Issue 63  September 30th 2026

Ocatilla Is Coming To Life

Excitement is building as Ocatilla: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Lost Desert Masterpiece moves closer to its October 27 opening at the Chandler Museum. Presented by Organic Architecture + Design Archives in partnership with the Chandler Museum and Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, the exhibition will bring Wright’s remarkable 1929 desert experiment back into public view through rare archival materials, historic photographs, film footage, and objects that reveal the story of this extraordinary, short-lived camp. Recent programs and outreach from the Chandler Museum and Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation are already introducing new audiences to Ocatilla and its importance as a testing ground for Wright’s evolving ideas about architecture, landscape, climate, and desert living.

At the center of the exhibition will be one of its most ambitious elements: a full-scale reconstruction of Wright’s Ocatilla office cabin. Months of research, planning, drawing, material sourcing, and coordination are now moving toward the moment when this lost structure begins to rise again in Chandler. For the first time in nearly a century, visitors will be able to experience the scale, proportions, materials, and distinctive character of Wright’s experimental desert architecture firsthand. What survived primarily through photographs and drawings will once again become a three-dimensional experience, offering a powerful new way to understand Ocatilla and its lasting influence on Wright’s later work in Arizona.

The celebration continues on Friday, November 6, when OA+D hosts An Ocatilla Evening, our annual fundraising celebration at the Chandler Museum. Guests will enjoy a special after-hours opportunity to experience the completed exhibition and cabin reconstruction while gathering with fellow supporters of architecture, design, preservation, and Frank Lloyd Wright. The evening will include hors d’oeuvres, drinks, conversation, an exclusive attendees-only silent auction, and special opportunities to support OA+D. With the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy conference bringing architects, scholars, preservationists, and Wright enthusiasts to the Valley, this promises to be an especially memorable gathering. Tickets are $75 per person, and space is limited.

The moment to support Ocatilla is now. With construction, installation, fabrication, and final exhibition preparations underway, your support can make an immediate and visible difference. Become a sponsor, make a tax-deductible contribution, reserve your tickets for An Ocatilla Evening, or join the Friends of OA+D sustaining membership program. Every gift helps complete this ambitious project, preserve the archival materials that made it possible, and share this remarkable chapter of Frank Lloyd Wright’s legacy with the public. Help us bring Ocatilla back to life and make your name part of this historic effort before the exhibition opens October 27.

From The Archives

OA+D Archives is pleased to announce the recent addition of two striking architectural renderings by William Wesley Peters for the proposed Motel for Bartell Associates in Madison, Wisconsin. Dating to the early 1960s, likely 1962–63, the large crayon-colored drawings were produced while Peters was a member of Taliesin Associated Architects and offer a vivid look at one of the firm’s ambitious unbuilt projects. One rendering combines an aerial view with a cross-section, while the other presents the central court from a balcony terrace.

Known within Taliesin Associated Architects as Project 6208, the proposed 224-room motel was organized around eight two- and three-story wings radiating like spokes around a central paved court and swimming pool. A translucent cable-supported canopy was envisioned above the court, creating a protected garden-like conservatory at the heart of the complex. Guest rooms were planned with private terraces or balconies overlooking landscaped gardens, while dining, lounge, and retail spaces opened directly onto the central gathering area. The project was never constructed.

The drawings are especially significant because of their connection to William Wesley Peters, Frank Lloyd Wright’s longtime associate, son-in-law, and the first managing principal of Taliesin Associated Architects following Wright’s death. The radial organization and dramatic central court also recall ideas explored in the Snow Flake Motel in St. Joseph, Michigan, another project with which Peters was closely involved. Together, the renderings provide an exceptional record of how the principles of organic architecture continued to evolve within the Taliesin practice during the early 1960s.

Their addition to OA+D is particularly meaningful because the Archives already preserves documentation related to the Bartell Associates project and the broader work of Peters and Taliesin Associated Architects. Bringing original presentation drawings together with supporting records allows researchers and future audiences to understand not only the finished image of a design, but the larger story of how these projects were conceived, presented, and developed.

If you have archival materials related to William Wesley Peters, Frank Lloyd Wright, the Taliesin Fellowship, or any other organic architectural or design items that you're interested in donating for our growing collections, please let us know by contacting us at info@oadarchives.org.

Acquisitions like these are possible because of the generosity of OA+D supporters. Your contributions help us identify, acquire, conserve, digitize, and make accessible important materials that might otherwise be dispersed or lost. By making a gift or joining the Friends of OA+D sustaining membership program, you can directly support our ongoing effort to preserve the remarkable legacy of William Wesley Peters, Taliesin Associated Architects, and the wider organic architecture movement for future generations.

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