We live, work and play in the presence of greatness. The latest validation of that fact came last month when, in a meeting room in Azerbaijan more than 6,000 miles from Spring Green, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin was inscribed along with seven other of his sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Let the words “Outstanding Universal Value” linger in your mind the next time you’re cruising past that house on a hill along that stretch of Highway 23 between Dodgeville and Spring Green.
To visit Taliesin, Wright’s home and studio on the 800-acre Driftless estate, is a transformative experience, whether you’re a tourist, a teacher, an artist, a student, or a lifelong resident. If you haven’t yet gone, go.
The benefit isn’t only the education one gains from walking through what has been called Wright’s autobiography in wood and stone (see photo, right), but also in the “beautiful reward” Heather Harris writes about in her “Driftless Terroir” column this month — the abundant gifts we receive when we immerse ourselves in awareness of the natural world around us (p. 28).
In addition to marveling in the natural richness of our nook of the Driftless Area, there’s an abundance of cultural opportunities beckoning this month. There will be live music from Mazomanie (p. 7) to Mineral Point (back page) to Spring Green (p. 7) and beyond, days of painting en plein air (p. 7), days of community Pride (p. 11) and more (see the events calendar, pp. 16-22).
And for a human connection, on pp. 14-15, World War II veteran Bob Butler concludes his four-part series reflecting on his experience serving in the Pacific Theater. On p. 9, Robbin D’elene introduces us to Krissie Radley, a realtor whose family relocated to Spring Green from the Cayman Islands. And as they do each month, our columnists Ainsley Anderson, Doris Green, John Heasley, Vincent Kavaloski, Patrice Peltier, Kathy Steffen and Etienne White enrich us with their unique voices.
Happy reading,
