Apprentice to genius: Years with Frank Lloyd Wright

by Edgar Tafel

Years with Frank Lloyd Apprentice to Genius by Edgar Tafel is a 1979 memoir detailing Tafel's nine years (1932–1941) as an apprentice living and working under Frank Lloyd Wright. The book offers a rare, firsthand look at the daily life and creative environment of the newly established Taliesin Fellowship in Spring Green, Wisconsin, and Taliesin West in Scottsdale, Arizona. Key Themes and Highlights The Creative Tafel shares intimate accounts of how Frank Lloyd Wright designed major twentieth-century masterpieces, including Fallingwater, the Johnson Wax Building, and Wingspread. It includes the famous, fast-paced story of the drafting of Fallingwater. Life in the Details the migration of apprentices between Wisconsin and Arizona, participating in hands-on construction, farming, cooking, and drafting alongside the master. Wright's Portrays Frank Lloyd Wright as a charismatic, cantankerous, and demanding visionary who wore his signature cape and cane while driving a generation of young architects. Architectural Explores Wright's organic architecture, his practical development of affordable Usonian homes, and his outspoken disdain for the Bauhaus school

228 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 1979

About the author

Mark Hertzberg is the author and photographer of three books about Frank Lloyd Wright's work in Racine, Wisconsin. Hertzberg, an award-winning photojournalist, is also Director of Photography of The Journal Times in Racine. His website is: wrightinracine.com

Hertzberg grew up in New York City, and graduated from Lake Forest College with a B.A. in International Relations. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Frank Lloyd Wright Wisconsin Tourism Heritage Program (wrightinwisconsin.org).
He is an avid bicyclist in his spare time."

Reviews

[Jeff Bobin · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author was an apprentice to Frank Lloyd Wright and a member of the Followship from 1932 to 1941. It gives a lot on insight to the early days of the fellowship when it was just getting started. It is a first hand account from one of the apprentices that would become a key player by time he left.

It is not only his story but excellent photos and information about both Taliesin and Taliesin West as they developed. He makes clear the devotion and commitment that Wright demanded.