NEW YORK, May 30, 2017 — (PRNewswire) — With Frank Lloyd Wright at 150: Unpacking the Archive, on view from June 12 to October 1, 2017, The Museum of Modern Art presents a major exhibition that critically engages the multifaceted practice of Frank Lloyd Wright (American, 1867–1959), one of the most prolific and renowned architects of the 20th century. Marking the 150th anniversary of the American architect's birth on June 8, 1867, the exhibition comprises nearly 400 works made from the 1890s through the 1950s, including architectural drawings, models, building fragments, films, television broadcasts, print media, furniture, tableware, textiles, paintings, photographs, and scrapbooks, along with a number of works that have rarely or never been publicly exhibited. Frank Lloyd Wright at 150: Unpacking the Archive is presented by MoMA in collaboration with the Avery Architectural & Fine Arts Library, Columbia University, New York, and organized by Barry Bergdoll, Curator, Department of Architecture and Design, The Museum of Modern Art, and the Meyer Schapiro Professor of Art History and Archaeology, Columbia University; with Jennifer Gray, Project Research Assistant, Department of Architecture and Design, The Museum of Modern Art.

Over seven decades, Wright designed more than 1,000 buildings and realized over 500. He preserved most of his drawings to form an archive that he hoped would perpetuate his architectural philosophy. Progressively catalogued and opened to specialists by The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, the archive was jointly acquired by The Museum of Modern Art and Avery Architectural & Fine Arts Library at Columbia University in 2012.

Unpacking the Archive refers to the monumental task of moving 55,000 drawings, 300,000 sheets of correspondence, 125,000 photographs, and 2,700 manuscripts, as well as models, films, building fragments, and other materials. It also refers to the work of interpretation and close examination of projects that in some cases have received little attention. For this exhibition, a group of scholars and a museum conservator were invited to "unpack"—contextualize, ask questions about, and explore—an object or cluster of objects of their choosing.

The exhibition is made possible by Hyundai Card.

Generous funding is provided by Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III and by the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts.

Paint provided by Farrow & Ball.

Additional support is provided by the Annual Exhibition Fund.

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/major-retrospective-of-frank-lloyd-wright-delves-into-archives-to-present-fresh-perspectives-on-the-renowned-architects-practice-300465674.html

SOURCE Museum of Modern Art