Usually someone will ask an architect or group of Third Grade Art Awareness

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "Usually someone will ask an architect or group of Third Grade Art Awareness"

Shannon Higgins
3 years ago
Views:

What type of ornament is present in the exterior of the building?
Who was the architect of the first skyscraper in Chicago?
When was the firm of Burnham and Root founded?

1 Class Discussion 15 minutes POWERPOINT #1 Today we are going to talk about architecture. Who can tell me what architecture is? is the art of designing buildings. An architect is the person who does the designing. Architects do a larger kind of art than sculpture they plan buildings. Architects design better places to work and live. Usually someone will ask an architect or group of Third Grade Art Awareness architects to design a building. Let s list some of the things you think an architect has to know before he or she can design a building. Create a list on the board make sure the following points are included: Use It is important to know how a building is going to be used. You would not plan a house the same way you d plan to build an office building. Materials and money available If you build with materials that are readily available in the area it is cheaper than using something that is hard to obtain. Architects must consider the money available and use materials that will make the project stay within a budget. Location It is important to know where a building is going to be built. It would be silly to build an office building in the middle of a residential area. Appearance Architects want to design beautiful buildings. POWERPOINT #2 Once the project has been outlined, the architect can design the building. Chicago has many famous architects. One of them, Daniel Burnham, was instrumental in helping to rebuild Chicago after the Great Chicago Fire of Burnham is responsible for creating some of the first skyscrapers in Chicago but more importantly he is remembered for his influence as a city Daniel Burnham, planner. It was Burnham s plan, still in use, that Architectural firm of Burnham and Root, which was later changed to D.H. Burnham & Company. required lands along the lakefront remain open and available to the public. His vision created the network of parks, nature preserves, beaches, harbors and marinas that we enjoy today. Gr3_ 1

2 We re going to look at a couple of buildings you can see if you visit downtown Chicago that were created by Daniel Burnham s architectural firm. POWERPOINT # 3 The first building is called the Rookery. It is located at 209 S. LaSalle St. The Rookery Building 209 S. LaSalle St. Architectural firm: Burnham and Root Built What details do you notice about this building? Possible answers: lots of windows, very ornate looking, rounded windows, outside ornamentation The Rookery is the oldest high rise building still standing in Chicago. Completed in 1888 by the noted firm of Burnham and Root, it is designed in the Beaux Arts Classical style and was described at its opening as having a powerful exterior with lively ornament. It was constructed in a dual technique using load bearing exterior walls and an interior skeleton of cast and wrought iron that was ground breaking for the time. Four wings surrounded a central light well with modern curtain walls of white glazed brick horizontally layered with ribbons of windows. A glass roof over the stunning lobby enabled every part of the building to receive maximum sunlight. Another famous Chicago architect, Frank Lloyd Wright, remodeled the lobby of this building in 1905 and added some of his complementary Prairie style elements. Does anyone know what the name means? It takes its name from a temporary City Hall and water tank that stood on the site following the Fire of A favorite place for nesting birds and crooked politicians, the spot became known as The Rookery, despite efforts to give the new building a nobler name. POWERPOINT # 4 Reliance Building 32 N. State St. Architectural Firm: Burnham and Root Base built 1890, Upper stories built The next building we are going to look at is the Reliance Building which is located at 32 N. State St. The Reliance Building was the first skyscraper to have large plate glass windows make up the majority of its surface area, foreshadowing a feature of skyscrapers that would become dominant in the 20th century. To Chicagoans of the 1890s, the glass-covered exterior of this building seemed to almost defy gravity. Gr3_ 2

3 The fourteen story Reliance Building is covered with cream-colored terra cotta. Its Gothic-style decorations divide wide expanses of glass and the interior steel framework that supports the building. The light and airy facade is almost entirely windows--both flat and projecting bays--of the type known as a "Chicago window:" a wide fixed pane with narrow movable sash windows flanking it. The severely deteriorated exterior was completely restored by the City of Chicago in POWERPOINT # 5 Discuss the question on the slide Rookery Reliance How are these buildings similar and different? How do you think these buildings compare to more modern skyscrapers? Have general brief discussion Gr3_ 3

4 Project time: 15 minutes Materials in PTO room: 6 to 8 feet of mural paper Construction paper various colors full size and scrap pieces Chalk Materials in classroom: Pencils Glue or glue sticks Scissors Materials from Home: None Activity Background for Parents: Lay out the mural paper on the floor of the classroom. Help the students layout the city. If students finish early give the option of making other elements of the cityscape such as trees, bushes, cars, airplanes, flowers, etc. Help the students to pick a variety of buildings for the city. Explanation to students: We are going to create a class city. Each of you will create one building for this city. I have a selection of construction paper for you to use to create your building. What types of buildings should be in our city? (list on the board) Choose one of the buildings listed. Everyone should try and create a different building for the city so we avoid duplications and make the city interesting. Use construction paper and chalk to create and decorate your building. When you are done we will glue the building onto our mural paper. If you finish early, you can make some additional features for the city, like trees, cars, bushes, clouds, etc. Details may be added with markers. Gr3_ 4

5 Artist Background: This is reference for presenter supportive material so you know more about the artist. Daniel Burnham Daniel Hudson Burnham ( ) was born in Henderson, NY but raised and educated in Chicago. Burnham apprenticed as a draftsman under William LeBaron Jenney who is considered the father of the skyscraper. In 1873 Burnham abruptly left his menial position to start his own firm with John Root, a sharp mechanical mind with no interest in people skills. Each personality seemed to complete the other, Burnham acting as the dreamer and political conduit, Root, the astute draftsman and physics whiz. One of their first commissions was for a Prairie Avenue house for John Sherman, a wealthy industrialist who would conveniently become Burnham"s new father-in-law. With Sherman's civic connections and Burnham's charisma, Burnham and Root quickly assumed a leading role in designing houses for Chicago's wealthiest families. Corporate clients in the Loop, however, catapulted the firm into a far more important level of influence and fame. During this partnership the firm produced such commissions as the Kent House, Masonic Temple (demolished), Monadnock Building, Reliance, Rookery, St. Gabriel's Church, and the Union Stock Yard Gate. Following Root's death in 1891, the firm became known as D.H. Burnham and Co. Its design output continued to be prodigious, including department stores (Marshall Field's), office buildings (People's Gas and the Railway Exchange, at 122 and 224 S. Michigan, respectively), and public buildings (e.g., park fieldhouses, railroad stations, city halls) all across the country. Burnham gained an even greater reputation for his influence as a city planner. Burnham planned the enormous World's Columbian Exposition on Chicago's south lakefront. The largest world's fair to that date, it celebrated the 400 year anniversary of Columbus' voyage to the new world. In 1909, the Commercial Club sponsored the Plan of Chicago, again headed by Burnham who donated his services in hopes of achieving more of his own aims. Using some of his south lakefront plans and conceptual designs as a base, he envisioned a new Chicago as a "Paris on the Prairie" with French inspired public works constructions, fountains and boulevards radiating from a central, domed municipal palace. At his death in 1912, Daniel Burnham's company was the world's largest architectural firm and had become the model for countless later firms that utilized global business techniques instead of the traditional methods of earlier architects. He had become the head of the American Institute of Architects and been named by President Taft to be Chairman of the Committee on the Fine Arts. Gr3_ 5

ARCHITECTURE 101. This is a reading is designed to give architectural empowerment and increases your comfort using building vocabulary.

ARCHITECTURE 101. This is a reading is designed to give architectural empowerment and increases your comfort using building vocabulary. ARCHITECTURE 101 How many times have you tried to describe a building to someone and ended up saying, And it has one of those curly thingamajigs under the eave? This is a reading is designed to give architectural

Usually someone will ask an architect or group of Third Grade Art Awareness

What type of ornament is present in the exterior of the building?

Who was the architect of the first skyscraper in Chicago?

When was the firm of Burnham and Root founded?