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Monona Terrace

Architect
Frank Lloyd Wright
City
Madison, WI
Monona Terrace
Photo: Emery, CC BY-SA 2.5
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Monona Terrace on Madison's isthmus was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, who first proposed the civic center in 1938. Political disputes stalled the project for nearly sixty years before Taliesin apprentice Anthony Puttnam completed it in 1997, following a 1992 public referendum.

the building

A sweeping lakefront form. The building's sweeping curved form and rooftop garden sit directly on Lake Monona, adjacent to the Capitol Square, making it a prominent lakefront landmark visible from the street.

the architect

Frank Lloyd Wright, an internationally significant architect, proposed the design for Monona Terrace in 1938. The building was completed decades later by Anthony Puttnam, an apprentice at Wright's Taliesin studio.

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significance

Monona Terrace's path from Wright's 1938 proposal to its 1997 completion spanned nearly sixty years of political dispute, resolved only after a 1992 public referendum cleared the way for construction.

more by Frank Lloyd Wright

nearby

All 33 buildings in Madison