Monthly Update
Important Archival Processing Update
At OA+D Archives we are extremely excited to be in the midst of processing the Susan Jacobs Lockhart Papers. The final portion of her materials were received in February 2023, and contains an extraordinary range of important artistic and historical items that are also highly relevant to other collections in our holdings. The records document the lifelong productivity of Susan as an independent artist and reveal her many contributions to Taliesin Associated Architects projects and the Taliesin Fellowship. The papers also contain a wealth of documentation concerning the two houses designed for her parents by Frank Lloyd Wright and the long relationship of the Jacobs family with the architect.
Initial assessment has broadly arranged the Susan Jacobs Lockhart Papers into record groups such as Design Art, Artifacts, Correspondence, Photographs, etc. Work is proceeding to refine the organization of the records and create a comprehensive item level inventory. A preliminary count of design drawings shows the presence of over 2,000 original sketches and related artwork for decorative elements such as leaded and etched glass panels, lighted sculptures, dinnerware, textiles, graphic designs, and other forms of enrichment.
Among the many highlights to be found in the collection are both the initial drawings and examples of the realized objects for a series of wooden and ceramic wares, a number of magnificent art glass panels, vibrant greeting cards and block prints, and freestanding glass and plexiglass sculptures. Of special note are the exquisite silk draperies with applique fabric abstracted cacti design from the Lockhart Cottage at Taliesin West. Digital images of all these objects will be added to the OA+D Archives online catalog as the archival process matures.
Due to their historical significance, the Lockhart materials are being assessed for pressing conservation problems. Of particular concern are the fabric panels from the Lockhart cottage, which are in some structural distress and cannot be exhibited until restoration and strengthening of the fragile cloth has been accomplished. Fortunately, most materials are in excellent condition and are being placed into appropriate archival containers.
Within the next several weeks principal photography of the drawings and artworks will commence and is estimated to take between four and six months. The collection inventory will take place in parallel and be visible through the online catalog as we go along. While many institutions do not show work in progress, OA+D Archives chooses to make information available as soon as we can ensure reliable representation. The completion of archival processing for the Susan Jacobs Lockhart Collection is estimated to take 12-14 months. In the meantime, you can always check yourself for new additions and we’ll keep you updated via this newsletter of noteworthy finds.
If anyone has additional materials designed by Susan they would like to donate to join this remarkable collection, please reach out to us at info@oadarchives.org.
From The Archives
One of the highlight objects from the Susan Jacobs Lockhart Collection is a stunning hanging art glass window she created in 1998 titled “Sunlight thru Treetops.” The window was originally created for Shellie Karno and Kenneth Wolf to hang in the entry of their Chicago, IL home. When the Wolf's decided to sell their home in 2022 they wanted to find an appropriate place to donate their beloved window. Luckily, they contacted OA+D and we were able to take possession of the 40" w. x 40" h window and associated documentation from its creation and add it to the rest of Susan's Papers in the archive. The window has already been prominently exhibited as part of a special exhibit held in March 2023 that was co-developed by OA+D and Millikin University. We're looking forward to other opportunities to showcase this amazing work of abstracted design by Susan.
If you have materials that are related to the work of Susan Jacobs Lockhart (or any other organic architectural or design items) that you're interested in donating to join our growing collections, please let us know by contacting us at info@oadarchives.org.
OA+D NEWS & EVENTS
Journal OA+D V12:N1 :: COMING SOON!
Last month we announced that the Spring 2024 issue of the Journal of Organic Architecture and Design will focus on Frank Lloyd Wright's Prairie Era Masterpiece, the Frederick C. Robie House.
Representing twenty years of research, this issue of the Journal OA+D is an illustrated history and analysis of the Frederick C. Robie House, 1908-10. Presented in four parts: Introductory essay with plans and diagrams; rare album of construction photographs taken by the contractor, Harrison Barnard, reproduced in its entirety; complete publication of every professional photograph taken by Henry Fuermann & Sons, 1910-11; portfolio of color photographs of the restored building on the exterior and interior. The rare historic Fuermann photographs are reproduced from either the original glass negatives owned by the Organic Architecture and Design Archives or first generation prints from local collectors. Annotated Timeline, 1878-1932. Select Bibliography. Finally, a special feature unique to this publication will be a three-page color gate fold of the entire major elevation of the restored house.
This landmark publication, written by celebrated author and historian Kathryn Smith, features important research accompanied by never-before-published photos—including the first time that the Robie House has been published with color photographs of the exterior and interior restored. It's sure to be a quintessential publication on this iconic UNESCO World Heritage site.
The issue is scheduled to be mailed out to subscribers by the end of April/beginning of May, so if you're not already a subscriber, then consider signing up to get all three issues a year. You not only can expect to receive our wonderful publication, but you will also be helping to support OA+D and its mission!
Book Review: Crossing Boundaries with Frank Lloyd Wright
Crossing Boundaries with Frank Lloyd Wright: How Ornament led to Architecture, by Sidney K. Robinson
Book review by Steve Sikora, author of the Willey House Stories
The hero’s journey of Frank Lloyd Wright along with his monumental legacy, is reminiscent of the multiple iterations of sacred texts proffered by the world’s great religions. As in the Bible, the Quran, or Mahabharata, a general theme is presented repeatedly in near-identical fashion, spanning multiple retellings through the ages. All doctrinal truths are cloaked in oblique language as if to warn the faithful reader, “Do not question!”
If you’ve read about Wright, you surely recognize that most books on the architect fall into a familiar pattern of repetition, restating a singular narrative, and relying on earlier publications to validate the gospel-like sequence of events and relative importance of the works.
Thanks to this self-induced tendency to reduce Wright’s contributions to a single thread, the vast majority of books about Wright simply report upon the superficial WHAT, WHEN and WHERE of it, each describing the scope of his oeuvre with varying degrees of focus. It is the rare publication that breaks from rank. The aisles of sagging bookshelves housing any well-rounded Wright library will hold only 3 or 4 volumes that even dare to attempt an explanation of HOW Wright approached his prodigious body of work—to examine his creative processes, his working methods, to determine what his influences were and how his ideas gestated and developed over his lifetime. The observations in this book offer exactly that.
Those who have read Wright on Wright for themselves, must confess that the man illuminated the principles undergirding his architecture in often vague and confusing terms—mostly in evocative but fuzzy definitions that evolved steadily over time and telling.
Sid Robinson has managed to calm the murky waters of Wright’s own clouded explanations, while at the same time showing us how his distillate interpretations of Wright’s terminology apply to the architect’s breakthrough innovations in the shaping of space.
In Crossing Boundaries with Frank Lloyd Wright: How Ornament led to Architecture, Sid Robinson first explains how Wright’s illustration of ornament under Louis Sullivan crossed the boundary between a florid, naturalistic style and pure abstraction. Then, over time, how Wright’s abstract ornament itself, made another leap when it informed an entirely new approach to architecture.
With greater access to the Foundation archives over the past decade, and a spate of recent books on Wright, we’ve learned about the man from various fresh perspectives; art collector, romantic adulterer, fiscal reprobate, transcendentalist, and so on. We now, finally have a book that begins to unspool the riddles surrounding his uncanny abilities to shapecraft, Frank Lloyd Wright, as artist, designer and questing diviner of time and space.