Midway Gardens Playing Cards
Join our Curiosity Club and get 10% off your first order.
Shipping & Returns
We offer a variety of shipping options based on budget and speed of delivery. These options can be seen at checkout. If you are not satisfied with your purchase, you may return it within 30 days for a refund in the form of the original payment. Here is our Return Policy
Guarantee
We're committed to your ultimate satisfaction. If you're not happy with our service, or if something is wrong with your order, please let us know and we'll do whatever we can to make it right. Contact Support
Overview
Midway Gardens Playing Cards
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation has partnered with Art of Play to design a commemorative pack of playing cards based on the legendary Midway Gardens.
Wright pioneered the use of reinforced concrete as an architectural and artistic medium. His cast blocks and sculptures called Sprites, are prominently depicted on the face cards. The pips feature original Wright typography and the back design recreates his iconic stained glass window. Sadly, this cultural treasure was destroyed in 1929 but through these cards the memory of Midway Gardens lives on.
Dan Buck, Joe Feldpausch
Art of Play
United States
1914-1929
Midway Gardens
Midway Gardens was a cultural center and entertainment complex on Chicago’s south side and an extraordinary achievement for Frank Lloyd Wright.
The Midway Garden included an indoor restaurant, dance hall, a five-tiered outdoor summer garden with band shell, a tavern, and a private club. The building was also a fine example of Wright’s pioneering use of reinforced concrete as an artistic medium for many decorative elements. He oversaw all elements of the property including a series of cast concrete sculptures called Sprites that helped complete his vision.
Unfortunately, the Gardens were built shortly before the prohibition era and could not prosper without liquor sales. A few of the Sprites were salvaged from Lake Michigan when the Gardens were demolished in 1929, and made their way to Wright’s two Taliesin properties.
Photograph by Henry Fuermann, 1914.
Midway Gardens
Reimagined
A studied depiction of the artist’s aesthetics pressed on paper. Incorporating elements from architectural drawings, historic photos and preserved artifacts.
The outcome is both art object and instrument for play.
Stained Glass
The abstract geometric pattern featured on Wright's art glass window was respectfully redesigned and prominently featured on the back of the playing cards.
Sprites
Several of the cubist-inspired sculptures Wright designed for the outdoor gardens were redrawn for the royal cards.
Textile Blocks
Elements from the original concrete textile blocks used to construct the building are featured on each of the face cards.
House Numbers
A lettering style designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1931 was used for the corner indices.
American Icon
Frank Lloyd Wright
Ask the average citizen to name a famous American architect and you can bet that their answer will be Frank Lloyd Wright. Wright gained such cultural primacy for good reason: he changed the way we build and live. Designing 1,114 architectural works of all types — 532 of which were realized — he created some of the most innovative spaces in the United States. With a career that spanned seven decades before his death in 1959, Wright’s visionary work cemented his place as the American Institute of Architects’ “greatest American architect of all time.”
Learn More
A portion of the purchase price supports the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation’s work to inspire people to discover and embrace architecture for better living through meaningful connections to nature, the arts, and each other. Your purchase also supports the preservation of Frank Lloyd Wright’s buildings for future generations to enjoy.
Shop the Collection
Frank Lloyd Wright
