Our Stories - Ocatilla: Frank Lloyd Wright's Lost Desert Masterpiece

Our Stories presents diverse speakers who share unique Arizona and local history topics to a general audience throughout the year. This series is produced by the Chandler Museum and the Chandler Public Library, with support from the Friends of the Chandler Public Library.

In 1929, the architect Frank Lloyd Wright constructed one of his most experimental projects in Chandler, Arizona—a canvas-roofed camp he named “Ocatilla” that responded to the harsh climate of the Sonoran Desert through lightweight, responsive design. Though it only survived one winter before burning down, the project sparked Wright’s interest in the unique challenges of desert living, such as heat and water scarcity. He went on to design many other buildings in the region, including Taliesin West in Scottsdale, which is now a World Heritage site.

In her talk, Jennifer Gray will discuss these projects and suggest they served as Wright’s laboratories for exploring how architecture might respond to extreme environments and resource constraints, a theme that remains profoundly relevant today in Arizona and around the world.

Capacity is limited and attendees with tickets will be seated first. If seats are still available at start of the program, visitors without a ticket will be seated. See less