Wright Chat

Frank Lloyd Wright, the latest lifestyle home brand


David

"The one thing that we'll never do is compromise quality."

What 'quality'? The quality of the finished product? Easy enough to control.
Or does quality mean the totality of the environment the product becomes a part of? Is inserting a "Tree of Life" window in a McMansion, or an Origami Chair in a plasterboard condo with Saguaro Wallpaper an end product that will ensure the perpetuity of FLW's legacy?

Or will it be only an upgrade of the tchotchkes already available in museum gift shops? Is this a new path, or just the same old same old?

This line piqued my interest:

". . .such as Shigeru Ban’s reinterpretation of a Taliesin lamp for the Japanese brand Yamagiwa."

I would like to know more about that specific.

A promising direction would be the acquisition of cooperation between the Foundation's promotion arm and a series---or at least a few---of today's acknowledged masters in the field.

I have the suspicion that I'm not alone in the observation that there are no "Frank Lloyd Wrights" at Taliesin, today---or, if there are, their light is well hidden. Who can be confident that
the lesser lights keeping Wright's name alive, loyal and hardworking though they be---are not necessarily master designers themselves.

If that is correct, or if it is a dominating impression, could the "brand" be enhanced by associating it with the ongoing profession of architecture at its best, today ?

I will assume that Japanese architect Shigeru Ban was given the task of preparing a Wright design for re-production for today's market. If each of three or more starchitects were to be
given a similar task, and their names attached as "representing Wright for the 21st Century" or some such, would the standard we hope to have recognized---that Wright was a master
designer in a field which continues to be graced by such individuals---be enhanced by the association ?

It is clear that the Origami chair was "reinterpreted"---cleaned up---by someone, for its re-debut. Was an individual given that task ? Who ? A master designer worthy of the task---or an
anonymous person either at the Foundation or at Cassina ? Wouldn't it be appropriate---and useful---to have an acknowledged designer associated with such decisions---an architect,
preferably, who can claim a history of respect for Mr Wright and his work ?

S