This is the first in what we hope will become a regular series of travel dispatches from architects and people interested in architecture. A couple of weeks ago, Auckland architect Daniel Marshall travelled to Chicago, one of the most interesting cities for architecture in the US (or the world, depending on your point of view).
Handing over now to Daniel, who will guide you through his slideshow.
Chicago is a city deservedly proud of its architectural heritage, where even the doorman at Mies van der Rohe’s Lake Shore Drive apartments can provide an animated and almost entirely fictitious account of moments in the city’s architectural history.
I was lucky enough to be invited there a couple of weeks ago to meet with a client, and I spent five days roaming the streets and checking out the city’s rich architectural history. Here are images representing some of the architectural highlights of the trip.
Cocktails at the John Hancock Center, designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, and completed in 1968.
The Crown Fountain in Millennium Park, conceived by Spanish artist Jaume Plensa.
Nichols Bridgeway leaving the modern wing of the Art Institute of Chicago, designed by Renzo Piano Building Workshop. In the background you can see the Frank Gehry-designed Jay Pritzker Pavilion.
Anish Kapoor’s Cloud Gate, a magnet for photo opportunities.
Frank Gehry’s BP Bridge, straddling a freeway between two parks.
Aqua Apartments, designed by Jeanne Gang of Studio Gang Architects.
Crown Hall at the Illinois Institute of Technology by Mies van der Rohe.
860–880 Lake Shore Dr apartments by Mies van der Rohe.
God is in the details at Lake Shore Drive apartments.
Frank Lloyd Wright’s iconic planters at the Robie House. And finally, below, the architect [Ed: Daniel Marshall, not Mies] in repose at Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth House.