Taliesin Preservation: Frank Lloyd Wright Visitor Center — Attraction in Town of Wyoming

Having seen the amazing Dana Thomas house in Springfield (where Wright had a pretty much unlimited budget with which to work) and the Oak Park homes in Chicago, I expected similar care and detail in the craftsmanship at Taliesin being that it was his own home.

Unfortunately, Wright cut corners everywhere he could when he was spending his own money, so Taliesin was suffering from that lack of foresight. I don't think there was a window, door, garage, or roofline on the property that was still plumb. And, I definitely didn't expect to see so much plywood used as a finishing element or so many hollow core doors. The visit made me see more of the egotistical side of his personality, and it made me wonder how any of his designs are still standing.

Fortunately, it seems that others were smart enough to hire him for his vision and also smart enough to hire a talented structural engineer to make sure their building didn't fall apart.

I left less of a fan of Wright because, as a visionary, he was ahead of his time; but, as a father, a husband, or as a mentor, he was incredibly selfish and vain. Somehow, his home is a perfect reflection of this. The house is beautiful at first glance, but as you look closer, it's actually quite cheap and therefore ugly.

Although the entrance fees are significant, not much of it appears to be going to repairs. Or perhaps, it's that the workmanship was so slipshod in the first place, it would be impossible to...

It was wonderful to finally visit the home and workplace of the American artistic icon, Frank Lloyd Wright. For decades this beautiful country estate was the summer location of the Design School Mr. Wright ran as well as his personal home.

We took the 2 hour tour which was well paced and run by a charming docent who seemed to sort of be in love with Mr. Wright.. Located along the wild banks of the Wisconsin river in the heart of the unique "Driftless Area" of Wisconsin, The house exemplifies the idea that a building should emerge from the landscape.

Filled with amazing sight lines, angles and a million little touches which show what careful attention to function dictates. Everything was beautifully hand crafted and shows the effects of the years. The day I visited, many local volunteer gardeners were working through a rain shower spreading compost on the lovely gardens, and in other ways seeing to the extensive maintenance the estate requires.

I loved the tour and the chance to walk through the rooms where so much inspired creativity was unleashed and to sit in the original chairs was sort of spooky cool.

We ate extra nice lunch afterward at a nearby restaurant designed by Mr. Wright overlooking a bend in the Wisconsin river.

Our tour was surely worth the cost.

Frank Lloyd Wright was a world famous artistic original. Visiting the setting of his upbringing and seeing the environment he built over 5-6 decades was unique and...

We enjoyed the two hour tour of the estate that included visiting the architectural school, Frank Lloyd Wright's house, and a drive through the countryside that is part of the estate. The tour guide was excellent as she was able to effectively communicate history of the buildings and the life of Frank Lloyd Wright, including answering all the questions asked. The grounds are well kept but you can see that the buildings still need some work to be brought back to their original condition. This is definitely a worthwhile tour, if you have 2 hours. If not, there is a 1 hour tour that just visits the main house. There is also a 4 hour tour that gets you in to see all of the buildings on the estate. We were also able to drive a short distance after the tour to see where Frank Lloyd Wright was originally buried (Unity Chapel cemetery) and the Wyoming Valley School that he designed. Next time that we are back we will be going on the...