Registration open for Wright Sites x PechaKucha vol. 3

Don’t miss your chance to celebrate famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s 154^th birthday and his work during the upcoming Wright Sites x PechaKucha vol. 3.

The virtual event on June 8 will feature presentations in highly-visual and dynamic PechaKucha style, which consists of 20 image-based slides that each advance after 20 seconds.

Springfield’s own Westcott House has been a PechaKucha host for a number of year, mostly partnering with Mother Stewart’s as a physical location to host the events prior to the pandemic. But, in 2020, the Westcott House’s Executive Director and Curator Marta Wojcik decided to try a different path.

Wojcik teamed with Tokyo-based PechaKucha and the global network of other Frank Lloyd Wright sites to build the first virtual event of its kind.

“We had a lot of presenters from different Frank Lloyd Wright sites, and they have a natural network in different cities across the world,” she says.

With more than 2,000 people in attendance in 2020, the event was a huge success and reached every continent except Antarctica, Wojcik says.

“It has been beyond our expectations to reach so many people from all around the world. 2020 needed every bit of positive news it could get, and this was such a beautiful, optimistic way to show up for our audience,” she says. “This was one of the programs that made us realize the Westcott House can not only attract a national audience for in-person tours, but also for ongoing programming, if we find ways to make it accessible to national and international audiences.”

That kind of wide-reaching recognition leads to increased awareness of the local architectural icon, bringing not only more visitors to the Westcott House itself, but also to Springfield in general, Wojcik says, adding that this kind of cultural tourism is an effective way to stimulate the local economy.

Registration for the June 8 event is open for up to 500 attendees via Zoom Webinar, and participants can also view the live-stream event at the PechaKucha event page. Presentations will be available to view for 24 hours after the event.

The program is free, but donations are welcome to help continue to collaboration in the future. All proceeds go directly toward the next volume of Wright Sites x PechaKucha.

“Whenever we come together like this, we help amplify the importance of Wright’s architecture and the importance of caring for special places in general,” Wojcik says. “This program is a perfect way to experience the richness and awe-inspiring complexity of Wright’s legacy.”