Study Center

Bartlesville, Oklahoma is a welcome destination for those who love and appreciate architecture. The city is graced with buildings by Edward Buehler Delk, John Duncan Forsyth, Frank Lloyd Wright, William Wesley Peters, Bruce Goff, and Welton Becket. These structures combined with Price Tower Arts Center’s collections and its Architecture Study Center provide visitors an unexpectedly diverse and enriching experience. The Architecture Study Center is, in the words of the Dean of Architecture School at the University of Texas, “a center for studies in American architecture in the American heartland.”

The Architecture Study Center houses an architecture and design collection containing over 3,000 objects. The collection primarily comprises of works by Frank Lloyd Wright and his firm, material by architect Bruce Goff, Dennis Oppenheim and Zaha Hadid. The group of Goff material – second only to those of the Art Institute of Chicago – includes architectural fragments, over 200 renderings (line drawings, original drawings and presentation drawings), paintings, and personal effects. Important supporting collections of archival material include original correspondence from Wright, contemporary film and photography documenting the construction of Price Tower and related Price Company material.

The outcomes of collaborations between the Arts Center and regional architecture schools is a vital program, advancing the disciplines of architecture and design. The World Heritage nominated property and its Architectural Study Center are important resources in the form of both collections and buildings. A compelling vision has been set forth, intending further great works of architecture, produce great architects, and inspire those study these and related fields.

The Study Center makes possible:

  • Accessible Price Tower Arts Center’s architectural collection for scholarly research and dialogue
  • The continued preparation of and expansion of on site storage of works on paper by Frank Lloyd Wright and Bruce Goff in a manner that will allow them to be available to students and scholars.
  • Formal establishment of partnerships with colleges and universities which include expanded education opportunities through the Architecture Study Center.
  • An educational resource for the general public to utilize in their quest for knowledge about art, architecture and design.

Outcomes:

  • Scholars and student will deepen their understanding of Bruce Goff, Frank Lloyd Wright, and other architects by studying original drawings, plans, archival material as well as completed buildings in the area.
  • Students will include the study of the Price Tower Arts Center collection as part of their degree-seeking experience.
  • The public will make use of the facility as a means to learn more about these areas of culture

Resources Available:

  • Two computer workstations through which to research online databases and collection information.
  • Library of related architectural, art, and design books, periodicals, journals, and magazines.
  • PTAC’s collections and archives of drawings, paintings, correspondence, blueprints, sculpture, models, and more.
  • Knowledgeable staff members to assist in research and offer information from their own careers and education.