New exhibit brings fresh creativity to Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West
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Weavings by artist Erika Lynne Hanson are part of a new temporary exhibit at Taliesin West. Photo: Courtesy of Andrew Pielage via Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
A new temporary exhibit at Taliesin West provides a contemporary complement to Frank Lloyd Wright's iconic midcentury masterpiece and looks to reinvigorate its history of creativity and creation.
Why it matters: "Desert Mirror," on display through the end of May, is a pilot for a new artist-in-residence program that employs present-day creatives to design projects that foster a deeper understanding of the historic property, Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation vice president Niki Ciccotelli Stewart told Axios.
- It's a callback to Taliesin West's early days, when apprentices lived on the property to assist and learn from Wright.
The big picture: The inaugural exhibition — a collection of weavings, sculptures and videos inspired by and displayed inside the north Scottsdale estate — invites guests to reflect on the intersection of infrastructure and geology, interdisciplinary artist Erika Lynne Hanson told Axios.
- It piggybacks on the "organic architecture" principle Wright employed when building his winter home within the natural landscape.
Zoom in: Hanson, who is also an associate professor of textiles and socially engaged practices at ASU, spent two years absorbing the 500-acre Taliesin West property, from the rocky terrain to the desert masonry used to construct the buildings.
- From there, she wove tapestries that reflected the shapes and motifs seen in the garden room, Wright's office, kiva and cabaret, and constructed mirrored, mobile sculpture towers to reflect those spaces.
What they're saying: "The goal is to help [visitors] shift the lens a little bit. How do you see this place … and how do you see the built environment when you leave?" Hanson told us.
- Her work forces reflection on how humans affect the natural spaces around them.
- "That's really the goal: To have people be better attuned to the way that they live in the world," she said.
Between the lines: Hanson's work is visible on the standard property tour.
- The exhibition is a "slow build" that starts with a single tapestry and sculpture in Wright's office and ends in the cabaret with a series of weavings, sculptures and a video filmed in the music pavilion, a striking theater at Taliesin West closed to public tours.
- Outside the kiva, a display of mirrors lines the bottom of the tower fountain, which Hanson designed so the weight of the water would keep the installation in place. Because Taliesin West is a UNESCO World Heritage site, she couldn't use any fastening materials that would alter the structure.
What's next: A second exhibition by a duo of Arizona-based artists will debut in the fall, and then the Wright Foundation will consider opening the program to others.
The bottom line: Stewart said she takes umbrage with people referring to Taliesin West as a "historic place," because it gives the impression that "our best days are behind us."
- She said she hopes the new residence program shows that Wright's desert laboratory "is still a place inspiring creative people."