Issue 357  May 10th 2023

Treat Mom With A Visit To Frank Lloyd Wright’s Martin House

"Our house is your house" is the message the folks at Frank Lloyd Wright's D.D. Martin House try to convey to a local audience. They're letting Western New York know, as the weather gets nicer, there will be even more reasons to come out and visit this treasure, nestled in Buffalo's backyard.

"Many (locals) don’t understand the size and scope of the site," explains Suzanne Badgley Director of Marketing for the Martin House, "and that the grounds are always open." She says even now there are plenty of ways to experience the site, some paid and some at no cost.

There are standard tours or seasonal/specialty tours, such as "Home & Garden", "Behind the Scenes", and "Photography" tours.

They also offer an exterior mobile tour which is available 24/7 using your own mobile device. This tour you can take at your own pace.

But just in time to celebrate Mom, there is a themed tour the Thursday before Mother’s Day. This event includes a glass of champagne, a tour through the lens of the women who lived and worked in the Martin House, as well as wine & sweet treats at the tour’s conclusion.

Beyond Mother's Day, there are even more events to look forward to. From a craft beer tasting event, to live music on the grounds, or upcoming adult workshops and lectures. Yoga will be offered this summer, too. Badgley tells AM Buffalo's Emily Lampa, many of the programs are offered in partnership with local businesses.

Another goal of the Martin House is to have the Statler Cafe reopened in time for Memorial Day. This will be open to the public and offers lovely indoor and outdoor seating adjacent to the historic Barton House with easy access to the grounds.

If you're looking for gifts for Mother's Day, then stopping by the Museum Store is an absolute must. It's also now open to the public. Suzanne Badgley says that shoppers are often amazed at the variety of products, including special items from many regional artisans...and that they offer FREE gift wrapping! They also have an extensive online store.

At any time, you can come by the property and enjoy the exterior and landscape. It's a beautiful location to take pictures!

The Martins were avid gardeners, and Wright was given the opportunity to include an extensive landscape design as part of the commission of the Martin House. The landscape was rehabilitated as part of the restoration project, and completed in 2019. The gardens even include some original plantings.

On nice days, visitors will find chairs placed throughout the grounds. They invite you to bring a book and hang out. They encourage artists to bring cameras or an easel and paint! The grounds are always open. Plan your visit here.

Click for more details: wkbw.com  

Alden Dow Forged His Own Path

He was humble almost to a fault. Honesty, humility and enthusiasm were the attributes that ruled his life. In 1982, Alden Dow was given the first Frank Lloyd Wright Creativity Award. Wright’s widow, Olgivanna Wright, said that Alden Dow was “my late husband’s spiritual son.”

From the time that Alden Dow designed the first Midland Country Club in 1930, Midland has been the beneficiary of his homes, churches and commercial buildings. Today, new interest has been shown in Alden Dow’s architectural genius with the renaissance of Mid-Century Modern. Unknowingly, he paved a path for other architects as they added to the Mid-Century Modern movement.

In 1983, not long before his death on Aug. 20, Alden Dow was named the Architect Laureate of the State of Michigan. Just one more example of the talent in one little boy who didn’t want to become an engineer and run the company business. He created his own future by taking a different path, and that made all the difference.

Click for more details: ourmidland.com  

Behind Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation’s Mission To Make Life Beautiful

Famed Architect Frank Lloyd Wright believed that every architect has a mission to make life more beautiful, and the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation is continuing to carry out that mission in Scottsdale at Taliesin West.

ICONIC LIFE Publisher Renee Dee recently sat down with the president and CEO of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Stuart Graff, to talk about how the renowned architect exemplified the philosophy of Living Beautifully on the ICONIC HOUR podcast.

“It’s the vision of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation to follow Wright’s idea of what an architect should do, which is to ‘make life more beautiful, the world a better one for living in and to give rhyme, reason and meaning to life,’” Graff says. “That’s an exact quote and I think what he meant when he talked about Living Beautifully is to live a life in harmony with the world around us.”

“In other words, not to merely exist in the world, but to be a part of the world—to make ourselves part of the fabric of the landscape,” he adds.

Frank Lloyd Wright’s oasis in the desert, Taliesin West, offers calming, nature-focused design that evokes feelings of interconnectedness.

“Whether it’s our buildings, whether it’s our artwork, everything should have this connection to us, to the world,” Graff says. “To create this seamless web of things that bring us joy, things that make our lives healthier and better, that was the core of Wright’s work for seven and a half decades and that’s the core of what we do today.”

Click for more details: iconiclife.com  

Enjoy Wright Around Chicago

Let The Frank Lloyd Wright Trust introduce you to Wright’s sites in and around Chicago on an exclusive small group tour, traveling in the comfort of a chauffeur-driven, air-conditioned, small-scale bus with expert commentary by a Trust interpreter.

Your day begins in the magnificent Rookery Light Court, originally designed by Burnham and Root and redesigned by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1905. One of the earliest skyscrapers in Chicago, The Rookery is a nominated World Heritage site.

Your next stop is the picturesque village of Oak Park, a near western suburb of Chicago where Frank Lloyd Wright lived and established his reputation in architecture. Tour Wright’s Home, which he expanded as his family grew to six children. Experience Wright’s Studio where architects and artists worked with Wright on more than 140 buildings that he designed here.

Explore the surrounding historic neighborhood, the largest concentration of Wright’s surviving work, before enjoying lunch at a charming neighborhood favorite. Refreshed and ready for more, move on to Wright’s masterful Unity Temple, an active Universalist Unitarian Church for over 100 years. Unity Temple shares a UNESCO Frank Lloyd Wright World Heritage inscription with Robie House, your next stop.

Robie House on Chicago’s South Side is located on the campus of the distinguished University of Chicago in Hyde Park. Designed and built 1908-10, Robie House is the most innovative house design of the early modern era, an architectural landmark and prototype for many thousands of 20th century American homes and buildings across the country. It shares a UNESCO Frank Lloyd Wright World Heritage inscription with Unity Temple and six other Wright sites.

On the scenic return drive downtown, take in the city skyline as you travel along the lakeshore with spectacular views of Chicago’s magnificent architecture. Your day concludes at The Rookery with champagne and exclusive discount shopping at the Trust’s Rookery boutique. Get tickets here.

Click for more details: flwright.org