. But Wright rebuilt, "Through the ashes, she is reborn", or something like that is what he said.

Wright's grave at Unity Temple. Or is it? He was buried here when he died in 1959. Then his 3rd wife (Miriam Noel was his 2nd), Olgivanna, had his body dug up - moving him from his roots and his home in WI - and moved to Taliesin West in Scottsdale, Wright's winter home. Olgivanna was to be buried in AZ and she wanted Frank near her, contrary to Wright's will. Personally, I think she overstepped her bounds - no, wait...I think she's a fucking bitch. You see what that woman does to me??

I'm having difficulty finding interior shots of Taliesin on the Web. You can see two here. There are plenty of books for purchase that show the interior in detail and the Web has tons of resources on Wright's life and work. To say he's "interesting" is an understatement.