This Spring Break, Amplified and some of their collaborators made a pilgrimage to Scottsdale and Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin West. Lutron invited them to see their innovative installation of Ketra’s lighting system. Wright, a pivotal 20th-century architect, built Taliesin West as his winter camp in 1937. The Desert Studio educated students through apprenticeship and hands-on learning. Located in the foothills of the McDowell Mountains, Wright blended organic architecture seamlessly with the topography, utilizing desert masonry and geometric forms, giving the structures a prehistoric grandeur. Negative space, natural light, and a reflecting pool further pierce the veil between the interior and exterior worlds. 

Lutron was honored to work on the UNESCO World Heritage site and National Historic landmark. They faced the challenge of replicating “lantern-lit” light, Wright’s vision, which he achieved through natural light, firelight, and low-wattage incandescents that echoed the spectrum of the desert landscape. Ketra was the perfect solution to deliver a consistent quality of color-matched light. The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation also required that the installation not damage or alter the existing buildings or wiring infrastructure; they could not drill into the stone walls and the fragile vintage light fixtures needed special handling.  

Ketra’s wireless technology preserved Wright’s masterpiece for future generations to learn from while improving the visitor experience. The system provides high-quality light that is flexible and adjustable, allowing for bespoke settings that gradually shift in color, temperature, and intensity to mimic the sun, making interiors feel seamlessly bathed in natural light. As Wright envisioned, Taliesin West’s organic architecture sits easily on the land, and Ketra illuminates its nuances. The Amplified team and their guests enjoyed seeing Lutron’s restoration of the World Heritage site firsthand and the replication of Wright’s “lantern-lit” light.