Architect featured Oct. 11

The life and work of architect Kirtland Cutter, who designed the Conrad Mansion and its carriage house, will be detailed in a special presentation Oct. 11 by renowned architectural historian Henry Matthews.

Matthews, a professor emeritus at Washington State University, will speak at 7 p.m. at The Museum at Central School in Kalispell. A catered reception follows at the Conrad Mansion.

Tickets are $30 per person and are available at Books West in Kalispell or by calling Conrad Mansion at 755-2166.

Cutter's architectural influences are seen throughout Northwest Montana and the state of Washington.

In addition to Conrad Mansion, he designed Lake McDonald Lodge in Glacier National Park and the Kootenai Lodge on Swan Lake. His Washington works include the Davenport Hotel, Campbell House, Patsy Clark Mansion and Glover Mansion, all in Spokane.

Matthews, who has been widely published in the area of architectural history, wrote the book, "Kirtland Cutter: Architect in the Land of Promise," for which he earned the Governor's Writers Award in Washington.

His Kalispell presentation is adapted from a Kirtland Cutter exhibit he created for the Rainier Club in Seattle.

Photographs of Cutter's work are on display at The Museum at Central School. The Conrad Mansion also is hosting an exhibit featuring Cutter's work, on the third floor of the mansion. It may be viewed by anyone taking a tour of the mansion. The facility closes for the season at the end of the day on Oct. 14.

The mansion will be open Oct. 27-28 for the annual Christmas at the Mansion gift bazaar and is open from Thanksgiving through the end of the year for holiday tours.