Cornelia Brierly

Brierly, Cornelia
Our beloved mother, Cornelia Brierly, age 99, passed away on a beautiful morning in Scottsdale, August 24, 2012. She was alert and engaged in life up to the very end. She was born in Mifflin County, PA on April 12, 1913. Cornelia grew up on a farm and always loved nature and the countryside. She studied at Cornell, University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Tech where she was one of the first five women to study architecture before joining the Taliesin Fellowship in 1934. That winter the Fellowship came to AZ to build models for Frank Lloyd Wright's visionary idea of a decentralized city he called Broadacre City; she worked on the models and later traveled to Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C. to help explain them to the public. Cornelia studied with Frank Lloyd Wright for 10 years, after which she was partner in private practice with then-husband Peter Berndtson. In 1956 she returned to the FLLW Foundation and worked both with Frank Lloyd Wright and the Taliesin Architects as architectural designer, interior decorator and landscape architect. As a teacher in The FLLW School of Architecture she inspired many generations of apprentices. She was a Trustee of the Foundation for many years, then Honorary Chairman. Some of her special talents were: zest for adventure, writing articles and her book, Tales of Taliesin, making beautiful yarn designs, painting, singing and being a consummate hostess. Awards received included: Interior Plantscape Association, a Philanthropy Leadership Award and The Wright Spirit Award. In 1999 she was honored in Pittsburgh for her work with Peter Berndtson. She is survived by daughters Anna Coor and Indira Berndtson, cousin Robert Brierly, and nephews Peter and Eric Drake. Her sister, Hulda Drake, pre-deceased her. A memorial service will be held at Taliesin West in late October. Contributions can be made to the Taliesin Entry Garden, c/o The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, P.O. Box 4430, Scottsdale, AZ 85261.