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11 Most Endangered
Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin
Year Listed: 1994
Location: Spring Green , Wisconsin
Current Status: Endangered
Threat: Deterioration
Significance
The 600-acre Taliesin complex in Spring Green, Wisconsin has been called Frank Lloyd Wright's self-portrait. A National Historic Landmark, Taliesin, named for a Welsh poet, is where Wright lived and worked from 1911 until his death in 1959. Nestled on a hillside, the site's structures echo the lush landscape, embodying Wright's concept of "organic architecture". The complex, which houses the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, includes living quarters, work spaces, offices, apartments, farm buildings and a school, where architecture students are still trained. But the buildings are suffering from serious deterioration, including water damage, erosion, foundation settlement and wood decay. In some places, damage is irreversible. Although some money had been raised to continue Taliesin's preservation, substantially more is needed in order to safeguard the legacy of this American genius.
Updates
April 2009: Despite some recent major work on the estate and its furnishings, they are still besieged by an ever-growing list of restoration needs estimated to cost over $86 million dollars. It is hoped that recent changes to the structure of the Taliesin Foundation Board, which owns the site, will help fundraising and speed projects along. The Foundation works closely with Taliesin Preservation, Inc., which is responsible for public access and preservation of the site.
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