HSPV 7210

Capstone Studio Taliesin West: Materials + Materialities

This Studio focuses on Taliesin West, Frank Lloyd Wright’s winter home, studio, and architectural campus located in the Sonoran Desert outside Scottsdale, Arizona. A seasonal complement to Taliesin, Wisconsin, Taliesin West served as Wright’s desert laboratory, where he practiced and refined his ideas of organic architecture in tandem with his pedagogical philosophy of “learning by doing.” With the Architecture School’s departure in 2020 and increasing public vistiation as a heritage site, Taliesin West is now at a crossroad. To better understand the place as Wright’s’experiment in the desert’ and its continuing role in showcasing and expanding Wright’s principles of organic architecture in the 21st century, the Studio explored Wright’s writings on the nature of materials and their deployment at Taliesin West through his drawings, constructions, and modifications over time. Students then pursued three projects examining the Cabaret and strategies for its conservation, a technical study of the site’s iconic Desert Masonry, and the adaptive reuse of the Crescent building for a new visitor center.

Students

Yi-Ju Chen
Priyanka Gorasia
Anyuan Ji
Daniel Mangano
Taha Mughal
Qianhui Ni
Miles Wu
Ying Wang
Jun-Ai Wang
Yuxuan Wu
Diyi Zhang

Desert Masonry at Taliesin West

The goal of this research is to provide a comprehensive understanding of desert masonry as a construction system by examining its materials and techniques, its construction chronology and formal typology, and its performance and current conditions. First, we investigate the construction process to understand how this hybrid system was conceived and realized. Second, we trace its typology based on key attributes and how construction changed over time, identifying the evolving patterns that emerged across generations of student builders. And finally, we assess the condition of specific examples of desert masonry to identify decay mechanisms and propose preservation treatment strategies.
Desert masonry and terminology
Through its constant deployment on site, desert masonry represents Taliesin’s evolving nature and the continual additions and alterations made by Wright and his apprentices over the years. Although no specific chronological style could be identified, the many attributes associated with the construction method reveal a complex and subtle play of choices and typologies of form and aesthetics.
Site plan of Taliesin West with attribute codes

Typology analysis for rustications
Desert masonry techniques were passed down from generation to generation of Fellows through oral tradition and practical experience. As such, desert masonry represents not only a way of building but a concrete testament to the pedagogical system of learning by doing championed by Wright and those who have followed.
Chronology and typology findings of desert masonry

Condition assessment of desert masonry
Cabaret: Building Chronology Analysis, Non-destructive Testing and Treatment Recommendation

This Historic Structure Report (HSR) expands that summary presenting a more in-depth analysis of the building’s chronology and morphological evolution, an assessment of current conditions, especially related to the masonry ceiling/roof using non-destructive testing (NDT) to understand the original design intent and its modifications and pathologies of deterioration, as well as to provide guidance for future conservation through treatment and maintenance recommendations. My responsibilities include analyzing the building's chronology, conducting non-destructive tests on the roof slab and beam, and making treatment recommendations.
NDT Analysis: Beam

Treatment Recommendation Matrix

Action photo: Conducting GPR scan downside of the beam

Diagrams of Non-destructive Technology Analysis on the Roof Slab

Action photo: Conducting GPR scan upside of the beam