Architecture is about far more than any single building, no matter how beautiful, functional or innovative that structure might be. It is about history. And landscape. And urban planning. It is about power and prestige. And ordinary forms of shelter. It is about changes in technology. It is about the use of space, both interior and exterior. It is about the impact of a man-made environment on the physical and emotional well-being of those who inhabit it, and leave their mark on it.
CHICAGO ARCHITECTURE BIENNIAL
When: Oct. 3, 2015 – Jan. 3, 2016
Where: Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington (plus many additional sites throughout the city and beyond)
Tickets: Free (with some exceptions)
Info: www.chicagoarchitecturebiennial.org
All this is what the inaugural Chicago Architecture Biennial has been designed to address. Under the umbrella title of “The State of the Art of Architecture,” this massive event, running Oct. 3, 2015 to Jan. 3, 2016 — will turn the Chicago Cultural Center, that landmark Beaux-Arts building at 78 E. Washington, into its admission-free primary hub of activity (the first time the entire building will be dedicated to a single curatorial project). But there also will be dozens of satellite sites throughout the city and beyond — all part of the Biennial’s goal to bring the spotlight back to this city as a center of architectural thought and discussion in the 21st century.
Beginning with the 1893 Columbian Exposition, and the grand-scale thinking of that “make no small plans” man Daniel Burnham, Chicago was the city to watch for architecture. The birthplace of the modern skyscraper, it served as artistic home to such masters as Louis Sullivan, Dankmar Adler and Frank Lloyd Wright, to name just a few. In the 1950s it was the model for “neighborhood homes,” and later (for better and for worse), it created a blueprint for public housing. Since 1936, it also has been home to the influential firm of Skidmore Owings & Merrill, which has left its imprint on more than 10,000 projects in more than 50 countries. The hope is that during the course of the next few months, the Biennial might make the city the nexus of future thought, too, through a slew of public events, exhibitions, installations, performances, films, tours and, above all, the arrival of visitors from around the globe — both professionals in the field and tourists.
So, how did all this get started?
“The Biennial is a direct outgrowth of the city’s Cultural Plan issued in 2012 by Mayor Emanuel and Michelle Boone [Commissioner of the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events],” said Sarah Herda, director of the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, Chicago, and co-artistic director (with Joseph Grima) of the project. “It is truly a historic event — the first biennial in the history of North America, and the largest exhibition of contemporary architecture here to date.”
“There are many art biennials throughout the world, and we have loosely modeled our project on the Venice Biennale, which began as a showcase for art only, but eventually added architecture. Our goal is to create another event of that stature in the world — one that would focus on the architectural legacy of this city, which was such a laboratory for the American city, as well as on the architecture of today. We are even scheduling it for odd-numbered years as an alternate to Venice’s even-numbered schedule. ”
According to Herda, the Biennial has attracted official participants from about 40 countries and “every continent other than Antarctica.” And during the next three months the project will include the participation of more than 100 partners in all corners of the city and far suburbs — from Millennium Park, City Gallery in the Historic Water Tower and Theaster Gates’ Stony Island Arts Bank on the South Side, to Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House in west suburban Plano, and even the global headquarters of SC Johnson in Racine, Wisconsin, which includes the spectacular Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Administration Building and newly opened Research Tower.
“All the money for the Biennial, a stand-alone non-profit organization, has been privately raised,” said Herda. “And all the events we are directly producing are free and open to public, although certain partners will be charging for events within their own guidelines.”
As for where she might recommend a newcomer to Chicago to stand for the best view of the city, Herda said: “It would actually be a 20-minute drive north along Lake Shore Drive — passing through the parks from the South Shore, past the rolling hills of the Museum Campus, and looking north to the downtown skyline with Lake Michigan on the right.”
Architecture is about far more than any single building, no matter how beautiful, functional or innovative that structure might be. It is about history. And landscape. And urban planning. It is about power and prestige. And ordinary forms of shelter. It is about changes in technology. It is about the use of space, both interior and exterior. It is about the impact of a man-made environment on the physical and emotional well-being of those who inhabit it, and leave their mark on it.
CHICAGO ARCHITECTURE BIENNIAL
When: Oct. 3, 2015 – Jan. 3, 2016
Where: Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington (plus many additional sites throughout the city and beyond)
Tickets: Free (with some exceptions)
Info: www.chicagoarchitecturebiennial.org
All this is what the inaugural Chicago Architecture Biennial has been designed to address. Under the umbrella title of “The State of the Art of Architecture,” this massive event, running Oct. 3, 2015 to Jan. 3, 2016 — will turn the Chicago Cultural Center, that landmark Beaux-Arts building at 78 E. Washington, into its admission-free primary hub of activity (the first time the entire building will be dedicated to a single curatorial project). But there also will be dozens of satellite sites throughout the city and beyond — all part of the Biennial’s goal to bring the spotlight back to this city as a center of architectural thought and discussion in the 21st century.
Beginning with the 1893 Columbian Exposition, and the grand-scale thinking of that “make no small plans” man Daniel Burnham, Chicago was the city to watch for architecture. The birthplace of the modern skyscraper, it served as artistic home to such masters as Louis Sullivan, Dankmar Adler and Frank Lloyd Wright, to name just a few. In the 1950s it was the model for “neighborhood homes,” and later (for better and for worse), it created a blueprint for public housing. Since 1936, it also has been home to the influential firm of Skidmore Owings & Merrill, which has left its imprint on more than 10,000 projects in more than 50 countries. The hope is that during the course of the next few months, the Biennial might make the city the nexus of future thought, too, through a slew of public events, exhibitions, installations, performances, films, tours and, above all, the arrival of visitors from around the globe — both professionals in the field and tourists.
So, how did all this get started?
“The Biennial is a direct outgrowth of the city’s Cultural Plan issued in 2012 by Mayor Emanuel and Michelle Boone [Commissioner of the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events],” said Sarah Herda, director of the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, Chicago, and co-artistic director (with Joseph Grima) of the project. “It is truly a historic event — the first biennial in the history of North America, and the largest exhibition of contemporary architecture here to date.”
“There are many art biennials throughout the world, and we have loosely modeled our project on the Venice Biennale, which began as a showcase for art only, but eventually added architecture. Our goal is to create another event of that stature in the world — one that would focus on the architectural legacy of this city, which was such a laboratory for the American city, as well as on the architecture of today. We are even scheduling it for odd-numbered years as an alternate to Venice’s even-numbered schedule. ”
According to Herda, the Biennial has attracted official participants from about 40 countries and “every continent other than Antarctica.” And during the next three months the project will include the participation of more than 100 partners in all corners of the city and far suburbs — from Millennium Park, City Gallery in the Historic Water Tower and Theaster Gates’ Stony Island Arts Bank on the South Side, to Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House in west suburban Plano, and even the global headquarters of SC Johnson in Racine, Wisconsin, which includes the spectacular Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Administration Building and newly opened Research Tower.
“All the money for the Biennial, a stand-alone non-profit organization, has been privately raised,” said Herda. “And all the events we are directly producing are free and open to public, although certain partners will be charging for events within their own guidelines.”
As for where she might recommend a newcomer to Chicago to stand for the best view of the city, Herda said: “It would actually be a 20-minute drive north along Lake Shore Drive — passing through the parks from the South Shore, past the rolling hills of the Museum Campus, and looking north to the downtown skyline with Lake Michigan on the right.”
More than 300 programs are already slated for the three months of the Biennial. For the complete lineup visit: http://chicagoarchitecturebiennial.org/public-program.
Here are a couple of the many intriguing special elements connected to the Biennial:
+ FOCUS ON CHICAGO: Housed in the Chicago Cultural Center will be “BOLD: Alternative Scenarios for Chicago,” an exhibition of Chicago-based architects that showcases new ideas and alternative development scenarios for the city. Featured will be speculative proposals that re-imagine the design potential of the city’s waterways, roadways, vacant lots and public spaces, as well as new projects that explore the present conditions of the city through film, photography and mapping.
+ DANCE: Jessica Lang Dance (Nov. 6 at the Harris Theater): “Tesseracts of Time,” a world premiere work, commissioned by the Harris in conjunction with the Biennial, will be a collaboration between Lang and 2014 International Architecture Award recipient Steven Holl. Set to music by Morton Feldman, David Lang and Iannis Xenakis, the work explores the four types of architecture: Under, In, On and Over. (www.HarrisTheaterChicago.org)
+ LAKEFRONT KIOSK COMPETITION: Though they won’t be installed until Spring 2016, the winner (selected from 421 entries from designers in more than 40 countries), has been announced. Ultramoderne’s design, titled Chicago Horizon, uses a new carbon-negative engineered lumber product and creates an expansive canopy supported by a series of slender columns. When ultimately placed along Lake Michigan, the kiosk will house a food and beverage vendor, provide shelter and create a new public space along the lakefront.