chicago: The Latest Architecture and News

Architect and engineer Werner Sobek has a knack for making the world’s most complex designs possible. His imaginative structural solutions have aided the work of Helmut Jahn, Zaha Hadid, Jean Nouvel, Rem Koolhaus and others over a fruitful career.

While COVID-19 has driven us indoors and online, Chicago architects have still been bringing their visions to life around town. In this special edition of our Current Projects series, we spotlight exciting new works from the past year. This program is part of Open House Chicago 2021.

Join the Chicago Architecture Center as we celebrate 25 years of the Driehaus Foundation Award, which encourages quality design in Chicago’s neighborhoods. Our panel discussion will explore the impact of the award and the unique and inspiring partnerships it has fostered. This program is part of Open House Chicago 2021.

Wrightwood 659 presents Romanticism to Ruin: Two Lost Works of Sullivan and Wright, a dual exhibition exploring two of these architects’ long-demolished masterpieces: Louis H. Sullivan’s innovative Garrick Theater, in Chicago, which stood for only sixty-nine years, and Frank Lloyd Wright’s unprecedented Larkin Building, in Buffalo, NY, which stood for just forty-four. The exhibition comprises two distinct presentations—Reconstructing the Garrick: Adler & Sullivan’s Lost Masterpiece and Reimagining the Larkin: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Modern Icon—bringing the essence of these two titans of modern American architecture to life. Comprising 3D models and digital re-creations of the original edifices; salvaged architectural ornaments and artifacts; original furniture; historical documentation of the design, construction, and demise of the buildings; archival photographs taken by noted preservationist and photographer Richard Nickel; drawings, and historical ephemera, Romanticism to Ruin demonstrates how these iconic designs continue to resonate and remain relevant.

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Helmut Jahn: Life + Architecture is a new exhibit at the Chicago Architecture Center honoring the late Chicago architect and style icon. Get to know this extraordinary man who will continue to inspire generations to come.

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Ever since the world’s first skyscraper was built here in 1885, Chicago has been a city of tall buildings. As its skyline has changed it has inspired other cities around the world to pursue high-rise solutions of their own.

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During 28 years as architecture critic at the Chicago Tribune, Blair Kamin deepened civic awareness of design. Join Kamin as he revisits three decades of skyline-shaping towers, imaginative local projects and transformations of the public realm.

Refine your eye for design in this special series of programs hosted by notable Chicago architects. Held the first Tuesdays in March, April and May, See Like an Architect examines timeless fundamentals in conceiving and communicating architecture.

The COVID-19 pandemic puts health and safety in homes and workplaces to the test. Improved ventilation and sanitation have taken on special urgency among the many performance aspects of building design. ESD Global executive chairman Raj Gupta and International WELL Building Institute president and CEO Rachel Hodgdon will present examples of office towers being adapted for safe re-occupancy, such as Chicago’s 150 North Riverside, and explain the growing use and relevance of the WELL Building Standard (a certification akin to LEED for energy efficiency) in the healthy buildings movement. Chicago Architecture Center President and CEO Lynn Osmond moderates a discussion to follow, during which speakers will delve into the challenges and opportunities of implementation and competitive advantages for healthy buildings. What will it take to transform our work environments?

The Chicago Architecture Center’s ongoing series of Architect Talks continues with a conversation and guest lecture with 2020 Pritzker Prize laureates Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara of Grafton Architects, co-presented with the Irish Consulate General in Chicago. Founded in 1978, Grafton lays claim to noteworthy projects from Lima to London and is known for embedding each building within its own unique context. The studio’s forward-looking, influential designs have helped elevate modern architecture, cementing Ireland’s reputation as a design capital. Farrell and McNamara will spotlight several civic and institutional works including Milan’s Bocconi University, awarded the inaugural World Building of the Year Award at the World Architecture Festival; UTEC University in Lima, Peru, which received the RIBA International Prize in 2016; and ongoing projects for the City of Dublin, London School of Economics and the University of Arkansas, in addition to recounting their experiences as curators of the 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale. A discussion afterward will further illuminate the architects’ process, work and lifelong commitment to mentorship.

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