Tafel was an apprentice at Taliesin from 1932 to 1941, after which he began his own architectural practice. There is evidence of a few of Tafel’s early residential projects from the early 1950s in the archive which survive in the slides, photographs, and in some files and drawings. In his early career Tafel’s office was […]
Category: Findings
On Archives Illuminating Archives… and Blogs
Once an archive has been cataloged, the finding aid is released online (and/or in paper) and is an organized guide to helping you find what information you are searching for. The work behind the scenes is lost: questioning the original order (or disorder!) of documents, the process of organization, and identifying the unidentifiable or unique […]
Unintentional Preservation
Alongside documenting the activities of its creator, a fonds (a collection of records that originate from the same creator or source) will unintentionally preserve artifacts from another time. This is fascinating because an artifact can also provide a history of the particular period of time in which it was made and used. Today’s post reveals […]
An Exceptional Childhood
Is greatness and genius bred in childhood or acquired with age? Does an unusual upbringing make for a creative person? Edgar Tafel had quite a colored past which seemed to lead him on a path of creativity and activism. Tafel’s parents were born in Russia and immigrated to New York where they owned and operated […]
Miscellanea, Comedy, and Archivists
Archivists tend to swerve away from creating the dreaded ‘Miscellaneous’ folder, but there are usually odds and ends that one finds in an archive that just do not seem to fit. Even more feared is the folder labeled “Miscellaneous” by its own creator! Such was the case in Tafel’s archive, where I found dispersed throughout […]
Frank Lloyd Wright Week!
In 1978, June 2-9 was proclaimed as Frank Lloyd Wright Week in Los Angeles! Clearly his influence spreads all over North America. This document was found among Tafel’s papers, although there are no surrounding documents (so far!) to suggest who influenced the creation of Frank Lloyd Wright Week. Have a great one and do, as […]
Life at Taliesin
During the time when Edgar Tafel was an apprentice to Frank Lloyd Wright, Taliesin was a hub of creativity that accepted students and apprentices with a wide variety of talent in other arts besides architecture. Included in the archive is Tafel’s correspondence around this time to his family and friends, including Robert (Bob) Goodall, a […]