Towards a rehabilitative architecture: sustainability and preservation at the Midway Barn

This thesis evaluates rehabilitation design through a case study design project that addresses both contemporary preservation principles as well as environmental design tenets so that designers may better consider the integration of sustainability within contemporary preservation practice. The proposed project is the rehabilitation of one area of the Midway Barn at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin, located in Spring Green, Wisconsin. Research in the areas of architectural history, technology, sustainability, and design inform an iterative process that analyzes the site, climate, building, materials, systems, significance and character-defining elements. This serves as an analytical framework within which to consider the contemporary preservation design. A final analysis of the proposal presents the lessons from the iterative research, analysis, and design process and identifies how this research may apply to other rehabilitation projects for the benefit of practicing design professionals.