Town and Country: Frank Lloyd Wright in Chicago and Wisconsin
August 16-20, 2012
Daily Itinerary (subject to change)
Thursday, August 16
Arrive in Chicago mid-day and check in at the historic Drake Hotel at the top of Chicago’s Magnificent Mile. Enjoy strolling Michigan Avenue, walking the beach at Oak Street, or exploring the neighborhoods of the Gold Coast, until we meet in the mid afternoon to travel to the Art Institute of Chicago. Opening remarks by the curator of American decorative arts will aid us in assessing the relationship between Frank Lloyd Wright and the Arts and Crafts movement, a theme that will carry through our weekend. A festive opening dinner ends our day.
Friday, August 17
Have breakfast on your own and meet in the lobby of the Drake to set out for our day’s activities. We will make our way up Lake Shore Drive and Sheridan Road to the Rogers Park neighborhood where we get a private tour of the Wright-designed Emil Bach House, completed in 1915. Its second-story cantilevers and geometric forms make it a fine example of the late Prairie style.
Making our way back to the Loop, we visit The Rookery, an 1898 Daniel Burnham building with a spectacular light-filled lobby remodeled by Wright in 1905. Our Rookery tour includes the Burnham Library, where plans for the 1893 Chicago Columbian Exposition came to fruition under the watchful eyes of Daniel H. Burnham, John W. Root, and Frederick Law Olmsted.
After a group lunch, we proceed south to Jackson Park and visit Wooded Island, with its restored Japanese Garden. This was the site of the Ho-o-den Pavilion at the Columbian Exposition, where some believe Wright first saw Japanese architecture.
Our day ends at the Robie House, where we will bask in the late afternoon sunlight with wine and hors d’oeuvres, and hear the story of the Robie House restoration from our restoration architect. Return to the hotel. Dinner is on your own.
Saturday, August 18
After breakfast, meet in the hotel lobby for the coach to Oak Park. Since many guests will have most likely visited Oak Park in the past, we will offer a menu of opportunities to enjoy for the first part of the day – a guided tour of the Home and Studio, a guided historic neighborhood walk, a guided tour at Unity Temple, or a bicycle tour. Later we will gather at a privately-owned Wright home for an exclusive tour and a lecture by the Preservation Trust curator, exploring further the role of early influences in the development of Wright’s Prairie style.
After lunch, we board the bus for the three-hour drive to Madison, Wisconsin. Enjoy a video, some discussion, and snacks on the bus. After check-in at our hotel, you are free to explore downtown Madison. Dinner is on your own.
Sunday, August 19
Spend the major part of the day at Taliesin, the home Wright built for himself in 1911, and rebuilt twice after two fires. Our visit includes a two-hour house tour, a one-hour tour of the drafting studio and theater, and lunch in the Wright-designed structure that serves as the Visitor Center.
On our return trip to Madison, we stop to tour the Jacobs I House, an early Usonian that has been lovingly restored. In the evening, gather for a group dinner.
Monday, August 20
The day begins with breakfast and an early tour of Monona Terrace, the convention center originally envisioned by Wright as a Civic Center in 1938 and, after site changes and revisions, finally completed by Taliesin architects in 1997. Enjoy a box lunch.
Then board the bus to return to O’Hare Airport, stopping on the way at the Belvidere, Illinois, Cemetery for a look at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Pettit Chapel (1907), his only structure specifically for a cemetery setting. The small restored chapel embodies many elements of the Prairie style.
