Taliesin West work done
See what Taliesin West looked like in the 1950s
The staff at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Arizona home recently completed several restoration projects to bring back the essence the site had in the 1950s.
The staff at Taliesin West wasn‘t idle during the time the facility was shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Taliesin West, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Arizona home, has taken a step into the past with the recent completion of several restoration projects.
The projects were completed in phases by the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation’s preservation and collections departments during Taliesin West’s temporary shutdown from March through October of last year due to the pandemic.
The foundation hopes to bring back the essence the site had when it served as the famed architect’s winter home and laboratory in the late 1950s.
Taliesin West includes a grand living room, a working drafting studio, a theater and a grand terrace. Guided and self-guided tours of the building are currently available ($30-$40 per person).
“The reinterpretation work completed at Taliesin West in recent weeks was largely centered around what could be done to give visitors a better understanding of Wright’s philosophies, and to demonstrate how those principles are still relevant and important today,” Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation director of preservation Emily Butler said in a press release.
“The research that was done allowed us to reconstruct and reinstall the elements necessary to make the already compelling architectural wonder even more expressive and beautiful.”
What visitors can expect to see now
The team restored and applied an acrylic protectant over a screen painting in the Dining Cove. They also reconstructed a portable canvas shade the family used on the Sunset Terrace.
After Wright’s death in 1959, Taliesin West continued to be a living space. Furnishings, upholstery and room layouts had been changed over the years. Furniture and collections of Native American and Asian art pieces were rearranged throughout the rooms for a more accurate representation of how they were used when the Wrights lived and worked there.
“From something as simple as placing chairs around a fireplace to the more in-depth reconstruction of some of the room’s original furnishings, it all changes how the site is experienced and evokes a renewed sense of life in the spaces,” Butler said.
“The Foundation is committed to continuously evolving Taliesin West as Wright did himself when he lived there, which presents a really unique opportunity for guests to see something new and exciting with every visit.”
The foundation hopes to continue the restoration of Taliesin West with a second phase of projects.
Phase two would include re-upholstering the current orange-colored furniture, which was originally introduced in the 1970s, back to the rusty red, yellow-gold and blue hues accurate to the late 1950s, according to the press release.
The second phase will also focus on reintroducing some architectural features that will divide the larger room into more intimate sections with views of the garden outside. Details: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Thursday through Sunday. Taliesin West, 12621 N. Frank Lloyd Wright Blvd., Scottsdale. $30-$40. 480-860-2700. franklloydwright.org/