It's a little known fact that there is a Frank Lloyd Wright Home in Rockford. I myself just found out of its existence in the last year.
Built in 1949 for Mr & Mrs. Kenneth H. Laurent, and it is the only Wright house still occupied by its original owners. This one story Usonian style home was designed to be totally handicapped accessible, as Mr Laurent is wheelchair bound.
The Laurents have been trying to sell their home for some time now and there is a growing interest in turning this piece of history into a house museum. Doc Slafkosky and Jerry Kortman, my pals at JR Kortman Center for Design have organized a group exhibition of FLW inspired work to bring attention to this treasure in our midst. 15 killer local artists, including moi will be exhibiting work for this show. I have created 2 pieces.
Both of my pieces feature chairs that Wright designed for the Laurent House. These chairs were part of a lot of furniture auctioned off in June of 2011. I used my usual paper and Bic pen approach.
“The Wright Inspiration: Art, Design, and the Laurent House” exhibition opens Friday, November 25th with a reception from 5 to 10pm in the Kortman Gallery. Unfortunately, I won't be able to attend this. (Boo! Gallery openings at Kortman's are always a blast!)
The show will run through the end of the year (I'm not sure exactly when it will come down) and can be viewed any time the store is open. Store hours are Monday to Saturday, 10am – 6pm, and Sundays (in December) 1 – 5pm.
All of the work in the show is for sale. Art makes a great gift! Hope you can come out and support local artists and a local treasure.
Ta-Ta for now!
