Preservation in Progress
Your support provides urgent operating funds, which will allow us to address the following preservation concerns:
Foundation Bolsters
In Progress
Fallingwater’s reinforced concrete bolsters that support the house’s cantilevers are experiencing nonstructural surface cracking. Repairing the nonstructural cracks includes reinforcing them with fiber mesh and resurfacing with new stucco. Eroded mortar joints on the bolster footings will also be repointed.
Funding provided by private donations and a matching Keystone Historic Preservation Grant from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.
Annual Conservation of Furniture
Exposure to ultraviolet light is damaging to the nearly 170 built-in and freestanding wood furnishings designed by Frank Lloyd Wright for Fallingwater.
$24,000 is needed to undertake specialized woodwork cleaning and repairs to a selection of furniture.
Conservation of Fallingwater’s Outdoor Sculpture Collection
The effects of weather and time can be damaging to outdoor art, and Fallingwater monitors the collection for signs of damage.
$33,000 is needed to undertake conservation on several pieces, including Richmond Barthé’s Serena ($3,500), Peter Voulkos’s Funiculated Smog ($3,500) and Jacques Lipchitz’s Mother and Child ($5,800).
Steel Sash Window and Door Conservation
Fallingwater’s original custom Hope’s windows and door frames, as well as the 320 laminated glass pieces within them are in need of conservation. The house’s dramatic position over the waterfall means specialized scaffolding is also required.
$140,000 is needed to conserve the windows and doors and to leverage a matching $1 million Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grant.
Repairs to Fallingwater’s Collection of Moroccan Rugs
The Kaufmanns purchased Moroccan wool rugs for Fallingwater, including the plush diamond-patterned Berber rugs woven by the Beni Ourain people of the Atlas Mountain region. Several rugs are in need of repairs, involving specialized hand re-weaving.
$22,000 is needed to professionally repair and clean 21 rugs.
Covered Walkway
Before the site was closed in March, the maintenance team began work on the roof of the covered walkway that connects the main house to the guest house. They were able to pull up the flagstones, remove the failing waterproofing system, and make repairs to the concrete slab and skylights. But since closure, only a temporary roof covered in tarps has kept the exposed roof slab dry and safe.
$40,000 is needed to bring a roofing contractor to Fallingwater to install a new waterproofing and flashing system before the flagstones can be set back in place.
Car Bridge
In Progress
The concrete walls of the car bridge that spans Bear Run are suffering from irreparable concrete degradation and require complete replacement. The existing walls will be removed and reconstructed.
$60,000 is needed to complete this project. Funding provided by private donations and a matching Keystone Historic Preservation Grant from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.
Fallingwater needs you.
Fallingwater is all of ours to conserve, to keep open as a public treasure and to celebrate as one of the world’s greatest examples of art in nature, and nature made even more inspiring through art.
For more information about supporting Fallingwater's urgent needs, contact Julie Holmes, director of development, at 412-586-2312 or jholmes@paconserve.org.