Issue Sep 25th 2024  September 25th 2024

(W)righting a Wrong: The History and Future of Glencoe's Frank Lloyd Wright Cottage Museum

On Sunday, September 29, 2024 at 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM, it’s the Glencoe Historical Society’s story of the “Big Save”. How, at almost the last minute, GHS was able to work with the village and the park district to find a new site for a Frank Lloyd Wright-designed summer home that was being readied for demolition — and also raised more than $350,000 to move and relocate the historic building. Built in 1913, the cottage was moved in July 2020 to its current location in Park 7N at the corner of Meadow and Maple Hill roads.

What happens next? A panel of GHS members will brief the community on the extensive restoration of the exterior of the cottage and the reasons for renaming it Ravine Bluffs Cottage. They also will outline the remaining steps necessary to complete the interior renovation so that what was a family dwelling can become a museum focused on Wright’s work in Glencoe. This program is cosponsored by the Glencoe Historical Society. Registration is required.

This event will be recorded and placed on the library's YouTube channel.

Click for more details: glencoelibrary.org  

Frank Lloyd Wright House In Okemos Is Being Restored

Nathan Meyer stands in front of the 1939 Frank Lloyd Wright house he and his wife purchased last year in Okemos. The couple has been restoring the house to some of its original design. As the latest "caretakers", they set up free tours for people to view and talk about the house on some weekends, and their Instagram account keeps people informed.

The Goetsch–Winckler House (also known as Goetsch–Winkler House) is a building that was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, built in 1940. It is located at 2410 Hulett Road, Okemos, Michigan. The house is an example of Wright's later Usonian architectural style, and it is considered to be one of the most elegant. The house was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1995.

Click for more details: lansingstatejournal.com  

"Jewel" Estate Built By Frank Lloyd Wright’s Grandson

The Ross House, an architectural gem located in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles, was designed by Eric Lloyd Wright, the grandson of legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Originally built in the 1970s for Ruth Ross, a social advocate, this mid-century modern home reflects Wright's organic architecture philosophy, blending the home seamlessly with its natural surroundings. The design features large picture windows, floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors, and stunning views of the Silver Lake Reservoir, offering a perfect indoor-outdoor living experience.

Recently, the Ross House was listed for $2.495 million, marking it as a significant piece of architectural history within a neighborhood renowned for other iconic homes by architects like Neutra and Lautner​

Click for more details: bradenton.com  

ASU Gammage Marks 60 years Of Dazzling Audiences

ASU Gammage, one of the most iconic venues in Arizona, is marking its 60th anniversary.

The “pink birthday cake” building, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, debuted on Sept. 18, 1964, with a concert by The Philadelphia Orchestra.

Besides hundreds of arts performances over its six decades, ASU Gammage has hosted many other events, including political debates, funerals, rehearsals and convocations. As befitting a university, ASU Gammage has witnessed great thinkers, including Stephen Hawking, Andy Warhol and Sonia Sotomayor.

The venue hosts blockbuster Broadway shows, but it is also a workplace, with classrooms, offices, music libraries and rehearsal spaces.

The building was one draw when Colleen Jennings-Roggensack, executive director of ASU Gammage and vice president for cultural affairs at ASU, was being wooed by the university.

“There was such intrigue to be able to come and see the ‘pink birthday cake,’” said Jennings-Roggensack, who went on to make major upgrades to the facility.

In 1957, ASU President Grady Gammage asked his friend Frank Lloyd Wright to design a performing arts building on campus. Wright was able to repurpose a design he had already created — an opera house for Iraq's King Faisal II, unbuilt because the king was assassinated.

Neither Gammage nor Wright lived to see opening night of the $2.5 million Grady Gammage Memorial Auditorium, later renamed ASU Gammage. Later that year, the facility had its first Broadway production, “Camelot.”

The 1970s and ’80s saw performances by some of the biggest names of the era — Bruce Springsteen, Steve Martin, Whoopi Goldberg, James Taylor, B.B. King, Billy Joel, Neil Diamond and Itzhak Perlman, as well as the Broadway blockbuster “Cats.”

But by 1992, when ASU President Lattie Coor brought Jennings-Roggensack to Tempe, she faced big challenges. Her predecessor left a $2 million debt, and the facility was badly outdated.

Theatergoers can now see new elevators, bathrooms and seats in the Frank Lloyd Wright color palette. But also upgraded are the guts of Gammage — a complex web of wires, ropes and pulleys, plus the sound and lighting.

This fall, ASU Gammage will be the site of students’ tuba classes, performances by two hip-hop dance troupes, concerts by ASU student musical groups, a “theater experience day” for high schoolers and three Broadway shows. “Here we are in 2024, and we're one of the most widely respected cultural institutions in the world.”

Click for more details: asu.edu