Great Houses of Chicago, Mrs. Huxtable's "Terroir" & Financial Times Montage

This post has three subjects that have a random, subtle relationship. I didn't plan it but they share ideas about the sense of place that surrounds a design.

The first is an extended review of a great and heavy new book about rich people's houses in Chicago. My review was originally published on the Society of Architectural Historians Chicago Chapter Blog - this version is more personal and wanders a bit.

The second is simply a recommendation that you buy the Wall Street Journal if for no other reason than to get Mrs. Huxtable's occasional essay - especially her recent exploration of context vs. destination and spectacle architecture.

The third subject is an image - the Financial Times widespread campaign that uproots all the world's major modern banks and trading structures (some imagined, I suppose) and plops them on an island.

Great Houses of Chicago 1871-1921

Susan Benjamin and Stuart Cohen

Foreword by Franz Schulze and Arthur H. Miller

9 x 12 inches, 334 pages, ISBN: 978-0-926464-39-8 •

$75.00 Acanthus Press

Synopsis: An essential reference tool for Chicago architecture, interior design, decorative art and history libraries.

SAH and Chicago Chapter members Susan Benjamin and Stuart Cohen have produced the most comprehensive overview on Chicago’s mansions, castles and residential fortresses.

This outstanding volume balances diverse sources and matches the pantheon of architects with those early patrons - the pioneers, nouveau riche and old eastern money. Nearly 350 sepia toned photographs, drawings, and floor plans are breathtaking in scope and detail. The visual content effectively evokes the muffled footsteps of parlor maids and rebukes by gruff railroad barons.

Rare figures of inhabitants intervene only occasionally; a child on a tricycle, Mr. Eliphalet Blatchford in his library but mostly the human presence consists of portraits above highly embellished fireplaces. The majority of these pictures were taken as silent documents of wealth and expressions of erudition but they evoke a surprisingly shaky, unconfident sense of style.

Even so, readers will derive a clear sense of each family’s private aesthetic and public facade. Interior design and decorative arts are as compelling as the structures. Paintings, sculpture, textiles, carvings, animal skins, all manner of souvenirs from grand tours and chotzkes galore - are piled in impeccable abandon.

It's tempting to search for the very few objects that found their way to the Art Insitute's collection.

The Editorial content is superb in providing the ontology of Chicago’s residential style, social context, family history and the sources of wealth.

Great Chicago Houses is also peppered with aridly amusing anecdotes. It makes a surprisingly entertaining read.

I was especially touched by the 1903 Julius Rosenwald House by Nimmons & Fellows and the authors' treatment. The book’s testimony to one of the greatest of Chicago’s early entrepreneurs and philanthropists is gracious and the house itself is uncomplicated but beautifully designed.

The strange sadness that pervade the book - especially for a lifelong Chicagoan - is linked with the number of demolished structures. I've been thinking about this a lot lately. These captains of industry built these palazzo's on the prairie to last. The quality of workmanship and materials was meant to echo the european structures that they saw on their trips. It was one of their frequent and futile, strikes at immortality. I wonder if they imagined that their children would inhabit the houses after them, shuddering from the capitalistic ghosts of their patriarchs or if they thought there would be tremendous competition to acquire their peculiar ornate newel posts (done - but in salvage yards).

For the great majority - their ghosts left with a wrecking ball within fifty or sixty years! They built with a sense of permanence and luxury that would institutionalize their memories but technology, location and that wierd, short cycle - 30 years after construction - when vernacular architecure becomes distasteful - killed a lot of them.

Chicago's growth continues -- inevitable, consistent and totally unrepentant in ravaging the past.

One note for the 2nd edition: while some photo dates are available in the Illustration Credits, label dates or indication of the probable range when the pictures were taken (circa) or even “date unknown” would provide an even richer context. Knowing if the varnish on the spindles is dry or decades old would add polish to this significant volume.

Below: Julius Rosenwald Residence: Demolished

Images courtesy of Acanthus Press.

Again, With Mrs. H.

Mrs. Huxtable's brilliant contruction in the Wall Street Journal includes an archicentric use of the word "terroir" and this ruthlessly correct phrase:

"None of this matters; superperfectionism seems stale and out of date."

As usual, I agree with every character she writes even though a good friend has admonished
not to idolize, deify or carve a pedastal - I can't help myself. Why don't we hear her.

It reminds me of what Frank Lloyd Wright said about Adlai Stevenson: "He didn't win because Americans don't like a thinking man in the White House."

The Financial Times Version of the Island of Doctor Moreau

Try to get a cab or a 2 bedroom vintage rental.

Mrs. Huxtable in WSJ on Early Soviet Modernism

Mrs. H's new review of MoMA's photo show that documents dissapearing early modernism is classic Huxtable. The exhibition, book and her article demonstrate the importance of memory - that the early Soviet ideals included a place for new art and architecture and their influence on society. This period of bold utopian ideals embodied in design is still fresh and relevant. Unfortunately, freedom of expression was short-lived and it's a terrible shame.

Be sure to click on the slide show.

She ends the article with an account of visiting an elderly, forgotten master. This story within the article is a little slice of Pushkin. She rocks on and this is more rationale for an autobiography.

There is no mention of my favorite: Tatlin's Tower but a radio tower in the slide show embodies some astonishing constructivist features.

SAH Chicago Dual Subject Tour at U of I - Chicago

The Society of Architectural Historians – Chicago Chapter invites you to join us for a tour and reception on Saturday, September 29th, 2007.

Dual Subjects: Netsch Design for the U of I at Chicago

& The 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition Collection at Henry Hall

Hosted by David Sokol and Keith Bringe

The tour kicks off from Henry Hall (click here for printable map), 935 West Harrison \

at 1:00 pm. A reception will follow.

Takamura Ko-un's Ram-ma from the Hooden – or Japanese Pavillion.

Collection: U of I - Department of Art History

RSVP to Keith at 708-358-1394.

Free for members of SAH-Chicago. $10 for non-members.

Take advantage of this special offer; join SAH-Chicago for a full year of great tours, receptions and events at just $25 for individuals and tour for free.
Download this form and bring it with you.

The tour will include a viewing of the Ram-ma - two monumental carved screens that were featured in the Japanese Pavillion, or Hooden in 1893. This popular and influential feature of the Expo exerted tremendous influence on Frank Lloyd Wright, as well as the community. Unfortunately, these rare surviving 19th century gifts from the Imperial Government of Japan are in terrible condition and are in dire need of conservation and restoration. They were “rediscovered” in the early 1970’s – wrapped in canvas stored under the bleachers at Soldier’s Field. This is an excellent period overview on the Hooden including the Ram-ma. The Ram-ma were positioned at the level of a clerestory and served as ventillation panels.

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U of I Tour Part 2: Netsch Campus Design

Walter Netsch original design for the U of I represents a watershed in the history of urban campus design. Netsch was inspired by the idea of a drop of water with waves emanating from a central court - or "forum". The design was visionary and was the first true expression of his Field Theory, but the political circumstances of the University's development and community response have combined to dilute the original vision. We will view surviving buildings and discuss the evolution of the campus. Read Betty Blum's "Chicago Architects Oral History" interview with Netsch (pages 191 - 218).

The Behavioral Sciences Building expresse a jump forward

in approach to academic form andd function.

Heartache For Sale

Starting Wednesday, August 22 this incredible piece of art will be auctioned through Ebay.
It will be auction number 230163017817 -- and this important document of prison life is all about the numbers. Here is a preview of the listing:

This is an original important, oil on burlap painting from one of the first "OFFICIAL" Stateville Art Shows. It measures approx. 29 inches wide by 37 inches long. This appears to be the original artwork that was used for a printed poster.

The artist is August G Mendez and I have searched on the internet for any reference to this artist with little luck. I checked and he is not currently incarcerated.

The subject is an intelligent and well-balanced hybrid of 1970's "supergraphics" and Mexican folk painting or textile design contrasted by an INCREDIBLE, monochromatic inset of the prison itself.

This guy was a good painter and smart, to boot.

If I were a critic I would say he successfully contrasts the bleakness of prison life against the beauty of freedom.

The color is amazing with very controlled mixing of hue and tone.

There are three forms of identification on the piece;

First - the artist has poignantly incorporated his prisoner number into the image: 66720.

Second: the verso reads, in permanent marker;
August G. Mendez
#66720
"Stateville Poste(r)"

Third: There is a deteriorated typed paper label on the side. All that is left is the number 66720.
CONDITION: The stretcher seems to have warped but I think the frame - which is cheap stained trim nailed directly to the stretcher - has caused this and it can easily be fixed (but I hope the high bidder will keep this material as a part of the whole - for archival purposes).

The framing has suffered some discoloration.

Also - there is a tiny drip of white paint near the lower right edge that I think could be removed with just a little work.

Shipping is high via UPS insured with special packing at $110.00. International shippers will pay actual cost per estimate before invoice.

I WILL BE OUT OF CONTACT FOR THE FIRST FOUR DAYS OF THE DURATION OF THIS SALE WITH NO ABILITY TO CHECK EMAIL AND WILL RETURN ON AUGUST 26TH . I APOLOGIZE IF THIS CAUSES ANY PROBLEMS.

On a brighter note: I'm leaving for the farm and that's gonna be a blast. My eyes get tired from looking at the mountains.

And there are some other Ebay auctions starting Sunday including some great turquoise McCoy

And original engravings from the 1st/2nd edition of Encyclopedia Britannica

(Pictured: "Eclipse")

Formes et Couleurs Suite of August Thomas

ART DECO COLORS

A friend dissolved his family's estate last year and it was enormous comprised of a century of collecting. He had lived with all this stuff for so long that he responded by paring it all down to just a few things and of all the thousands of objects he could have taken he chose this rare suite of twenty plates that exemplify art deco color and design in Paris circa 1921.

He had the plates archivally framed and they form an incredible gallery. Each plate has a number of sections - or decorative schemes. This would have been an invaluable guide for artists and designers. It's a revelation about this period especially in the use of incredibly rich color which are as fresh today as they were 86 years ago.

Pochoir is the meticulous print-making art of stenciling. Some of these plates have up to twenty colors so each stencil was applied and then the color needed to dry before the next color would be applied. Excuse the flash spots.

Julie Thoma Wright - In Memorium

Martha Graham to Agnes De Mille in a private letter:

There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening
that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique.

If you block it - it will never exist through any other medium and be lost.

The world will not have it.

It is not your business to determine how good it is; nor how valuable it is; nor how it compares to other expressions.

It is your business to keep it yours, clearly and directly, to keep the channel open.

You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work.

You have to keep open.

You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work.

You have to keep open and aware directly to the urges that motivate you.

Keep the channel open.

NO artist is pleased. There is no satisfaction whatever at any time.

There is only a queer, divine dissatisfaction; a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others…

From the New York Times:

Julie Thoma Wright, a founder and co-owner of Wright, the Chicago auction house that helped create the market for 20th-century modern design, died on Monday in Chicago. She was 49.

The cause was colorectal cancer, her husband, Richard Wright, said.

Ms. Thoma Wright, an interior designer, founded Wright in Chicago in 2000 with Mr. Wright, who was at the time a private dealer in collectible 20th-century postwar design. Ms. Thoma Wright’s vision for promoting the still-nascent field at auction contrasted with and eventually helped transform the traditionally dry approach at the large international houses like Phillips de Pury, Christie’s and Sotheby’s.

“She basically brought the concept of auctions into the 21st century,” James Zemaitis, director of 20th century design at Sotheby’s in New York, said of Ms. Thoma Wright. “From the first, the catalogues looked like fashion or lifestyle magazines..”

Auction prices for modern design now keep pace with prices for contemporary art. Ms. Thoma Wright was something of a design object herself, dressed in vintage Chanel or Hermès.

Julie Christianne Thoma was born Feb. 25, 1958, in Le Mars, Iowa, one of eight children. After graduating from Iowa State University with a degree in interior design, she moved to Chicago, starting a design firm, Julie Thoma Inc., in 1985. She met Mr. Wright in 1992; they were married in 1995. Returning to residential design that year, she started a new firm, Thoma Wright Ltd.

Her marriage to Joseph Pagoria ended in divorce. She is survived by her husband, Mr. Wright; a son, Nicholas, from her first marriage; her sons with Mr. Wright, Emerson and Adler; her mother, Gladys Thoma; her sisters, Gloria Ohlendorf, Barbara Espeland, Janet Higgins, Nancy Groetken, Glenda Lockard and Kelli Thoma; and her brother, Roger Thoma.

End New York Times

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I met Julie only a few times but the character and beauty of her discourse were consistent and simply extraordinary. The first time I met her was in the fall of 2002 during the third week of my tenure as director of Unity Temple Restoration Foundation. The separate, congregation had full control of some furniture and an important vase that had been sold well under market value by another auction house (than Wright). It was controversial and created a conflict and led to considerable bad press for the Restoration Foundation including a full page 3 article in the Washington Post. The historic preservation community was ‘up in arms’.

I didn’t know about it, but a former employee had authorized Julie to do photography of a Frank Lloyd Wright barrel chair on the east terrace of Unity Temple for a sale. This was a conflict with the idea of historic preservation we were trying to brand.

When I arrived at work I met the photo crew on the east terrace – the light was beautiful and the objects were perfectly lit and I thought, “Dear lord this is a conflict with what we are trying to do…”

I asked who was in charge and was referred to a leggy blond in Prada. Her fashion was subtle and present – a cream blouse, black pants and chunky shoes - like your best girlfriend from high school with some fabulous couture sponsorship. A turquoise necklace and just frank simple beauty.

I said, “We need to talk.” And we sat down on the steps. And here’s the extraordinary part and this is consistent with all my dealings with Julie and Richard; she said, “Oh my god – I understand this COMPLETELY.” Her ethical base and Wright's idea is about truth and beauty.

They spent serious money on setting this photo shoot up and she had the right to do it and she just just cut it off. She whispered to the handlers and they loaded up and left.

And I felt it so deeply. It was a tough time for me and after they had packed up I went to a corner of that masterpiece church and I really thought about her kindness – and her ethical approach to her work.

The next time I heard from Wright20 was a sort of safety check and they wanted to help with the restoration. They had sent some good money and it was my first check. It underwrote a tour of Seymour Persky’s collection so it was money that grew. The photo at the top is Julie and Richard in a common, happy pause.

I had just asked Julie if Richard was happy with the event and she walked across the room and put her head on his shoulder. I asked her to stop ‘necking’ and she turned around.

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Postscript: I published this entry and I received an email within 20 minutes from a collector

saying that he is heartbroken and he asks the question about fairness and I say that we all share that grief and that question.