Traverse Western Pennsylvania with the Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust and experience exclusive access to Frank Lloyd Wright designs and other masterpieces of 20th century architecture October 1-4 with Wright Way Pennsylvania: Fallingwater and more. Join the private excursion to discover the architectural gems of downtown Pittsburgh and Wright’s Fallingwater, Kentuck Knob and Duncan House while surrounded by the backdrop of autumn beauty.
Founded in 1758 and full of architectural surprises, Pittsburgh and greater Western Pennsylvania features The Armstrong Cork Factory, formerly an industrial building, that has been adaptively reused and protected by easements; P&LE (Pittsburgh and Lake Erie), a former train station, that has been transformed into an entertainment, office, and retail center called Station Square and the Carnegie libraries and other cultural institutions that are expanding beyond their historic structures in innovative ways. A jaunt through downtown Pittsburgh offers a close up view of world-renowned architect H.H. Richardson’s Allegheny County Courthouse and former jail building and Henry Clay Frick’s Union Arcade.
Fallingwater, the home Wright designed as a country house for the Kaufmann family in 1936, sits atop “falling water,” allowing the family to, as Wright said, “Live with nature.” Described as “perhaps the best-known private home for someone not of royal blood in the history of the world,” Fallingwater is considered Wright’s masterwork. Built of sandstone quarried on the site, glass, and concrete, Fallingwater’s first floor is one continuous space, with the entry, dining room, and living room flowing one into the other. Bedroom suites and terraces comprise the upper floors. In 1991 AIA members voted it the “best all-time work of American architecture.”
A highlight of the excursion is an exclusive Sunset Tour of Fallingwater where guests will experience Wright’s masterful integration of building and nature. After the tour visitors will enjoy a wine and cheese reception on the bridge and to further enhance the experience guests can wander back through the rooms at their own pace to take interior photography.
Located only seven miles south of Fallingwater, Kentuck Knob, a Usonian house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, was completed in 1956. Usonian, meaning affordable for the common people, was a signature design of Wright. The house, constructed of native sandstone and tidewater red cypress blends naturally with its environment. The home was designed on a hexagonal module with the kitchen as the axis. Situated below the crest of the hills, the house appears almost part of the mountain itself and offers a panoramic view of the Youghiogheny River Gorge and the Laurel Highlands.
Wright designed the Usonian Duncan House in 1957 for Donald and Elizabeth Duncan who occupied it for forty years. Scheduled for demolition in suburban Chicago after the death of the original owners, the residence was dismantled, loaded onto four trucks, and transported to Pennsylvania. The “pieces” remained two years until the owners of Polymath Park purchased it and had it rebuilt on its present site.
Peter Berndtson, designer of the Balter and Blum houses, studied with the Taliesin Fellowship where he met Cornelia Brierly, a fellow student. The two married and settled in Western Pennsylvania. Berndtson’s designs for Polymath, his most famous works, clearly show Wright’s influence. Berndtson’s original plans for the property allowed for 24 dwellings, but only these two were built.
LODGING
The William Penn Hotel was built in 1916, with an addition erected in 1928-29. The original portion is described as primarily Georgian Classic and the addition of Mediterranean style. Not to be missed are the grand ballroom which offers a spectacular view and the black glass Art Deco ballroom designed by Joseph Urban of theater-design fame. The hotel also has a spa and fitness center.
Occupying 2,000 acres in the Laurel Highlands, Nemacolin holds a five-diamond rating from AAA for its lodging and dining and a four-star rating from Mobil. Boasting a multi-million dollar art collection, a state-of-the-art spa, and two 18-hole golf courses, Nemacolin also offers its guests pedal boat rides and kayaks, an equestrian center, and fourteen specialty shops.
Wright Way Pennsylvania: Fallingwater and more begins at $1,795 for Preservation Trust members and includes luxurious accommodations at the Omni William Penn Hotel and the Nemacolin Woodlands Resort and Spa. Also included are two lunches and two dinners, all guides and entrance fees and transportation by luxury motor coach. For additional information and to make reservations visit www.WrightWayTravel.org or call 312-994-4030.
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