Johnson Foundation

at WIngspread

Racine, WI

Wingspread is the residence Frank Lloyd Wright designed and built in 1938-39 for the Herbert Fisk Johnson Jr. family. Set on a 36-acre property with a wooded ravine and pond, Wingspread sits elegantly across its gently rolling site, a site that Wright found “not at all stimulating until the house went up.”

Wingspread is the epitome of his ‘organic’ architecture. Its four wings spread out to embrace the prairie. Its primary materials of limestone, brick, stucco, and wood tie the house to the earth. From the center of the living room is a horizontal rise of a 30-foot chimney, with four fireplaces surrounding the first level and a vertical fireplace on the second story (the mezzanine). The chimney of warm red brick is complemented by expanses of oak veneer and is bathed in the changing light from the overhead clerestory windows that surround the Great Hall. At night the living room glows like a fire-filled lantern. The most unique features of the design are the spiral staircase leading to the crow’s nest and the Juliet balcony. Both of these features were design requests of the children who would later live in the home.

The Johnson family lived at Wingspread for 20 years. The home is the last and largest Prairie-style home Frank Lloyd Wright designed. The family then donated Wingspread to the Johnson Foundation in 1959 as an educational conference center.

Since the Johnson Foundation’s conception, they have been intent on convening small groups for positive and lasting change. As an expert in convening, their mission as a conference center has used the Theory of Change that brings together convening, communication, and collaboration to be a catalyst for action leading to impact. The roots of many important organizations have developed out of conferences held at Wingspread, including organizations known today as National Public Radio, the National Endowment for the Arts, the International Criminal Court, and the Sickle Cell Anemia Fund.

Wingspread is available for free tours by advance reservation only. Please be aware that some dates may not be available due to conferences scheduled on site.

Wingspread fireplace