Issue 466 May 28th 2025

The Headlines

Victory Launches Frank Lloyd Wright Great Lakes Cruises

Victory Cruise Lines, which recently relaunched two coastal cruise ships on the Great Lakes, is partnering with the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation’s Taliesin Institute to offer an educational series that takes a deep dive into the life, work, and influences of one of the world’s most famous architects. This onboard and onshore program features video lectures and guided visits to key Wright-designed landmarks in Chicago, Detroit, and Grand Rapids—including access to a private residence not normally open to the public.

The cruises depart from Chicago’s Navy Pier, with optional pre-cruise tours to Oak Park’s Unity Temple and Wright’s Home & Studio, as well as Chicago’s Robie House and The Rookery Building. In Detroit, guests can opt to visit the Smith House, a Usonian home designed for middle-class living. In Grand Rapids, the journey includes tours of the Meyer May House and a rare visit to the privately owned Amberg House.

The ships, originally built for the St. Lawrence Seaway and recently refreshed, offer a cozy, bed-and-breakfast-style experience with 190-passenger capacity, three dining venues, and the ability to dock at less-visited ports. These cruises also include the “LakeLorian” program in partnership with the National Museum of the Great Lakes, featuring onboard experts who lead discussions on the science and history of the lakes.

Victory Cruise Lines emphasizes immersive, expert-led travel experiences for curious travelers seeking deeper cultural and historical understanding, with the Frank Lloyd Wright series offering a unique lens into American architectural heritage.

Watch How Wright Let Nature Shape His Homes

Frank Lloyd Wright, one of America’s most influential architects, designed over 500 buildings across 33 states and played a defining role in shaping modern American architecture. His guiding principle of “organic architecture” sought to create harmony between structures and their natural surroundings. Rather than placing buildings on the land, Wright believed they should grow from it—natural, intentional, and inseparable from the environment.

Throughout his life, from the Midwest to the Sonoran Desert, Wright continuously refined this philosophy, viewing the landscape not as mere backdrop but as an active participant in design. This vision is evident in projects like the David and Gladys Wright House in Phoenix, Arizona, a spiraling desert home that blends form with the arid environment. Designed for his son, the home features Wright’s concept of “compression and release,” inviting visitors into intimate, shaded areas before opening into light-filled, expansive spaces. The home also showcases acoustic innovations and material sensitivity, such as Philippine mahogany ceilings and custom concrete blocks.

Further east, Wright helped design Usonia, a cooperative community in Pleasantville, New York, centered on affordable, nature-integrated homes. These dwellings reflect Wright's ideals of democratic, functional design and community living. The Reisley House, still occupied by its original owner at age 100, embodies this approach through built-in furniture, geometric layouts, and close engagement with nature.

In New Canaan, Connecticut, Wright’s Tirranna exemplifies his late-career mastery. Built alongside a river, it features a sweeping solar hemicycle layout that tracks the sun’s movement, concrete and mahogany materials that echo the surrounding forest, and design choices that invite the outside in—down to a hallway that urges occupants toward communal, light-filled spaces. Named from an Aboriginal word meaning “running water,” the home underscores Wright’s belief in the spiritual and sensory power of nature.

Through these works, Wright emphasized beauty, light, and connection—offering more than structures: a philosophy of living in concert with the earth, and with one another.

Circadian-Effective Lighting Helps Preserve Wright's Creative Vision At Taliesin West

To enhance the lighting at Taliesin West—Frank Lloyd Wright’s iconic winter home in Scottsdale, Arizona—the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation partnered with Lutron and Wipliance to implement a sophisticated lighting and control system that respects the site’s historic character. Built in 1937 and now a UNESCO World Heritage site, Taliesin West faces the challenge of preserving its original architecture while adapting to modern needs. Lighting was a particular concern, as the original design relied heavily on natural light, firelight, and basic incandescent bulbs, which had since been replaced by outdated, inconsistent systems.

The new solution centered on Lutron’s Ketra lighting, which offers a wide range of tunable light values and can be installed wirelessly—crucial for a site where the walls are thick, lack internal conduits, and house fragile original fixtures. This allowed for a seamless upgrade without damaging the historic structures. The lighting system replicates the warm tones of Wright’s original vision and adapts dynamically throughout the day to match natural light patterns, enhancing spaces like the Garden Room and Drafting Studio while maintaining their authentic ambiance.

Additional enhancements, such as subtle tape lighting, outdoor-compatible fixtures, and intuitive, battery-operated remotes, further modernized the experience without disrupting the site’s aesthetic. Wireless Palladiom shades added comfort and automation while preserving the architectural integrity of the windows.

Leaders of the Foundation emphasized that this project represents a model for how historic preservation can embrace modern technology to stay true to original design intent. By creatively working within structural constraints, the team upheld Wright’s legacy of innovation and proved that sustainable, adaptive reuse is not only possible but also essential for the future of historic landmarks.

Mid-Century Modern Homes In Fort Wayne, IN Featured On June 7 Tour

On June 7, Indiana Landmarks will host its popular “Back to the Future” tour in Fort Wayne, showcasing five Mid-Century Modern properties built between 1945 and 1958. The tour includes private homes and a notable Modernist church. Among the highlights are two homes designed by John Randal McDonald, a Wisconsin architect known for creating affordable homes inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright. These homes reflect Mid-Century Modern hallmarks such as expansive windows, skylights, and seamless indoor-outdoor integration.

Tour stops feature residences on Old Mill Road, Sanibel Drive, and Colony Drive, as well as a repurposed 1953 Volkswagen dealership now used as a private home. The event is headquartered at Peace Lutheran Church, designed by architect Charles Stade and constructed in two stages in 1948 and 1962.

Organized by Indiana Modern, a division of Indiana Landmarks dedicated to preserving mid-20th century architecture, the event runs from noon to 5 p.m. Advance tickets are $20, with day-of-tour tickets available for $25. Tickets can be purchased online or by phone.

Frank Lloyd Wright And His Influence On Florida Architecture

Appleton Museum of Art, 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala, FL, on the June 7, is hosting Free First Saturday for a presentation by author and historian Dr. Wayne Wood, entitled “Frank Lloyd Wright and His Influence on Florida Architecture.” This entertaining program gives the audience an in-depth understanding of Frank Lloyd Wright’s vast influence on Florida’s architectural history.

The presentation will be at 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm, and is free as part of Free First Saturday; no reservation needed to attend.

Widely regarded as one of the foremost chroniclers of Northeast Florida history, Wayne Wood has been called the “undisputed godfather of preservation in Jacksonville.” An author, historian, and artist, he founded Riverside Avondale Preservation and Riverside Arts Market. He has published 15 books on Northeast Florida, including Jacksonville’s Architectural Heritage.

After A Close Call, Hollyhock House Keeps Its Unesco Status

Hollyhock House, a historic Frank Lloyd Wright building in Los Angeles, has narrowly avoided losing its status as a Unesco World Heritage site.

Maintaining the designation, which was originally bestowed in 2019, usually requires the employment of four dedicated full-time staff members. Hollyhock House currently has two filled positions and two vacant ones. A draft city budget proposal had threatened to cut three of these positions, leaving just one staff member at the site. However, according to the local paper Beverly Press

, crisis has been averted.

“We’re proud to report that after working with colleagues on the Budget Committee, funding to restore Department of Cultural Affairs staff was included in the updated budget,” Hugo Soto-Martinez, a City Council member, told the paper on Wednesday (21 May).

The City Council's $14m budget was approved

on Thursday (22 May), restoring Hollyhock House’s four full-time positions and scaling back an array of other cuts that had previously been proposed.

Hollyhock House, built between 1919 and 1921, was originally designed for the iconoclastic oil heiress Aline Barnsdall. She eventually fired Wright from the project, citing the house’s impractical design and excessive cost. Soon after construction was completed, she donated the house to the California Art Club. It has been a public museum since 1976, situated in the spacious Barnsdall Art Park. The house and park require $1.36m annually to function but generate about $5m from tours each year, a figure that has been accounted for in the City Council's new budget.

Hollyhock House is the only Unesco World Heritage site in Los Angeles.

About

This weekly Wright Society update is brought to you by Eric O'Malley with Bryan and Lisa Kelly. If you enjoy these free, curated updates—please forward our sign-up page and/or share on Social Media.

If you’d like to submit content to be featured here, please reach out by emailing us at mail[at]wrightsociety.com.