Issue 455 March 19th 2025

The Headlines

Joseph Specter Named Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation CEO

Joseph Specter has been appointed as the new president and CEO of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, beginning in early May. Previously, he served as president and general director of Arizona Opera, where he led significant growth, including a 32% budget increase and strengthened fundraising efforts.

Foundation board chair Mark Dreher highlighted Specter’s experience with mission-driven organizations, his talent for community engagement, and relationship-building as key reasons for his selection. Dreher praised Specter’s alignment with the Foundation’s vision to expand and sustain Wright’s legacy of organic architecture.

In a statement, Specter expressed his excitement and commitment to collaborating with architects, scholars, and supporters to keep Wright’s philosophy relevant for future generations. His prior experience also includes leadership roles at the Metropolitan Opera and in the investment industry with Lord Abbett.

Exploring The Legacy Of Wright's Imperial Hotel

Frank Lloyd Wright expert Tim Totten and Dana Thomas House Foundation past president Cinda Klickna recently spoke on Community Voices about Wright's famous Imperial Hotel in Tokyo. Tim provided insight into Wright's life during the hotel's design, highlighting its innovative architectural features and its legendary survival of the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923. He also discussed the hotel's lasting legacy and uncertain future.

Cinda shared details about an upcoming event titled "The Perilous & Amazing Journey of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Imperial Hotel – Tokyo," set for April 11, 2025, at The Inn at 835 in Springfield, IL. The evening will feature entertainment, a four-course dinner with wine, and a cash bar.

The event will feature Timothy Totten, known as a "Master Storyteller," who will narrate the dramatic story of Wright’s Imperial Hotel through historic photos and eyewitness accounts. The presentation will cover Wright's personal struggles, the eight-year journey of designing and building the hotel for the Emperor of Japan, and the many perils—including earthquakes, world wars, and demolition threats—that endangered this architectural masterpiece.

Camp Taliesin West Teaches STEAM In A Fun, Immersive Way

Some kids are spending their spring breaks immersed in architecture and design. It's all happening at Camp Taliesin West in Scottsdale as the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation hosted its popular spring break camp. At the three-day immersive camp they will create, design and build a 3D tree house to take home, among many other things, even a stained-glass project.

"It's about turning organic items into geometric shapes, which is very similar to what Frank Lloyd Wright did with his stained-glass items," Wilson said.

"It's based on the idea that every kid dreams of building their own tree house, right? So, Frank Lloyd Wright, we've been doing camps for over 20 years based on children learning about architecture and then it kind of hit me, what is more perfect than a child building a tree house, which is a form of architecture," said Abbie Wilson, youth and family programs manager of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation.

"All of our camps are STEAM focused. So that's science, technology, engineering, art and math," Wilson explained.

Campers Quinn and Hays have been to other camps together, and they both say it's fun and a beautiful place to create. Camps are offered for spring break, summer, and winter.

Sounding Just Wright In Kankakee

The Frank Lloyd Wright-designed B. Harley Bradley House in Kankakee, Illinois recently hosted a live musical performance by cellist Mike Block on March 7, 2025, benefiting the House Preservation Fund.

Later this month, on March 28, 2025, pianist Leon Guallart will perform an intimate concert titled The Comfort Project, part of his Comfort: Home Tour series. Guallart, a Barcelona-born artist now based in Los Angeles, is known for his work at international festivals and with Sony Music. His Comfort project is a deeply personal effort aimed at providing emotional security during difficult times. Tickets for the performance and reception are $25, available through the Wright In Kankakee website or by mail.

Wright's Hickox House On Kankakee River Sold

The Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy is pleased to know that the Hickox House is in the hands of a preservation-minded owner. The Hickox House, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1900, stands next door to Wright’s Bradley House on a scenic stretch of riverfront in Kankakee, Illinois. From 1976 until March 2025, it remained in the care of one family – but after nearly a year on the market, and a reduction in price from $779,000 to $449,000, the house has found a new steward.

In an interview shortly after the sale with Crain’s Chicago reporter Dennis Rodkin, the purchaser, Kevin Sullivan, said “Younger me fantasized a lot about what it would be like to live in a Frank Lloyd Wright house.” As he relocates from downtown Chicago to Kankakee, he plans to tackle major projects such as a roof replacement and kitchen renovation.

Symposium And Book Signing Event For Fallingwater: Living With And In Art

Celebrate the release of a new book on Fallingwater with a symposium and book signing event in NYC on April 26, 2025 from 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM. Editors, photographers, and essay authors will share new insights into Fallingwater’s fine and decorative arts, including stories about the Kaufmann family and their collections.

Meet the contributors, ask questions, and get your book signed. Books available for purchase through Rizzoli Bookstore.

Featured Speakers & Contributors include: Justin Gunther – Director, Fallingwater; Scott W. Perkins – Senior Director of Preservation and Collections, Fallingwater; Dave Bryce – Architectural & interior design photographer; Donald Albrecht – Independent curator, author, and editor; Jeannine Falino – Independent curator and author specializing in craft and American culture; and Rebecca Hagen – Director of Collections and Archives, Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation.

Tickets required for entry at the Museum of Arts and Design, 2 Columbus Circle New York, NY 10019.

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