ABC Hour

ABC Story Hour: Architecture, Books, and Crafts

On the second Saturday of the month, October-April, Taliesin West will offer a STEAM based story and craft hour, FREE of charge for our youngest visitors and their parents or guardians. This program is taught in our outdoor classroom so that children can be inspired by the same Sonoran Desert landscape that sparked Frank Lloyd Wright’s imagination 80 years ago.   

The selected book and activity each month will be geared toward children aged 4-8; however, all are welcome and encouraged to attend! Registration for ALL guests attending the program is required.

Price:
Free with reservation

March 9, 2024, 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.

Secret Engineer: How Emily Roebling Built the Brooklyn Bridge

“On a warm spring day in 1883, a woman rode across the Brooklyn Bridge with a rooster on her lap.

It was the first trip across an engineering marvel that had taken nearly fourteen years to construct. The woman’s husband was the chief engineer, and he knew all about the dangerous new technique involved. The woman insisted she learn as well.

When he fell ill mid-construction, her knowledge came in handy. She supervised every aspect of the project while he was bedridden, and she continued to learn about things only men were supposed to know:

math,
science,
engineering.

Women weren’t supposed to be engineers.

But this woman insisted she could do it all, and her hard work helped to create one of the most iconic landmarks in the world.

This is the story of Emily Roebling, the secret engineer behind the Brooklyn Bridge, from author-illustrator Rachel Dougherty.”

April 13, 2024, 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.

The Bluest of Blues: Anna Atkins and the First Book of Photographs

“A gorgeous picture book biography of botanist and photographer Anna Atkins–the first person to ever publish a book of photography

After losing her mother very early in life, Anna Atkins (1799–1871) was raised by her loving father. He gave her a scientific education, which was highly unusual for women and girls in the early 19th century. Fascinated with the plant life around her, Anna became a botanist. She recorded all her findings in detailed illustrations and engravings, until the invention of cyanotype photography in 1842. Anna used this new technology in order to catalogue plant specimens—a true marriage of science and art. In 1843, Anna published the book Photographs of British Algae: Cyanotype Impressions with handwritten text and cyanotype photographs. It is considered the first book of photographs ever published. Weaving together histories of women, science, and art, The Bluest of Blues will inspire young readers to embark on their own journeys of discovery and creativity.”

ABC Hour: Architecture, Books, and Crafts is made possible thanks to support from Arizona Humanities