On a Frank Lloyd Wright binge? We’ve got you covered. Lawrence Modern is excited to offer you a rare opportunity to hear architect W. Kelly Oliver, one of a handful of Taliesin fellows still alive who studied and worked directly under Wright, talk about his residency.
Born in 1926, Oliver studied architecture at the University of Wyoming and Washington State College and began his fellowship at Wright’s Taliesin studio in Spring Green, Wisconsin in 1949. Over a ten year period until Wright died in 1959, Oliver supervised construction of numerous Wright-designed projects, including the Usonian model house exhibition in New York (1953) that took place on the grounds that would eventually become the Guggenheim Museum.
After Wright’s death, Oliver continued working on unfinished Wright buildings as part of the Taliesin Associated Architects group and established his own firm in Dallas, Texas in the early 1960s. A notable example of Wright’s influence on his work is the Mitchell House in Irving, Texas, where Oliver melded Wrightian organics with a Polynesian vibe. In 1966, Oliver moved to Denver, Colorado and formed Oliver and Hellgren Architects, where he practiced architecture until he retired in 2011. He and his wife relocated to Lawrence to be near family in 2019.
Mr. Oliver, who turned 97 in July, still refers to his teacher as “Mr. Wright” and can vividly recall what daily life was like at Taliesin, Wisconsin and Taliesin West in Scottsdale, Arizona. Fellow Pioneer Ridge resident and retired KU linguist Frank Baron took interest in Oliver’s association with Wright and interviewed him for a documentary film that will be shown in the retirement community’s movie theater, followed by a Q&A with our own Dennis Domer and Mr. Oliver. We are grateful to Mr. Oliver, his family, Frank Baron and Pioneer Ridge for this special film and conversation. Consider yourselves the architectural one-percenters for the opportunity to attend.
This is a free event, but seating is LIMITED. RSVP is required. Email tomharper@stephensre.com. Please RSVP only if you are 100% sure you can attend.
Please arrive at 3:45 p.m. The program will start promptly 4:00 p.m. and conclude at 6:00 p.m. There will be signs directing you to the theater upon entering Pioneer Ridge.
—Tom, Bill, Dennis & Tim
Lawrence Modern home 
