The architecture school run by the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation on Wednesday criticized a decision by the foundation’s board that will result in the school losing its accreditation.
Last week, the Higher Learning Commission, a Chicago-based nonprofit that accredits universities and colleges, told the school it would lose its accreditation in 2017.
— artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com
Previously: Taliesin faces loss of accreditation, suspends fall enrollment
UPDATE: New Plan for Architecture School at Wright Foundation
23 Comments
man, you didn't even try! shoulda just written FLW click here!
I wonder why they don't abandon the MArch and go back to offering a BArch. It seems HLC wouldn't accredit that, either, but offering a Bachelor seems like there are fewer complications and grads could always get a 2-year Master degree somewhere else if they wanted to be licensed, which frankly (no pun intended) I doubt a high percentage of Taliesin students want to do, anyway.
At Wright Chat we have been debating the place and purpose of the school -- and questioning whether it shouldn't rethink its purpose or even give up the game. I'm interested in your comment that few Taliesin students intend to become licensed. I hadn't considered that possibility, though it makes sense. Can you elaborate, Donna ?
"Wright Chat" is a thing that exists?
I can't really elaborate, SDR, except that I think of Cranbrook and Taliesin as occupying a different space than pretty much any other MArch programs, based on their history, size, focus, free curriculum, etc.
It saddens me that in the last 15 years so many schools have drunk the MArch kool-aid, so to speak, and Taliesin saddens me moreso than any others (Cranbrook has always only offered the MArch, but it's not accredited and for about half their graduates - based on my time there - that doesn't seem to matter). As discussions continue to heat up around non-traditional practice and the interweaving of all design disciplines and the blurring of the boundaries between them, it seems to me Taliesin could embrace its craft-based history and continue to produce graduates who are artists first, designers a close second, and only architects if that suits their specific career goals for some reason. Taliesin offers that monastic, immersive environment that is far more intense than just prepping for the AREs*. It's about a way of looking at and living in the world, and their recent search for a new Director had me hopeful that they would move more towards simultaneously embracing their reputation as an outlier AND dealing optimistically with the changing landscape of architectural practice.
What I'm not clear on is whether HLC's new rules say they cannot be a college-level institution of any kind, or if they just can't offer accredited Master's degrees, or accredited Bachelor's degrees, for that matter.
*I'm not really saying all MArch programs are just test prep curriculums, but Taliesin is definitely less of one than any other except maybe Cranbrook.
Thanks, Donna. I'm interested in your take on Taliesin as I am out of touch, not having visited the school at either of its campuses nor spoken to recent graduates. It sounds a bit like my school, RISD, in the sixties, when I was there. (I graduated from the very weak BA Interior Architecture program and have done other things with my time; the department made some changes in the later 'sixties, with a more rigorous architectural immersion, and the school as a whole seems to have secured a good reputation in recent decades.) Your ideas about the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture make sense; it's refreshing to hear that professionals can view architectural education as serving purposes other than test prep.
What I wonder is whether Wright's name and influence any longer merit a special place in the education of architects. Wrightians speak of Mr Wright's "philosophy" and "principles" as if these were still unique to him -- ideas not found elsewhere in the architectural universe. Granted that the career was a very progressive one, more or less throughout its span; sustainability and context might not be the issues to focus on, given the poet/architect's apparent indifference to long life for his buildings, and to the neighbors of his clients, by and large. I go so far as to claim that, even more than other modernists, he sought always to make something different, above all . . .
But those who extol Wright are correct in claiming that he paid particular attention to climate control and orientation, to energy efficiency and use of natural and local material. It's just that his example was long ago absorbed by the profession, and no longer stands alone as some sort of guide for young architects. Surely everyone who has an interest in Wright's work can satisfy the itch by wallowing in the deluge of images and commentary available widely, without having to enroll in a uniquely Wrightian educational program -- it seems to me.
Heh-heh. Yes, there really is a Wright Chat. It's a discussion forum sponsored by SaveWright, the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy. A bunch of Wright fans, owners, and four or five practitioners (several of them owners) are the regular attendees. Here's the FLLW School thread:
http://savewright.org/wright_chat/viewtopic.php?t=7756
Whatever it was that Wright had, it seemed to have attracted the interest of other architects, at least. Anyone interested in making space and form from material, in a way equally romantic and tectonic, modern and ancient, would enjoy his work, perhaps. Paul Rudolph wrote the most poetic appreciation of Fallingwater I've seen, published in a GA issue devoted to the house (GA 2, 1970, A.D.A. Edita, Tokyo). He said:
". . .[Its] balanced thrusts are under complete control, resulting in the paradox of a building full of movement: turning, twisting, quivering movement -- which is, at the same time, calm, majestic and everlasting." "One senses that the house "grows" from the ground but, paradoxically, it also "hovers." It is the first space ship, majestically gracing its lovely valley for the rest of time. It is so real, so tangible, so palpable, so wrought of permanent materials, and yet, simultaneously, it has a mythical quality, as if it exists only in one's dream."
"'s refreshing to hear that professionals can view architectural education as serving purposes other than test prep."
I agree that it's a good thing to be able to take one's architecture degree into several diverse avenues but I'm surprised to hear that most schools actually teach to the test. My experience was that the practical issues that the test focuses on were given a cursory review, but that the focus was really on studio, which definatly had issues with reality, for better and for worse.
Thanks for that link, SDR. I agree with you completely that FLW's principles are completely embraced within the discipline these days. It's a testament to how significant he is as a profound influence on American (meaning US-ian) architecture. He was a true genius, no question. But my sense is that the entire notion of hero-worship and learning at the feet of the master, in any discipline not just ours, is out-of-date. The real learning to happen at Taliesin, IMO, is based on immersing yourself physical and mental self into that physical space, separated from the world at large, then figuring out how to take the lessons out into the world when you inevitably have to leave.
I like Matt's suggestion (on Wright Chat) that the school offer non-degree options, like a year at Taliesin (both east and West) as a traveling semester. There is immense value in removing oneself from the world into a focused and intense place for awhile - think of yoga retreats and eco-tourism as shallower examples - then returning with a different balance. Taliesin West definitely offers that deep retreat, and with a fairly free curriculum already they are prime for students who want to self-direct within a certain area of inquiry for a year, then take those lessons back to some other degree program or to their practice.
I've only visited Taliesin West (I grew up six miles away from it), never the Wisconsin location. The fact that they move the school based on seasons makes a one-year-long program a perfect fit. Start at Taliesin in August, move to West for the winter, focusfocusfocus in the desert, then gently distance oneself by returning back to the east campus for a couple of months before re-emerging into the world. Spend four seasons thinking about the world differently and more intensely, without distraction, then those four seasons can be referenced forever.
Donna....sounds like your talking about it becoming an "Architectural Spa"
Donna, my sister literally lives down the block. I have only visited a couple times but from what I understand the school is very very expensive? Does anyone know the cost?
jla-x I don't know tuition but I think it's comparable to most other MArch programs. It is a year-round curriculum, though, and I believe housing and some food are included.
I think it's the immersion that Taliesen offers that sets it apart as something other than a normal design school. I had a few professors that went there during their school years and it showed in their teaching style, and in their portfolio. The idea of it becoming a study destination for a semester or two sounds like a lot better idea that being in some kind of accreditation limbo.
http://savewright.org/wright_chat/viewtopic.php?t=7756&start=15
Latest submission to our discussion: input from a student.
Hi all, I'll be happy to fill you in on what's going on here. As a student at the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture, I can tell you that everyone is here because it's an accredited school. That means that we can become architects with our degree. If it loses accreditation, it then has nothing to do with becoming architects and dies as serious students go to universities that allow them to achieve professional goals. There may be a handful of people who study architecture at places that never lead to that career, but many of the universities that tried Post-Graduate programs are closing them due to lack of interest. Everyone here loves architecture, so even though music, history, painting, writing, drawing, construction -- even Shakespeare -- inform our learning, as it always has, our daily work is in mastering architecture, increasingly in the digital realm. We work side-by-side with professional architects, daily. In that way we're not like Cranbrook, but as intended, preparing future professionals.
Our tuition is standard for Masters degrees at most universities, but actually a pretty good deal when you factor in community life -- that is that attending Taliesin means you are provided shelters and rooms and dine with fellow students and professors, as noted by one of you, as an all-immersive, year-round architectural experience. Students come from all income levels in our country, but also from all over the world, and are the type that are drawn to thinking outside the box. It's simply the most amazing place and program I've ever been a part of, filled with committed people who've given their lives to this wonderful tradition, and I feel so lucky to be a part of it at one of its strongest times in its history.
If you'd care, here's what I posted to the New York Times article that might help explain what's happening here, having little to do with accreditation and mostly top do with a few Foundation members who'd sell us off for very troubling reasons:
What a tragedy Foundation President Sean Malone is leading our school into. Instead of taking the Higher Learning Commission’s simple remedy to allow the school to be independent, he’d hoard his power by selling our school in a “partnership”. Didn’t they already court potential universities only to find logistics and strong branding yielded no partners at all? Why pursue a dead end that kills Wright’s creation, when the HLC bent over backwards to help?
When his partnership doesn’t work, he told us of his next big plan: ending the accredited Masters program to only offer Post-Graduate studies, even as universities are phasing these out due to lack of interest. According to those who tried this, architects can’t easily drop out of practice to go back to school, especially when they don’t have to. We need accredited Masters Degrees to become architects, but he’d end that to offer programs nobody wants.
All his life Frank Lloyd Wright trained architects, his community still sending accredited Masters into the Twenty-First Century with a 92% placement rate, a tremendous success in a world begging for original, sustainable, organic architecture. We learn by doing, building structures, learning historical preservation, mastering digital rendering with professional architects at our side, a near-one-on-one teaching ratio, taking classes with Cambridge professors, international teachers, dining with top architects who visit from around the world because Wright knew that some of the best lessons came when gathered around a candle-lit table, as we did with Renzo Piano a few months back. We live and play on two beautiful campuses. We host lectures, concerts and films. We don’t just study famous sites, we travel to them, walk them, touch them, taking trips to major cities, field trips to other states, spending weeks in far off countries with professors, singing in choirs, acting in Shakespeare, sketching and painting and drawing – developing the whole person, remarkably faithful to Wright’s dream. An 82-year old tradition will end because the Foundation that was created to sustain the school, can’t share.
Christopher Lock
Masters student
Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture
Wow Chris, that sounds like an amazing experience. I hope they do the 'Wright' thing and allow the school to continue functioning.
It's generous of you to share your experience, Chris. I hope all current students continue to fare well despite the challenges.
It's good to hear your classmates are serious about becoming architects. What I see happening in the profession now is a move away from the strictures controlling the word "architect" - legal requirements I have no doubt FLW would have despised. I think within 20 years we'll see registration requirements change significantly if not disappear entirely. While it's great to hear that current Taliesin students are set on becoming registered, I do think across all graduates from architecture programs we'll come to see less interest or desire to pursue registration, along with a simultaneous loosening of who is allowed to call themselves an architect.
Even now, there is absolutely nothing preventing a non-registered person from designing buildings - definitely houses, and larger projects if they are willing and able to partner with a registered entity. No need to be registered to follow one's own vision *if* one is crafty and driven enough to do it - FLW certainly was.
What alarms me about your post is it seems to confirm, or at least support, my suspicion that the real issue is the Foundation basically isn't willing to give up control, even at risk of the school ceasing to exist. Obviously the financial relationship isn't something we're all privy to; I'm sure it's much more complex than just slicing the school off and letting it stand on its own, but the idea of the school closing is really sad.
Q+A with Sean Malone on Architect magazine.
So, one question to ask is, how many of those enrolled in the FLLW School of Architecture had previous experience with the work, written and built, of Frank Lloyd Wright ? To what extent are they enrolled specifically because of the Wright legacy, and to what extent are they there because of what the school offers by way of curricular (and extra-curricular) programs, regardless of "brand" ?
Answers to these questions would be important, wouldn't they, in selecting a future path for the school ? That is, if students have a strong enough interest in the importance of Wright's work as an exemplar for their future, they would take that with them whether the school had an affiliation with another university, to not. What does Mr Malone believe the students are seeking, at the school ?
I would certainly be interested in knowing what pre-enrollment awareness of Wright was present, for what number of students at the school . . .
A current student comments.
Great video, and absolutely sickening to hear what a short-sighted clan of bureaucrats is attempting to do to keep themselves in their McMansions. The foundation has no reason for being without the ability to educate and launch the next generation of architects. I've never read Wright's musings on the reasons for the existence of Taliesin, but I'm positive it didn't hinge on keeping him fat and happy...
Are you sure about that ?
At the beginning of the Great Depression, c. 1932, Wright had virtually no work. He was then 65 years old. He published an autobiography, and circulated a prospectus for a "fellowship of apprentices." He attracted a number of mostly young souls who were impressed by the writing and intrigued by the prospect, who would work both in the drafting room and in the fields; Taliesin would become, as largely as possible, a self-sustaining organism. For Wright the architect, this group represented a labor pool upon which he drew for the rest of his career.
Apprentices initially paid to attend for whatever period they could manage; some staff were paid. Wright was ably assisted by Wes Peters, a wizard at structural calculation and an effective foreman, devoted secretary Gene Masselink, and several key draftsmen, chief among them John Howe, who created and fostered a winning representational style at Wright's direction.
So, yes, Mr Wright did what he could to keep the fires burning and the clients happy, with the willing aid of a great many hands.
http://taliesinfellows.org/i/taliesin-fellows/
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