Art Excursions

Autumn Fallingwater Tour

October 9-12, 2009

Just added! - Private evening reception on the terraces of Fallingwater

Featuring an extended guided tour of Frank Lloyd Wright's Edgar Kauffman residence (Fallingwater); a private evening reception at Fallingwater with heavy hors d'oeuvres, beverages and white wine; a guided tour of Wright's "Kentuck Knob," The Carnegie Museum of Art; "Clayton," the Henry Clay Frick mansion; The Frick Art Museum; an architectural tour of H.H. Richardson's Allegheny County Courthouse; a sculpture garden set in a beautiful wooded landscape at "Kentuck Knob;" and The Frick Car and Carriage Museum

Please see below for tour highlights, features, pricing and reservation info.

 

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS

Enjoy an extended guided tour of Wright's 1937 Edgar Kauffman residence (Fallingwater) with photography permitted (normally photography is not permitted)

Fallingwater was named the best all-time work of American architecture in a poll of the AIA.

Fallingwater is the Frank Lloyd Wright home even for those who are not Wright fans.

It is also the only one of the "28 Places to See Before You Die" (title of Smithsonian Magazine article from January 2008) that was built within the last century.

If nature cooperates, enjoy beautiful fall colors on this wonderful site in the Laurel Highlands.

Just added! Enjoy a private evening reception on the famous balconies/terraces of Fallingwater

After our tour concludes, step out onto the famous balconies/terraces of Fallingwater to enjoy a private standing reception with heavy hors d'oeuvres, beverages and white wine. This reception offers an exclusive opportunity to see the house glow like a lantern in the darkness. For more than an hour after our tour concludes, our group will have the site to ourselves. Please note: the outdoor reception at the home is of course weather-permitting.

Enjoy a tour of "Kentuck Knob"

"Kentuck Knob" was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in the last decade of his career for I.N. and Bernardine Hagan. Completed in 1956, this deluxe Usonian home is nestled high in the Laurel Highlands of western Pennsylvania, just seven miles from Fallingwater. Constructed of tidewater red cypress, glass, and 800 tons of native sandstone, with a copper roof, the home embodies Wright's principles of organic architecture.

Tour a sculpture garden with 35 major works on the site of "Kentuck Knob"

The wooded site of "Kentuck Knob" features an installation of public sculpture by well-known artists such as Claes Oldenburg (whose work is pictured above), Andy Goldsworthy, and others. After our tour at "Kentuck Knob," you'll have chance to explore this collection on a self-guided tour.

Tour Clayton  

Called "a triumph of restoration" in Architectural Digest, Clayton is the 1890s 23-room chateau-style mansion Henry Clay Frick lived in for 22 years before leaving Pittsburgh for Manhattan. An astonishing 93% of the artifacts in the house are original, making Clayton a home more than a house, and an eloquent evocation of the lives of the family who lived there. Clayton is the last surviving example of Pittsburgh's "Millionaire's Row."

Enjoy time to explore Frick's Car and Carriage Museum

This museum enjoy carriages and horseless carriages in spectacular condition including Frick's own 1914 Rolls Royce Silver Ghost and Howard Heinz's 1898 Panhard.

Visit the Frick Art Museum

The Frick Art Museum at the Frick Art and Cultural Center art collection of Helen Clay Frick (Henry's daughter). According to her wishes the Museum was designed to exhibit her collection in an atmosphere of intimacy. Paintings are displayed with porcelains, bronzes, and rare examples of 17th and 18th century furniture. Highlights of the permanent collection include a portrait by Rubens, a pastoral scene by Boucher, and Italian panel paintings by Giovanni de Paolo and Sassetta.

Visit The Carnegie Museum of Art

While most art museums founded at the turn of the century focused on collections of old masters, Andrew Carnegie envisioned a museum collection consisting of the "Old Masters of tomorrow." In 1896 he initiated a series of exhibitions of contemporary art and proposed that the museum's paintings collection be formed through purchases from this series. Carnegie, thereby, founded what is arguably the first museum of modern art in the United States. Early acquisitions of works by such artists as Winslow Homer, James McNeill Whistler, and Camille Pissarro laid the foundation for a collection that today is distinguished in American art from the mid 19th century to the present, in French Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings, and in significant late-twentieth-century works.

Over the century, the museum has amplified its scope of interest to include European and American decorative arts from the late seventeenth century to the present. Architect-designed objects figure prominently among recent acquisitions and complement the Heinz Architectural Center. In addition, the museum's collection includes Asian art (notably Japanese prints) and African art.

Enjoy a private tour of H.H. Richardson's Allegheny County Courthouse

This building which Richardson considered his finest currently ranks #35 on the AIA website's special feature: America's 150 favorite buildings. A marvelous example of Richardsonian Romanesque, the design of the main building was innovative in its use of an interior courtyard that allowed natural light and fresh air to reach most of the building. A Richardson-designed prison is connected to the main building by a "bridge of sighs."

TOUR ITINERARY (may be subject to revision)

Oct. 9

At 2:00 p.m. meet in the lobby of the Doubletree Pittsburgh and depart for the Frick Art and Cultural Center. Enjoy a private guided tour of Clayton followed by free time to explore the art galleries and the car and carriage museum. Enjoy a welcome dinner (included) this evening. For Andy Warhol fans, the Warhol Museum is open until 10 p.m.

Oct. 10

In the morning enjoy an architectural tour featuring Richardson's Allegheny County Courthouse followed by an afternoon at the Carnegie Museum of Art. Enjoy a private guided tour at the museum as well as free time for lunch (included) and for exploring the permanent collection. Evening free.

Oct. 11

In the late morning depart for the Laurel Highlands and enjoy a deluxe box lunch (included) en route. Tour "Kentuck Knob" and enjoy free time to explore the sculpture collection. In the afternoon, enjoy an extended guided tour of Fallingwater. Afterwards, enjoy a private reception with heavy hors d'oeuvres, beverages and white wine served on the terraces of Fallingwater (weather permitting). Return to the hotel at approximately 8:30 p.m.

Oct. 12

Tour concludes upon checkout. If your travel schedule permits, enjoy an independent visit at the Phipps Conservatory located just 3 miles from our hotel.

TOUR INCLUDES

• 3 nights' accommodations at the Doubletree Pittsburgh, a top reviewed property with an award winning restaurant located in the heart of the city with easy access to shopping, restaurants, galleries, and more
• Admissions and tours as highlighted above and detailed in the itinerary
• Commentaries on Frank Lloyd Wright provided by art historian and tour host Jeff Mishur
• A welcome dinner
• A private reception with food and wine at Fallingwater as described above
• Two lunches
• Full buffet breakfast daily
• Free time to enjoy a performance by the Pittsburgh Symphony and/or explore additional art venues on your own such as the Andy Warhol Museum and the Mattress Factory
• Opportunity to add on nights at a special rate
• Coach transportation
• Driver gratuities
• Tour design, planning, hosting, commentaries and handouts provided by Art Excursions

   

TOUR DOES NOT INCLUDE

• Gratuities for tour guides and hotel staff
• Incidentals at the hotel
• Costs for items not specified above
• Airfare and airport transfers (We can make airfare arrangements for a $30 per ticket booking fee or you can book airfare on your own.)

TOUR PRICING

$1,199 per person based on double occupancy / $300 single supplement

Traveling as a single?

Our boutique tours are ideal for single travelers, singles traveling together, or couples. We typically have a mix of these types of travelers. If you wish to know why we charge a single supplement or have any other questions, please visit the Frequently Asked Questions link below or email us. We do not automatically match up singles. However, if you are traveling as a single and wish to be matched with a roommate, please note your request on your tour application. If another interested party contacts us with the same request, we will put both parties in touch with each other to facilitate an introduction. Then both parties will need to notify us of their intent to go forward with sharing accommodations. If you make a request on your tour application to be matched with another single, we would appreciate knowing whether your participation in the trip is contingent on being matched with another individual OR whether you are willing to pay the single supplement in the event a roommate does not become available.

New to Art Excursions? Please visit the Frequently Asked Questions link at the bottom of this web page or contact us to learn more.

TOUR RESERVATIONS - Use the link at the end of this tour page to sign up

Group size is limited. Reservations accepted first-come, first-served. We expect a sell out. For more details please email artexcursions@yahoo.com or call 630/671-9745.

TO SIGN UP - CLICK HERE

FOR FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS - CLICK HERE

FOR MORE INFORMATION, OR TO BE ADDED TO OUR E-NEWSLETTER LIST E-MAIL artexcursions@yahoo.com.