Arcosanti, the concrete urban laboratory located at Cordes Junction, is an easy one hour drive north of Phoenix. Hop on HWY 17 and before too long you will be enveloped by pure Arizona desert. Built in the 1970s by Italian architect Paolo Soleri, this radial community began as a prototype arcology–a compact urban form intended to be self-sufficient and self-contained. The term arcology, coined by Soleri, is a portmanteau of architecture and ecology, now most often realized in sci-fi narratives. Post-doctorate, Soleri spent 18 months as a student at Taliesin West in fellowship with Frank Lloyd Wright. Having toured both Taliesin West and Arcosanti myself, it's easy to draw aesthetic similarities, but that's where it stops, as in my research I learned that the men held conflicting architectural philosophies.  While on my impressive one-hour tour at Arcosanti I was informed that Soleri left Taliesin West as he continually found himself in opposition to Wright.