Spring might not be here yet, but the slightly warmer temperatures mean that housewalk season is almost here. The mother of all housewalks, the Frank Lloyd Wright Trust’s Wright Plus, returns on Saturday, May 21. With attendees from around the world, tickets sell out fast. Consider this your public service reminder to purchase tickets now.
A laboratory of architecture
The walk’s theme this year is Wright and the Prairie School, and the participants will get access to homes designed by Wright and by architects who started their careers in Wright’s Oak Park studio then went on to become architectural luminaries in their own right.
The Trust’s Angela Whitaker notes that this year’s theme is a new focus for the walk.
“Our researchers always look into the house, the history of the house and the families who lived there,” Whitaker said. “This year’s theme gives our researchers the opportunity to explore a new twist as they consider the architect’s relationship with Wright.”
This year’s walk, she noted, will emphasize the “plus” in Wright Plus. The stories of the individual architects may vary and their styles may look different, but they are tied to Wright in some way.Â
“We’ll be able to talk more about those relationships between Wright and the people who worked in his studio,” Whitaker said. “These are architects who followed Wright’s designs or perhaps did things their own way. It’s interesting to consider the studio as a laboratory.”
Due to the walk’s emphasis on many of the architects who worked with Wright, the Home & Studio portion of the walk will have a special focus. Rather than the typical tour, participants will find the Home & Studio set up with various stations, much like the individual home tours. Docents and researchers at each station will discuss the architects who worked in the studio with Wright.
The lineup
This year’s walk includes three Wright designs:Â
The Harry S. Adams House was Wright’s final Oak Park commission in 1913. Making its first appearance on Wright Plus, the 1892 Thomas Gale House is an early Wright design in the Queen Anne style, known for being one of Wright’s “bootleg” houses, since it was designed while he was working for Adler and Sullivan. The Louisa and Harry Goodrich House, another Queen Anne-style home, this one built in 1896, showcases a meticulous restoration and the addition of a new conservatory.
The personal home of architect William E. Drummond, one of Wright’s closest associates, will be featured on this year’s walk. The Prairie-style home was inspired by Wright’s fireproof house design. The Mary Greenlees Yerkes House is a 1912 design by John Van Bergen that offers a different interpretation of Wright’s fireproof house design. The home feature original built-ins and fixtures. The Telfer MacArthur House was designed in 1928 by architects Charles White and Bertram Weber. An Arts & Crafts-style home, it also features a newer two-story addition. Two design collaborations between Drummond and Louis Guenzel will be featured on the walk: the River Forest Women’s Club, now re-invented as a single family home, and the Charles J. Barr House, a Prairie-style home with a grand central fireplace.
Late addition
A recently announced bonus feature on the 2016 tour is Wright’s William Winslow House in River Forest. The home was his first major commission after leaving Adler and Sullivan. Whitaker is excited that participants will have the opportunity to see this treasure.Â
“It’s been 38 or 39 years since it has been on Wright Plus,” she said. The house is virtually unchanged, and it is beautiful. We’re so happy to be able to share it with our guests.”
The Winslow House is currently on the market for $1,550,000, and Whitaker emphasizes that the owners, who have been dedicated stewards of Wright’s legacy, are generously opening their home for the tour.
Whitaker noted that one of the Wright Plus volunteers who worked in the Winslow House when it was last included on Wright Plus over three decades ago is still a volunteer with the Trust. “These are the people who are an integral part of our organization. It’s a testament to how things were set up when the Trust was founded so long ago that we have this continuity in our organization.”
Those who want to extend their Wright Plus experience can take advantage of the Friday excursion. Participants will travel by bus to Park Ridge to visit the studio of artist Alfonso Ianelli, creator of the sprite statues in the Wright-designed Midway Gardens. Visitors will also see the Pickwick Theater, designed by Iannelli, Harold Zook, and William McCaughey as well as the Cedar Court Cottages, a Cotswold-style housing development designed by Ianelli and Wright’s apprentice, Barry Byrne. Tickets for the Friday, May 20, trip are $170 for Trust members and $185 for non-members.
For those who want an entire weekend of Wright, the Ultimate Wright Package includes accommodations for three nights in a deluxe room at Oak Park’s Carleton Hotel, a Director’s Reception at Wright’s Rookery building in Chicago, private passage to Wright in Racine with exclusive tours of Wright’s Thomas P. Hardy House and the S.C. Johnson Administration Building and Tower, fast pass admission to the housewalk, a private lunch the day of the walk, and an exclusive Wright dinner in a private Wright residence with cuisine provided by an acclaimed Chicago chef. The package includes transportation to all events, and is priced at $2,700 for Trust members and $2,850 for non-members.
Details
Wright Plus tickets and excursion purchases can be made at www.flwright.org. Tickets for the housewalk are $95 for Trust members and $110 for non-members. A limited number of fast pass tickets enable participants to forgo lines the day of the walk and are available for $595 for Trust members and $610 for non-members.Â