Restoring Wright: Unity Temple in Progress

Commissioned by the congregation of Oak Park Unity Church in 1905, Wright’s Unity Temple is the greatest public building of the architect’s Chicago years. Constructed from poured-in-place reinforced concrete, Wright’s visionary design for the building broke with almost every existing convention for traditional Western ecclesiastic architecture. Reflecting on his career shortly before his death in 1959, Wright described Unity Temple as one of his greatest achievements, calling it “my contribution to modern architecture.” The building is presently undergoing restoration led by the Chicago firm, Harboe Architects. The project will address the concrete exterior of the building, along with restoration of leaded glass, woodwork, and interior paint finishes.

Over the past thirty years, architect Gunny Harboe has worked to restore numerous buildings designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. His involvement with Wright structures began with his work as a carpenter at the Metropolitan Museum of Art reconstructing the living room from the Francis Little House and has continued through the Rookery, the Emmond House, Beth Shalom Synagogue, Emil Bach House to his current work at Unity Temple, Robie House and Taliesin West. In his lecture, Harboe will share his thoughts and reflections about these experiences with a particular focus on his current restoration work at Unity Temple in Oak Park.

Register at http://flwright.org/programs/enrichment2